PGA Tour: Ryan Fox into US Open at ‘scary’ Oakmont after $2.93 million Canadian Open triumph
Tuesday, 10 June 2025
After a “crazy” four weeks in the life of Ryan Fox, the Kiwi golfer will hit Oakmont Country Club aiming for something even crazier: to emulate his compatriot Michael Campbell, 20 years on.
Fox banked $2.93 million and skyrocketed his world ranking to 32 to secure one of the final spots in the US Open, starting on Friday (NZT), with victory over American Sam Burns on the fourth playoff hole of the Canadian Open on Monday.
The 38-year-old was ranked 75th last week and needed a high placing to boost that inside the top-60 and ensure his seventh start in a US Open. Victory - just four weeks after Fox’s PGA Tour breakthrough at Myrtle Beach - was more than enough.
June 19 (Thursday next week) marks 20 years since a nation stopped to cheer on Campbell on a Monday winter’s morning as he beat the great Tiger Woods at Pinehurst No 2 to join Sir Bob Charles as New Zealand’s only men’s major winners.
Fox was a student at the University of Auckland and embarking on a promising amateur career when he sat transfixed by Campbell’s win that day.
Now it’s off to Oakmont, Pennsylvania to a course that’s already been described as frightening.
“I’ve heard it’s a fantastic golf course; it’s hard, the greens are tricky and they’re going to be running scary fast, and from what it looks like, the rough is straight hack out,” Fox said.
“It’s going to be a little different to this week and I don’t think 18-under will be needed. I like that style of golf, maybe not every week but it’s fun to play now and again when you know par is a good score.”
First things first for one of the world’s most in-form golfers: how to celebrate after he tapped in the winning putt at 7pm local time?
“I’m going to figure out how I’m going to get to Oakmont first, probably get my kids to bed and find a glass of red wine,” he said.
With Premier League football star Chris Wood and his fellow All Whites roaring him on from the CBS broadcast marquee at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley, Fox clinched it with a magical three-wood on the par-five 18th.
It sailed 237m into a stiff breeze, leaving him just over 2m to putt for eagle. With Burns under increasing pressure, having missed a very gettable putt for victory on the first playoff hole, Fox had the luxury of two putts to win.
“It will be the best shot I’ve ever hit in my life, there’s nothing close to that.”
It sparked a repeat of scenes from four weeks ago when Fox was enveloped on the 18th green by daughters Isabel and Margot, asking “did you win?”.
Interviewed by former Australian pro Wayne ‘Radar’ Riley greenside, Fox could barely explain his mind-boggling past month.
“I’m still trying to process it, I can see my girls are about to go play in the sand. I don’t know, it’s crazy, the last four weeks I’ve played some of the best golf I’ve ever played, and to get a couple of wins on the PGA Tour in a month is pretty surreal.”
Fox was super-consistent with rounds of 66, 66, 64 and 66 for an 18-under total, matched by Burns who closed with an eight-under 62. They had a one-shot margin over Kevin Yu of Chinese Taipei, and ended up taking four trips down the 18th before Fox raised his arm in triumph.
A US Open berth and hefty paycheque weren’t the only benefits for Fox. Victory gained him direct entry to next year’s Players Championship, Masters Tournament and PGA Championship and extended his PGA Tour exemption until the end of 2027.
He emulated Charles’ 1968 Canadian Open victory and the pair are now New Zealand’s only multiple winners on the PGA Tour.
Another champion New Zealand golfer, Dame Lydia Ko, also has three Canadian Women’s Open titles on her CV.
New Zealand golfers with PGA Tour victories
6 wins-
Sir Bob Charles (1963 Houston Classic, 1963 Open Championship, 1965 Tuscon Open Invitational, 1967 Atlanta Classic, 1968 Canadian Open, 1974 Greater Greensboro Open)
2 wins-
Ryan Fox (2025 Myrtle Beach Classic, 2025 Canadian Open)
1 win-
John Lister (1976 Quad Cities Open)
Grant Waite (1993 Kemper Open)
Frank Nobilo (1997 Greater Greensboro Classic)
Craig Perks (2002 Players Championship)
Phil Tataurangi (2002 Invensys Classic)
Michael Campbell (2005 US Open)
Danny Lee (2015 Greenbrier Classic)