‘Consolation prize’ goes to Hughes
OAKVILLE, ONT .• Don’t get him wrong, Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont. is thrilled to walk away from the RBC Canadian Open as the low Canadian. It just wasn’t his goal.
The PGA Tour rookie won the Rivermead Trophy as low Canadian after firing a finalround, 4- under 68 Sunday to finish this year’s edition of the national championship at 10-under 278, tied for 32nd.
But like all the players at Glen Abbey this week, Hughes was looking to win the 108th Canadian Open, not just be the top homegrown player in the field.
“It’s a consolation prize, I would say,” said Hughes, who was playing in the world’s third oldest national open as a professional for the first time.
“You know, it’s a nice honour for sure. And I’m beating a lot of good players that came out of Canada this week. But I think if you asked Graham ( DeLaet), or I, or David (Hearn), I think we all wanted to win. So being low Canadian is great, but next year I’m coming back for more.”
A total of 17 Canadians were entered in the field of 156 players but only Hughes and DeLaet made it through to the weekend. Both spun their wheels on Saturday, though, after being just four strokes behind second-round leader Martin Flores. Hughes was 2- over 74 while DeLaet had 73. DeLaet finished up with 71 Sunday to wind up in a tie for 48th at 8-under 280.
Hughes played much better on Sunday, picking up an eagle on the second hole and birdies on 10, 15, 16, and 17. His only blemishes were bogeys on Nos. 4 and 18. Hughes said he was very disappointed by the bogey on the final hole, a par-5, which at 524-yards is very reachable in two.
He put his tee shot into the same right-hand bunker that Tiger Woods hit that miraculous 6- iron out of to win in 2000. Hughes had to layup with his next shot, put his third just off the back of the green, and ended up with a six.
“It’s a bit sour tasting right now making six on the last hole,” Hughes said. “It’s not playing very hard. I’m probably going to think about that one for a little while. I had my sights set on three and I made six. That’s a pretty tough pill to swallow, but lesson learned, don’t get ahead of yourself.”
All in all, it was a good week for the world No. 112, just as it has been a good year for him so far with a tour victory back in November at the RSM Classic.
And, really, Sunday was all about picking up FedExCup and Presidents Cup points for both Canadians as they had no realistic chance of challenging the leaders.
Hughes currently sits 26th in the FedEx standings and 28th in the Presidents Cup for the International squad. The top-10 in the standings automatically make the team for the event against the U.S. at the end of September in New Jersey.
“If I c ould s omehow squeak out a win in the next few weeks that would be even better for trying to make that Presidents Cup team. We’ll see. If I can play the way I did today, I’m feeling good going forward.”
DeLaet’s day wasn’t quite as good as Hughes, but it was still a fine week for the Weyburn, Sask., native who at 27th in the President Cup standings will likely be leapfrogged by his compatriot.
“You can’t get much done out here shooting par on the weekend,” said DeLaet, whose round Sunday i ncluded four birdies and three bogeys. “It was pretty mediocre golf, to say the least, but it was fun. We’ll be back next year and hopefully somebody can get it done.” ❚ There was still plenty of support out on the Jack Nicklaus-designed course for both Canadians despite them not being in contention. DeLaet was greeted by loud applause and pounding on the boards of the hockey- themed par3 7 th hole, and even louder cheers erupted when he sank his 12-footer for birdie. “The support we get as Canadians in this golf tournament is great, and you really want to be able to give them something to cheer about,” said DeLaet.
Hughes said he wanted to “thank the fans” for their support all week.