Ryan Fox finally eliminates Sam Burns to win typically wild Canadian Open

New York Times

4 hours ago

This week's Canadian Open, as it tends to be, was a strange golf tournament.
None of the biggest stars in the field contended. World No. 2 Rory McIlroy shot a 78 to miss the cut. The main storyline was the professional debuts of Luke Clanton and two other rookies, and none of them made the cut, either.
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So it feels right that the Canadian Open was decided by not one, not two, not even three playoff holes. It took four attempts on the 18th hole at TPC Toronto for Ryan Fox to win the Canadian Open with a majestic 258-yard approach that landed just feet from the hole.
Even the way it went to a playoff felt fitting, with Sam Burns — so far down the leaderboard he teed off two hours before the final group — shooting a Sunday 62 and waiting in the clubhouse as a collection of journeymen and volatile talents faded down the stretch.
That was until Fox, the 38-year-old Kiwi, hit a 17-foot birdie on 18 to force a playoff.
And until Burns, the best putter on tour statistically, missed a 7-footer to win on the first playoff hole.
Or when neither birdied the par-5 18th on the second playoff hole.
Then, the PGA Tour moved the pin location on the same green to a different spot while the golfers drove back to the tee for a third time. And again Fox and Burns made a mess of it with poor wedge shots into the green for more pars.
All of this until the fourth try, when Fox hit his beautiful approach. But still it wasn't to plan. Fox missed the short eagle putt, but Burns three-putted across the green to hand the title to Fox for his second PGA Tour win in a month and 19th professional win worldwide.
'That shot I hit on 18 … probably the best shot I've ever hit."@RyanFoxGolfer sealed the deal with this shot on the fourth playoff hole @RBCCanadianOpen. pic.twitter.com/Nmx4kojXRt
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 8, 2025
Then again, the Canadian Open has truly been the strangest tournament for years. You know, the one where Adam Hadwin got jacked up and tackled by a security guard while running onto the green to celebrate countryman Nick Taylor's win in 2023. The one Robert MacIntyre won last summer with his father, a shy, Scottish grass cutter, on his bag in a pinch. And it's the tournament always going on during LIV drama, like the initial mass exodus that week in 2022 and the framework agreement announcement in 2023. There's always something.
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And then there's this year's contest. For a very respected PGA Tour event, a 54-hole leaderboard led by Matteo Manassero, Fox, Lee Hodges, Kevin Yu, Matt McCarty and Mackenzie Hughes caught many off guard. The 36-hole leader was Cameron Champ, a former rising star who hasn't qualified for the past 13 major championships.
Burns breaking out at least seemed to add some star power. Burns is a Ryder Cup participant who's played on two Presidents Cup teams. From age 24 to 26, he won four PGA Tour events and was looped into that class of exciting young talents like his buddy Scottie Scheffler, Viktor Hovland and Collin Morikawa. But Burns had a somewhat disappointing 2024, and the beginning of 2025 included his worst stretch in years, dropping outside the Data Golf top 40 for the first time since he was 23.
But suddenly, Burns is hot at a good time. Starting in April, he's finished top-20 in the PGA Championship, the Memorial, the RBC Heritage and the Byron Nelson. His Sunday 62 just adds to his momentum leading into the U.S. Open at Oakmont this week.
This weekend, though, is about Fox. After a win in Myrtle Beach at an opposite field event last month, he finished T28 at the PGA Championship, T20 at the Memorial and now adds this win to continue a dominant month. Can it continue at Oakmont?
(Photo of Ryan Fox, left, and Sam Burns: Vaughn Ridley / Getty Images)