The PGA Tour heads to our neighbors to the north for the 2023 Canadian Open at the Oakdale Golf & Country Club in Toronto, Ontario. The tournament is the third oldest continuously ran tournament on the PGA Tour behind a pair of major championships, The Open Championship and the U.S. Open. The four-day, stroke play event begins on Thursday, June 8th and concludes on Sunday, June 11th.
Rory McIlroy picked up his second Canadian Open victory after the tournament was canceled the previous two seasons due to the COVID-19 pandemic. McIlroy’s four-day tally of 261 (19-under) was two shots clear of runner-up Tony Finau.
The purse for the tournament is $9 million dollars with the winner taking home $1.62 million of the total.
Accuracy a Premium at Oakdale Country Club
Oakdale Country Club will be the 37th course in the tournament’s history to host the Canadian Open. As a first time venue, many of the players in this week’s will be seeing the course for the first time.
There are 27 holes on the property and the tournament will blend holes from each of the three nine-hole layouts. The three nine-hole tracks at Oakdale are named after Canadian icons in the game of golf, those are architect Stanley Thompson, eight-time PGA Tour winner George Kundson, and Canadian Golf Hall of Famer Wilf Homenuik.
The front nine blends four holes from the Thompson and five homes from Homenuik together while all nine holes from Kundson will play as the back nine.
Playing as a par-72, the course will stretch approximately 7,200 yards in length. The course’s main defense will be the green complexes that require an accurate approach into the small and sloped greens.
Packed Field with International Flare
The final tune up before next week’s U.S. Open, the field is packed with some of the top international talent in the world. McIlroy (+500) returns to defend his title and look for his third Canadian Open victory. Rory was in contention on Sunday at the Memorial Tournament before stumbling down the stretch and settling for a T7.
Tyrrell Hatton (+1200) has been playing so well this season and is bound to get his second PGA Tour victory soon. Hatton has finished in the top 20 in his last four starts, including a T5 at the AT&T Byron Nelson and a T3 at the Wells Fargo Championship.
The top American in the field according to BetOnline is Sam Burns (+1600). Burns has three PGA Tour victories since the beginning of last year, his latest at the World Golf Championship – Dell Technologies Match Play. The 26-year-old will need to improve on his Strokes Gained: Approach to Green this week if he wants to win, coming in ranked 158th on Tour.
Matt Fitzpatrick and Cameron Young also check in as pre-tournament favorites at +1600. Fitzpatrick’s ball-striking ability makes him an intriguing play and his win at the RBC Heritage at Harbour Town Golf Links confirms that. Young is still looking for his first win on Tour, but the 26-year-old is 16th in SG: Off the Tee and 30th in SG: Approach to Green on Tour.
Other notable players in the field include Tommy Fleetwood (+2000), Corey Conners (+2000), Justin Rose (+2000), and Shane Lowry (+2000).
