How Fox refused to let Augusta National break him
An alert from the official Masters app just before 6am yesterday was a pleasant wakeup jolt for golf tragics across the country. “Ryan Fox has eagled No 8,” it read. By 7am, when millions around the world tuned in to the start of the official live broadcast, the Kiwi world No 54 was the Masters leader at five-under after 12 holes at Augusta National. It was eye-rubbing, head-shaking stuff.
“He looks like a rugby man … shirt tail coming out, striding with purpose,” the commentator observed, after making the obligatory link with Fox’s All Black father, Grant.
By the end of his opening round at his second Masters tournament, Fox had avoided potential catastrophe at the parfive 13th, where he sliced his drive into the trees then dunked one into Rae’s Creek, to sign for a three-under 69.
Fox was one of just five players to break 70 on day one when the threat of storms caused a delay and the wind gusted.
He was in lofty, and muscular company with Bryson DeChambeau (65) leading the 2022 champion and hot favourite Scottie Scheffler by one shot. The world No 1, a very short $5 favourite with the TAB before day one, shortened to a microscopic $2.50 after his six-under round.
Fox was scheduled to tee off with playing partners Sergio Garcia and Chris Kirk at 5.24am today in round two feeling like everything had worked out as well as it could have.
“I drove it great, which is pretty important around here. Had a lot of decent iron shots and holed some putts. Made a couple of nice up-and-downs towards the end of the round,” Fox said.
“I felt like it got really hard to pick the wind the last few holes, and I did pretty well to hang on to three-under when I didn’t really feel like I did a whole lot wrong. If you’d have given me three-under without teeing off today, I certainly would have taken it.”
A year ago, Fox finished tied for 26th in a highly respectable Masters debut but left Augusta with an unwanted gift – a dose of pneumonia which flattened him for weeks after.
On Thursday Fox strolled the fairways with his children, Isabel and Margot, and wife Anneke with not a care in the world in the par-three competition. The Sky Sport promos captured Fox driving up the famed Magnolia Lane with father Grant hailing his son’s boyhood dream and mother Adele in tears at the emotion of it all.
With 2017 champion Garcia alongside in loud yellow trousers and green shirt (he made an even-par 72), Fox made a dream start yesterday. He made birdie on the each of the first three holes then, on the par-five eighth, drained a slippery, late-breaking eagle putt.
No 13 was a rollercoaster. He had to yell to Kirk and his caddie to move as they stood exactly where he was aiming his second shot from the pine straw. Then a huge divot flew up and Fox’s head slumped as he put his third into the creek.
Still, Fox got up and down, holing a tricky putt for bogey. His only other blemish was a three-putt on the par-three 16th as Scheffler
charged and the great Tiger Woods birdied his first hole on the way to oneunder after 13 as darkness called an early end.
Of his 13th hole, Fox said: “It kept the momentum going. If I would have made seven there, I probably would have been a bit deflated but made a nice eight-or-10footer for six.”
Not since five-time champion Woods in his prime has someone been so heavily favoured to win a Masters as Scheffler. His six-birdie round was flawless and left playing partner Rory McIlroy – who shot 71 in pursuit of his first green jacket – in awe.
“It doesn’t look like it’s six-under-par, and then at the end of the day it’s six-under-par,” McIlroy said. “He’s just so efficient. If you look at Scottie compared to the rest of the field, the amount of bogeyfree rounds he plays and he shoots is phenomenal, and that’s the secret to winning majors.”