Draftkings preview: RBC Canadian Open

The PGA TOUR heads up north to Ontario, Canada, this week for the RBC Canadian Open. Hamilton Golf and Country Club will be the host course, and measures as a 7,084-yard par 70 with Bentgrass greens.

Rory McIlroy won this event the last time it was held at Hamilton back in 2019, and he will headline the field this week. Joining him will be the likes of Tommy Fleetwood, Shane Lowry and Sahith Theegala.

Below, I have outlined three of my favorite DraftKings plays for the week.

Set your DraftKings fantasy golf lineups here: PGA TOUR $700K Summer Sand Trap [$200K to 1st]

Alex Noren ($9,900)

Noren has been one of the most consistent golfers on the PGA TOUR this season, having finished T26 or better in 12 of his past 16 starts dating back to the fall, including three top-five finishes. He’s coming off a week at the PGA Championship where he gained 5.9 strokes on approach and 4.2 more with his short game (around-the-green and putting), en route to a T12 finish.

Noren has never won on the PGA TOUR in his career but does have seven DP World Tour victories to his name, and it does feel like a matter of time before he puts everything together and gets a win stateside. Unlike most of this field, Noren played this event the last time it was held at Hamilton back in 2019 and did make the cut that week.

Noren’s floor is incredibly high right now, and we’ve seen flashes of his ceiling this year, making him a screaming buy at $9,900 this week.

Aaron Rai ($8,900)

Rai hit the ball really well again last week at the Charles Schwab Challenge, gaining 4.3 strokes off-the-tee and 2.6 on approach. The Englishman rates out as one of the best ball-strikers in this field over any duration of time you’d like to use. If you take a long-term view, however, he ranks fifth in this field in SG: Ball-striking, trailing only Kevin Yu, Keith Mitchell, McIlroy and Corey Conners.

Rai has also flashed somewhat of a ceiling this season, having finished T7 or better twice over his past seven starts. I prefer to target Rai on shorter courses, where his lack of distance doesn’t hinder him and his driving accuracy can shine.

The issue, as it usually is for Rai is his putter, but if he can simply putt to a zero this week, Hamilton should be an elite course fit for him. He’s a very strong play, even at this $8,900 price point.

Nick Taylor ($8,000)

Taylor has not been playing at his best of late but did finish 10th at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans a few weeks back with fellow Canadian Adam Hadwin. I think we can forgive his past two missed cuts, which came at the Masters and PGA Championship.

Even before last year’s win at this event, Taylor has always gotten up for his home country’s open, having finished T27 at Hamilton back in 2019, while also posting a T28 in 2022 at St George's, which is also a 7,000-yard par 70 with Bentgrass greens.

If you run this field back 36 rounds — which dates back to around the Sony Open — Taylor ranks 16th in Total Strokes Gained and 30th in SG: Ball-Striking. He’s already won this season at the WM Phoenix Open, and I firmly expect him to get back on track this week in the Great White North.

Set your DraftKings fantasy golf lineups here: PGA TOUR $700K Summer Sand Trap [$200K to 1st]

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I am a promoter at DraftKings and am also an avid fan and customer (my username is Lan1228) and may sometimes play on my personal account in the games that I offer advice on. Although I have expressed my personal view on the games and strategies above, they do not necessarily reflect the view(s) of DraftKings and do not constitute a representation that any particular strategy will guarantee success. All customers should use their own skill and judgment in building lineups. I may also deploy different players and strategies than what I recommend above. I am not an employee of DraftKings and do not have access to any non-public information.