Big three flying blind for Round 1 of RBC Canadian Open - TSN

ANCASTER, Ont. – Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson and Rory McIlroy will be flying blind when they tee off in the first round of the RBC Canadian Open.

None of the three has played all 18 at Hamilton Golf & Country Club and will rely on guidance from their caddies and yardage books to manoeuvre around the missing half of the historic course on Thursday.

“I like the front nine,” said Johnson. “It’s the only nine I’ve seen, but I like the golf course.”

“I just saw the front nine for the first time today” admitted McIlroy. “It's a very strategic golf course.”

Koepka's experience has all been on the second nine holes.

World's top golfers expecting tough test at Hamilton Golf and Country Club

The RBC Canadian Open gets underway at the Hamilton Golf and Country Club Thursday with an impressive lineup that includes Dustin Johnson, Rory McIlroy and Brooks Koepka. The tournament is a rare breed, a setup tourney that will play under 7,000 yards. But don't let the length fool you, as the world's top golfers expect this track to still provide a tough test.

It’s been a bit of a whirlwind week for all three. Johnson and McIlroy arrived at the course on Monday and practised but didn’t play. They all teed it up in a corporate outing for sponsor RBC at another course on Tuesday.

That was followed by the Wednesday pro-am at Hamilton although under a new format brought in by the PGA Tour last year, the pros only go nine holes. The amateur groups get a different player for each half.

“It doesn’t happen very often,” admitted Johnson when asked about starting on a course without seeing it. “Most of the tournaments I play, it’s the same course year after year, except maybe for majors.”

There is even more reason to wonder how Koepka, who won the PGA Championship two weeks ago, will play in the opening round after he made a stark admission.

“[Tuesday] was the first time I touched a club since the PGA,” he said. “It was nice to kind of recharge mentally and kind of try to soak it in a little bit.

“I mean, I’ll be fine. I’ve taken longer breaks before and come out and played well. I’m not too concerned with it.”

It should be noted that the 29-year-old was the last player on the range on Wednesday evening, working on shaking off the rust.

Koepka the heavy favourite at the RBC Canadian Open?

Brooks Koepka makes his first start since winning the PGA Championship. Is he the heavy favourite at the RBC Canadian Open this week?

Of course the fact that Koepka is the No-1 ranked player in the world and Johnson and McIlroy are second and fourth respectively should be a good indication that they can probably handle the course well despite being somewhat underprepared. All three sent their caddies out on the course to map out a plan for the first round but it’s not the best way to prepare for a tournament.

Still, from what they’ve seen so far, they seem to like the course that hosted its first Canadian Open 100 years ago and indicated that, despite being under 7,000 yards, it will provide plenty of challenge.

“It’s a good golf course,” said Koepka. “It's definitely going to be a good test. The rough’s up. You've got to hit the fairways, and these greens are quite slopey. So you've really got to control your spin.”

“I remember watching a little bit back in 2012,” McIlroy said, “and then I've spoken to Brad Faxon a little bit, and he had a chance here back in maybe ’03, and he really raved about the golf course.”

Johnson and McIlroy will get a look at the back nine early as both start their first round off the 10th tee in the morning wave. Koepka goes off the first tee in the afternoon.

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June 06, 2019 at 07:38AM