RBC Canadian Open 2026 FRL Tips: Four to fire early in Ontario

The RBC Canadian Open kicks off at TPC Toronto tomorrow, where players may have to handle stormy, blustery conditions to hit the top of the leaderboard in round one.

Our resident golf tipster Jamie Worsley is here with four picks he fancies to take advantage in his RBC Canadian Open 2026 FRL Betting Tips, which you can check out below...

You can read Jamie's full RBC Canadian Open Preview here..

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Play is scheduled to begin at 7.00am, but with thunderstorms forecast early doors, that could be delayed. This threat does linger throughout the day and is forecast to return in the afternoon, though as yet, it doesn’t look too severe.

A stiff 11mph breeze will steadily rise during the morning, reaching 15mph by midday and accompanied by strong gusts of up to 29mph, which will stick around in the afternoon.

Although the later starters will have the slightly windier conditions for longer, it doesn’t look enough to cause a serious bias. With the potential for thunderstorms to also delay the action, I feel we can pick freely across Thursday’s tee times to try and find this week’s first-round leader.

1 pt Michael Brennan each-way (1/4 - 5 places) @ 50/1

Start time: 7.33am

Having found form in approach and on the greens last time out, I’m taking Michael Brennan to make a fast start at TPC Toronto. He’s gone well at this venue before on the PGA Tour Americas and, as an elite, powerful driver, he can take advantage of the soft conditions.

With three victories on the PGA Tour Americas in his pocket, Brennan announced himself to a wider audience on the PGA Tour last year, winning the Bank of Utah Championship on his first pro start on the circuit. The beginning of this season was a struggle, but he’s been much better in recent appearances, finishing 24^th on his Masters debut before recording a 6^th-place finish at the Charles Schwab Challenge two weeks ago.

Blending immense power with a solid level of accuracy, the driver is a serious weapon, sitting 3^rd in SG: OTT. He produced his best putting display of the season at Colonial, ranking 7^th, whilst it was also promising to see him hit the irons to a decent level there.

Brennan was starting strongly earlier in the season, including firing a 65 in the first round of both the Houston Open and RBC Heritage to sit 3^rd and 4^th after 18 holes, respectively. Taking into account his 3^rd-place finish at this layout at the 2024 Fortinet Cup Championship on the PGA Tour Americas – an event in which he held the lead through 54 holes – he is perfectly placed to find another low one tomorrow.

1 pt Keith Mitchell each-way (1/4 - 5 places) @ 55/1

Start time: 7.00am

Keith Mitchell’s first-round form hasn’t quite been at the level of last year, but he’s still very much a danger on a receptive golf course in this market. He did start quickly at the CJ CUP Byron Nelson on his second-to-last appearance and, having shot four rounds in the 60s here 12 months ago, we can be sure the course suits his game.

With just two missed cuts in 15 events, Mitchell has been consistent in 2026. Standout efforts include a 6^th-place finish at the Cognizant Classic, whilst he scored extremely well at the Byron Nelson, following his opening 64 – enough to sit 4^th after round one – with rounds of 68, 66 and 64 to finish 5^th.

He is currently the third-best driver in this field and is also one of the longest, ranking 18^th in driving distance. His iron play has been steady throughout the campaign, sitting 14^th in GIR and 58^th in SG: Approach and, though the putter is a touch unreliable, he has gained strokes in five of his last eight on the greens.

Few players performed as sharply on day one as he did in 2025, as he fired a superb nine-under 61 to take the first-round lead at the Truist Championship, and also hit the front in round one of the Valspar Championship and Houston Open.

Mitchell’s recent opening round at the correlating TPC Craig Ranch suggests he could be about to hit form in this regard. With an encouraging 27^th-place finish at TPC Toronto last year working in his favour, this looks an ideal spot for him to land his maiden first-round lead of the season.

0.75 pts Andrew Putnam each-way (1/4 - 5 places) @ 80/1

Start time: 12.26pm

Andrew Putnam fired one of the lowest rounds of the week here last year, carding an eight-under 62 on Friday to sit 2^nd at the halfway stage, before eventually finishing 6^th. When we combine this with his excellent first-round form of late, there’s a lot to like about his chances in this market.

Beginning the year with a runner-up finish at The AmEx in low-scoring conditions, Putnam is playing some of his best golf in 2026. He’s only missed three cuts in 13 subsequent starts and picked up another top-five when 5^th at the Texas Open. Meanwhile, he arrives in Canada after finishing 17^th at the Charles Schwab Challenge on his last outing, where he opened with a six-under 64 to share the lead on Thursday.

Every area of his game has been in good order during this campaign. He’s the straightest driver in this field and also sits 3^rd in SG: Around-the-Greens, 19^th in SG: Approach and 36^th in SG: Putting of the players in attendance.

However, it’s his round one displays that particularly appeal, ranking 3^rd in first-round performance across the last three months. Aside from that excellent start at Colonial, he also sat 2^nd after the first round of the Texas Open following a six-under 66, whilst a four-under 68 at the Cadillac Championship put him in 6^th place after 18 holes.

All things considered, Putnam’s case to be the first-round leader in Canada is as compelling as anyone’s this week.

0.75 pts Tom Hoge each-way (1/4 - 5 places) @ 125/1

Start time: 12.37pm

After struggling for form in early spring, things look to be coming together for Tom Hoge. He’s a reliably high-quality iron player and, as someone who often spikes his putting performance in round one, he’s an attractive price to lead the way tomorrow.

Hoge actually began the year with promise, finishing 8^th at The AmEx and 14^th at Pebble Beach over his first five appearances. However, he then missed four of his next six cuts and failed to crack the top 70 on his other two starts.

There were signs of progress at the Zurich Classic, where he finished 6^th alongside Billy Horschel. He’s since built on that, securing a commendable 26^th-place finish at the PGA Championship before finishing 6^th at the CJ CUP Byron Nelson, where he shot four rounds in the 60s, including a nine-under 62 in round two.

The American putted soundly in each of those efforts, and while he’s been less encouraging on his last two outings at the Charles Schwab Challenge and Memorial Tournament, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see this streaky putter find something on the greens again.

Despite generally inconsistent displays overall this year, Hoge has remained strong in approach, ranking 23^rd in this field, and has been much more reliable in round one, ranking 51^st in round-one scoring compared to sitting outside the top 100 on each of the other three days.

This all makes him an interesting candidate here, and as a proven winner who is not afraid of going low, he looks good value to hit the front at TPC Toronto on Thursday.

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