This article is part of our Yahoo PGA DFS Picks series.
RBC Canadian Open
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
St. George's Golf and Country Club - Par 70 - 7,014 yards
Field - 156 entrants
Purse - $8.7M
The Preview
As the RBC Canadian Open reappears on the PGA Tour's schedule for the first time since 2019, St. George's Golf and Country Club in Toronto is primed to host the event for the first time in over a decade. The par-70 layout lends an old-school country club feel with thick rough surrounding tree-lined fairways that lead into small and sloped bentgrass greens, which are generally elevated and surrounded by plenty of bunkers. Driving accuracy and scrambling are sure to play key roles in determining success on the traditional style setup. This is no bomber's paradise nor projected birdie fest, especially with such a weak field in attendance outside of a handful of names at the top such as Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy, as the U.S. Open approaches next week in Brookline, Massachusetts.
Recent Champions
2021 - None
2020 - None
2019 - Rory McIlroy (Hamilton G&CC)
2018 - Dustin Johnson (Glen Abbey GC)
2017 - Jhonattan Vegas (Glen Abbey GC)
2016 - Jhonattan Vegas (Glen Abbey GC)
2015 - Jason Day (Glen Abbey GC)
2014 - Tim Clark (Royal Montreal GC)
2013 - Brandt Snedeker (Glen Abbey GC)
2012 - Scott Piercy (Hamilton G&CC)
Key Stats to Victory
SG: Approach
Driving accuracy
Scrambling
Par-4: 450-500 efficiency
Yahoo Value Picks
Based on $200 salary cap
Cream of the Crop
Justin Thomas - $49
Thomas' elite short game was allowed to shine en route to his recent PGA Championship victory at Southern Hills where he gained a collective 9.6 strokes around the greens and with his putter, and I expect more of the same at St. George's as he also ranks third in sand saves over his last 24 rounds. Albeit entirely forgivable, a missed cut at the Charles Schwab Challenge combined with a $49 salary should hopefully help keep him from mega chalk territory in Canada. The MC at Colonial isn't at all concerning, and he even picked up 2.1 fairways in regulation on the field through 36 holes, which marks his most accurate off-the-tee outing since February's Genesis Invitational.
Corey Conners - $40
Surrounded by Chris Kirk, Harold Varner and Justin Rose on the salary board, I'll take Conners out of that crew at this price point nearly every time. Having the crowd behind him is one thing, but more importantly, the Canadian is second in SG: Off-the-Tee, seventh in SG: Approach, 10th in Prox: 200-plus and even 25th in scrambling over his last 24 rounds. Additionally, Conners just paced the entire Memorial Tournament field in both SG: APP and GIR percentage.
Glue Guys
Adam Hadwin - $37
Conners' fellow countryman, Hadwin bounced back from an opening 76 at Muirfield Village last week to eventually backdoor his seventh top-25 finish of the season. His short game is stout, averaging 1.95 strokes gained around the green per event throughout his last six measured starts, but he's also 22nd or better in SG: APP, P3: 200-225 and P5: 500-550 efficiency over his last 24 rounds.
Sebastian Munoz - $37
Munoz is currently enjoying the third-longest consecutive cuts made streak on the PGA Tour behind only Jon Rahm and Max Homa, and the former has gained an average of 4.2 strokes from tee to green per tournament throughout his past nine measured starts dating to the Farmers Insurance Open. Reducing the sample to his last 24 rounds, Munoz sits second in P4: 450-500 efficiency, seventh in scrambling and 13th in proximity from 175 to 200 yards.
Bargain Bin
Austin Smotherman - $20
Diving all the way down to the minimum salary, Smotherman's short game will be a concern at a place like St. George's, but spotty around-the-green play hasn't stopped the 28-year-old from making five consecutive cuts since the Valero Texas Open. He's carried by his ball striking, ranking top 20 among this week's field in both SG: Off-the-Tee and SG: Approach over his last 24 rounds, while he's also fourth in Prox: 200-plus and 28th in driving accuracy during this span.
Tyler Duncan - $20
Duncan is second to none in proximity from 200-plus yards over his past 24 rounds, which has guided him to the No. 2 spot in P5: 500-550 efficiency as well. Within this sample size, he's also top 30 in driving accuracy, P4: 450-500 efficiency and SG: Tee-to-Green. Duncan is coming off a top-15 performance at the Charles Schwab Challenge where he picked up a combined 5.7 strokes on and around the greens, rebounding from the short-game issues he faced from the Mexico Open through the AT&T Byron Nelson.
