The RBC Canadian Open returns to the PGA TOUR calendar after two years of cancellations due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
FedExCup leader Scottie Scheffler and world number one is leading the field with Rory McIlroy returning to defend his 2019 title.
RURAL AREA NOTES: Scottie Scheffler, who has already won four times this season, will make his RBC Canadian Open debut … Sam Burns, who beat Scheffler in a playoff to win the Charles Schwab Challenge, will also make his Canadian Open debut … Rory McIlroy defends again … Justin Thomas is making his second consecutive appearance at the Canadian Open … Cameron Smith, winner of THE PLAYERS Championship, returns to Canada … Other highlights include Tony Finau, Matt Fitzpatrick, Shane Lowry (who finished tied for second place in 2019), Justin Rose, Tyrrell. Hatton and Patrick Reed … Corey Conners, the best-ranked Canadian in the FedExCup rankings, leads a contingent of 21 Canadians in the field … Taylor Pendrith hopes to return after being on the shelf from THE PLAYERS due to a broken rib … Mike Weir makes his 29th appearance at the Canadian Open, the third biggest ever … David Hearn will make his 18th appearance at his country’s national open … Sponsor exemptions include Albin Choi and Stuart MacDonald off the Korn Ferry Tour, as well as Jared du Toit, who tied for ninth place as an amateur in 2016, when he played in the final group on Sunday.
FEDEXCUP: The winner receives 500 FedExCup points.
COURSE: St. George’s Golf and Country Club, par 70, 7,014 yards. Stanley Thompson’s Jewel, first built in 1929, is consistently ranked as one of Canada’s best, if not the best, courses. Located just 11 miles from the CN Tower, St. George’s has hosted the Canadian Open five times, most recently in 2010, along with the CP Women’s Open five times. Playing up, down and through the valleys, golfers will have to deal with uneven lies, thick and rugged greens (which were reworked in 2014 after an ice storm caused damage to the grass in the winter 2013).
Due to the location and size of the St. George, the Islington Golf Club (on the road) will be home to the tournament practice area. Golfers will be transported from Islington to St. George’s and will come out of numbers 1 and 9.
STORIES: The RBC Canadian Open was the only North American-based TOUR event to be missed in both 2020 and 2021 and is back with great excitement for the Canadian public. Golf Canada’s commercial director John Sibley describes this year’s effort as the “largest operating company” in the organization’s history … Chris Gotterup, winner of the Haskins Award, will make his TOUR debut as a professional. Gotterup had a distinguished college career and finished seventh in the PGA TOUR U rankings. The last golfer to make his TOUR debut as a professional at the RBC Canadian Open in 2019 was Collin Morikawa, who tied for 14th … “The Rink” is back. The 16-hole hole par-3 fan experience includes tables on both sides of the hole … Five of the top 10 golfers in the world will be on the field. This will be the fourth consecutive TOUR event with at least three of the top five … A Canadian has not won the RBC Canadian Open since 1954. Brooke Henderson won the CP Women’s Open in Regina, Saskatchewan in 2018.
RECORD OF 72 HOLES: 258, Rory McIlroy (2019)
RECORD OF 18 HOLES: 60, Carl Pettersson (Round 3, 2010 at St. George’s G&CC)
LAST TIME: Rory McIlroy captured the 2019 RBC Canadian Open with seven shots after shooting a 9 under 61 at Hamilton Golf and Country Club, flirting with a 59 for most of the day before making a bogey at numbers 16 and 18. McIlroy, which had 5 under. through his first seven holes on Sunday, he held the 54-hole lead after firing a Saturday 64 and never looked back. It was his 16th victory in the TOUR. Shane Lowry and Webb Simpson tied for second with 15 points behind, while Brandt Snedeker and Matt Kuchar were twice behind and tied for fourth. Adam Hadwin finished sixth and was a Canadian bass. He also won a place in The Open Championship with his result in the top eight.
The last time St. George’s Golf and Country Club hosted the RBC Canadian Open in 2010, Carl Pettersson won for once over Dean Wilson. Pettersson reduced the number but achieved a record 60 in the tournament in the third round.
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