Unburdened from playoff lose a year ago, Sam Burns shoots opening round 64 in Canada
Take the positives, leave the rest.
Sam Burns showed he wasn’t letting the results of last year’s Canadian Open bother him whatsoever, carding an opening round 64 on Thursday to share the tournament lead with four others after 18 holes north of the border.
Burns, who lost to Ryan Fox in a playoff in 2025, is co-leading at Osprey Valley with Brooks Koepka, Eric Cole, Sahith Theegala, and Emiliano Grillo.
“Honestly for me, there wasn’t really any negative,” Burns said when asked to reflect on the bonus four holes he and Fox played a year ago. “I started the day pretty far back and played a really good round of golf and was able to sneak into a playoff. I had a chance to hole that putt and didn’t, but that’s the way it goes sometimes. So I really just kind of took the positives. I feel like my game was in a good spot, and try to do the same again this year.”
Burns is doing it all just a few days after sharing the lead late Sunday at the Memorial, where he finished T-4 with Tommy Fleetwood. At Jack’s Place, Burns committed a costly error on the par-4 17th . It was the only blemish on his card Sunday.
A five-time Tour winner, Burns is fourth in the Tour in putting — and since Thursday’s early rain, the course has been demanding more from the field’s short game than it is off the tee.
“There’s always a few kind of key putts you have throughout a round, whether it’s to keep the momentum going or save a shot here or there,” he told reporters when asked if putting would be the difference this week at such a long course.
He’s been tremendously consistent this spring, finishing no worst than T-38 over his last eight tournaments.
“At the end of the day, regardless of where you’re playing, I think you just have to go execute,” Burns said after his round in Toronto. “It’s nice to have some good memories maybe before the tournament starts, but you know, when you tee it up, you have to be able to execute and hit the shots that the golf course requires.”
He’s set to tee off early at 7:44 a.m. ET with Wyndham Clark and Kristoffer Reitan — both of whom have won over the last six weeks on Tour.
“The morning has different challenges, I wouldn’t say it’s necessarily easier or harder,” Burns said. “Typically, in the morning there’s moisture on the golf ball, which is a different challenge in itself. The golf course plays a little bit longer. The rough is thicker usually just with the moisture. Sometimes it can play easier, sometimes more difficult.”
