Canadian Open Tips: 3 Each-Way Plays To Back At Hamilton

Canadian Open Betting Predictions:

• Maverick McNealy To Win (Each-Way) - 35/1 With Bet365 (Five Places)
• Aaron Rai To Win (Each-Way) - 40/1 With Betway (Seven Places)
• Davis Thompson To Win (Each-Way) - 50/1 With William Hill (Eight Places)

Rory McIlroy starts as the 4/1 favourite with betting sites to win this week’s Canadian Open for a third time.

McIlroy shot a closing nine-under-par 61 to win by seven shots from Shane Lowry on his tournament debut when it was last hosted at Hamilton in 2019 and repeated the trick three years later when St George’s staged the next renewal. 

Nick Taylor gave home fans something to cheer last year when he became the first Canadian to win his national open in 69 years and is back to defend his crown in what is a weakened field playing at this short par-70 course measuring just over 7,000 yards.

McIlroy may be the market leader, but long shots have fared well in this tournament over the years, so we’ve picked out three each-way selections for our Canadian Open betting tips.

Maverick A Top Gun For Hamilton

Hamilton has undergone a couple of major renovations in the last 10 years, with almost a thousand trees removed in 2014 and five years later all the greens were rebuilt and most of the bunkers deepened.

Despite the changes, the fairways remain tree-lined, but the longer players should prosper this week, especially with rain making the course play soft as it was when big-hitting duo Scott Piercy and McIlroy won here in 2012 and 2019 respectively.

That said, the stats hint that an all-round game is necessary to tame this course and with Davis Riley making it seven first-time winners in individual tournaments already, we’re adding the in-form Maverick McNealy to join the list of maiden champions.

McNealy may be without a win in six years on the PGA Tour, but his 2024 form suggests he is getting close, having missed the cut in all but one of his 13 appearances this season.

The 28-year-old Californian was sixth at the Phoenix Open, ninth at The Players Championship and posted a top 25 at the USPGA Championship.

McNealy closed with a 66 for a top 20 at last week’s tournament at Colonial – another par-70 lay-out – so he heads to Canada in good heart.

His Strokes Gained metric from tee-to-green is strong, but it’s just as encouraging that his scrambling and putting stats are top notch bearing in mind he may need the former in the newly-constructed bunkers.

At 35/1 with golf betting sites, McNealy is this week’s headline tip at the Canadian Open, closely followed by Aaron Rai.

Catch Rai While He's Hot

The Englishman, like McNealy, has been super consistent this season, missing the cut on just three occasions from 14 outings.

Pleasingly, Rai has posted two top 10s in his last six events (Houston Open and Byron Nelson) and he sits just outside the top 10 in the Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green measure.

Despite the number of trees that were felled 10 years ago, this course remains one that cannot be smashed and approach to the sloping greens will be key to success.

Putting is a concern, but Rai’s scrambling skills have been solid all season and he looks a player that can mount a serious challenge as he has done at this tournament in the last two years.

Rai finished 13th on his Canadian Open debut in 2022 and was third 12 months ago, and although he is getting a first look at Hamilton, this seems to be a part of the world where he thrives, so he joins our Canadian Open betting tips at 40/1 with Betway.

Double Up On Davis

Following Riley’s impressive victory at Colonial, we’re on a Davis double for our final selection.

Davis Thompson is in his second year as a PGA Tour member and is already starting to show he deserves to be playing at this level.

The former amateur world number one finished 15th at the Phoenix Open, but has really started to motor over the last few weeks.

A top 20 at the Corales Puntacana Championship and a runner-up spot at the Myrtle Beach Classic, both played in the same week as limited-field Signature Events, tell us he can handle non-elite company.

However, Thompson was 17th at Colonial in a field much better than the one playing in Ontario this week, despite the inclusion of McIlroy and Sahith Theegala.

Thompson has been solid tee to green all season and Hamilton looks the kind of course where he should perform well.

At 50/1 with betting apps, Thompson concludes our Canadian Open betting predictions.