Traveling with one of the most iconic trophies in all of sports isn’t as easy as one might imagine. Ryan Fox, the Champion Golfer of the Year, quickly found that out while trying to board a commercial airplane with the Claret Jug after winning The Open at Royal Birkdale.
It goes without saying that the morning after becoming a major champion is a hectic one, and then having to deal with the unavoidable headaches at the airport only adds to the stress levels.
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To set the scene on the Monday after Fox’s stunning victory, the New Zealander jumped on a plane in Manchester bound for London before jetting back home from Heathrow Airport.
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After making it through security with the Claret Jug in a protective case, he arrived at his departure gate and realized that he would have to do some finagling to get the hardware onto the plane as a carry-on as opposed to gate-checking it.
Handing over the oldest trophy in professional golf to a stranger and having them toss it underneath the plane isn’t exactly an ideal situation, even for a very short flight from Manchester to the country’s capital. During an appearance on ‘The Smylie Show,’ Fox detailed the conversation he had with the gate agent to ‘sneak’ the Claret Jug onto the plane as an additional carry-on.
“I meekly got up to the check-in agent with these two boxes and go, ‘So, yeah, I’ve got some special cargo here, is there any chance I can just take these on the plane?'” Fox recalled telling the gate agent. “She goes, ‘What’s in it?’ You know, I’m like, ‘The Claret Jug, it’s the oldest trophy in golf.’ [She says] ‘Did you win it?’ I’m like, ‘Uh, yeah. Can I just take it through?’ She’s like, ‘Yep, no problem.'”
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Fox also went on to explain that a number of different travelers recognizing him as he made his way through security likely helped his cause.
To make the already incredibly unique situation even more so, Fox made his way on the plane with the Claret Jug and just so happened to be seated directly behind Cameron Young, who finished runner-up at Birkdale after Fox made birdie on the 72nd hole.