DeepDiveGolf - David Bieleski 
You’d be forgiven if the RBC Canadian Open has become second fiddle for you this week to other matters. Tuesday saw the unexpected bombshell announcement that the PGA Tour, DP World Tour, and PIF LIV Golf merger would be going ahead. That is arguably the biggest news story the golfing world has ever encountered, with substantial ramifications to the entire structure of global professional golf. I’ll mention the merger briefly below, but there is still a tournament this week so make sure to note our Canadian Open picks.
You have to feel for the Canadian Open and it’s title sponsor RBC, who last year faced news stories with the very first LIV Golf event running concurrently to the 2022 tournament. Although, as they say, any news is good news and you could argue the global attention of even those with just a mild interest in the game is all focused in on a small plot of land 1 hour drive north of downtown Toronto.
What does the PGA Tour and PIF LIV Golf Merger mean?
Before we enter into our Canadian Open picks, I will touch on the recent announcement. It is worth bearing in mind, this is still early int he process and we have very little information of the exact nature of the deal. We understand that the DP World Tour and PGA Tour will form a new for-profit commercial entity including PIF as a minority shareholder. The majority financial interest and board members will remain with the PGA Tour. Jay Monahan somehow manages to find himself as seemingly CEO of all of men’s golf, although it remains to be seen whether aggrieved PGA Tour players force him out. The role of Chairman of the board will be fulfilled by PIF’s Yasir Al-Rumayyan.
What might happen from here?
Seemingly, LIV Golf will be no longer. Certainly that is a good thing, seeing the best players all playing in relatively the same place. Firstly, we understand there will remain a team aspect to the structure. Entering the realm of speculation, I suspect the PGA Tour and DP World Tour schedules will remain relatively unaffected (albeit perhaps with more lucrative purses). The new created profit making entity may then oversee a team franchise structure. Therefore, my guess is this will run concurrent to the tour as a separate competition with events not conflicting with some of the flagship events of either tour.
Basically, this seems the cleanest solution. Although the team concept may work if structured correctly, integration of an individual and team leaderboard running simultaneously was messy and confusing. A separate team entity, offering franchise opportunities to sponsors, is significantly marketable. We may even see aspects from cricket and the Indian Premier League, where an auction is run at the beginning of the season to purchase players who have opted in.
More will be revealed, but let’s get into our Canadian Open picks!
Course Analysis for our Canadian Open Picks
Oakdale Golf & Country Club plays host to our Canadian Open picks. This will be the first time the course has held the Canadian Open and will appear again on the rotation schedule in 2026.
The course is a relatively short par-72 7,264 yards. Particularly, there is a somewhat atypical arrangement of 3 par 3s and par 5s. Obviously, it may be this short distance that has lead to many in the industry believing this will be a birdie fest. However, I think this will play more difficult than many believe.
The course is tree lined with narrow fairways of average of 25 yards. Additionally, there are a multitude of elevation changes and it will not be uncommon for golfers to find an approach shot with the ball wither above or below their feet. With the sloped fairways and hanging trees, it will matter not just in finding the fairway but which part of the fairway you find.
Rough has been grown out to 4in and will not be cut again during the tournament. With warm and sunny weather predicted, the rough could be pushing 6in come Sunday. Given the course distance and the par 5s, there will be a disproportionate number of shots between 75-150 yards.
Given the above my focus will be on driving accuracy, approach <150 yards, with additional benefit to those with an excellent short-game.
You can find a course flyover here.
Comp Courses and Weather for our Canadian Open Picks
We can look to other short and positional courses as a guide this week. Obviously, Harbour Town immediately comes to mind as do Sedgefield, Sea Island GC, Waialae Country Club, Colonial Country Club and Austin Country Club. Innisbrook may draw some parallels, not from the approach distance but instead the importance of driving accuracy and a strong OTT game.
As forecasts currently stand, there is no discernible weather edge. Winds look moderate across the first two days. This is also consistent throughout the day. Thursday AM should play the softest and calmest of conditions. However, it is hard to argue this provides a significant edge worthy of acting upon.
You can find the latest weather forecasts here.
Canadian Open Picks
Suggested Staking
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Matt Kuchar – Your Canadian Open Picks Favourite
2.5pts E/W +4100 (Bet365 with 8 places 1/5 odds)
Nick Taylor
2pts E/W +6600 (William Hill with 8 places 1/5 odds)
Adam Svensson
2pts E/W +6600 (Bet365 with 8 places 1/5 odds)
David Lipsky
1pt E/W +10000 (Bet365 with 8 places 1/5 odds)
And
2pts Top 20 +350
Mark Hubbard
1pt E/W +11000 (Bet365 with 8 places 1/5 odds)
And
2pts Top 20 +400
Ben Martin
1pt E/W +12500 (Unibet with 6 places 1/5 odds)
And
2pts Top 20 +400
Carson Young – Your Canadian Open Picks Best Value
0.5pts E/W +17000 (Bet365 with 8 places 1/5 odds)
And
3pts Top 40 +175
Summary
Thank you reading our 2023 Canadian Open picks. For an article with some insights on my golf analysis process, check this link here!
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