There’s a good number of golfers who needed a strong showing at this week’s RBC Canadian Open, hoping to parlay that into a spot in next week’s U.S. Open. Of course, winning is always the goal, but sliding into the top 60 in the OWGR update that gets released Monday would mean a tee time at Shinnecock.
After Friday’s 36-hole cut, however, there are also several golfers heading home early, knowing they missed their chance to contend in Toronto.
The cut for the RBC was for the low 65 and ties and it came it at 2 under. On the good side: Ben James, making his PGA Tour debut as a pro, leads at 10 under. There’s a group of five golfers at 9 under and then there’s Brooks Keopka in a big group at 8 under.
As for the Canadians in the field this week, 10 of them made the cut, including amateur Justin Matthews, with Matthew Anderson is having the best performance so far, shooting 64-69 to almost get inside the top 10.
Then there’s a healthy list of notable names who did not make the cut, including a two-time winner of the tournament as well as one of Canada’s favorites.
Jhonattan Vegas, 1 under
A two-time winner of the RBC, Vegas opened with a 67 but bumbled around on Friday to a 72, with a birdie on his final hole leaving him still a shot shy of advancing.
Aaron Rai, 1 under
The rowdy fans at The Rink – the hockey-themed 14th hole – shouted “double gloves” for Rai but it wasn’t enough to spark his round late in the day. The 2026 PGA Championship winner shot 69-70 and finished 1 under, missing the cut by a shot. His four outings before this missed cut were T-19, 1, 5, T-24 but this was a speedbump he probably didn’t see coming.
Eric Cole, even
Cole, who contended last week at the Memorial and finished solo eighth, was off to a red-hot start at TPC Toronto with a Thursday 64 but somehow shot 12 strokes worse on Friday. He started with a triple-bogey 7 and would later post four bogeys and a double-bogey. Cole ripped off seven straight pars to end his round but it left him at even par for the week and two off the cutline.
Davis Riley, even
Like Cole, it was a tale of two rounds for Riley, who opened with a 66 but slumped to a 74 on Friday. Riley missed his third cut in four starts and eighth cut in 15 outings in 2026. His T-6 in at the Sony Open in Hawaii remains his best outing this season.
Corey Conners, even
The highest-ranked Canadian in the OWGR is always a crowd favorite but rounds of 71 and 69 were far from enough to advance to the weekend. Conners has just two top-15s this season but on the flip side, this is only his second missed cut of 2026.
Justin Rose, 2 over
Rosie shot 70-72, seemingly never able to really get it going this week. He had five birdies and five bogeys on Thursday, with each step forward quickly followed by a step back. On Friday, he had four more bogeys en route to a 2-over round and a short week in Canada.
John Parry, 2 over
The 39-year-old Englishman was 13-for-13 cuts made this season before not making the weekend at the Charles Schwab Challenge. Now he’s missed cuts two in a row after shooting 71-71 this week.
Andrew Putnam, 2 over
Putnam’s had a week. He was in final qualifying for the U.S. Open in Oregon on Monday and ended up in a playoff. Six extra holes Monday night wasn’t enough so he went back to the course for three more before securing the final spot Tuesday morning. Then it was a cross-country flight for the RBC before a first-round 74. He rallied Friday with a 68 but it wasn’t enough to make the cut.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: RBC Canadian Open: xxxx among those who missed the cut
