Golf

How much prize money did Ryan Fox win at the 2026 Open Championship?

The new Champion Golfer of the Year secured victory at Royal Birkdale, while Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy fell short of the title.

Andrew Boyers

Roddy Cons

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Update: Jul 19th, 2026 13:38 EDT

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New Zealand’s Ryan Fox is the winner of the 2026 Open Championship at Royal Birkdale in Southport, England, carding a final-round 68 to finish one shot clear of Cameron Young.

Fox’s victory, sealed with a birdie at the 18th, is his first major championship and his 20th as a professional, with three of those victories coming on the PGA Tour.

Fox claims Champion Golfer of the Year honors

As a result of being crowned Champion Golfer of the Year, Fox takes home $3.2 million from the total $17.75 million prize purse.

Young and Sam Burns, who finished in second and third place respectively, also receive payouts of more than seven figures for their efforts over the last four days.

Ryan Fox is a major champion 🏆

Fox wins The Open Championship at Royal Birkdale, capturing his first major title 👏 pic.twitter.com/f9udO7AXgj
— ESPN (@espn) July 19, 2026

Scheffler comes close again

World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who won the 2025 Open Championship at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland, put in a valiant defence of his trophy but ultimately came up just short.

Scheffler finished in a tie for 4th place on 7-under par after a final-round XX.

McIlroy struggles to mount Open Championship challenge

Rory McIlroy, ranked second behind Scheffler in the world rankings, was never seriously in contention after a 72 on Thursday left him 2-over par at the end of his opening round.

The Northern Irishman ended the tournament tied for 40th on 1-under par.

What comes next in men’s golf?

With major season now over in men’s golf and no more signature events on the calendar, attention will quickly turn to the FedEx Cup playoffs.

The playoffs begin with the FedEx St. Jude Championship on August 13-16 and conclude with the lucrative Tour Championship on August 27-30.

The next men’s major will not take place until next year, with Augusta National hosting the Masters Tournament on April 8-11, 2027.