For the first time since Ontario sports betting became regulated, a PGA Tour event will be played up north as the tour comes to St. George’s Golf and Country Club just outside of Toronto for the RBC Canadian Open.
It is the first time this tournament has been played since 2019 when Rory McIlroy was victorious at Hamilton Golf and Country Club. The regulated Ontario sports betting market launched on April 4.
McIlroy is back in action this week, and he is one of a few superstars teeing it up one week ahead of the U.S. Open, which is next week in Brookline, Massachusetts. Ontario sports bettors can find McIlroy third on the odds board at +1000 at BetMGM Sportsbook Ontario, trailing only Masters champion Scottie Scheffler (+800) and PGA Championship winner Justin Thomas (+900) to win.
Cameron Smith (+1200), Sam Burns (+1600), Shane Lowry (+1800) and Matthew Fitzpatrick (+1800) can also be found under +2000 on Ontario sports betting apps to win this week.
In limited PGA Tour history at this course, players who are accurate off the tee and sharp with their irons have typically succeeded with distance not playing as much of a role as it does most weeks. The layout of the course means players will often choose less club than driver off the tee, leading to longer approach shots.
Canadian Open Odds
A Canadian Golfer to Look At
Fitting this mold perfectly is the top-ranked Canadian player in the world, Corey Conners, who also garnered odds notice in his strong run heading into April's Masters. Conners is immaculate off the tee and excels at courses such as these. Ontario bookmakers appear to be aware of his course fit as he can be found just after the favorites on the odds board at +2000.
Coming off a 13th place finish last week at The Memorial, Conners has form on his side in addition to a ton of support from the gallery in his home event. He leads a strong and diverse field of Canadians in this tournament, with 21 players teeing it up in their home country. Mackenzie Hughes, Adam Hadwin, Nick Taylor, Adam Svensson, Taylor Pendrith and Roger Sloan join Conners as the headliners and veteran Mike Weir will also be playing on a sponsor’s exemption.
Hadwin is +4000,Hughes is +6600 and the rest of the Canadians have longer odds to win the event. Hadwin and Svensson’s games also seem tailored for a course like this as they rely on accuracy over distance. With two top 10s already this season. Svensson represents one of the best values on the board at odds of +12500.
With the U.S. Open next week, it remains to be seen if the elite players are here solely focused on this week or if they have an eye on next week’s major championship. Scheffler and Thomas each come in with solid form, with one missed cut mixed among several top 15 finishes and wins.
McIlroy is also trending up with two top 20’s in his last two events. While their games don’t seem to be a perfect fit for the course, the world’s top players can excel at any golf course so all have a viable chance to win. The best value among the favorites this week belongs to Tony Finau at +2500. Finau had a weak start to the season but has been excellent lately with two top five finishes in his last four starts.
With top Ontario sports betting apps still pricing him around players like Harold Varner (+3300), Hadwin and Sebastian Munoz (+5000), this is a perfect opportunity to take advantage and get a good number on a player that should be among the five favorites in what is a weak field overall. Over the last 50 rounds, Finau ranks in the top 10 in Strokes Gained: Approach and is top 20 in most important metrics. The 18th-ranked player in the world will look to grab his first win of the season in Canada and cash in for Canadian sports bettors.
The excitement is noticeable in Canada (industry behemoth DraftKings Sportsbook joined the fray in Ontario last month) with the PGA Tour’s return, and these are just some of several ways for sports bettors to have some action and excitement in golf's premier Canadian event.
