New Zealand's Ryan Fox ready to defend RBC Canadian Open title at TPC Toronto

Ryan Fox of New Zealand kisses the trophy after winning the RBC Canadian Open in Caledon, Ont. on Sunday, June 8, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Lahodynskyj

CALEDON — There was one thing Ryan Fox knew he had to check out as soon as he returned to TPC Toronto for this year’s RBC Canadian Open.

The New Zealander immediately sought out the plaque mounted by the 18th green at the golf course northwest of Toronto that commemorates his four-hole playoff victory over American Sam Burns to win last year’s Canadian men’s national championship.

“I’ve never had one of those before, so that was a pretty cool novelty today,” said Fox at a news conference on Wednesday morning. “I saw it, literally, 15, 20 minutes ago.

“To see that and also look at that second shot again and try to relive that memory, that was pretty cool.”

TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley’s North Course hosted the Canadian Open for the first time last year. Aside from a handful of Canadian players who’d played it before, that put the field on equal footing.

Fox hoped that his familiarity with the course would carry over to this week’s tournament as he defends his title.

“Coming here last year was nice, everyone was in the same boat, no one’s really seen the golf course, everyone’s trying to figure it out,” said Fox, who is a two-time winner on the PGA Tour. “Now we’re coming back to the same place and going, ‘I know all the shots, I kind of know how I’m going to play the golf course.’

“Obviously, it might be a little bit different depending upon the wind, but I know where I’m trying to hit it on every tee. It makes the week a little bit less stressful trying to figure it out.”

Fox’s competition will be stiff as a stacked field will tee off for Thursday’s first round.

There are four players in the top 10 of the FedEx Cup standings, the point list of the top-tier PGA Tour. England’s Matt Fitzpatrick is third, Collin Morikawa of the United States is fifth, fellow American Jacob Bridgeman is ninth, and England’s Tommy Fleetwood is 10th.

Some of the tour’s top players are skipping the event — like world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler and No. 2 Cameron Young, both from the U.S., as well as two-time Canadian Open champion Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland — to rest before next week’s U.S. Open, the third major of the men’s golf season.

Fox said he believes it’s a stronger field than last year, even with the big-name absences.

“It’s a tough place in the schedule, there’s going to be guys just not want to play the week before a major regardless of the event,” said Fox with the Canadian Open trophy beside him. “I think it speaks to the history to this event. I think everyone came out of this golf course last year really enjoying it.

“There’s such a great history at this event, and it is a pretty good warm-up for next week.”

Morikawa, who hasn’t played since the PGA Championship on May 17 as he dealt with nagging back issues and became a first-time father, said he understood why some players take a week off ahead of a major, and others play.

“I’ve had good results both ways. I think it depends on how your game’s feeling, if you played the major golf course before, the schedule leading up to it,” said Morikawa, who won the PGA Championship in 2020 and the British Open in 2021. “There’s a big mix on what guys like to do. I think you can do it either way.

“Honestly, I don’t prep that differently during those weeks. Some guys do, and I think that creates a scheduling conflict with playing a different tournament before.”

There are 21 Canadians in the field, including Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, B.C., who won in 2023 to end a 69-year drought for Canadians at their home championship.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 10, 2026.

John Chidley-Hill, The Canadian Press