By Chris Havlicek
Updated 5/29/24 3:36am ET
The PGA Tour is headed up north for the RBC Canadian Open, returning to Hamilton Golf Club for the first time since 2019. That’s when Rory McIlroy cruised by seven strokes at 22-under par.
With Scottie Scheffler taking the week off, McIlroy is the +360 favorite as he tries to repeat at a familiar course. The Northern Irishman headlines a watered-down field that includes the likes of Tommy Fleetwood (+1600), Sahith Theegala (+1800) and defending champion, Nick Taylor (+8000).
The Canadian Open possesses one of the richest histories on the PGA Tour, as the tournament was first played 120 years ago. It has been held annually since 1904, making the Canadian Open the third-oldest continuously running tournament on Tour after the U.S. Open and Open Championship.
Dates/Location:
What: The Canadian Open
Where: Hamilton Golf Club, Ontario, Canada
When: Thursday-Sunday, May 30 – June 2
Purse: $9.4 Million
Defending Champion: Nick Taylor
The Field:
A field of 156 players will compete at the Hamilton Golf and Country Club. McIlroy, now No. 3 in the world after being jumped by PGA Championship winner Xander Schauffele, is one of seven players ranked in the top 30 playing this tourney. The others are Theegala (12th), Fleetwood (13th), Cameron Young (17th), Tom Kim (26th), Taylor (28th) and Sam Burns (29th).
The Course:
Hamilton Golf and Country Club is a par 70, stretching 7,084 yards. The golf course has been completely renovated since the last time it hosted the RBC Canadian Open, with shovels going into the ground not long after the event concluded in 2019. The course has 112 yards more length than 2019 and every putting surface and bunker was re-done.
Hamilton Golf Club has been consistently rated as one of Canada’s finest golf courses and a borderline top-100 golf course in the world. The course played just over 6,800 yards in 2019 and was ranked the second-shortest on the entire PGA Tour. While it will still play as one of the shortest courses in 2024, it has held up remarkably well to scoring and features an incredibly challenging set of par threes.
Top 10 Odds: (Courtesy of FanDuel):
Rory McIlroy -175
Tommy Fleetwood +180
Sahith Theegala +210
Alex Noren +250
Corey Conners +250
Cameron Young +260
Shane Lowry +260
Sam Burns +280
Adam Scott +320
Tom Kim +330
Keys To Victory:
This is a shorter course, where plenty of birdies can be made, but it demands all parts of your game. When McIlroy won here in 2019, he ranked inside the top 6 in all four major strokes gained metrics, including 1st in strokes gained off the tee and strokes gained tee to green.
Players can get away with a few wayward drives here, but you cannot miss too many greens. To keep pace, players will need to hit it close to the pin and make their putts. Wedge play will also be a key skill on this short course.
Additionally, one of the major course changes was renovating the putting surfaces, going from Poa Annua to Bentgrass greens. Players who putt well on this surface will thrive here.
Photo Courtesy: Shutterstock
