DJ Makes Move on Moving Day at the RBC Canadian Open
Four golfers tied for the lead at seventeen under, including world no. 1 Dustin Johnson; round-two leader Kevin Tway still in picture for Sunday showdown
Mackenzie Hughes shoosts 67 to sit T13 as the low Canadian through 54 holes
OAKVILLE, Ont. — World no. 1 Dustin Johnson took Glen Abbey by storm Saturday, rocketing up the leaderboard for a share of top spot at 17-under following a third-round 7-under 65. Also sharing top-position at 17-under are second-round leader Kevin Tway who carded a 4-under 68, as well as the South Korean duo of Byeong Hun An and Whee Kim, who shot 66 and 67 respectively to head into Sunday tied with Johnson atop the leaderboard.
Johnson was off to the races early Saturday, birdying five of the first six holes, before dropping two shots with bogeys at Nos. 10 and 13. He would finish in force with a birdie, birdie, eagle stretch at 14, 15 and 16.
“Yeah, I mean, definitely got off to really nice start and made a couple good par saves in there, too,” said Johnson, an 18-time PGA TOUR winner and member of Team RBC. “I feel like my game is in really good form. There’s a lot of guys that are right around the lead and somebody is going to shoot low. Hopefully it’s me.”
Johnson, who was paired with Canadian Nick Taylor on Saturday, could feel the encouragement of the crowd, crediting the support in part to his personal connection to hockey legend Wayne Gretzky.
“Well, I can thank Wayne for that,” added Johnson. “There’s a lot of Gretzky fans out there, and so they tend to pull for me, which thanks Wayne, I appreciate that.”
Tway briefly overtook the lead during his round, getting to 18-under before a costly bogey on 18 dropped him back into a share of the lead with Johnson, Hun An and Kim.
“It was a little struggle at the start, maybe (I was) a little nervous,” said Tway, whose father Bob won the RBC Canadian Open in 2003. “I’m just going to relish the opportunity. I’ve got nothing to lose, so I’m going to try to make as many birdies as I can.”
It was moving day at Glen Abbey on Saturday with many golfers vaulting up the leaderboard and into contention. Hudson Swafford shot 67 to climb 10 spots into a share of fifth with Rory Sabatini, while Mexico’s Abraham Ancer shot 65 to climb 37 spots to T7 position. Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont. shot 67 to climb into a share of 13th position at 11-under. Calgary’s Ryan Yip, making his first-ever RBC Canadian Open appearance, carded the low Canadian round of the day, 66, to climb to T21 at 10-under.
CANADIANS AT THE 2018 RBC CANADIAN OPEN T13 Mackenzie Hughes – Dundas – 69-69-67 -11 T21 Ryan Yip – Calgary – 68-62-66 -10 T29 Nick Taylor – Abbotsford – 68-67-72 -9 T43 David Hearn – Brantford – 68-72-69 -7 T43 Ben Silverman – Thornhill – 73-63-73 -7 T53 Roger Sloan – Merritt – 68-69-73 -6 T53 Chris Crisologo (a) – Richmond 68-69-73 -6
--- DID NOT ADVANCE --- MC Adam Hadwin – Abbotsford – 70-71 -3 MC Jared Du Toit – Kimberley – 72-69 -3 MC Corey Conners – Listowel – 72-70 -2 MC Joey Savoie (a) – La Prairie – 71-72 -1 MC Adam Svensson – Surrey – 72-71 -1 MC Mike Weir – Bright’s Grove – 75-71 +2 MC Michael Gligic – Kitchener – 69-77 +2 MC Russell Budd – Toronto – 75-72 +3 MC Austin Connelly – Church Point / Irving – 77-71 +4 MC Marc-Etienne Bussieres – Gatineau – 75-74 +5 MC Todd Fanning (a) – Winnipeg – 77-76 +9 MC Hugo Bernard (a) – Mont-Saint-Hilaire – 76-74 +6 MC Mitchell Sutton – London – 74-80 +10 MC Justin YW Kim – Hamilton – 81-76 +13
INTERVIEW VIDEO, AUDIO AND TRANSCRIPTS FOR FRIDAY, JULY 27 Interview, audio and transcripts for the following players and events from Saturday, July 28 are available here and video is available here. Please note the videos are unedited, uncut and broadcast-quality.
-Dustin Johnson -Ryan Yip -Nick Taylor -Hudson Swafford -Jamie Lovemark -Byeong Hun An -Mackenzie Hughes -David Hearn -Chris Crisologo -Kevin Tway -Whee Kim
2018 MEDIA GUIDE AND PLAYER PERFORMANCE BOOK: Media can also download the 2018 RBC Canadian Open Media Guide for complete stats, records and historical information. Media can also download the 2018 RBC Canadian Open Player Performance Book which details individual player statistics from 1904-2017.
TELEVISION COVERAGE: The following are television times for the 2018 RBC Canadian Open:
Sunday July 29 • Golf Channel 1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. • CBS & Global 3:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
TICKETS: Grounds tickets for the final day of the 2018 RBC Canadian Open are still available. A full list of ticket packages and pricing is available online at www.rbccanadianopen.com. Golf Canada and RBC are also pleased to offer FREE admission to juniors 17 and younger—Click here to download a FREE Junior Pass.
GOLF CANADA Golf Canada is the National Sports Federation and governing body for golf in Canada representing 319,000 golfers and 1,400 member clubs across the country. A proud member of the Canadian Olympic Committee, Golf Canada’s mission is to grow participation, excellence and passion in the sport while upholding the integrity and traditions of the game. By investing in the growth of the sport and introducing more participants of all ages to the game, our goal is to be relevant to and respected by all Canadian golf enthusiasts from coast to coast. For more information about what Golf Canada is doing to support golf in your community, visit www.golfcanada.ca.
ABOUT 2018 RBC CANADIAN OPEN Part of the FedExCup, stars of the PGA TOUR will compete for $6.2 million (US) at the RBC Canadian Open, July 23-29, 2018 at Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville, Ont. Conducted by Golf Canada for more than a century, the RBC Canadian Open provides an opportunity for Canada’s top talents to compete against the world’s best golfers while also leaving a significant impact in the event’s host community. The RBC Canadian Open is proud to support the Golf Canada Foundation as the event’s official charity partner. Established in 1904, Canada’s national open golf championship is the third-oldest national open golf championship worldwide next to the British Open and the U.S. Open. The RBC Canadian Open is proudly sponsored by RBC, BMW Group Canada, Steam Whistle, Levelwear, Titleist & FootJoy, The Glenlivet, Golf Town, Coca-Cola, Canada Dry Mott’s, Commissionaires and the Government of Canada. For tickets or tournament information, please visit www.rbccanadianopen.com or call 1-800-571-6736. Follow the RBC Canadian Open on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. RBC GOLF RBC proudly supports golf around the world through high profile relationships with the PGA TOUR and Golf Canada. RBC is the Official Banking and Financial Services partner of touring professionals Graham DeLaet, Ernie Els, Jim Furyk, Adam Hadwin, David Hearn, Brooke Henderson, Matt Kuchar, Graeme McDowell, Ryan Palmer, Morgan Pressel, Alena Sharp, Brandt Snedeker and Nick Taylor. As the title sponsor of both the RBC Heritage and the RBC Canadian Open, RBC also supports emerging Canadian golfers through Golf Canada’s grassroots developmental programming, the Canadian Amateur Golf Championships and the high performance national team. RBC is one of North America’s leading diversified financial services companies and among the largest banks in the world, as measured by market capitalization. For more information, visit www.rbc.com/golf.
