Fantasy Advice
RBC Canadian Open DFS picks 2025: Why we expect a bounce-back week from Rory McIlroy
The PGA Tour heads north of the border for the RBC Canadian Open, one of the longest-running events on the schedule. TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley is the brand-new host venue this week, a golf course in Caledan, Ontario designed by Doug Carrick. TPC Toronto features wide fairways and thick, Kentucky bluegrass rough. It is a golf course defined by its length, as it features six par 4s measuring over 480 yards, as well as two reachable par 5s and two extremely long par 3s. The golf course presents a far more driver-heavy and long-iron intensive exam than previous Canadian Open venues, and I will primarily be looking for players with plus carry distance and elite middle to long iron players.
Still fresh off his Masters victory, Rory McIlroy headlines the field this week at TPC Toronto, and he is joined by Ludvig Aberg, Shane Lowry and Canadians Nick Taylor, Corey Conners, Taylor Pendrith and Mackenzie Hughes. McIlroy will be looking to bounce back from a disappointing PGA Championship and gear up for next week’s U.S. Open, and this will be our final look at some of the PGA Tour’s best before the season’s third major.
Here are my favorite plays and fades for DraftKings lineups for the 2025 RBC Canadian Open:
$10,000 range
Play: Rory McIlroy, $11,900:
Rory McIlroy has had a ton of success at this event over the years, and TPC Toronto might even be a better venue for his skill-set than the previous few golf courses we have seen host a Canadian Open. McIlroy’s big, sweeping draw should pay dividends at TPC Toronto, and I firmly expect the five-time major winner to bounce back from a disappointing PGA Championship.
Fade: Corey Conners, $10,100:
Mike Mulholland
While Corey Conners is certainly one of the premier ball-strikers on the PGA Tour, this is a robust price tag for a player with such little win equity. Conners’ lack of carry distance may put him behind the 8-ball at TPC Toronto as well, and I would rather deploy him on a shorter, more positional, accuracy focused golf course.
$9,000 range
Play: Robert MacIntyre, $9,800:
Andrew Redington
Just like McIlroy, MacIntyre lines up better for this course than he did at Hamilton, where he won last year. Robert MacIntyre should have absolutely no problems with the venue change, as TPC Toronto is a driver heavy and long iron intensive golf course. Coming off a top-20 finish at the Memorial, I expect the Scotsman to show out north of the border once again.
Fade: Harry Hall, $9,200:
While Harry Hall is certainly one of the best putters on the PGA Tour, this is a hefty price jump for a player of his caliber. Hall is not in the ball-striking league of some of the other players in this price range, and on a golf course that emphasizes power off the tee and long iron approach play, I will be looking in a different direction.
$8,000 range
Play: Kurt Kitayama, $8,500:
Icon Sportswire
Kurt Kitayama is quietly starting to play some better golf late, and he is coming off a 22nd-place finish at Colonial, where he gained over five strokes around the green and putting, which have generally been the weakest aspects of his game. Kitayama remains a great driver of the ball and an excellent long iron player, and if he is finally beginning to find form with the short game and flat-stick, the sky is the limit.
Fade: Max Homa, $8,200:
Max Homa continues to battle his golf swing, and while there have been brief signs of improvement, he has still lost significantly on approach over his past three starts. Outside of the putter, there is not a single part of Homa’s game that is reliable at the moment and worthy of this robust price tag.
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$7,000 range
Play: Alex Smalley, $7,600:
Andy Lyons
Alex Smalley’s power off the tee and long iron play should be a great fit for TPC Toronto, and he has even had some prior success in Canada. Smalley has already recorded eight top-30 finishes this year, including top 10s at Myrtle Beach and Vidanta Vallarta, which are both driver-heavy golf courses with a low missed fairway penalty and a tremendous amount of long irons.
Fade: Kevin Yu, $7,800:
I would generally be enticed by Kevin Yu’s ball-striking on this golf course, but he has now lost strokes in both ball-striking categories in each of his past two starts. When Yu is not firing on all cylinders off the tee and on approach, this puts a tremendous amount of pressure on his short game and putter, which are generally the two weakest aspects of his game. I will certainly be looking in a different direction this week given the recent form.
Flier: Ricky Castillo, $7,200:
Sam Hodde
Ricky Castillo is one of my favorite sleeper plays on the slate. The young bomber has a top-five finish at TPC Craig Ranch, a very similar golf course architecturally to TPC Toronto, and he ranks top 25 in this field in approach play on long golf courses, overall off-the-tee play and carry distance.
$6,000 range
Play: Antoine Rozner, $6,900:
Jonathan Bachman
Antoine Rozner has slate-breaking potential given his ball-striking, and more specifically his iron play. Rozner ranks top five in this field in approach play over the last six months, and he is coming off back-to-back performances where he gained over three strokes on approach. His 13th at TPC Craig Ranch is certainly indicative of success at TPC Toronto.
Andy Lack is a PGA Tour writer and podcaster from New York City who now resides in Los Angeles. Andy is the founder and CEO of Inside Sports Network, a website devoted to the predictive quality of advanced analytics and golf course architecture. He came to Golf Digest’s betting panel after previously writing for Run Pure Sports, RickRunGood.com, the Score and GolfWRX. In his free time, Andy can likely be found on a golf course. Follow him on Twitter: @adplacksports
