OAKVILLE, Ont. – In celebration of Canada Day, Golf Canada and RBC are proud to announce the first 15 Canadians, including 10 tournament exemptions, confirmed for the 2015 RBC Canadian Open taking place at Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville, Ont., from July 20-26, 2015.
Leading the Canadian contingent at Glen Abbey will be Weyburn, Sask., native Graham DeLaet, fresh off a fourth-place finish this past weekend at the Travelers Championship. The finish moved DeLaet to No. 78 on the World Golf Ranking and secured his spot in the field for The Open Championship at St. Andrews.
Joining DeLaet will be fellow Canadian PGA TOUR players David Hearn of Brantford, Ont., Abbotsford, B.C., natives Adam Hadwin and Nick Taylor; Roger Sloan of Merritt, B.C. and Canadian Golf Hall of Fame member Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., who will be making his 25th appearance in Canada’s National Men’s Open Championship.
Golf Canada has also granted a tournament exemption to Web.com Tour player Brad Fritsch of Manotick, Ont. who will make his eighth appearance in Canada’s National Open Championship.
Additional tournament exemptions were given to Team Canada Young Pro Squad members Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., Taylor Pendrith of Richmond Hill, Ont., Adam Svensson of Surrey, B.C., as well as National Amateur Squad members Austin Connelly of Irving, Texas and Blair Hamilton of Burlington, Ont.
Garrett Rank of Elmira, Ont., won the 2014 Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur title to earn his exemption into the 2015 RBC Canadian Open. Leading into tournament week, Rank and Connelly will represent Canada at the 2015 Pan Am Games golf competition, July 13-19 at Angus Glen Golf Club in Markham, Ont.
PGA of Canada professional Billy Walsh of Markham, Ont., earned his way into the 2015 RBC Canadian Open field as the No. 1-ranked player on the PGA of Canada Player Rankings presented by RBC.
Earlier this week, former Team Canada member Richard Jung of Toronto shot a course-record, 10-under 62 at Rattlesnake Pointe Golf Club to top the 144-player field to earn an exemption through the RBC Canadian Open Ontario Regional Qualifier.
“This is OUR Open and we’re proud to have these 15 deserving Canadians compete in the 106th playing of Canada’s National Men’s Open Championship,” said RBC Canadian Open Tournament Director Brent McLaughlin. “The depth of talent in Canadian golf has never been stronger and I’m sure each of them will feel the tremendous wave of Canadian pride and support from golf fans across the country.”
The 15 Canadian players announced today will look to become the first Canadian to capture the national title since Pat Fletcher claimed victory in 1954.
The Canadians confirmed for Glen Abbey will join a field of PGA TOUR and international stars that includes World No. 3 Bubba Watson, World No. 5 Jim Furyk, World No. 8 Jason Day, World No. 13 J.B. Holmes, World No. 16 Matt Kuchar, World No. 17 Chris Kirk, World No. 22 Brooks Koepka, World No. 26 Brandt Snedeker, World No. 30 Ryan Palmer, World No. 40 Hunter Mahan, World No. 48 Graeme McDowell, World No. 65 Luke Donald, and World Golf Hall of Fame member Ernie Els.
Celebrating Canada Day at the RBC Canadian Open….
For more than a century, our National Men’s Open Championship has been a celebration of Canada’s most talented golfers. This year, that celebration will be on full display as Friday, July 24 has been declared Canada Day at the RBC Canadian Open. Spectators are encouraged to wear red and white to proudly show their support for Canada’s top golfing talents. Players in the field will also be encouraged to wear Canada’s colours to help celebrate the day.
Pan Am golf champion to earn an exemption…
Golf Canada will also grant an RBC Canadian Open tournament exemption to the winner of the men’s Pan Am Golf Competition happening as part of the Toronto 2015 Pan Am Games. The golf competition will run July 13-19 at Angus Glen Golf Club with 32 players from 16 countries set to compete, including Austin Connelly and Garrett Rank who will represent Team Canada. Besides the champion’s exemption, the rest of the men’s Pan Am golf field will be exempt into the RBC Canadian Open Monday Qualifier happening Monday, July 20 at Heron Point Golf Links near Ancaster, Ont.
Canadian players confirmed to compete in the 2015 RBC Canadian Open include:
Graham DeLaet
- Currently the top-ranked Canadian on the World Golf Rankings (No. 78)
- Currently ranked No. 83 in the FedEx Cup standings
- Competing in his 7th RBC Canadian Open
David Hearn
- Currently ranked No. 177 in the world and No. 88 in the FedEx Cup standings
- Competing in his 13th RBC Canadian Open
Adam Hadwin
- PGA TOUR Rookie
- Topped the 2013-14 Web.com money list
- Currently ranked No. 174 in the world and No. 114 in the FedEx Cup standings
- Competing in his 6th RBC Canadian Open (finished T4 in 2011)
Nick Taylor
- PGA TOUR Rookie
- 2014 Sanderson Farms Championship champion (first Canadian to win on PGA TOUR in six years)
- Former World No. 1 Amateur
- Competing in his 6th RBC Canadian Open
Mike Weir
- 8-time PGA TOUR winner
- 2003 Masters champion
- Inducted into the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame in 2009
- Competing in his 25th RBC Canadian Open
Roger Sloan
- PGA TOUR Rookie
- 2014 Web.com Tour Nova Scotia Open champion
- Competing in his 3rd RBC Canadian Open
Brad Fritsch
- Currently ranked No. 81 on the 2015 Web.com money list
- Career-best PGA TOUR finish: T8 at 2014 Wyndham Championship
- Competing in his 8th RBC Canadian Open
Corey Conners
- Member of Golf Canada’s Young Pro Squad
- Runner-up at the 2014 U.S. Amateur to earn an exemption into the 2015 Masters
- Competing in his 3rd RBC Canadian Open
Taylor Pendrith
- Member of Team Canada’s Young Pro Squad
- Low amateur at 2014 RBC Canadian Open
- Competing in his 2nd RBC Canadian Open
Adam Svensson
- Member of Team Canada’s Young Pro Squad
- Two-time runner-up on the Mackenzie Tour PGA Tour Canada
- Competing in his 3rd RBC Canadian Open
Austin Connelly
- Member of Golf Canada’s National Amateur Team
- Currently ranked No. 13 on the World Amateur Golf Ranking
- Will represent Team Canada at the 2015 Pan-Am Games golf competition
- Competing in his 1st RBC Canadian Open
Blair Hamilton
- Member of Golf Canada’s National Amateur Team
- Currently ranked No. 81 on the World Amateur Golf Ranking
- University of Houston (winner of the 2015 NCAA Border Olympics)
- Competing in his 1st RBC Canadian Open
Garrett Rank
- Former Team Canada National Team member
- 2014 Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur champion & 2015 Ontario Mid-Amateur champion
- Will represent Team Canada at the 2015 Pan-Am Games golf competition
- Competing in his 1st RBC Canadian Open
Billy Walsh
- Currently ranked No. 1 on the PGA of Canada Player Rankings presented by RBC
- Competing in his 2nd RBC Canadian Open
Richard Jung
- Winner of the 2015 RBC Canadian Open Ontario Regional Qualifier
- Competing in his 1st RBC Canadian Open
Additional player and tournament announcements will be made in the coming weeks. The final field for the 2015 RBC Canadian Open will be released on Friday, July 17, 2015 after 5 p.m. ET.
For information about tickets, FREE 17-and-under junior passes, volunteer opportunities or corporate hospitality for the 2015 RBC Canadian Open, please visit www.rbccanadianopen.com.