Ryan Fox Claims 2026 Open Championship Title
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New Zealand's Ryan Fox secured his first major victory with a birdie on the 18th hole to win the Open Championship.
Ryan Fox captured the 2026 Open Championship title on Sunday, sinking a birdie putt on the 18th hole to finish at 10-under par. According to Sportsnet, Fox won by one stroke over Cameron Young, who finished at 9-under after shooting a 6-under 64.
Fox's victory followed a strong third round where he shot an 8-under 62, tying the lowest score ever recorded in a men's major. On Sunday, Fox shot a 2-under 68, overcoming a mid-round slump that included a bogey on the ninth and another on the 11th. He regained momentum with back-to-back birdies on the 13th and 14th holes and another on the 16th before his final-hole triumph.
Fox finished two strokes ahead of 54-hole leader Sam Burns, who shot a 2-over 72. He also beat Scottie Scheffler and Tommy Fleetwood by three strokes, as both finished the week at 7-under, Sportsnet reports.
Fox, a three-time PGA Tour winner who also won the 2025 RBC Canadian Open, becomes the third man from New Zealand to win a major and the first from his country to win the Open Championship since 1963. He joins 2026 major winners Rory McIlroy, Aaron Rai, and Wyndham Clark. Fox described the win as "surreal" and "crazy," noting that he previously woke up in the middle of the night in New Zealand just to watch the tournament.