5 Longshots to Target at the RBC Canadian Open

The sport of golf can be mystifying, as anyone can attest who’s followed a perfect drive down the fairway with a shank that squirts out of bounds.

Well, golf betting can be pretty damn confounding, too.

Just when you think Scottie Scheffler might be out of gas and you play some longshots, he wins as a short-priced favorite – and just when you back him to triumph at low odds, he goes and gets beaten by one of those longshots.

The latter was exactly the case last week when the world’s No. 1-ranked player was breathing down the neck of Davis Riley entering the final round, only for the 300/1 longshot to keep his composure and cash those lottery tickets.

If you’re looking for another player with triple-digit odds to pay off at this week’s RBC Canadian Open, I already have some good news: There’s no Scheffler to contend with. Instead, it’s Rory McIlroy who draws the short odds at Hamilton Golf and Country Club, where he won five years ago, but that doesn’t mean we can’t – or shouldn’t – take our chances with some more longshots.

Here are five players at 100/1 or bigger who could find themselves holding the trophy at week’s end.

5 Longshots to Target at the RBC Canadian Open

Thorbjorn Olesen (+10000)

An eight-time DP World Tour winner, including earlier this year at the Ras Al Khaimah Championship, Olesen has yet to seriously contend as he’s since focused on the PGA Tour. The results haven’t been bad, though, as he’s made the cut in four of his last five starts and has a pair of top-20s in that stretch.

When I’m taking a longshot for an outright play, I want upside, since runner-up doesn’t cash these tickets. A guy who’s won before, even on another tour, owns a lot more equity than one who hasn’t.

Kevin Tway (+12500)

This isn’t a name that’s graced one of my previews in an awfully long time, but the reason that’s changing now is a recent run showing top-25s in four of his last five starts, including the two-man Zurich Classic. The wedges and putter have done most of the damage during this run, but at this price, I’m willing to take a shot on his confidence, enjoying a massive uptick.

Tway’s first and only PGA Tour victory came a half-dozen years ago and his game has often fallen on hard times since then, but he’s always had the talent to play at this level. This feels like a smart week to chase some guys outside the top tier and Tway is one who should be a part of that staking plan, even if it’s a small part.

Sam Ryder (+15000)

Anytime I’m venturing down the depths of a pre-tournament board, Ryder is a guy who looks enticing. I don’t think his results are yet a true sum of his parts, as a lack of power is really the only thing holding him back, though it shouldn’t hurt him too much on this week’s venue. With nine career top-five results on the PGA Tour, he’s proven that when he’s playing well, his good can be excellent.

David Lipsky (+25000)

Let’s not sugarcoat it: Prior to last week, Lipsky was having a year to forget. In 13 individual starts, he hadn’t finished inside the top-40 a single time – the result of a driver/putter combo that was downright ugly. At Colonial, even though his putter largely remained cold, his irons were red-hot, leading to a T-9 finish, which could perhaps be the spark he needs to start playing better golf. 

There aren’t a ton of courses at which I’d recommend him, but a shorter track such as this one could provide similar vibes to the ones he had last week.

Henrik Norlander (+25000)

While he’s only played sporadically on the PGA Tour this season, his seven starts include four top-20 finishes, including exactly a T-20 at the Myrtle Beach Classic in his most recent appearance. There’s some bigger upside here, too. He twice won on the Korn Ferry Tour and has three times finished runner-up on the PGA Tour, stretching from 2016 to a playoff loss at last year’s Sanderson Farms Championship.