`Mr. 57' Cristobal Del Solar flirts with 59, settles for 61 and share of Canadian Open lead
CALEDON, Ontario (AP) — Cristobal Del Solar came off the Korn Ferry Tour with the nickname 'Mr. 57.' He flirted with a 59 late Thursday afternoon in the RBC Canadian Open.
Ten under with two holes left on the par-70 layout, Del Solar bogeyed the par-4 17th and parred the par-5 18th for a 9-under 61 and a share of the first-round lead with Thorbjorn Olesen of Denmark.
'I was just trying to hit good shots.' Del Solar said. 'I was just trying to stay in the present and have fun. That's what I was trying to do.'
Del Solar, the 31-year-old PGA Tour rookie from Chile, and Olsen took advantage of soft greens on the North Course at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley after rain Wednesday night that continued into the morning.
Del Solar earned the 'Mr. 57" moniker in February 2024 when he shot a 13-under 57 in the first round of the Astara Golf Championship in Colombia for the lowest score in a PGA Tour-sanctioned event.
On Thursday, Del Solar had seven birdies in an eight-hole stretch in the middle of the round. The former Florida State player made a 6 1/2-foot birdie putt on the par-3 14th, and ran in a 15 1/2-footer on the par-4 16th to get to 10 under.
On the 17th, he hit into a right greenside bunker, blasted 10 feet past and missed the par putt to the right. Needing an eagle on 18 for a 59, he drove into the left rough, then hit his second about 80 yards short of the green.
'I just want to go and execute each shot,' Del Solar said. 'I think everyone kind of sometimes gets ahead themselves and thinking of the result or whatever. You just want to go out and just hit the golf shots.'
Olesen eagled the 18th — his ninth hole of the day — and had eight birdies and a bogey on the course hosting the national championship for the first time.
'Obviously, I played great, but my putting was exceptional today,' Olesen said. 'Don't think I missed any putts really out there. I definitely holed some long ones as well. It was nice to see everything go in.'
Olesen qualified for the U.S. Open next week at Oakmont on Monday, holing a 15-foot birdie putt on the final hole at Lambton in Toronto.
'I took a lot from that last putt,' Olesen said.
Afternoon starters held the top eight spots and 15 of the first 18, with Masters champion Rory McIlroy bogeying the final two holes in the morning in a 71.
'Missed a couple of greens and didn't get them up-and-down, especially those last couple holes,' said McIlroy, the tournament winner in 2019 at Hamilton and 2022 at St. George's.
Del Solar and Olesen were a stroke off the tournament record of 60 set by Carl Pettersson in 2010 in the third round at St. George's, and matched by Justin Rose in the fourth round in 2022, also at St. George's.
Cameron Champ shot a 62, Jake Knapp had a 63, and Rasmus Hojgaard, Shane Lowry, Trey Mullinax and Ricky Castillo were at 64. Knapp shot 59 in March in the first round of the Cognizant Classic.
Canadian Taylor Pendrith was at 65 with defending champion Robert MacIntyre. Alex Smalley, Paul Peterson, Danny Willett, Rafael Campos, Kevin Yu, Alejandro Tosti and Paul Waring. MacIntyre won last year at Hamilton.
Canadian Nick Taylor, the 2023 winner at Oakdale, opened with a 66.
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