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Toronto Sun
9 hours ago
- Sport
- Toronto Sun
Mackenzie Hughes in the hunt heading into final round at Canadian Open
Mackenzie Hughes walks on the 10th green during the third round of the RBC Canadian Open 2025 at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley in Caledon, Ont., Saturday, June 7, 2025. Photo by Vaughn Ridley / Getty Images CALEDON, Ont. — Mackenzie Hughes has dreamed of this moment. In fact, he's already been in this moment. This time, he has to believe, will be different. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account For the second straight year, the Dundas, Ont. native heads to Sunday at the RBC Canadian Open with a chance to win his national Open. 'I've dreamt from a young age about doing something like this,' Hughes said after shooting a Saturday 64 to head into the final round at 12-under par, two shots back of the lead. 'I was standard-bearer back at Hamilton in '03 and volunteered at a young age and thought, 'Wow, this is really cool.' Now that I get to actually do it, I tell myself, 'Hey, you've got to lean into this. You've got to embrace it and enjoy it.'' He tried to embrace it last year at Hamilton Golf and Country Club. Whether it was the weight of the moment, the thought of accomplishment, or simply golf, he couldn't get it across the finish line, shooting a gut-wrenching 70 in the final round. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'It was easy to kind of look forward and imagine what it would be like to win tournaments 10 minutes from my house and win the Canadian Open,' he recalled. 'It was difficult not to have that in your mind. I think it affected me.' 'I think the hardest thing is to not want it too much, which is hard to turn off. It's hard to turn off something that you've thought about for years,' he said. This year at TPC Toronto in Caledon, the 34-year-old Canadian will have plenty of crowd support as he tries to chase down co-leaders Ryan Fox and Matteo Manassero who head to Sunday at 14-under. If Hughes is in the hunt when he reaches the rowdy par-3 Rink Hole 14th, they might be able to hear the cheers from Hamilton. 'You've got to embrace it and enjoy it. A week like this, I can use them,' Hughes said of the fans. 'I can use them for energy. I can use them for momentum. We don't get that very often. If I go play anywhere else in the world and I'm playing the last round with anyone that's notable, I'm not the favourite. I'm not someone they're going to be rooting for. Here I have that going for me, and I think it's important to try and use it.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. The rather unheralded trio of Lee Hodges, Kevin Yu and Matt McCarty are tied for third, one shot back at 13-under. Hughes is tied for sixth at 12-under with Jake Knapp and Andew Putnam. There will be more than one Canadian trying to make history on Sunday. Canadian Open hero from two years ago Nick Taylor eagled the 18th hole on Saturday to join fellow Canucks Taylor Pendrith and Adam Hadwin at 10-under par. All three will be looking to take advantage of TPC Toronto's receptive greens and make a Sunday charge. 'Certainly a low 60s is not out of the question around this place. We've seen it this week,' Hadwin said. 'I think at this point it's going to come down to whether I can get hot with the putter tomorrow.' The condensed leaderboard has 15 players within three shots of the lead, and another nine players four back at 10-under, including the three Canadians, Irish star Shane Lowry, and American Sam Burns. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Hadwin expects the course could play tougher on Sunday if the expected winds kick up as the course continues to dry from a Wednesday rain storm. Read More 'Fairways have definitely dried out. Greens are still a little soft; they grab pretty quickly,' Hadwin said of the changing conditions. 'We're definitely starting to see some release at least downwind with mid-irons which we hadn't seen. I imagine by afternoon tomorrow, especially if the wind gets up at all, it will be a bit of a different golf course than we saw Thursday.' The 37-year-old from Abbotsford, B.C. has struggled mightily this season as he goes through a swing change, but has seen plenty of reason for optimism through 54 holes, and hopes to use this trip home to jumpstart a mid-season push back into the FedEx Cup Top-100, which is the new cut-off to retain a PGA Tour card for 2026. 'To be able to continue momentum from Thursday and on, it's been a great feeling,' he said. 'Just the fact that I can kind of set up and know where the shot is going and how it's going to come off is a great feeling, something that I felt like I've been missing for a while here.' The Canadian contenders begin action with Taylor playing with Lowry at 11:50 a.m. Hadwin is paired with Pendrith in an all-Canadian group at 12:10 p.m., and Hughes plays with Matt McCarty at 1:25 p.m. The final group of Fox and Manassero tees off at 1:45 p.m. Olympics Columnists Toronto & GTA Columnists Toronto & GTA
Newsweek
16 hours ago
- Sport
- Newsweek
Rory McIlroy Has Strong Statement to PGA Tour Career Worst Finish
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Rory McIlroy arrived at the TPC Toronto with an impressive record at the RBC Canadian Open, having achieved four top-10 finishes in as many appearances, including two victories. However, his run at this event took a drastic turn in 2025 when he missed his first cut on Canadian soil. This was McIlroy's first missed cut since last July, when he missed the weekend at the Open Championship. It was also his worst 36-hole finish of his entire PGA Tour career. Nevertheless, McIlroy remained positive when evaluating the outcome of the Canadian Open: "I think there's still learnings that you have to take from a day like today," he said after the second round. "Look, even though the last two days didn't go the way I wanted them to, there's still things that I can take from it, and there's still things that I can learn." "I think there's still learnings that you have to take from a day like today." Rory reflects on missing his first cut since @TheOpen in 2024. — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 6, 2025 McIlroy carded three birdies and four bogeys during the first round, finishing at 1-over 71. It wasn't a stellar performance, but he still had a chance to make the cut if he improved a bit the next day. However, things only got worse on Friday. The turning point came at the fifth hole, which McIlroy reached after making par on the first four. At the 5th hole, a 447-yard par 4, the 29-time PGA Tour winner had one of his worst performances in recent memory. He sent his second shot well past the green and into the native area, so he took a penalty stroke. Surprisingly, he hit his fourth shot past the green again, landing the ball on a slope 77 feet from the hole. McIlroy managed to reach the green with his fifth shot but then three-putted for quadruple bogey. From there, the five-time major champion could not regain control of his game. He added two birdies, four bogeys, and a double bogey to finish the round 8-over, missing the cut with a 36-hole score of 9-over. His second-round 78 was his worst since the first round of the Open Championship last July, when he also carded a 78. Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland plays his shot from the 18th tee during the second round of the RBC Canadian Open 2025 at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley on June 06, 2025 in Caledon, Ontario.... Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland plays his shot from the 18th tee during the second round of the RBC Canadian Open 2025 at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley on June 06, 2025 in Caledon, Ontario. MoreUS Open Concerns The elephant in the room is that such a poor performance came with the U.S. Open starting in less than a week. McIlroy made no secret of his concern and hinted at how he will address the issue: "Of course it concerns me," he said. "You don't want to shoot high scores like the one I did today. Still, I felt like I came here obviously with a new driver thinking that that sort of was going to be good and solve some of the problems off the tee, but it didn't." "Obviously going to Oakmont next week, what you need to do more than anything else there is hit fairways. Still sort of searching for the sort of missing piece off the tee." "Obviously for me, when I get that part of the game clicking, then everything falls into place for me. Right now that isn't. Yeah, that's a concern going into next week..." "I'm going to have to do a lot of practice and a lot of work over the weekend at home and try to at least have a better idea of where my game is going into next week." In 2025, Rory McIlroy won three of the first six tournaments he played in, including the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, the Players Championship, and the Masters Tournament. By winning the green jacket, he completed the highly coveted career Grand Slam. Since his victory at the Augusta National Golf Club, the Northern Irishman has played in four other tournaments, including the Canadian Open. He added to his list a missed cut this week, a T47 at the PGA Championship, a Top 15 at the Zurich Classic, and a Top 10 at the Truist Championship. More Golf: RBC Canadian Open: Pair of PGA Tour Pros Make History
Toronto Sun
a day ago
- Sport
- Toronto Sun
Adam Hadwin finally seeing hope in 'hardest period' of golf career
There is one native son at RBC Canadian Open quietly hoping that a trip home will be the turning point he has been searching for. Get the latest from Jon McCarthy straight to your inbox Adam Hadwin lines up a putt on the eighth green during the second round of the RBC Canadian Open 2025 at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley in Caledon, Ont., Friday, June 6, 2025. Photo by Minas Panagiotakis / Getty Images CALEDON, Ont. — The thing with professional golf is that, unless you're Rory McIlroy or Scottie Scheffler, nobody pays much attention when you're not playing well. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account With the golf world's eyes on the RBC Canadian Open this week, there is one native son quietly hoping that this trip home will be the turning point he has been searching for. 'This is the most comfortable I've felt with my golf swing in six months,' Adam Hadwin said after Friday's round. 'It's been a while. I feel like I'm finally able to kind of set up over the golf ball and have some sort of clue of where it's going.' It's been nothing short of a dreadful season for Hadwin, who has seen his world ranking drop from 59th at the end of 2024, to 105th entering the Canadian Open. 'It's been hard. I've struggled,' he said after his Friday round of 68. 'But I feel like every single week I have a good opportunity to play well, and it just never happens.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Hadwin isn't particularly close to the top of the leaderboard after two rounds at TPC Toronto, but he's not near the bottom either. The 37-year-old Abbotsford, B.C. native is in the mix at five-under par, and for the first time in 2025 he is seeing results that have daylight in sight through the woods he has been lost in. On the course, the camera hasn't been following him much these days. Although there was a somewhat embarrassing moment of frustration at the Valspar Championship — the site of his lone PGA Tour win in 2017 — when he slammed his club, broke a hidden sprinkler head, and set off a dazzling water display he would quickly apologize for. Admirably, Hadwin has never been one for making excuses. On Friday at TPC Toronto, after making the normal media rounds that follow one of Canada's most popular golfers, Hadwin spoke to the Toronto Sun away from the bright lights. Jon McCarthy has something for every golfer, with a notably Canadian slant. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'This has by far been the hardest period that I've dealt with in my career,' he said. 'I've been through swing changes before but I've been able to put together results kind of working through it. With this one, for whatever reason, I haven't been able to do that.' Speaking with him after disappointing rounds at big tournaments in the past you would rarely know anything was bothering him: the smile was always there, the sense of humour intact, the professionalism never wavered. For years, Hadwin's greatest strength on the golf course has been that he has no glaring faults. He won on the PGA Tour, he shot a 59, and he played in the Presidents Cup because he found a way to do a little bit of everything well and get the ball into the hole with whatever game he brought to the course. But recently, that last and most vital part has escaped him. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'Doubt, lack of confidence in what I'm doing, probably all of the above,' he explained as reasons. 'Mixed in with the golf swing stuff.' At home in Wichita, Kansas, Hadwin frequently takes a backseat to the popularity of his wife Jessica, whose often-hilarious insights into life on the PGA Tour have developed a cult following among golf nerds. For the most part, Hadwin is fine with his private life gaffes often being made public. As the comedy straight-man in a social media life that he didn't exactly sign up for, he happily does his part most of the time. 'If anything seems too egregious she usually checks with me first, just to confirm,' Hadwin said. 'But no, it's fine. I'm happy to be the butt of some jokes every now and then, I can take it.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Maddox commentary watching one of the guys putt on PGA Tour live, 'there's no one watching him. If there's no one watching him, why's he even golfing?' Might need to get this girl in the booth for some tough love commentary! — Jessica Hadwin (@jessicahadwin) June 6, 2025 Hadwin says the quiet life in Kansas, near Jessica's family, has been great for the couple and their daughter Maddox. 'We are around her family, I love that for us, especially for her and Maddox when I'm away. Certainly, not the best practice conditions January through April, but plenty of good and it's a great setup for our family.' The golf swing has been a work in progress going back four years when he began a swing change with top coach Mark Blackburn. In an effort to take some of the wrist rotation out of his swing, the pair set about to strengthen the clubface and have it square on the way down, so he could simply turn into the ball at impact. 'In doing that, I got super shut, very flat wrist, very DJ-esque,' he said, referring to Dustin Johnson's unique move. 'We like the wrist position coming down but I was doing some weird things with the wrist on 3D (video analysis). I was kind of super closed, and then opening it, and then closing it again on the down. So very inconsistent, basically.' This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. This past winter they began the process of trying to keep what they liked, and fix what they didn't. Read More 'I've never been a great iron player. I've been a decent driver of the ball but never been a consistent iron player. It's good when it's good, but otherwise it's sort of blah,' he said. 'We are chasing consistency.' With just one top-25 finish so far this year, it hasn't been easy. Social media has a way of sugarcoating things, and while the Hadwin family certainly can't be accused of only putting their best moments forward, you never really know what anyone is going through until they tell you. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'I've had a hard time getting away from some of this at times, and not overthinking things during this past six months. I've had a really hard time not taking it off the golf course with me,' he said. 'It's great to be able to get away from the game, and just kind of focus on them at times. I love the simplicity of living in Wichita. So it's really nice to go home and be around family in the off weeks.' With just two bogeys through 36 holes at the RBC Canadian Open there is reason for optimism, and for the entire Hadwin clan, hopefully a weekend and summer of good golf ahead. 'I don't know if I want to say that I found it, because we never really fully find it,' Hadwin said. 'But I feel good this week.' Olympics NHL Toronto & GTA Toronto & GTA Columnists
Newsweek
a day ago
- Sport
- Newsweek
Rory McIlroy Posts Worst PGA Tour Finish of Career at Canadian Open
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Rory McIlroy rode the struggle bus Friday at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley for the second round of the RBC Canadian Open. Throughout McIlroy's illustrious career, the worst 36-hole finish on the PGA Tour career was tied for 142nd, according to Underdog Golf With two holes to play during Friday's second round, he sits in 150th place out of 153 golfers. On Thursday, he shot a 1-over 71, but things fell apart for him on Day 2 of the tournament. McIlroy was 9-over through 14 holes before anything went his way. The Northern Irishman opened his day with four straight pars before he made a quadruple bogey at the par-4 5th. He hit his tee shot 316 yards into the right native area off the tee, then sailed the green on his second shot into the woods left of the green. McIlroy took a drop and hit it off the front of the green, leaving himself 56 yards to the hole. On his sixth shot, the ball landed almost eight feet from the hole, and McIlroy proceeded to two-putt from there. It was a disastrous hole for him, resulting in a very unlikely snowman on the card. CALEDON, ONTARIO - JUNE 06: Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland waits to putt on the tenth green during the second round of the RBC Canadian Open 2025 at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley on June... CALEDON, ONTARIO - JUNE 06: Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland waits to putt on the tenth green during the second round of the RBC Canadian Open 2025 at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley on June 06, 2025 in Caledon, Ontario. More Photo byThe round did not get better for him. He made bogey at the par-4 8th, and with a par at 9, he turned in 40 strokes. The 5-time major winner added another bogey and a double-bogey at 10 and 11 to put him at 8-over on the day. McIlroy dropped another shot at the par-4 13th to drop to 9-over on the day and 10-over on the tournament. His first birdie came at the par-4 15th, and the 36-year-old desperately needed it for morale sake. But this tweet summed that up rather well. Rory McIlroy birdie on hole 15 — Max (@MaxFromKO35) June 6, 2025 The Northern Irishman lost shots in all main strokes gained categories, which is entirely unheard of for him. His driver struggles continued, as he lost -2.233 strokes off the tee through 36 holes. McIlroy hit only 12 fairways and 17 greens all week. He lost -4.045 in strokes gained approach to the green, his worst statistical area of the tournament. McIlroy lost -1.905 around the green and -2.415 on the greens. Overall, he lost -10.683 in strokes gained total. This performance is highly abnormal for the No. 2 ranked player in the world. Guys like McIlroy usually find ways to bounce back, but it was not his week in Canada. It will mark the first time he missed the cut in 10 events this season. His worst finish before this one was a T47 at Quail Hollow for the PGA Championship. McIlroy's game has not been the same since his driver was deemed nonconforming at the second major. It seems the reigning Masters winner is still adjusting to a new big stick. He continues to fight his swing, which makes next week at Oakmont for the U.S. Open seem daunting. Maybe this disgusting performance will light a fire in him ahead of the third major. After seeming to be the guy to beat after he won the career grand slam at the Masters, things have fallen off a cliff for McIlroy. More Golf: 'The Tiger Woods of my Life:' Luke Clanton Overwhelmed at Canadian Open
Newsweek
a day ago
- Sport
- Newsweek
RBC Canadian Open: Latest PGA Tour Technology Draws Mixed Reviews
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. Golf fans watching the RBC Canadian Open will notice something new about the shot tracing technology. The PGA Tour unveiled its new "smart trace," which will change color after a shot based on whether the ball lands in the fairway or the green. Josh Carpenter, a reporter for Sports Business Journal, tweeted about the new change and shared the PGA Tour video that shows it shifting colors. PGA Tour debuts a new 'smart trace' that changes colors based on fairway probability — Josh Carpenter (@JoshACarpenter) June 5, 2025 His post sparked fans to begin discussing whether or not this is a change that needed to happen. There is no denying that since LIV Golf emerged onto the scene, the PGA Tour has made some changes with its schedule and payouts. CALEDON, ONTARIO - JUNE 05: Signage is seen along the course during the first round of the RBC Canadian Open 2025 at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley on June 05, 2025 in Caledon, Ontario. CALEDON, ONTARIO - JUNE 05: Signage is seen along the course during the first round of the RBC Canadian Open 2025 at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley on June 05, 2025 in Caledon, Ontario. Photo byIt also seems like they are taking some notes from the rival league for improving the golf broadcast. The fans were hot and cold about his new technology; many felt it was insufficient. Cool tech, but so much worse than the camera from behind with normal shot tracer... this is a terrible view for people who like golf — George Beardsley (@GBeardsley) June 5, 2025 The X user, George Beardsley, complimented the tech but expressed that he did not like it. "Cool tech, but so much worse than the camera from behind with normal shot tracer... this is a terrible view for people who like golf," he wrote. Another user wanted less technology and, of course, fewer commercials. How about less tech and less commercials? — Mike McG (@EffTruck) June 6, 2025 A few people took the opportunity to express their opinions about this change and remind the PGA Tour of their other needs. "This is cool, but we really just want to see more than six golfers during prime time coverage," X user Jack Goff wrote. While many people were unimpressed by the tracer, some fans still thought it was neat. Very cool. Love this application of tech. — Lee Brillhart (@leebrill) June 6, 2025 One guy suggested they do the same for the ladies' tour so more people can see how far the women hit it. There were many mixed reviews for this new technology, as it seemed to be a slight shift in the broadcast when there were other issues at hand. Many who commented on the new tracer quickly reminded the PGA Tour of that, too. Simply put, fans want fewer commercials and more action from the best players on the PGA Tour. At least the Tour seems finally open to changes and improving its product for professional golf. The broadcast may have room to grow, but it appears to be heading in the right direction. More Golf: 'The Tiger Woods of my Life:' Luke Clanton Overwhelmed at Canadian Open
