The Open Championship concluded in dramatic fashion Sunday as Ryan Fox—a massive pre-tournament underdog at Royal Birkdale with odds as high as 200-1 at some sportsbooks—won the final major of the men’s golf season with an unlikely birdie on the 72nd hole.
Fox, a 39-year-old from New Zealand, was ranked No. 56 in the Official World Golf Rankings heading into the Open and not on nearly anyone’s pick sheets. Caesars Sportsbook had Fox’s odds of winning at 200-1, meaning a bettor would make $200 for every $1 they bet on Fox. DraftKings had Fox at 170-1, and BetMGM had him at 150-1.
Despite the long odds, Fox shot a 62 in the third round, tying the lowest score in a major championship. He shot 68 in the final round Sunday to finish the tournament at -10, one stroke ahead of Cam Young, ranked No. 4 in the world.
The Open is the third win on the PGA Tour for Fox, who won both the Myrtle Beach Classic and RBC Canadian Open in 2025, but his first major victory. Fox also won four tournaments on the DP World Tour between 2019 and 2023.
Fox became the second huge underdog to win one of golf’s four majors this year. Aaron Rai had similarly long odds at the PGA Championship, where the Englishman (who is of Indian and Kenyan descent) stunned a star-studded final round leaderboard that included the likes of Jon Rahm and Justin Thomas.
Fox’s winner’s check was $3.2 million from the Open’s $17.75 million purse—both figures the smallest among golf’s four major championships. Fox’s prize money earnings on the PGA Tour rose to $12.47 million with the victory, by far the biggest single paycheck of his career.
Fox’s father, Grant Fox, was a former star for the famous New Zealand All Blacks rugby team.
Record Attendance at Birkdale
Total attendance at Royal Birkdale during four practice days and four competition rounds was 306,000, the R&A announced Sunday, which is the most ever for the Open Championship.
That broke the previous record of 290,000 fans at the 2022 Open Championship at the Old Course at St Andrews, which is typically the tournament’s most-attended venue. St Andrews is on tap to host the 2027 Open Championship next year and is likely to once again set another attendance record, meaning Birkdale’s new mark won’t last for long.
This week’s attendance was more than 70,000 fans, more than the last time Birkdale hosted the Open in 2017; at the time, the crowd of 235,000 was the most for any Open not played at St Andrews.
The PGA Championship at Aronimink Golf Club outside Philadelphia drew 200,000 fans; the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton, N.Y., drew 155,000 fans; the Masters does not release attendance figures but is believed to draw more than 40,000 fans per day throughout the week.
