New Zealand’s Ryan Fox won his first major championship at the 154^th Open Championship at Royal Birkdale. At that time, he also secured his spot as a rookie on the 2026 Presidents Cup International Team.

Fox’s win occurred on July 19, 2026, the same day Spain defeated Argentina 1-0 in the final or the FIFA World Cup in New Jersey.

Three weeks later, Nancy Scranton made a rare tournament appearance, teaming with Ashli Bunch to finish runner-up in the Woodford Legend’s Invitational in Lexington, Kentucky.

Fox may not even be aware of the role he played in a recent sentimental visit for Scranton, a fellow major champion.

The highlight of Scranton’s LPGA career came at the Vancouver Golf Club when she played the last seven holes 6-under par to beat Debbie Massey by three strokes and win the du Maurier Classic in 1991, one of four LPGA major championships at the time.

That victory was the start of a 25-year career for Scranton that included three LPGA TOUR titles, an appearance for the United States in the 2000 Solheim Cup in Scotland, and five victories on the Legends Tour after turning 45 in 2006.

In June this year, 35 years later, Scranton returned to the Vancouver Golf Club with her husband, New Zealander Mark Williams.

Williams and Fox have known each other for several years, but the duo have crossed paths often over the past two years. Williams lives in Florida and works as a media official on the PGA Tour where Fox has established himself as a premier player after many years competing in Europe and Australasia.

The night before Fox won the 2025 RBC Canadian Open in a dramatic four-hole playoff over Sam Burns for his second PGA Tour victory, Williams was in downtown Toronto watching the New Zealand national soccer team, the All Whites, play against Ivory Coast in a friendly international match ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. At half time, Williams met an official associated with the team and learned some of the players were interested in coming to support Fox on the final day of the tournament.

Quick arrangements were made and more than a dozen team members followed Fox around TPC Toronto Osprey Valley on Sunday. As the tournament reached the 72^nd hole, the All Whites joined Amanda Balionis on the CBS interview set behind the 18^th green for a better view. As each hole of the playoff unfolded, the broadcast showed their increasing enthusiasm and excitement, as well as an interview with the team.

When Fox won, the All Whites were right there to congratulate him.

“To have the Kiwi support out there, it was great,” he said. “We seem to have a lot of weeks where random Kiwis pop up, and to have the All Whites say, hey, is there any chance we can come out and watch on Sunday was really cool. To be able to meet them all there at the end and get a photo with them was pretty special.”

A year later, multiple cities throughout the United States, Mexico and Canada hosted the 2026 FIFA World Cup, in which New Zealand were one of 48 teams. When the draw was released, New Zealand’s first game was in Los Angeles with their two additional pool matches scheduled for Vancouver. At that point, Williams and Scranton decided that a trip to Vancouver with their son, Luke, seemed like a great idea.

Luke, 21, is a soccer player in his senior year at Flagler College who was rehabbing a knee injury over the summer, while his twin sister, Libby, a track-and-field athlete at St. Louis University, stayed in Missouri for a summer internship.

“It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and the timing worked out perfectly to have Luke join us to experience it too,” said Williams. “Libby was with us at the Olympics when I worked at the golf events in Paris, so it’s only fitting that Luke got to do this trip.”

When Williams told Fox about the upcoming trip to Vancouver, Fox relayed that he had just played golf in Florida with a few of the All Whites as they were preparing for a friendly match against England in Tampa, Florida ahead of the World Cup. Fox immediately connected Williams with Jacob Spoonley, General Manager of the New Zealand professional Footballers Association.

“Next thing you know, we’ve got tickets and invitations to exclusive gatherings before the games,” said Williams. “It was amazing and incredibly generous from both Ryan and Jacob. We even got to meet several of the players on the team. It’s a trip that we will remember forever.”

Along with seeing the sights and experiencing all that Vancouver has to offer, an additional outing was arranged. With help from Golf Canada, Williams got in touch with Raj Mutti, the General Manager at Vancouver Golf Club, and the pair coordinated a trip for Scranton to return to the site of her major championship victory 35 years after the fact.

“It was a nice surprise and I was really excited,” said Scranton. “I remembered most of the holes. On the final hole of the du Maurier I hit it to about 8 feet from the fairway bunker and made it to win by three shots, so it brought back great memories.”

Scranton met with current members of the club, enjoyed lunch with Director of Golf Greg Pool and saw displays in the clubhouse, including those of New Zealand’s Lydia Ko, who won at the same course in 2012 and 2015, and A.J. Ewart, a member of the club who won the 2025 PGA Tour Qualifying School and played as a rookie in 2026.

“I’m thankful that we got to revisit the club together and it never would have happened without the World Cup or the fact that Ryan connected us with Jacob,” said Scranton. “It’s such a small world. Thirty-five years is a long time, but it seemed like yesterday. It was a sweet way to cap off an incredible week.”

Perhaps it’s no coincidence that the FIFA World Cup is about unity and togetherness and bringing people from all around the world together.