Ryan Fox is now a winner on the PGA Tour. At 38 years old, he won the Myrtle Beach Classic this Sunday, securing his first career victory on the North American circuit. He is the first New Zealander to win on the tour since 2015, when Danny Lee triumphed at the Greenbrier Classic.
With two holes to go, it didn’t seem like it was going to be his week. He was two shots behind Mackenzie Hughes after teeing off at the 17th at Dunes Golf Club, but a birdie by the New Zealander on that hole and a bogey by the Canadian on the decisive 72nd hole of the tournament sent the outcome to a three-way playoff with American Harry Higgs also in the mix. Fox handed in a clubhouse card of 66 strokes with five flawless birdies and headed to his first playoff on the tour.
Hughes was seeking his third victory on the PGA Tour, precisely in his third playoff. His two wins had come in playoffs, but Fox wanted his moment of glory. Thirteen years after turning professional, his time to reign on the PGA Tour had arrived. He was going to do it in style. With a 15-metre chip, he achieved an incredible birdie on the first playoff hole. Higgs missed his eight-metre putt, and Hughes missed his four-metre putt, and thus Fox was crowned champion.
Fox’s last professional victory had been at Wentworth in September 2023. Over the past eleven months, he had been going through a bit of a results crisis. This season, aside from a top 20 at The Players and a top 15 in Houston, he hadn’t been contending for the top spots in tournaments any week. He acknowledges feeling a weight lifted off his shoulders: “In ’22, something similar happened to me. I had had a couple of tough years with COVID and won in Ras Al Khaimah, and that took all the pressure off. After that, I had a great year. I hope the same happens this year, but in this sport, you don’t win very often. You also don’t often get job security, so it’s nice to have two years of a secured card and feel like I can play a bit more freely for the rest of the year. I hope that takes a bit of pressure off. We’ll see how it goes in the coming weeks, but yes, it’s like a weight off my shoulders, that’s for sure.”
“Maybe I’ll have a bit of a hangover tomorrow,” Fox closed with a laugh, but he shouldn’t get too distracted because he has work this week. Beyond the two years of exemption, the victory also brings a great gift. Quail Hollow still had a vacant spot waiting for the winner of the Myrtle Beach Classic. The New Zealander sneaks in at the last minute to the second Major of the season. It will be his eighth PGA, the fifth in a row. It was precisely at the PGA Championship where he achieved his best performance, finishing 16th in 2019. Fox arrives with high spirits and one less weight on his shoulders; who knows if he can surpass that record this week.
