The European Tour say a clerical error resulted in Tommy Fleetwood’s prize money for The Open mistakenly being paid to a random man named Tommy Fleetwood.
The American Tommy Fleetwood shared a screenshot showing he had been credited $154,480 by the European Tour.
That man is a PGA club pro and teacher in Florida bearing the same name as the English golfer. The organisers apologised for the mistake and have made efforts to transfer the money to the correct account.
Fleetwood finished in a tie for 12th at Carnoustie, but his namesake cashed in as he was mistakenly sent the money, his friend Greg Thorner was with him when he discovered that his account had been credited.
No joke, a friend received Tommy Fleetwood's Open Championship winnings in his bank account last weekend!! They have the same name and he was a PGA pro but still, how does this happen? Didn't believe him until I saw it...good thing he is an honest guy! pic.twitter.com/bE534xfYDV
— #Break30 Golf Short Game School (@GregThornerGolf) August 8, 2018
He tweeted a screenshot of his online banking profile which revealed the six-figure wedged in between a supermarket payment of $14.37 and a service fee of $16.
Speaking at Bellerive ahead of the US PGA Championship, Tommy Fleetwood said: "I honestly didn't know anything about it. I wouldn't even know if I'd been paid or not because I don't really look.
"It looks pretty genuine and they (the European Tour) are looking into it and I'm sure they'll feel pretty bad about it. It's a funny story.
"It's just something I don't really look at but I'll get on top of that!"
A spokesperson for the European Tour said: "This was a clerical error which we are resolving and we apologise for the inconvenience caused to both parties."
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