The PGA TOUR heads to Ontario, Canada this week for the RBC Canadian Open. TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley will be the host course, and measures as a 7,389-yard par 70 with Bentgrass greens.
We are back to a full field, 156 man tournament this week that will feature a 36-hole cut. While World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler has decided to spare everyone by taking the week off, two-time Canadian Open champion Rory McIlroy will be in attendance and is the overwhelming betting favorite on DraftKings Sportsbook at +450. Ludvig Aberg (+1400), Corey Conners (+2000) and Shane Lowry (+2200) round out the top of the odds board.
Below I have outlined my two favorite bets for the week.
Robert Macintyre to win (+2800)
Bobby Mac is the defending RBC Canadian Open Champ, besting Ben Griffin by one stroke last year at Hamilton Golf and Country Club. He enters play this week in great position to take him his second consecutive trophy, as his game has been peaking of late. Macintyre is coming off a T20 last week at the Memorial, which was on the heels of a T6 at the Charles Schwab Challenge in his previous start.
Over this stretch, the Scotsman has gained 7.5 strokes on approach and ranks ninth in this field in SG: Ball-Striking and 10th in Total Strokes Gained. TPC Toronto should be right in Macintyre’s wheelhouse, as it’s extremely long and will require precise iron play from 200+ yards out, a department where he ranked second on the PGA TOUR last season.
Macintyre is also a much better putter on Bentgrass compared to other surfaces, as he most recently displayed at Colonial where he gained 5.1 strokes with the flat stick two weeks ago. If Rory McIlroy was not in this field Macintyre would likely be closer to 20/1, so we can definitely assume we’re getting a good number on him in this spot.
Antoine Rozner to win (+15000)
Rozner is in his rookie season on the PGA TOUR, and he’s performed quite admirably thus far, making the cut in all eight of his starts. He’s also in the midst of his best stretch of the season, finishing T34, T13 and T33 across his past three tournaments. During this run, Rozner’s irons have been red hot, as he’s gained 5.7, 3.9 and 6.5 strokes on approach, respectively across those three events.
Unfortunately for him, he’s been a little wild off-the-tee of late, which has kept him from truly contending. Thankfully, TPC Toronto boasts wide fairways, so he will be able to bomb-and-gauge his way around and use his elite approach play to his advantage. His putting this year has been relatively poor as well, but he was a net positive at THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson last month, which also featured Bentgrass.
The Frenchman is a two-time winner on the DP World Tour for his career, taking home the 2021 Commercial Bank Qatar Masters and 2020 Golf in Dubai Championship, so he’s no stranger to the spotlight.
Plenty of European players have had success north of the border, and at 150/1 I am more than willing to take my chance on a guy absolutely firing darts right now.