RENO, Nev. — Ben Silverman, is the low Canadian heading into the weekend at the Barracuda Championship. The Thornhill, Ont., native is +19 points after his round on Friday, carding two bogeys and five birdies.

As a resident of Colorado for roughly six years, Sam Saunders is at home in the mountains. Maybe that’s why it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Saunders has fared well at the Barracuda Championship in recent years, logging consecutive top 10s in his last two starts at Montreux Golf & Country Club, where the course sits at 5,476 to 5,952 feet above sea level.

His run of good form in Reno continued on Friday with a 13-point output that vaulted him into a share of second place with Andrew Putnam with 23 points. A bogey on the 12th – his third hole of the day — was his lone blemish on the card as Saunders piled up seven birdies in a 12-hole stretch, starting on the 13th, to move up the leaderboard.

“It was a good solid day out there,” Saunders said. “Drove the ball really well and made a few more putts today than I did yesterday. Still left a few out there. But it’s a fun format and enjoy giving myself as many birdie chances as possible.”

Sitting at No. 124 in the FedExCup standings, it might be difficult to have fun at this point in the season, but Saunders isn’t putting additional pressure on himself this week. Instead, he’s staying focused on winning a tournament, realizing his maiden TOUR victory would alleviate any pressure at the Wyndham Championship.

“My goal is to try and win this tournament this weekend,” Saunders said. That’s kind of it. Making the playoffs will be a byproduct of that.”

Saunders has given himself chances to win this season, finishing T5 most recently at the Greenbrier Classic where he entered the final round two shots back of the lead.

As for what’s working this week at Barracuda, Saunders pointed to his time spent playing mountain golf as a reason for his success.

In the same way it takes a runner time to get acclimated to the thin mountain air, players need to get used to taking a club or two less on certain shots. There’s also the swirling winds and temperature changes that can alter club selection.

Simply put, choosing a club can be cumbersome during the tournament week.

But not for Saunders, who all but throws the calculator out the wind and places more of an emphasis on feel.

“I really enjoy thinking about the shots out here and having to feel them out,” he said. “You are just not going to get the number right. It’s not math out here. You can do a lot of math and try to have your best guess, but so much of it is feeling out the shot . So I think my experience living [in Colorado] and playing at altitude helps a lot.”

Depending on how things go the next few days, his experience in the mountains could lead him to his first TOUR title.

RENO, Nev. – Low Canadian sits T7 with 11 points after the first round on Thursday in the Barracuda Championship, the PGA Tour’s only modified Stableford scoring event.

He carded only one bogey and fired six birdies, two on the front nine and four on the back.

Ollie Schniederjans scored five points with a closing eagle to take a three-point lead.

Schniederjans hit a 5-iron approach from 275 yards to 3 feet to set up the eagle on the par-5 18th at Montreux Golf and Country Club.

“Eagles are huge in this format,” Schniederjans said. “So, it’s a little more nerve-wracking, 3-footer being three more points. It’s interesting you have putts that are worth more than others.”

He finished with 17 points, also making six birdies. Players receive eight points for an albatross, five for eagle, two for birdie and zero for par. A point is subtracted for bogey, and three points are subtracted for double bogey or worse.

Denny McCarthy was tied for the lead with a hole to play just before sunset, but lost three points with a double bogey on the par-4 ninth to drop into a tie for second with Aaron Baddeley.

“This golf course isn’t easy,” McCarthy said. “If you get out of position, it’s tough. That’s how you can make scores. Like at home, on the last hole, minus-three, double. But for the most part I was putting it in play. I was giving myself really good looks on the greens.”

Robert Streb was fourth at 13 points, followed by Ryan Palmer and Hudson Swafford at 12, and John Merrick and Tyrone Van Aswegen at 11.

The winner will earn a spot in the PGA Championship next week at Bellerive, if not already eligible. Schniederjans is using the event to stay sharp for the PGA.

“Just my game is finally coming around,” Schniederjans said. “I really feel in control of my swing for the first time in a while. So, I felt really good coming in. And I kind of wanted to just get playing, because I felt like my stuff was finally in a place. Instead of taking a week off, I kind of wanted to get on a roll, play a little bit before the PGA and roll into next week with some rounds.”

Chasing his first tour victory, he’s using his Georgia Tech education to crunch numbers on the high-altitude course.

“It’s pretty simple math, but I think it helps,” Schniederjans said. “The wind makes it really tough. I factor in the flight that I’m going to hit, and I do the elevation first. And then I factor in the wind.”

McCarthy, playing in the final group of the day off the 10th tee, eagled the par-5 13th and made five more birdies – three on par-5 holes. The former Virginia player is 149th in the FedEx Cup standings in his first PGA Tour season, with the top 125 advancing to the playoffs and keeping their tour cards.

“There’s a lot of really, really good players out here that are playing really, really well most of the time,” McCarthy said. So, if you’re not on your game mentally and physically, you’re going to get lapped out here, I promise you.“

Baddeley is 135th in the FedEx Cup race.

“I’m not stressed, to be honest,” Baddeley said. “Whether you go to Web finals or whether you finish in the 126 to 150 category, you’re going to get starts and my game’s in a good spot. I’m not stressed. I’m at ease with whatever happens. Just got to go out and play and try and win a golf tournament.”

Rod Pampling holed out for eagle from 123 yards on the par-4 14th to get to 15 points, then dropped six points on the final four holes with three bogeys and a closing triple bogey.

Norman Xiong, the Nicklaus Award winner at the University of Oregon, scored eight points playing on a sponsor’s exemption. He missed the cuts in his other three PGA Tour starts since turning pro.

Defending champion Chris Stroud had seven points. Geoff Ogilvy, the 2014 winner, also was at seven points along with Hunter Mahan. David Duval, playing on a sponsor’s exemption, scored three points.

Adam Hadwin is optimistic he’ll return for the PGA Championship next week after dropping out of the World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational with a hip injury.

The top-ranked Canadian golfer made the call to bow out of this week’s event in Akron, Ohio on Wednesday, deciding that rest is best heading into the final major of the year next week in St. Louis.

Hadwin’s agent, George Sourlis, told The Canadian Press that the injury was due to femoroacetabular impingement, a condition that causes bones to rub together and something the Abbotsford, B.C., golfer has been dealing with since he was young. It flared up again early this week in Ohio following a missed cut at the Canadian Open.

The pain was intense enough that Hadwin couldn’t hit all the shots needed to compete in a tournament. For example, the 30-year-old couldn’t hit balls out of a bunker because of the way his hips are positioned.

Hadwin plans to work with his doctor to prepare for the PGA Championship next week.

Historically, when Hadwin has dealt with hip problems, he has been back to normal within a week after rest.

Hadwin is coming off a disappointing Canadian Open at Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville, Ont. He missed the cut by one stroke and described his frustration level afterward as “100 out of 10.”

Hadwin is the only Canadian scheduled to play in the PGA Championship.

OAKVILLE, Ont. – No. 7 at Glen Abbey Golf Club has become the featured hole at the RBC Canadian Open the past two years. With hockey boards surrounding the tee, goalie masks being used as tee blocks, and officials wearing referees’ stripes, it’s a distinctly Canadian experience.

But with the RBC Canadian Open moving to Hamilton Golf and Country Club in 2019 and Glen Abbey possibly slated for redevelopment by course owner ClubLink, there were questions about the fate of the so-called Rink.

“The rink is on wheels, the rink’s going to go where we go,” said Golf Canada CEO Laurence Applebaum on Sunday. “The rink’s going to move with us. We’ve already got those officials from that hole, they want to go with it. The players love it.”

In particular, Applebaum loves how fans pound their fists on the boards after players tee off. Although it caused some confusion among players in 2017 when the Rink was first unveiled, they’re now on board with it too.

“Bring the noise, bring the thunder,” said Applebaum from the media centre in the bowels of Glen Abbey’s clubhouse.

Glen Abbey was the first course designed solely by golf legend Jack Nicklaus and was completed in 1976. It’s become the home of Golf Canada and the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame, which holds its induction ceremony the same week as the Canadian Open, as long as the tournament is being held at Glen Abbey that year.

Applebaum thinks this year’s RBC Canadian Open – which saw a four-way tie atop the leaderboard between world No. 1 Dustin Johnson, Whee Kim, Byeong Hun An and Kevin Tway heading into the fourth round – is the perfect sendoff for the storied course.

“Beer sales are up, food sales are up, merchandise sales are up and attendance will be up,” said Applebaum, who predicted that total attendance for the week would be over 80,000. “For me, it’s a win across the board. Spectacular.”

Hamilton will host the 2019 and 2023 events, with Applebaum believing the host for 2020 will be announced within the next two or three months. His intention is to keep the men’s national championship in the Greater Toronto Area, while the CP Women’s Open will continue to move back and forth across the country.

In addition to changing locations, the RBC Canadian Open will occupy a new spot on the PGA TOUR’s calendar beginning in 2019.

Historically, the RBC Canadian Open was held in September, but starting in 2007 it was played in late July, the prime golf season. But starting in 2019 it will be held in early June, the week before the U.S. Open, essentially turning it into a tune-up event for some of the biggest names in golf.

“The guys that have traditionally played our event seem like they will continue, but all the new people that haven’t played in the past, are talking about it,” said Applebaum. “The Phil Mickelsons, the Rory McIlroys, the Rickie Fowlers, it’s great to have that grouping of players who haven’t played it.”

Golf Canada is pleased to announce that Bryan Crawford of Ancaster, Ont. has been named the new Tournament Director of the RBC Canadian Open. The appointment was officially announced by Golf Canada CEO Laurence Applebaum during a press conference held on the final Sunday of Canada’s national men’s golf championship.

Crawford served the past three years on the Leadership Team of Canada Basketball in the role of Senior Director, Operations. He led several of the organization’s strategic business functions including overseeing the development, implementation and operations of all Canada Basketball hosting and revenue generating activities. Bryan also developed and drove the long term, multi-event hosting strategy for major FIBA international events including athlete relations, volunteer management, community engagement, government relations, corporate partnerships and event execution.

Prior to that, he honed his executive management skills in the role of Interim Executive Director / Director of Operations with Ontario University Athletics (OUA), leading the operational, commercial and promotional activities as well as strategic planning for the governing body of interuniversity sport in Ontario.

Crawford is a former professional athlete, having spent seven seasons as a member of the Toronto Argonauts Football Club where he served as a Special Teams Captain and CFL Players’ Association Representative. A native of Ancaster, Ont., Bryan holds a B.A. in Political Studies and Development from Queens University where he was a two-sport athlete in football and track and field. He has been selected by the Canadian Olympic Committee as a COC Emerging Leader and has been a community ambassador for the ALS Society of Ontario, Right to Play, Climb for Cancer and the Argonauts’ Huddle Up Against Bullying Program.

Crawford will report directly to Golf Canada Chief Championship Officer Bill Paul. He will work collaboratively with Golf Canada’s sales, partnership, marketing and commercial teams and will be a key contact and central hub of the organization’s relationship with the PGA TOUR.

He began his new role on July 18, spending advance and tournament week getting oriented during the 2018 event in order to hit the ground running to lead the 2019 RBC Canadian Open in its new date, June 3-9 at Hamilton Golf and Country Club.

OAKVILLE, Ont. – A small boy followed Mackenzie Hughes around the final 11 holes Saturday at the RBC Canadian Open, easy to spot in a huge Toronto Maple Leafs jersey that hung down to his knees.

Hughes had delighted the boy – and the crowd gathered at the seventh hole at Glen Abbey, know as “The Rink” – when he walked up to the green wearing the Leafs jersey he’d autographed. Spotting the boy in the crowd, he tugged off the sweater, reached across the rope and handed it to him.

Priceless.@MacHughesGolf making this junior’s day with a @MapleLeafs jersey at #TheRink ?? pic.twitter.com/yfwbrC5eT7

— RBC Canadian Open (@RBCCanadianOpen) July 28, 2018

The lone PGA Tour stop north of the border wears its Canadian pride on its sleeve, and Hughes was happy to play his part.

“I signed it before the round, and after I was on the green, I tried to find a young Leafs fan in the crowd,” Hughes said. “(I’m a) big Leafs fan.”

The 27-year-old from Dundas, Ont., just outside Hamilton, had plenty of fans himself Saturday as he climbed 24 spots up the leaderboard with his 5-under 67 in the third round. Hughes is in a group of eight tied for 13th at 11 under, six shots behind the four leaders.

Hughes opened with four birdies on his first five holes. On No. 5, he hit a phenomenal recovery shot from under the trees to get onto the green, then finished with a long putt for birdie. He double-bogeyed on No. 11, but finished strong with five birdies on the final six holes.

“I was playing well today and I got a tough break on 11,” Hughes said. “Hit a great drive, middle of the fairway, and had the worst divot I’ve ever been in in my life. And I normally don’t skull over the green, and I skulled over the green, made a 6 there, and I was 2-under in a good spot going into the back nine.”

“But, unlike maybe (Friday) where I was probably a bit impatient at times, I just told myself I was playing well and had some chances coming in and kind of got hot there.”

Dustin Johnson, Kevin Tway, Byeong Hun An and Whee Kim shared the lead at 17 under.

Calgary’s Ryan Yip shot a 66 to climb 40 spots into a tie for 21st, seven shots off the pace. Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, B.C., shot 72 and dropped 19 spots to a tie for 29th, David Hearn (69) of Brantford, Ont., and Ben Silverman (73) of Thornhill, Ont., are 10 shots back and tied for 43rd. Roger Sloan of Merritt, B.C., and Chris Crisologo of Richmond, B.C., Canada’s only amateur to make the cut, are tied for 53rd, 11 shots back.

Glen Abbey first dressed up its par-3 seventh hole last summer in celebration of Canada’s 150th birthday last year. “The Rink” resembles an arena, with hockey boards replacing the rope lines. Officials wear referees’ jerseys.

A day earlier, Hughes took a shot with the Leafs sweater on, charming the crowd when his chip from just off the green went in.

“I was trying to figure out if I could hit a chip without the sleeves getting in the way and the Leafs emblem all over my chest getting a little bunched up,” Hughes told reporters. “But I was, like, ‘This is very chip-in-able and if I do it with the jersey on, it’s way cooler.”’

Moments after Saturday’s round, talk turned to the Maple Leafs’ major off-season acquisition John Tavares.

“Very excited,” Hughes said of the former New York Islanders star. “He’s coming to an already very talented roster, so I think the next three, four years with him will help us out.”

Hughes had a breakthrough in the fall of 2016, when he won the RSM Classic in his fifth PGA Tour start as a member. He went wire-to-wire for the win and became the first Canadian-born golfer to win on the tour since Taylor at 2014.

Taylor had a disappointing Saturday, salvaged slightly by an eagle on the 18th hole.

“I couldn’t buy a putt the whole day, it was nice to finally make one on 18 there. Yeah, just couldn’t make a putt. Just couldn’t get it going,” said Taylor, who heads into the fourth round nine shots back of the leaders. “It was nice to finish that way, get a little momentum going into tomorrow, and getting back to even was big.”

The 30-year-old, who’s 127th on the FedExCup rankings, needs a solid result Sunday, and down the stretch of the season, to climb to into the top 125 and keep his PGA Tour card.

“It’s important on a lot of levels, it’s so bunched that a great round would go a long way,” said Taylor, who played Saturday with world No. 1 Johnson. “Again, it was huge to make that eagle to get back to even, I feel like I salvaged something on the last hole. … I would’ve like to play better, but I’m still in a good spot.”

One of Taylor’s highlights of the day also came on No. 7, birdying to a loud round of applause.

“It was awesome, that’s a moment you’ll remember for a long time, it’s pretty fun to do it on that hole,” he said. “I’ve birdied that hole every day this week, it’s been good to me.”

The 27-year-old from Dundas, Ont., just outside Hamilton, had plenty of fans himself Saturday as he climbed 24 spots up the leaderboard with his 5-under 67 in the third round. Hughes is in a group of eight tied for 13th at 11 under, six shots behind the four leaders.

Hughes opened with four birdies on his first five holes. On No. 5, he hit a phenomenal recovery shot from under the trees to get onto the green, then finished with a long putt for birdie. He double-bogeyed on No. 11, but finished strong with five birdies on the final six holes.

“I was playing well today and I got a tough break on 11,” Hughes said. “Hit a great drive, middle of the fairway, and had the worst divot I’ve ever been in in my life. And I normally don’t skull over the green, and I skulled over the green, made a 6 there, and I was 2-under in a good spot going into the back nine.”

“But, unlike maybe (Friday) where I was probably a bit impatient at times, I just told myself I was playing well and had some chances coming in and kind of got hot there.”

Dustin Johnson, Kevin Tway, Byeong Hun An and Whee Kim shared the lead at 17 under.

Calgary’s Ryan Yip shot a 66 to climb 40 spots into a tie for 21st, seven shots off the pace. Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, B.C., shot 72 and dropped 19 spots to a tie for 29th, David Hearn (69) of Brantford, Ont., and Ben Silverman (73) of Thornhill, Ont., are 10 shots back and tied for 43rd. Roger Sloan of Merritt, B.C., and Chris Crisologo of Richmond, B.C., Canada’s only amateur to make the cut, are tied for 53rd, 11 shots back.

Glen Abbey first dressed up its par-3 seventh hole last summer in celebration of Canada’s 150th birthday last year. “The Rink” resembles an arena, with hockey boards replacing the rope lines. Officials wear referees’ jerseys.

A day earlier, Hughes took a shot with the Leafs sweater on, charming the crowd when his chip from just off the green went in.

“I was trying to figure out if I could hit a chip without the sleeves getting in the way and the Leafs emblem all over my chest getting a little bunched up,” Hughes told reporters. “But I was, like, ‘This is very chip-in-able and if I do it with the jersey on, it’s way cooler.”’

Moments after Saturday’s round, talk turned to the Maple Leafs’ major off-season acquisition John Tavares.

“Very excited,” Hughes said of the former New York Islanders star. “He’s coming to an already very talented roster, so I think the next three, four years with him will help us out.”

Hughes had a breakthrough in the fall of 2016, when he won the RSM Classic in his fifth PGA Tour start as a member. He went wire-to-wire for the win and became the first Canadian-born golfer to win on the tour since Taylor at 2014.

Taylor had a disappointing Saturday, salvaged slightly by an eagle on the 18th hole.

“I couldn’t buy a putt the whole day, it was nice to finally make one on 18 there. Yeah, just couldn’t make a putt. Just couldn’t get it going,” said Taylor, who heads into the fourth round nine shots back of the leaders. “It was nice to finish that way, get a little momentum going into tomorrow, and getting back to even was big.”

The 30-year-old, who’s 127th on the FedExCup rankings, needs a solid result Sunday, and down the stretch of the season, to climb to into the top 125 and keep his PGA Tour card.

“It’s important on a lot of levels, it’s so bunched that a great round would go a long way,” said Taylor, who played Saturday with world No. 1 Johnson. “Again, it was huge to make that eagle to get back to even, I feel like I salvaged something on the last hole. … I would’ve like to play better, but I’m still in a good spot.”

One of Taylor’s highlights of the day also came on No. 7, birdying to a loud round of applause.

“It was awesome, that’s a moment you’ll remember for a long time, it’s pretty fun to do it on that hole,” he said. “I’ve birdied that hole every day this week, it’s been good to me.”

ATHENS, Texas – Bruce Lietzke, the fun-loving, fade-hitting 2-time RBC Canadian Open (1978, 1982) winner whose practice regime – or lack of one – spawned an often-told spoiled banana story, died Saturday of brain cancer. He was 67.

Lietzke’s family said he died at his Athens ranch.

“Our PGA Tour family lost a treasured member with the death of Bruce Lietzke,” PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan said in a statement. “He touched on parts of five decades as a player, competed in 700 tournaments as a member of the PGA Tour and PGA Tour Champions, and recorded a total of 20 victories.

“But to celebrate Bruce Lietzke’s life properly, we offer praise to the great family man and the cherished friend to many.”

With family, fishing and a large muscle car collection to tend to, the 13-time PGA Tour winner had little time or desire to tinker with a trusted swing that didn’t need tinkering – as the banana story hilariously illustrates. It started at the final event in 1984 when Lietzke told caddie Al Hansen that he wouldn’t touch his clubs again until the 1985 opener. The unbelieving Hansen put the banana in Lietzke’s golf bag as a test, only to discover the rotten fruit still there in January.

Lietzke was introduced to golf in his native Kansas City, Missouri, and starred at Forest Park High School in Beaumont, Texas, before moving on to the University of Houston.

Lietzke played in the United States’ 1981 Ryder Cup victory in England, and finished second to John Daly in the 1991 PGA Championship. He won seven times on the senior tour, the last victory coming in the 2003 U.S. Senior Open.

Lietzke is survived by wife Rose, son Stephen and daughter Christine.

OAKVILLE, Ont. – One sport involves hurdling off snow-covered jumps as music blares in front of rabid fans. The other is played on manicured grass.

Still, Canadian Olympic snowboarder Mark McMorris sees a lot of similarities between his craft and the golfers he’s been watching this week.

“The littlest adjustments can make the biggest difference,” McMorris said Friday as he took in the second round of the RBC Canadian Open. “If you tuck a little bit too much in snowboarding, you might start spinning or flipping faster. I feel like we might have a little bit more room for error than the golfers.

“Our errors are a little bit more consequential to our well-being, but there can be some big financial errors for these guys.”

Speaking just off the 17th tee at Glen Abbey Golf Club, McMorris knows more than he cares to about consequential errors.

The 24-year-old from Regina was nearly killed in a March 2017 snowboarding accident in British Columbia’s backcountry when he crashed into a tree.

McMorris suffered breaks to his jaw and left arm, a ruptured spleen, a stable pelvic fracture, rib fractures and a collapsed left lung – 17 broken bones in all.

He had to be airlifted off the mountain before spending 10 days in a Vancouver hospital and was on a liquid diet for six weeks.

But McMorris somehow rebounded in time to capture bronze in men’s slopestyle at the Pyeongchang Winter Games for his second Olympic medal.

The echoes of those horrific injuries, however, continue to linger.

“I’m still not normal,” he said of the pain that remains nearly 16 months later. “I have plates in my face, plates in my arm, plates in my leg. My main focus is on mobility because it tightens up on me.

“It’s pretty impressive what the human body can do, given the circumstances.”

McMorris, who is sponsored by RBC, said he chatted with world No. 1 golfer Dustin Johnson and Canada’s Adam Hadwin at the US$6.2-million tournament, just the latest stop on what has already been a whirlwind summer.

He got to ride a horse as marshal of the Calgary Stampede Parade earlier this month and helped give away a car at a recent music festival.

“All these neat opportunities that you’d never think riding a piece of wood down a mountain would bring to me,” said McMorris, who plays about five or six rounds of a golf a summer. “I live a pretty strange life with the weird things I get to do because of snowboarding, but it is nice to be around an event like this and to see all the world’s best coming up to Canada.”

Stuck rehabbing injuries the last two summers, including from the accident that nearly took his life, McMorris is happy to let things come his way when he’s away from the mountain.

That might not have always been the case in the past.

“I don’t think I ever took anything for granted, but I definitely don’t now,” he said. “I wake up every day and go, ‘OK this is way better than when I was almost dead.’ I try to take things at a slower pace now. I don’t need to rush to get back to snowboarding. I really appreciate my time in it, but I love my time off.

“I’m very thankful for the life I lead, and I’m more thankful than I’ve ever been.”

OAKVILLE, Ont. – Michael Gligic has lined up hundreds of shots at Glen Abbey Golf Club.

He played the course at least 100 times as a teenager under the tutelage of Sean Foley, long before the latter became swing coach for Tiger Woods.

Rounds have been less frequent over the last decade – Gligic estimates six or eight in total – usually alongside a couple of friends with a beer or two not far from his golf bag.

Thursday was an entirely different experience.

Gligic fired a 3-under 69 in the first round of the RBC Canadian Open at Glen Abbey before play was suspended due to inclement weather. He finished the day tied for 41st.

“I don’t know if when I was 13 outside the ropes getting autographs if I really thought it would be a reality that one day I’d be inside the ropes,” the 28-year-old said. “It was a pretty cool experience. I’ll cherish that moment walking down No. 18.”

Gligic, who was born in Kitchener, Ont., and grew up in Burlington, just west of Oakville, has played two previous Canadian Opens elsewhere, but competing at the course where he started to hone his skills is special.

“A little nervy on the first tee shot,” Gligic said. “Other than that, settled in really well.”

Much of his career has been spent on golf’s third-tier Mackenzie Tour, previously called PGA Tour Canada. Gligic earned a spot at this year’s Open after tying for first in Monday’s qualifier.

With a morning tee time, his opening round included a combination of searing heat, wind and rain.

“I went to pull out my umbrella and my caddie was like, ‘Yeah, that’s in the car,”’ said Gligic, adding with a grin: “He’ll get a word from me … I’m sure he’ll carry it (Friday) rain or shine.”

The six-foot-four, 180-pound Gligic has plenty of support following him around Glen Abbey, where he fired four birdies against one bogey.

“I didn’t really have a specific goal,” said Gligic, one of 21 Canadians in the field. “I’m just going to try and hit one shot at a time and do what I can do and put myself in contention.”

The 2018 event might be the tournament’s swan song at Glen Abbey – a Jack Nicklaus-designed course that could soon be redeveloped as a subdivision – but Gligic is hopeful the venue’s 30th Open isn’t its last.

“There’s so much history,” he said. “It would be a shame to see it go.”

David Hearn of Brantford, Ont., and Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, B.C., were tied at 4-under 68 as low Canadians.

The 39-year-old Hearn has had a tricky season with more down time than he’s used to after losing his full-time PGA Tour status, but is also in decent position to make some noise on home soil.

“I realize out here it can be fleeting,” Hearn said. “I’ve been working my tail off to try to get better.”

Robert Garrigus tops the leaderboard at 9 under following a round that included five straight birdies on the front nine.

Adam Hadwin, also from Abbotsford, sat at 2 under after playing alongside world No. 1 Dustin Johnson (68) and No. 4 Bubba Watson (70) in the early marquee group at the US$6.2-million event.

“No one was paying attention to me,” Hadwin joked.

Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., was at 3 under through 17 after play was suspended for the day due to inclement weather. Amateur Chris Crisologo of Richmond, B.C., was at 3 under through 14 holes, while Roger Sloan of Merritt, B.C., was also at 3 under but after 12 holes.

Joey Savoie, an amateur from La Prairie, Que., shot 71, while Jared du Toit of Kimberley, B.C., fired a 72.

Calgary’s Ryan Yip was at 1 under through 12 holes, and Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., finished his round at even-par 72. Ben Silverman of Thornhill, Ont., was also at par after 12 holes.

Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., the 2003 Masters champion, shot 75.

Gligic enjoyed Thursday’s moment in the spotlight, but was eager to put it behind him with even more pressure on the horizon.

“It’s just the first day,” he said. “So much can happen. I could shoot 64 or 84 (in the second round).

“It’s golf, and things can change overnight.”

OAKVILLE, Ont. – As good as Robert Garrigus has been at the RBC Canadian Open, he thinks he could have been even better in Thursday’s first round.

The American shot a 9-under 63 to take the clubhouse lead. A rainstorm suspended play for over two hours in the late afternoon before the PGA TOUR tournament resumed for a little over an hour. By the end of the day, Garrigus was still one shot ahead of fellow American Adam Schenk at Glen Abbey Golf Club.

“Could have been 59 there if a couple putts didn’t lip out,” said Garrigus, who had birdie putts lip out on Nos. 10 and 17. “Got lucky on the par-5, on 13, hit it right in the middle of the water, and it hit a rock and bounced over the thing and I made birdie.

“I think 20-something-under is going to win, so we’ll forget about it when I get home. This was a good day, get to enjoy it for a minute, but I’ve got to close my mind off.”

Keeping focused has been an issue for Garrigus of late.

He shot an impressive 6-under 66 in the third round of the Barbasol Championship last Saturday, before coughing up an ugly 7-over 79 in the final round. The low point for Garrigus was when he quadruple bogeyed the 567-yard par-5 No. 17, finishing the tournament tied for 66th at 4 under.

“I prayed a lot this week, I’ll tell you that much,” said Garrigus. “There was a lot of prayers for my family, just to give me peace and calm, just to come out and not worry about it, not worry about where I am.”

Last year at Glen Abbey, Garrigus shot a 10-under 62 in the third round to match the course record. If not for those two missed putts on Thursday, he could have tied or surpassed that mark.

“I love this place. I’ve always played well in Canada. There’s a lot of good vibes here. And the golf course is absolutely pure,” said Garrigus. “I mean, I was walking on the fairway on No. 8, and it just felt like you were walking on carpet, and you get up on the green, and it’s like grass. The conditions are absolutely perfect.”

Although Garrigus played in ideal conditions, they turned a few hours after he got off the course. Play was suspended for over two hours in the late afternoon, with high winds and potential lightning strikes making it unsafe to keep golfing. Play resumed for another hour after the rain cleared, but over a dozen players were unable to finish their round.

Rain on Monday and briefly on Wednesday had kept the greens and fairways soft.

Schenk made the most of the conditions, closing out his round in the rain with three straight birdies as the morning group finished its day at the US$6.2-million PGA Tour event.

“If you were in the fairway, it was much easier to attack, but you could still play from the rough, so I did that too often today but was fortunate to get away with it,” said Schenk, a PGA Tour rookie who is fighting to keep his card with a handful of tournaments left on the schedule. “But if you can get within 20 feet of the hole, you’re going to make some putts, especially in the morning. The greens are very smooth.”

Chris Stroud was third after shooting a 7-under 65.

David Hearn of Brantford, Ont., shot 4-under 68 for the top score among Canadians. After play resumed Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, B.C., drained a six-foot putt on No. 18 to tie Hearn.

“I thought I was hitting a little better before the delay, felt a little off on the last few holes,” said Taylor, who was on the 16th hole before the delay. “Made a couple putts on the last two holes so that was nice to finish the round off.”

Adam Hadwin, also from Abbotsford, the top-ranked Canadian on the PGA Tour, fired a 2-under 70.

Victoria’s Pat Fletcher, who was born in England, was the last Canadian to win the country’s national championship, claiming the event all the way back in 1954. Carl Keffer is the only Canadian-born champion, winning in 1909 and 1914.