A single swing from NZ Golf Magazine Cover Boy, Sir John Key, may have changed the future of one of New Zealand golf’s most distinctive events.
When the first Chasing The Fox was staged at Royal Auckland and Grange Golf Club in 2022, Ryan Fox and promoter Nick Randell had no guarantee there would be a second edition.
The six-hole concept brought together teams representing the All Blacks, Black Caps, Warriors, politicians and other sporting personalities, all attempting to beat Fox around his home course.
It worked — but it was Key’s extraordinary hole-in-one at the par-three fifth that gave the event the attention it needed to grow.
“The only thing that really got us into year two was John Key’s hole-in-one, to be honest,” Fox said.
“That went a bit viral and got a bit more eyes on the event after the fact.”
Key’s fairway wood found the bottom of the cup in front of cameras, fellow competitors and spectators, sparking wild celebrations and providing a moment that travelled well beyond New Zealand.
Fox believes the first event proved the concept could work, but admits the ace provided the publicity needed to keep it moving.
“The rest is history really. It’s got bigger and better every year and I think this year’s promising to be the best and biggest one yet.”
Fox And Hillier Back To Defend
Four years later, Chasing The Fox has evolved into a major end-of-year celebration of New Zealand golf, combining professional players, sporting stars, celebrities, entertainment and charity fundraising.
Fox will again team up with fellow Kiwi professional Daniel Hillier after the pair won the event together in 2025.
“It’s a really nice way to showcase Kiwi golf,” Fox said.
“We’ve got a lot of good players around the world now. This year I think the focus was really to make it a showcase of New Zealand golf more than anything else.”
Fox has also undergone quite a transformation since the inaugural event.
Back in 2022 he was inside the world’s top 30 following a strong DP World Tour season. He now returns to Royal Auckland and Grange as the Champion Golfer of the Year following his Open Championship triumph at Royal Birkdale.
Randell believes Fox’s continued commitment has been central to the event’s growth.
“There’s no other athlete that you could call and he’s genuinely so generous with his time,” Randell said. “He’s always looking at ways to give back.”
Bigger Crowds And Familiar Faces
What started as an experimental six-hole contest now attracts thousands of spectators and is televised, while retaining the relaxed format that helped make the original successful.
This year will again feature teams representing the Black Caps, Warriors, She Loves Golf and New Zealand sporting legends, alongside new additions.
Sir John Key and Olympic rowing great Eric Murray have been regular participants since the beginning, with Fox particularly appreciative of those who backed the concept before anyone knew what it might become.
“It was great to have those guys jump on board early,” Fox said.
“We all had a lot of fun. It worked really well the first year.”
Kiwibank has also joined as naming rights partner as the event enters another stage of its development.
For Fox, however, the origins of Chasing The Fox will always come back to that remarkable afternoon in 2022.
Having a former Prime Minister make his first hole-in-one, on camera, in front of All Blacks, his son and hundreds of spectators was the sort of moment no promoter could manufacture.
And without it, Chasing The Fox might have remained a one-off experiment rather than becoming an established part of New Zealand golf’s summer calendar.
