Beth Mead, Ben Stokes, Ronnie O’Sullivan, Jessica Gadirova, Eve Muirhead and Jake Wightman were named on the shortlist for the award, which will be decided on Wednesday night.
Fitzpatrick’s omission sparked fury in golf circles, with Poulter leading the backlash. “Sorry but complete disregard for [Fitzpatrick] makes this event a continued farce and joke,” he added.
Poulter himself has history with Spoty, having been overlooked for the shortlist in 2012 despite his heroics in helping Europe win the Ryder Cup. He won all four of his matches in the remarkable comeback win, dubbed the Miracle at Medinah.
“I experienced first hand how much of a joke this was 10 years ago,” he said. “Promised myself then I’d never waste time attending or watching again.”
In June, Fitzpatrick became the first Englishman since Justin Rose in 2013 to win the US Open. Rose later tweeted his own shock at Fitzpatrick’s absence from the shortlist, saying: “One question – What about [Fitzpatrick] and his [US Open] win this year?” Rose himself was nominated after his US Open victory but finished ninth in a field of 10 nominees.
Telegraph Sport last month revealed that Fitzpatrick had planned to snub the ceremony, even had he been nominated, with a feeling inside the game that golfers are overlooked for the BBC end-of-year prize. No golfer has won it since Sir Nick Faldo in 1989.
Lineker will present Wednesday night’s show – fresh from fronting coverage of the World Cup – with Clare Balding, Gabby Logan and Alex Scott alongside him.
The shortlist is picked by an independent panel of experts, which this year included former Olympian Denise Lewis, Paralympian Kelly Gallagher and ex-snooker player Stephen Hendry. Their selection is based on “the sportsperson whose sporting actions have most captured the UK public’s imagination during 2022” and the ultimate winner will be decided by public vote during the live broadcast from Media City in Salford.
It is expected that most of the nominees will attend tonight’s show, plus hundreds of other stars, including many of the Lionesses, Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill and Sir Chris Hoy.
The lifetime achievement award will be presented to former sprint champion Usain Bolt, while Lionel Messi has been selected as the world sports star of the year.
