Robert MacIntyre’s first victory on the PGA Tour will be memorable for countless reasons.
His father was there every step of the way in the RBC Canadian Open as a fill-in caddie.
“That’s the guy that taught me the game of golf,” MacIntyre said. “… He was trying to tell me to stay focused, swing smooth.”
They could celebrate together after the Scottish golfer shot 2-under-par 68 for a one-stroke tournament victory Sunday at Hamilton Golf & Country Club in Ontario.
MacIntyre, a left-hander who earned his PGA Tour card via the DP World Tour Race to Dubai rankings, finished at 16-under 264. That was one stroke better than Ben Griffin, who shot a bogey-free 65.
Dougie MacIntyre did his part as the caddie.
“I’m speechless,” the younger MacIntyre said during a post-round television interview. “That’s everything for me and my family. To have him on the bag, I’m crying with joy, but I’m laughing because I didn’t think it was possible.”
Now, MacIntyre has a spot in the U.S. Open in less than two weeks. He’s full of gratitude.
“The whole support I’ve had from Scotland, (for) me and my family,” he said. “… I honestly can’t believe this.”
When MacIntyre made the turn, he held a four-stroke lead with six golfers sharing second place. But the tournament had been far from decided, not to mention MacIntyre’s apparent irritation because of noise stemming from a CBS drone.
Griffin, who joined MacIntyre in the final pairing and also was vying for his first PGA win, had a late rally with three straight birdies, but was unable to sink a birdie putt from the fringe on the last hole.
“I fought hard,” said Griffin, who posted a final-round 65. “It felt like there was a lid on the cup for most of the day for me. I hit so many pretty good putts.”
Griffin, who was part of a group tied for second place entering the round, had a strange day, with a birdie on the par-4 third hole after his tee shot settled on the seventh fairway. He recovered, but he made all pars until birdies on Nos. 15, 16 and 17. The putt on the 16th green was from nearly 40 feet.
“(MacIntyre) was kind of scrambling a lot down the stretch and I looked at it as an opportunity to kind of make a charge and it was a ton of fun and wouldn’t trade it for anything,” Griffin said. “Even though I finished second, tons of positives from this week and game feels good.”
Third-place finisher Victor Perez of France shot a bogey-free 64, capped by a birdie putt on the final hole. South Korea’s Tom Kim and Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy made charges with 64s to share fourth place at 13 under. Canada’s Corey Conners (65) was sixth at 12 under.
“If somebody would have told me 64 at the start of the day I would have taken it, for sure,” Perez said.
MacIntyre’s lead grew to five shots after a birdie on No. 11. But by the time he bogeyed the next two holes, Kim and McIlroy had wrapped up their rounds to sit just two shots back.
When Perez finished, MacIntyre had four holes left and only a one-stroke edge. MacIntyre immediately birdied No. 15 to go up two, with Griffin joining Perez at 14 under.
While Canada’s Mackenzie Hughes moved into contention by late Saturday, it was Conners who made a strong push in the final round in an effort for a Canadian to win the event for the second year in a row. Conners had four straight birdies from Nos. 11-14 and moved closer with a birdie on No. 17 before closing with a bogey.
“I felt like I holed some really good putts today and definitely felt some nerves out there,” Conners said. “But honestly playing in front of this crowd is incredible and really motivates you to settle in and hit a good shot.”
Conners won the Rivermead Cup for the best score among Canadian entrants.
“I guess it’s a nice consolation prize,” he said. “Pretty special winning that a few years ago. Definitely something to be proud of. Obviously disappointing to not win the big trophy, but, yeah, it’s a cool honor.”
The only American golfers to finish inside the top nine were Griffin and Maverick McNealy (65), who tied Hughes (70) and New Zealand’s Ryan Fox (70) for seventh place at 10 under.
–Field Level Media