Nick Taylor's Win at the RBC Canadian Open Defied the Odds

The dust will never truly settle on what Nick Taylor accomplished yesterday, the first Canadian to win the Canadian Open in 69 years. 

And the way he did it – a 72-foot eagle putt on the fourth playoff hole in a heavyweight tilt at Oakdale Golf & Country Club with England’s Tommy Fleetwood – places the achievement right up there with Sidney Crosby’s “Golden Goal” at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.

Nick Taylor Overcame High Odds

The Ontario sports betting scene was equally robust, according to OLG.

Taylor took only 1.5 per cent of all bets in the tournament winner market, quite expected at his long odds of 71.0. Defending champion Rory McIlroy was the most popular at 16 per cent, with fellow Canadian Corey Conners following at 12 per cent. Brit Justin Rose rounded out the Top 3 at nine per cent. All three of those golfers finished in the Top 20.

One of the more popular side markets was “Top Canadian.” Michael Gligic took 21 per cent of sales, followed by Taylor and Taylor Pendrith, at 17 per cent.

Golfers from England had a fantastic showing in this tournament, taking spots two, three and four. Proline’s “Top English” market reflected their depth – Rose was most popular at 37% of bets, followed by Fleetwood at 28% and Matthew Fitzpatrick at 23%.

The top golf betting sites didn't give Taylor much of a chance to win the tournament.

At BetMGM, Taylor opened at 61.00, and before Round 2, after shooting a 75 on Thursday, he was at 1001.00. Before Round 3 he was 351.00, and before yesterday he was 17.00.

Nick Taylor's Big Achievement

“Glorious and free,” CBS commentator Jim Nantz said when Taylor sank the long putt, as the crowd around the 18th hole exploded. 

Champagne flew and people high-fived and hugged strangers. Nantz’s commentary was pitch-perfect. Look for the image of Taylor leaping in the arms of caddie Dave Merkle to make it onto a Canada Post stamp in the not-too-distant future. 

As a guest on Pat McAfee’s show today said – golf needed this, after all the negative buzz around the news earlier last week of the PGA Tour-LIV merger, and the stink that continues to emanate from that.

Mike Weir had the single greatest Canadian golf achievement – the 2003 win at the Masters – and Brooke Henderson won the CP Women’s Open in 2018 (that was first time in 45 years a Canadian had won it). 

But yesterday’s Taylor achievement was beyond those in emotional impact and permanently burned his name into the brains of Canadians – especially younger generations. That win will singlehandedly boost the registrations of young Canadians coming to golf (like Weir’s Masters win did for today’s generations of 30-something PGAers, like Taylor, Conners and Adam Hadwin).