RBC Canadian Open: Picks, Predictions and Odds

Many of golf’s top players will be taking a week off in preparation for the third Major of the year, the US Open, but that does not mean the Canadian Open, which makes its debut at TPC Toronto, loses any of its prestige.

Masters champion Rory McIlroy leads the field and he will be looking not only for his third success in the tournament but will also want to show the world he is still around after Scottie Scheffler won the CJ Cup, PGA Championship and the Memorial all in the last month.

There will also be a strong home contingent led by Corey Conners and Taylor Pendrith as Canadian fans hope for another local success following Nick Taylor’s win two years ago.

Canadian Open betting picks and predictions

Rory McIlroy to win (+470)

Rory McIlroy is the heavy favorite to win his third Canadian Open, and the recently crowned Masters champion will feel he needs to prove a point with the US Open just around the corner.

McIlroy has enjoyed success at Pebble Beach and Sawgrass to go along with his playoff victory at Augusta, but Scottie Scheffler has been the talk of the game over the last three weeks after winning three of his last four tournaments.

The man from Northern Ireland, who has form figures of 1-1-9-4 from his four Canadian Open appearances, needs to bounce back from the 47th place he posted at the PGA Championship, which was particularly disappointing as it was played at Quail Hollow, one of his favorite courses.

However, a week off should have done him a great deal of good after he sat out the opportunity to play at the Memorial last week, and this is not as strong a field for him to try and dominate.

Wide fairways at TPC Toronto are there to be attacked by arguably the finest driver in the game, and his chief rival’s recent results should provide him with extra motivation to prove he is top dog with the year’s third Major just around the corner.

Taylor Pendrith to win (+2400)

The PGA Tour has never visited TPC Toronto, which creates a few challenges when analyzing who may come out on top on Sunday. But one entrant is more than familiar with the layout, and that could be a huge advantage.

Nick Taylor became the first Canadian winner of this tournament since 1954 two years ago, and Taylor Pendrith could be about to follow in his footsteps at a course not far from his Richmond Hill home.

The local hopeful has played plenty of rounds at the venue and while all the Canadian entrants will be fired up for their national tournament, Pendrith looks poised to lead the charge.

He heads into the competition with plenty of confidence after finishing fifth at the PGA Championship and putting in a strong showing to finish 12th at Memorial last week.

Pendrith already knows what it is like to be in the PGA Tour winner’s circle after claiming top spot at last year’s CJ Cup, and he should be highly motivated to add to that victory this week.

Matti Schmid to win (+8000)

There will be plenty of players a little further down the list who will feel they can make a big impression at TPC Toronto and one of those is German hopeful Matti Schmid.

He missed the cut at last week’s tournament at Muirfield Village but the field set to assemble in Ontario this week may be less intimidating and he has performed well in some of the PGA Tour’s recent lower-grade gatherings.

Schmid displayed his abilities in finishing ninth at the Corales Puntacana and seventh at Myrtle Beach, and he was able to mount a strong push at the Charles Schwab Challenge last month when he finished second, one shot behind Ben Griffin.

Those showings have to be sources of great encouragement that he can make his breakthrough at this level and there is no need to be put off by the fact he has missed the cut at his last two Canadian Open efforts as they took place on different courses.

There looks to be enough recent form to justify a small investment.

Canadian Open outright odds

Rory McIlroy	+470
Ludvig Aberg	+1300
Shane Lowry	+2200
Taylor Pendrith	+2400
Sam Burns	+2400
Robert MacIntyre	+2700
SungJae Im	+3700
Nick Taylor	+4500
MacKenzie Hughes	+5000
Matti Schmid	+8000

This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.