Ryan Fox did something no New Zealander had done in 21 years. He won a major championship. And he did it with a Sunday charge that turned Royal Birkdale into his personal highlight reel.
Fox shot a 62 on Saturday to put himself in position, but Sunday was where he earned it. The 18th hole at Birkdale is a beast. Par is a good score there. Fox made birdie. That shot, a 15-footer that curled in from the left side, gave him a 10-under total and kept Cameron Young from forcing a playoff.
Young had set the target hours earlier. He shot a 64 on Sunday morning, got to nine-under, and then sat in the clubhouse waiting. Waiting to see if anyone could match him. Nobody did until Fox stepped up and slammed the door.
Fox made three birdies on the back nine — 13, 14 and 16 — to pull even with Young. He had a chance on 17, the par-five, but the birdie putt slid by. That left him with one hole to get it done. And he got it done.
The Sam Burns stumble
Sam Burns held the 54-hole lead at 10-under and looked like he might run away with it early Sunday. He got to 11-under. That was the low point of the tournament. Then he made three straight bogeys. The killer came on 14 when a bunker shot went sideways and left him no look at birdie. He never recovered. Burns finished tied for third but had to watch from there as Fox and Young battled it out.
Bryson’s penalty, Scottie’s frustration
The week started with Bryson DeChambeau taking a two-shot penalty on Friday. He handled it about as well as you’d expect. He played through it, shot a 69 on Saturday, and hung around. But Sunday was all about the leaders. DeChambeau started with eight straight pars and never made a serious move. A final-round 72 left him T-14. Nobody will remember that part.
Scottie Scheffler came in as the defending champion from the 2025 Open. He had a chance. A weird moment on the 17th — some arguing, a ruling, the whole thing — put him right in the mix. But he bogeyed 18, same as Young, and finished at seven-under. Close, but not close enough.
Major season wraps
Rory McIlroy started the 2026 major season by winning his second straight Masters. Aaron Rai followed with his first major at the PGA. Wyndham Clark won the U.S. Open at Shinnecock. That left the Open as the last piece. Fox took it.
His name is in the history books now. First New Zealander since Michael Campbell at the 2005 U.S. Open to win a major. And he earned it the hard way, on a Sunday where nothing came easy and one putt made all the difference.
Leave a Comment