Ryan Fox has lifted the Claret Jug as he won the 154th Open Golf Championship at Royal Birkdale.
Around 300,000 visitors from around the world clocked to Southport for an impressive tournament in beautiful sunshine.
Ryan Fox was the man who kept cool in the baking conditions, with a 10-under-par total of 270.
The 39-year-old New Zealander, who is the son of All Black rugby legend Grant Fox, shot a two-under 68 to finish one ahead of American Cameron Young and lift the trophy, just three shots ahead of Southport’s Tommy Fleetwood.
When asked how it felt to win, Ryan said: “Surreal, to be honest. It’s something you dream of.
“I used to get up in the middle of the night to watch this tournament back home. It was always something that was there just to be able to play in it, first up, and now to be an Open champion, to be the Champion Golfer of the Year, it’s unbelievable, surreal, crazy.
“I don’t have enough words in my vocabulary to explain it, to be honest.”
When asked whether that’s probably the best golf he’s ever played in his life, the way he tackled that 18th hole, and about the emotions coming up there, he said: “Yeah, definitely the first part. I mean, I hit two shots exactly how I wanted to hit them. I didn’t feel anything for the putt; everything was shaking that much. I was just happy to hit it somewhat near the hole, and to see it go in was incredible.
“I did say to my caddie, Dean, on the tee that we were going to take it on, that I was going to try to win the tournament, and I’d live with the consequences if I stuffed it up. To go out there and execute that drive is not a very comfortable tee shot, obviously, and to hit it in the fairway and give myself a chance was huge.
“Then I landed on a good number. I think I had 160 metres to the hole. The breeze was a little down off the left. Obviously everything is a bit jammed up there, so it was just a solid 9, and I hit it exactly where I wanted to hit it. I think I screamed to it, “Please be good,” in the air, and it was.
“To cap it off with a putt — everyone practises on the green, I guess, you’ve got to putt to win a major championship, to win The Open. It’s not like that in real life. It’s not a very comfortable feeling. It’s certainly very enjoyable when you see it go in.
“The crowd was amazing. There were a lot of Kiwi accents in the crowd. There seems to be Kiwis everywhere, especially in the UK. You could definitely hear them loudly over all of this week, especially today.
“It felt like the English crowd got behind me for whatever reason.
“I was trying not to get too caught up in it coming down the stretch, just kind of focus on what I could control.
“Yeah, the reception coming into 18 was — even before I’d hit the putt was one of the coolest things I’ve ever experienced. Obviously after making it was unreal. I can’t thank the fans enough for their support. It was awesome.
“I think Royal Birkdale is one of the best courses on The Open rota, and the changes they made for this year were incredible. I can now say I’m looking forward to coming back whenever it is going to be here next time.”
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