Ryan Fox has had a few wild weeks lately, but nothing quite like the 24 hours after his stunning Canadian Open victory.
Just four weeks after his first-ever PGA Tour win, Foxy’s gone and done it again, defeating Sam Burns in a four-hole play off at the RBC Canadian Open.
Fresh off his second PGA Tour win, the Kiwi golfer spoke to The Morning Rumble this morning (June 10) in his first interview since lifting the trophy. Turns out, the chaos didn’t end with that nervy four-hole playoff.
“That win got me into the U.S. Open,” Fox said, “not through winning, just purely through world ranking. They had a cutoff yesterday, and so my wife and I were awake at 1:30, 2:00 in the morning trying to find a house for this week.”
Fox and his family flew to Pittsburgh shortly after his win in preparation for the 125th US Open: “I think we’re in Pittsburgh. I’m not quite sure, really,” he told The Morning Rumble.
And fair enough that’s he’s not even sure where he is right now too - it’s been a whirlwind 24-or-so hours for the NZ golfer. It was great to be able to talk to him this morning as he reflected on yesterday’s win.
After needing a birdie on the 18th just to force a playoff, Fox drained a “dead weight” putt that just hung on the left edge. “I kind of thought that putt was going to miss left, and it just hung on… obviously it went in.”
What followed was the kind of playoff that had a bit of everything.
“It kind of felt like a pillow fight early,” he said. “You know, I’d given Sam that putt on the first playoff hole. I thought there’s no chance he’s missing that, and then it doesn’t hit the hole... I thought I’d made my putt before him, and that just missed.”
Still, Fox stayed composed, surviving through some nervy moments until the fourth playoff hole, where he made the decision that would define the tournament.
“You feel like in a playoff, you’ve got to give it a go,” he said. “[It] just kind of felt like you’ve got nothing to lose. The worst that can happen is finish second. Obviously, I really want to win, but [I had to] get up there and try to execute a good shot.”
And he did.
“I can probably safely say that’s the best shot I’m going to hit in my golfing career, and I’m probably okay with that.”
From 230-odd metres into the wind, Fox flushed a 3-wood to 10 feet. “You’re at the mercy of the wind. I did everything I could control really well. I hit the shot I wanted to hit and just kind of praying for it to be the right distance.”
He knew it was good when he heard the roar of the crowd. “That’s what you dream of, hitting those kinds of shots under pressure… Pretty sweet.”
Foxy comes away with just short of $3 million NZD, 500 FedEx Cup points, a start at next year’s Players Championship, Masters and PGA Championship, as well as PGA Tour exemption through until the end of 2027, and of course - a spot at the US Open this week at Oakmont.
After hearing some stories, he’s approaching the major with a mix of excitement and dread.
When Mulls asked Foxy if he’d had a crack at Oakmont yet, the Kiwi Golfer said no.
“I didn’t touch my clubs today, so I kind of just sat in the clubhouse, ate some food and kind of looked out over the whole property, which was amazing,” he said.
“All I’ve heard so far is horror stories, which is kind of scary,” he admitted.
One such horror story? A chat with Northern Irish Golfer Rory McIlroy at the physio table.
“I’m chatting to Rory about it on the physio table, and he said, ‘I played it on Monday. They had the greens running a little fast. I felt like I played all right… and I birdied the last two for 81.’
“I think they kind of tricked it up to see how far they could push it that day, and they might have pushed it a little too far. But yeah, when the Masters champion is telling you he felt like he played all right and shot 81, I think it puts the fear of God into you a little bit.”
There’s also a bit of poetic timing to it all, Bryce pointed out. It’s been 20 years since fellow Kiwi Michael Campbell won the U.S. Open at Pinehurst.
“Yeah, that’s pretty cool synergy,” Fox said. “Obviously I’d love to replicate that. There’s also 150 other guys that are pretty damn good trying to do the same thing. So we’ll see what happens.”
But Foxy says he’s just gonna keep ‘riding the wave.’
“It’s obviously going pretty good at the moment. A completely life-changing month for me in that respect. I’ll be trying to emulate him - slash trying to break 80.”
It’s certainly been a month that’s flipped Ryan Fox’s career on its head, and we couldn’t be more stoked for him.
Go well in the US Open this week mate - we’re all behind you.
