Ryan Fox has been the best player in the world without a major for longer than he'd probably like to admit. That ended on Sunday evening at Royal Birkdale, where the New Zealander rolled in a birdie putt on the 18th to win the 154th Open Championship and take home the Claret Jug.
He finished at 10-under-par, 270 for the week. And he got there the hard way — a back nine on Sunday that produced four birdies against two bogeys, on a links running fast and firm enough to punish anyone guessing at yardages.
"This is unbelievable, to be honest. My nerves are all over the place and I'm not quite sure how I hit that putt on 18."
Ryan Fox — 154th Open Champion
The shot into 18 that set up the winning birdie. Image: Srixon / Dunlop Golf Europe.
The round that won it
Saturday was the day the tournament turned. Fox posted an 8-under-par 62 — a round that equalled the championship record and dragged him from the pack into genuine contention overnight. Rounds like that usually come with a hangover on Sunday. His didn't.
Birkdale gave everyone the classic Open examination: firm fairways, fast-running turf, and approach shots that demanded control of trajectory and spin rather than raw distance. Miss the number by five yards and you're chipping from somewhere unpleasant. Very few players managed the conditions better than Fox did.
Ryan Fox's winning WITB — The 154th Open
Fox has been working closely with Srixon's Tour department all summer, and three of the clubs in his bag at Birkdale were prototypes that have found their way in over recent weeks: the new Srixon Driver (first in play at the Travelers Championship), a new long iron (Genesis Scottish Open) and a new 3-wood, which went in for The Open itself.
Fox's bag at Royal Birkdale
DriverNew Srixon Driver, 10.5°Prototype
FairwayNew Srixon 3-Wood, 15°Prototype
Long ironNew Srixon prototype 3-ironPrototype
The driver, 3-wood and 3-iron are unreleased Tour prototypes and aren't available at retail yet. The closest current equivalents from the same family — the ZXi driver line, ZXi fairway and ZXi Utility — are shown below.
Why the ZXi7 irons suit a week like this
The ZXi7 is Srixon's players' iron: a compact, forged tour cavity built for shot-shaping and flight control rather than maximum ball speed. On a links where the winning play is often a three-quarter 7-iron held into the breeze, that's exactly the tool you want. Fox's ability to attack pins with his irons while avoiding the big number was, more than anything else, what separated him.
If you're a genuine ball-striker, the ZXi7 is the natural pick. If you want a slightly bigger margin for error without losing the look, the ZXi5 sits one step up the forgiveness scale, and the ZXiR goes further again for mid-to-high handicaps.
The wedges and the ball
Fox carried a three-wedge Cleveland RTZ setup — 50°, 56° and 60°. The RTZ generation is built from Z-Alloy with HydraZip face treatment, which is specifically designed to hold spin in wet and greasy conditions. Around Birkdale's run-off areas, that's the difference between a tap-in and a ten-footer.
All six RTZ finishes and shaft options are in stock — browse the full Cleveland RTZ range to match Fox's 50/56/60 spread.
In play all week: the Z-STAR XV, the firmer, higher-speed member of the Z-STAR family. It's a three-piece urethane ball built for players who deliver enough speed to compress it, and it flies penetratingly enough to hold its line in a coastal wind — which is precisely why it works at an Open.
The bag that carried the Claret Jug
Fox's clubs travelled Birkdale in Srixon's limited edition Open Championship staff bag — the blue and white commemorative run built for the championship. It's a proper tour bag: 10.5" five-way top, eight pockets, insulated cooler, waterproof zips and a detachable belly panel for customisation. We have it in stock alongside the matching Open Championship headcover set and a stand bag version for anyone who walks.
