A triple bogey on the par-5 No. 2 hole at Glen Abbey Golf Club knocked du Toit down the leaderboard, but he climbed back up thanks to the steady hand of Sean Burke, his caddy for the week.
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Rahm held up his end of the bargain, hanging around the top-five with a 6-under total.
His caddy Sean Burke – who met du Toit for the first time on Monday – was next, rushing to hug the 21-year-old on the green as the fans started to cheer.
Canadian amateur Jared du Toit followed that up with a 40-foot putt for eagle on the same hole to finish the day in a tie for second with Dustin Johnson. He was that close.
“(This) feels pretty good”, du Toit said. “I mean, I’m a little surprised”. Everything from now (on) is just cream on top. Candie Kung and Ssu-Chia Cheng beat Amy Yang and In Gee Chun 2 and 1, but Yani Tseng and Teresa Lu trailed all day long in a 4-and-2 loss to Sei Young Kim and So Yeon Ryu.
This Canadian is Jared du Toit, a British Columbia native. He played with du Toit at ASU, and though he’s only two shots behind, Rahm’s cheering for his former teammate. “I’ve never been here before, but I’m looking forward to it”.
“You’ve just got to take advantage of the downwind holes and the into-the-wind holes, just try to get looks”. Actually, it would be great.
It’s not like it’s been years since Rahm and du Toit played together. Jhonattan Vegas, of Venezuela, acknowledges the crowd on the 18th green during the final round at the Canadian Open golf tournament in Oakville, Ontario, Sunday, July 24, 2016.
Kerr and company were shut out in the first session but got progressively better each day. He’s just a genuine guy. I hit it right on my line, one of the best swings I’ve made all day. “We became really good friends”.
Johnson, tied for the lead with Luke List after each of the first two days, birdied 18 for a 71.
Martin Laird of Scotland finished at 68 and was another stroke behind in a tie for sixth with Cameron Tringale (69), Matt Kuchar (70), Chad Campbell (70), Ricky Barnes (71) and Jon Rahm (72) of Spain.
Only three other Canadians out of a field of 14 home-grown players made the cut on Friday.
Playing on a sponsor’s exemption, he opened with a stunning 5-under 67 Thursday. “I didn’t know that it was going to be enough, obviously, to win by one, but I knew it was going to give me a good chance”.
– Mike Weir, only a season removed from winning the Masters, took a two-stroke lead over Vijay Singh into the back nine on Sunday in 2004 only to stumble and eventually lose on the third hole of a sudden-death playoff.
Conners shot a 3-over 75 on Thursday and thought he’d played his way out of the event Friday after he double bogeyed on No. 9, his final hole of the second round.
But dammit, the kid is resilient, if not talented. He bounced back with three straight birdies to stay in the hunt.
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“I’m honestly just out there to have some fun and enjoy the atmosphere”, du Toit said following a 2-under round that left him in second place, and paired on Sunday with past Canadian Open victor Brandt Snedeker.
