Fox was ready to quit; now he’s the British Open Champion

He was ready to give up the game. Ryan Fox was so discouraged with his play after a round in the Australian Open, his second year as a golf pro, that he questioned his career as a professional golfer. 

That was 13 years ago. Sunday Fox won the British Open.

That he didn’t quit was because his father, Grant, a one-time All Blacks rugby star in New Zealand, who was working as his caddy, persuaded him that the game should be fun.

It certainly is now.

Fox, at the age of 39, is the oldest Open winner since Henrik Stenson, who was 40 when he won at Royal Troon in 2016.

Fox, having won his first major, shooting a final-round 2-under par 68 on historic Royal Birkdale, a golf course that, because of a heat wave and no rain in northwest England, was dry and full of bounces and, for some, full of bogeys. 

Fox’s 72-hole score of 9-under 261 was one shot lower than hard-luck Cameron Young, whose second-place finish duplicated that in the 2022 British Open. 

That one was at St Andrews, where the tournament will be held next summer. 

Sam Burns, who was two shots ahead after the third round, didn’t make a birdie on the last 12 holes, had a 2-over 72 and came in third, two shots behind.

Scottie Scheffler, trying to repeat as Open winner, had a closing 67 and, at 7-under 273, shared fourth place with local favorite Tommy Fleetwood, who also shot a 67.

The final championship stroke was an 11-ft putt for one of only five birdies on the last day on Royal Birkdale’s 18th. 

Moments after it dropped, Fox was on the phone to his family and could be heard saying,

“You asked me to bring a trophy home, and I am, aren’t I?”  

That trophy, of course, is the Claret Jug. 

Fox’s journey to the summit has been one of distance and persistence. He played in Australia, on the DP World Tour, the Korn Ferry Tour, and finally the PGA Tour. He won the RBC Canadian Open last year. 

He’s not only successful, he’s also speedy. His caddie, Dean Smith, called him “probably the fastest player in the world,” an admirable label in an activity that sometimes becomes dreadfully slow.

He would be a welcome guest at San Francisco’s famed Olympic Club, where there is a bench at the first tee that says: “Play fair, play fast.” 

Fox started Thursday with a 2 over 72 and was deep in the pack. After a 68 in the second round, he tied the major tournament record of 62, which Lucas Herbert and Sam Burns had recorded on Friday. 

“I’m not quite sure how I hit that putt on 18,” Fox would say. “It’s a dream come true. Looking at that trophy now, it’s the first time I’ve seen it up close. So it is pretty amazing.”

So, you could say it is Ryan Fox’s time.