Cristobal Del Solar surprised the field with an entirely new level of performance at the Canadian Open. He shot 71 in the second round, leaving him still a healthy eight under par. He edged out a hotly contested field that featured Shane Lowry, Ryan Fox, Jake Knapp, Sam Burns, and Matteo Manassero. Inexplicably, they all played to a tie and finished with the very same final score. The 2023 event was held at the Oakdale Golf and Country Club, which provided a difficult test of golf for the players.
Andrew Putnam then strode confidently into the limelight with a dazzling, closing bogey-free 62 to finish a close second in the field. His leading play came from consistently sharp fairway shots and strong approach shots with his iron play, helping set up a dominant score card. Putnam, who won the 2018 Barracuda Championship, his only title on the tour,
Playing on a sponsor’s exemption, Olesen knocked down a brilliant 61 and was the first-round co-leader with Del Solar. He then dropped back to a tie for third after an even-par 70 in his next round. Olesen has since been joined in that position by Richard Lee, Nick Taylor and Victor Perez. All three of them are currently sitting at nine under par.
Rory McIlroy had a brutal day, carding an 8-over 78. His complete implosion caused him to miss the cut by a dozen shots. After his lamentable round, McIlroy voiced his displeasure with his play, saying,
“You don’t want to shoot high scores like the one I did today. Still, I felt like I came here obviously with a new driver thinking that that sort of was going to be good and solve some of the problems off the tee, but it didn’t.” – Rory McIlroy
Recognizing the test that awaits at Oakmont, he said it will be crucial to hit the fairways if he hopes to have a chance.
Andrew Putnam had a great post-round press conference, saying that good ball striking and putting was the reason for his success.
“I hit a lot of fairways, hit a lot of good iron shots, too, and my putter was on fire.” – Andrew Putnam
Cameron Champ noted that while the course conditions had firmed up slightly compared to the previous day, they remained consistent enough to provide a competitive environment for the players.
As the tournament nears its climax, Del Solar beats everyone in all four parts. He has an equally powerful army of digital players poised to take aggressive shots at the top of the digital leaderboard. Suddenly, the racist spotlight is on Putnam. Can he maintain his momentum to cross the finish line first, or will one of the other contenders rise up to beat him to the lily pad?
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