After 15 years, 239 tournaments, and a near-career-ending accident, Bud Cauley finally has a PGA Tour win to his name.
The 36-year-old fired a 5-under-par 65 in Sunday’s final round of the RBC Canadian Open at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley’s North course in Caledon, Ontario, capturing his first PGA Tour title in dominant fashion despite a rain-soaked day on the course.
Cauley turned professional in 2011 and had never placed better than third in any PGA Tour event before Sunday. His path to the winner’s circle was made even more remarkable by a 2018 car accident that left him with six broken ribs, a fractured leg, and a collapsed lung.
Reflecting on the journey, Cauley spoke about the difficulty of the road that led him here. “Just how hard that was,” he said. “Just so many people helped me get here and I’m just really thankful for all the help that I’ve gotten.”
Cauley closed at 17-under 263 overall, two shots clear of England’s Matt Fitzpatrick, who posted a 64 in the final round. Fitzpatrick nearly made things interesting, draining a 12-foot eagle putt on the 18th hole, but a bogey on the previous hole had already put his chances out of reach. Norway’s Viktor Hovland shot 65 and finished third at 14 under.
The turning point for Cauley came on a five-hole stretch from the 11th through the 15th, where he recorded four birdies — including a chip-in on No. 12 — to build a three-shot cushion over the rest of the field.
“I’m just very proud of the way I kind of kept going and continued to make birdies there on the back nine and I’m just so happy,” Cauley said.
Fitzpatrick was upbeat despite falling short. “It’s a good week,” he said. “I would have taken it at the start of the week. I felt like there was a lot of good stuff in there.”
Jimmy Stanger entered the 18th hole three shots back but hit his approach into the water, leading to a bogey and a final round of 67. He finished at 13 under, tying for fourth with Jackson Suber (70), Brice Garnett (68), and Sweden’s Jesper Svensson (68). Suber had actually held a one-shot lead over Cauley heading into the final round.
Despite not winning, Suber came away with significant rewards. His finish earned him entry into the British Open and the Travelers Championship later this year, adding to a U.S. Open spot he secured through a Monday qualifier at the start of the week.
“To be able to play in the U.S. Open next week, Travelers, and then the British Open, I mean, that’s a pretty big schedule change, especially coming into the year with conditional status,” Suber said.
Defending champion Ryan Fox of New Zealand shot 68 and tied at 12 under with Canadian Sudarshan Yellamaraju (68) and South Africa’s Aldrich Potgieter (65).
“Obviously going into the week, it was like you have that little bit of added pressure being at the Canadian Open and for me being pretty close to home and stuff like that,” Yellamaraju said. “I just kind of tried to keep trying to tell myself to play the best that I could and just fight until the very end, which was pretty much what I did.”
Second-round leader Ben James bounced back from a rough third round to shoot 69 in his PGA Tour debut, finishing tied for 54th at 3 under.
Brooks Koepka, who shared the lead after opening with a 64, withdrew before Sunday’s round due to a hand injury. He stood at 6 under through three rounds after a 72 on Saturday.
Sunday’s tee times were pushed back due to weather concerns, with players sent off both the first and 10th tees in groups of three.
