CALEDON, Ontario — Filipino golfer Rico Hoey positioned himself firmly in contention at the RBC Canadian Open after opening with a solid 3-under-par 67 on Thursday at TPC Toronto’s Osprey Course in Ontario, Canada.
Hoey delivered a steady round highlighted by five birdies and a bogey-free front nine, finishing the opening day just three shots behind the leaders as he continues his bid for a breakthrough victory on the PGA Tour.
The Filipino standout showed consistency throughout the round and will head into Friday’s second round carrying momentum with plenty of golf still left in one of the tour’s key events leading up to next week’s US Open.
Sharing the first-round lead at 6-under-par 64 were Brooks Koepka, Emiliano Grillo, Sahith Theegala, Eric Cole, Sam Burns and Canadian Matthew Anderson.
Koepka, a two-time US Open champion, finally found his rhythm on the greens after struggling with his putting in recent months. He surged late with four birdies over his final five holes to force his way into a share of the lead.
“I don’t think the ball striking was as good as it’s been as of late … but it was nice to see the putter finally heat up,” Koepka said. “It was just a culmination of kind of freeing the mind.”
His late run began with a 20-foot birdie putt on the 14th hole, followed by another birdie on the 17th before a precise wedge shot set up a closing birdie on the 18th.
Meanwhile, Eric Cole may have strengthened his chances of qualifying for next week’s US Open. Ranked No. 63 in the Official World Golf Ranking, Cole needs to move inside the top 60 this week to earn an exemption.
The leaderboard remained tightly packed, with 12 players shooting 65, including Tony Finau and Canadian Adam Svensson
