Ryan Fox of New Zealand survived a wild ride along the back nine of Royal Birkdale and delivered the biggest putt of his life Sunday, making a 12-foot birdie on the final hole to win the British Open for his first major title.
Four players had a share of the lead at some point Sunday. Cameron Young was atop the leaderboard for two hours without hitting a shot because he finished his astonishing 6-under 64 when the leaders were on the front nine.
Fox never lost hope, even after a pair of bogeys on the back, and the 39-year-old son of an All Blacks rugby player delivered the goods when it counted. He birdied the 16th to tie Young for the lead, and then made birdie on the toughest hole to become the third Kiwi to win a major.
Fox closed with a 2-under 68 and thrust both of those powerful arms into the air. He was on the phone with his family moments later and heard saying, “You asked me to bring a trophy home, and I am, aren’t I?”
His name will go on the base of that shiny claret jug, joining Bob Charles of New Zealand from 1963.
His sterling moment brought more disappointment for Young. The American also finished one shot behind in the British Open at St. Andrews four years ago, and he had a Sunday lead on the front nine at the Masters until Rory McIlroy overtook him.
“I gave it everything I had all the way through,” Young said when he finished. He was on the range when he heard the cheer for Fox. Young declined interviews when it was over.
Sam Burns takes 3rd-round lead in a British Open he planned to miss
Sam Burns, the 54-hole leader who was never planning to be at the Open until his wife gave birth to their daughter earlier than expected, lost a two-shot lead and didn’t make birdie over the last 12 holes to finish two shots behind.
Defending champion Scottie Scheffler somehow managed to stick around until the end, getting two bad bounces that cost him momentum, then getting one big break for a most improbable birdie but failing to birdie the 18th. He closed with a 67 and shared fourth with hometown star Tommy Fleetwood, who fell back early but thrilled the thousands packed along the dunes with a birdie-birdie finish for a 68.
Missing from all drama, remarkably, was Bryson DeChambeau. He lost a golf ball and made triple bogey on the 11th hole and didn’t make a birdie until he was well out of contention. That two-shot penalty he received Friday for improving the path of his swing wasn’t an issue at the end. DeChambeau shot a 72 and tied for 14th.
Fox won for the 10th time worldwide, his biggest title before Sunday coming at the BMW PGA Championship in 2023. He is the oldest first-time major champion since Henrik Stenson was 40 at Royal Troon 10 years ago.
Fox finished at 10-under 270, got his hands on the jug and heard those magic words when he was introduced as the “Champion Golfer of the Year.”
“I’m not quite sure how I hit that putt on 18. Look, it is a dream come true,” Fox said. “Looking at that trophy now, it’s the first time I’ve seen it up close. So it’s pretty amazing.”
Young was flawless until the final hole, his tee shot finding a pot bunker. He tried to open the face of a 6-iron but caught it thin and it smacked into the vetted wall and into the rough. He hit the next shot into a greenside bunker and nearly holed it for par. The bogey put him at 9-under 271.
Burns was losing ground quickly on the front nine with three straight bogeys, none more damaging than a pitch to the reachable par-4 fifth hole that went over the back of the green.
Si Woo Kim emerged as the leader going to the back nine until he made bogeys on the 11th and 12th holes, and fell out of contention for good with a pair of late bogeys that added to a 40 on the back nine for 72.
And then there was Young, at the top of the leaderboard, the wind gaining strength and the challenge to match him looking tougher by the hole.
Fox fell two shots behind Young’s score when he missed a 6-foot par putt on the 11th.
He hit his approach to 12 feet on the 13th for birdie, then hit a superb pitch to 3 feet for birdie on the par-5 14th to tie Young.
DeChambeau penalized 2 shots at British Open after Herbert, Burns shoot 62s in wild 2nd round
But his hopes took a nasty turn on the par-5 15th when his tee shot caromed off the side of a bunker and settled next to the lip, leaving him no stance and no shot. He smartly played away from the back pin to the fairway, chipped from 45 yards away to 6 feet and made bogey.
It was as big as any shot he hit until the last.
He rallied with another clutch shot to 10 feet for birdie on the 16th to again tie with Young, and right when it looked as though the Open was headed for its first playoff in 11 years, Fox came up with a winner.
Fleetwood found the raucous ovation to be a consolation. He grew up in Southport and long dreamed of winning an Open at Royal Birkdale. He holed a 65-foot putt on the first hole that brought the loudest cheer of the day. And he was one shot behind as he played the ninth.
But he dropped three straight shots and the hope was gone. Even so, the ovation on the 18th hole was one he won’t forget.
“This disappointment that I didn’t win today or I couldn’t get it done when I was in a really good position, of course there’s only one person that gets to win it, and my dream of winning The Open will carry on and I’ll continue to chase it,” Fleetwood said.
“But stuff like that, walking down 18 and the atmosphere out there, that was beyond stuff that I’ve dreamt of. That was just stuff that I never imagined.”
