Growing up in New Zealand as the son of an All Black is both a blessing and a curse: yes, there is a huge amount of prestige in the bloodline, but also a weight of expectation, a big pair of shoes to fill.
When your father also happened to have played fly-half, that most sacred of rugby union positions, and to have steered his country to a first World Cup victory in 1987, you have to have great ability and character even to dare to pursue a career as a professional sportsman.
Ryan Fox has both.
And while sporting talent is not always necessarily hereditary, Fox is definitely part of an impressive lineage, with both his father Grant, the rugby great, and his maternal grandfather Merv Wallace, a cricketer, having represented their country before.
This week Fox will line up in New Zealand colours once again, having first formed part of their Olympic side in Rio this summer, as he competes alongside Danny Lee in the World Cup of Golf at Melbourne’s Kingston Heath Golf Club.
Excited to team up with @ryanfoxgolfer for #TeamNZL at the @WorldCupGolf , let's do this! pic.twitter.com/Wf83UfYhHq
— Danny Lee (@dannygolf72) November 21, 2016
“The World Cup is going to be incredible,” said the 29 year old. “It’s exciting that Danny picked me for it, we got to spend some time together out in Rio but now to play alongside him will be very special, and representing New Zealand is a great honour.
“It’s not something we do all that often in golf, so to double up in 2016 and wear the New Zealand colours in the Olympics and the World Cup is the cherry on top of what has been a really great year.”
Blessed with prodigious length off the tee, Fox will certainly catch the eye on the European Tour next season as he takes his aggressive and exciting brand of golf to the world’s biggest stages.
Unsurprisingly given his nationality, heritage and powerful build, Fox spent much of his youth playing rugby to a high level before injury – and his burgeoning golfing ability – intervened.
“I grew up playing team sports,” he said. “I played a lot of rugby, and of course I played fly-half – how could I not! – but then around the age of 16 I think I had a few too many concussions and had to stop.
“I played cricket too but didn’t enjoy that so much so I thought I’d give golf a crack and absolutely loved it – I had played a lot with my dad without taking it too seriously before but had still got down to a two handicap.
“I played golf a lot when I was a kid and always loved the challenge of it, the skill required, how there’s no such thing as a perfect way to play it or even a perfect round, a perfect hole.
“Hitting the green in two doesn’t mean you’ll score better than someone who lays up and puts his third in close, missing the fairway doesn’t mean you’re out of the hole. It’s always interesting, and that combination of the difficulty and skill required and the thought and different approaches is what makes it great.”
Fox’s performances on the Challenge Tour – including an incredible final round 62 to win the Tayto Northern Ireland Open in Partnership with Ulster Bank – helped him to fourth place in the Road to Oman Rankings, redemption following the heartbreak of 2015 when he finished 16th, one spot away from European Tour graduation.
And last week he once again served notice of his potential to mix it with the world’s very best, playing with eventual winner Jordan Spieth in the final round of the Australian Open on his way to a tied-fourth finish.
Awesome week at the @AusOpenGolf finishing t4th. Huge congrats to @JordanSpieth a pleasure to play alongside and some clutch golf to finish! pic.twitter.com/07xyKQ9ig9
— Ryan Fox (@ryanfoxgolfer) November 20, 2016
“I think I’m definitely now in a better position to play well on the European Tour,” he said. “The early season didn’t go too well and I lost a bit of form and confidence – I think it took me a while to get over the disappointment of last year.
“I went back to the Challenge Tour and obviously it went pretty well for me, and of course I then got to go to the Olympics which was an incredible experience.
“I think I’ve now got the experience I need to take my game to the European Tour. Before this year I’d only played a couple of events, and even last year was my first time playing golf in Europe, so my Challenge Tour experience wasn’t high either, but the opportunities I’ve had lately have been amazing and will help me I’m sure.
“A win on the European Tour would be an obvious goal now, and I’ve given myself a lot more chances at that next season. And then to play in the Masters would be another.
“I’ve never been to Augusta – my dad went a few years ago and I was supposed to go along with him but couldn’t in the end, but I’ve always had a soft spot for it and to go there as a player would definitely be the dream.”
