It was the day of Dustin Johnson at the RBC Canadian Open, who had no trouble holding off a handful of players that nipped at his heels. A brief weather delay toward the end of the leaders’ front nine threatened to derail any momentum, but the Johnson train kept rolling, and he cruised to a three-shot victory.
After two past runner-up finishes at the Canadian Open, Johnson finally sealed the deal on Sunday at Glen Abbey. For the second day in a row, he birdied his first two holes, taking the solo lead that he would never relinquish. Johnson would add five more birdies in his round, firing a 6-under par 66 to finish at 23-under for the week.
Johnson used his tremendous length to his advantage this week, hitting three drives of over 350 yards on Sunday, and averaging over 320 yards for the tournament. The win cements Johnson’s position as the top-ranked player in the world and gives him a substantial lead in the Fed Ex Cup standings.
“It definitely means a lot,” said Johnson of the victory. “Signing with RBC this year and coming up here to the RBC Canadian Open and winning, especially on a golf course where I’ve had success, it means a lot. I had a lot of support this week, and it was a lot of fun.”
Playing alongside Dustin Johnson, Byeong Hun An struggled early on Sunday, playing his first six holes a shot over par. But as Johnson pulled away, An tried to match pace, making five birdies in his last 12 holes to finish at 3-under par for the day. An finished in a tie for second alongside fellow South Korean Whee Kim.
“I had a tough start, and I bogeyed the second hole, which is probably a birdie hole for most of the guys,” said An. “But coming down the stretch on the par 5s, I made nice up and downs for birdie, so that definitely boosted my confidence.”
Whee Kim would match An’s effort of 69 (-3) on Sunday, finishing at 20-under for the week, three shots back of the lead. After going out in even par, Kim tallied three birdies on his back nine, but it wasn’t enough to catch a surging Johnson, who continued to dominate through the final nine.
Dan Halldorson was famously politically incorrect when quoted as calling the low Canadian at the RBC Canadian Open, “the tallest midget.” That was hardly true this week, with Mackenzie Hughes having the best tournament of a challenging year to finish in a tie for 8th. Hughes, from Dundas, Ont., won the RSM Classic nearly two years ago, but has struggled to find his form coming to Glen Abbey. Hughes finished the final round with a 4-under par 68 to close the tournament at 15-under. For his efforts, Hughes takes home the Rivermead Cup as low Canadian, the second-straight year he’s won the trophy.
“I sensed the opportunity coming in, and maybe got a little bit tight at the end,” Hughes said. “I’ve got two weeks left, and I’m trying to make a push for Top 125 and hopefully next week I can keep building on it.”
In all, six Canadians made it to the weekend. Web.com Tour pro Ryan Yip finished with a final round of 2-under to have a strong performance for the week, while amateur Chris Crisologo, playing in his first PGA Tour event, shot 3-under on Sunday to finish in a tie for 45th.
“It was quite the experience,” Crisologo said. “I felt pretty good about my game, and I felt really good about making the cut and then having a little bit of, you know, a little bit of an impact on the weekend. I thought I could have played a little better, which is kind of surprising.”
Other Canadians who made the weekend included Brantford’s David Hearn, Toronto’s Ben Silverman, and British Columbians Roger Sloan and Nick Taylor.