Golf: Fox breaks record with first solo title

Ryan Fox from Royal Auckland Golf Club won the title by 11 shots with a total of 267. Photo / Brett Phibbs

Auckland golfer Ryan Fox won his first national title yesterday and he did it in record-breaking style.

The 24-year-old from the Royal Auckland Club won the North Island championship at Whitford Park by 11 shots from Keelan Kilpatrick from Christchurch with a total of 267, 17 under par.

Both are records for the tournament, set on a challenging South Auckland course where Fox played as a teenager.

Yesterday he added a one-under 71 to the 65, 67, 65 he shot in the earlier rounds and after 54 holes with only one bogey he had three bogeys and four birdies.

"I didn't hit it as well today," he said. "There was more wind, the greens were a bit slick and there were some tough pin placements.

"Seventeen under is the lowest I've ever made. I made very few mistakes and if I'd made some more reasonable putts in the first and third rounds the numbers could have been scary low."

Fox has been leading individual in a couple of national team events but this is his first solo title. He lost a playoff for the national strokeplay crown three years ago at Paraparaumu but he has the chance to atone at the nationals in Christchurch this month.

At the end of last season he decided to have one more year as an amateur and he is likely to turn professional this year.

Behind Fox the next eight players were under par, with clubmate Fraser Wilkin third and Jonathan Ratcliffe from Akarana fourth.

The women's strokeplay was a continuation of the Ko-Cho rivalry with 13-year-old Lydia Ko from North Shore finishing one shot ahead of Pakuranga rival Cecilia Cho with a 10-under-par total of 278.

The two started the last round level and Ko had moved to a two-shot lead after nine holes. Cho closed within one but on the par-three 17th Ko fired an eight-iron to three metres and holed the birdie putt to move two ahead.

She had the luxury of a bogey at the last, where she underhit a chip, while Cho's birdie chip just failed to drop.

"She's beaten me more than I've beaten her so it's nice to have a win," said Ko.

"I hope she continues to be there for me because it's good to have the challenge."