RBC Canadian Open Round 1: Koepka, Burns and Hometown Hope Matthew Anderson Lead a Six-Way Logjam

Six names, one number. By the time the last group walked off the 18th green Thursday at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley, the RBC Canadian Open had a traffic jam at the top and nobody willing to pull over.

Brooks Koepka, Sam Burns, Sahith Theegala, Emiliano Grillo, Eric Cole and Canadian Matthew Anderson all shot 6-under 64 on the North Course in Caledon, Ontario, to share the first-round lead. Twelve more players sit one back at 65, and the 18 players within a shot of the top tell you everything about how gettable this place was after a morning soaking.

Rain Softens the North Course

Heavy rain rolled through around 10 a.m. local time, according to The Canadian Press, and it turned Osprey Valley into a dartboard. Approach shots stopped where they landed. Greens got slower. The scoring average finished at 68.5, and 97 of the 147 players in the field broke par.

Grillo noted that soft, slower greens are their own puzzle for players used to quick surfaces. Most of the field solved it anyway.

Theegala set the target early with a morning 64. Then the afternoon wave caught up, one by one, until six names shared the line.

Koepka Finds His Putter

The loudest of the six belonged to Koepka, who caught fire at the finish. Koepka made four birdies over his last five holes, rolling in a 20-footer on 14 and a 10-footer on 17 before sticking a wedge to 5 feet on 18 for one more.

It was a second straight hot start for Koepka, who opened with 63 in his previous start at THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson. What has been missing since his return to the PGA TOUR is a weekend run, and Koepka was blunt about why.

"I don't think the ball striking was as good as it's been as of late ... but it was nice to see the putter finally heat up," Koepka said, per the AP.

One Signature Event remains on the schedule, and Koepka has yet to qualify for one. A big week in Canada changes that math in a hurry.

Burns Back Where It Hurt

Burns arrived at Osprey Valley with history he would rather revise. A year ago he closed with a 62 to reach a playoff, then missed a short putt and watched Ryan Fox take the title. Thursday's 64 put him right back in the mix, and it nearly came with the outright lead attached.

On the par-5 18th, Burns found the fairway, reached the green in two and had an 18-foot look at eagle. It slid by, and he tapped in for birdie. Burns is also coming off a close call at the Memorial Tournament, so the form is no accident.

Koepka and Burns each carried two bogeys on their cards. Theegala, Grillo and Cole each had just one.

Anderson Steals the Spotlight

For the home crowd, the story was Anderson. The Mississauga native, playing on a sponsor exemption, went bogey-free out of the last group of the day, and the 64 came from a player who had missed the weekend in each of his last five Korn Ferry Tour starts.

A player fighting for cuts on the Korn Ferry Tour is tied with Koepka and Burns in his national open. Whatever happens next, Anderson already owns the best story of the week.

Cole had his own stakes. He arrived ranked No. 63 in the Official World Golf Ranking, and the top 60 after this week earn spots in next week's U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills. All six co-leaders except Cole and Anderson are already headed there, so Cole is playing for two things at once.

The 65 Club and the Marker That Cost a Major

Tony Finau headlined the dozen players at 65, a nice bounce for someone who came up short in U.S. Open qualifying earlier in the week. Shane Lowry, Erik van Rooyen, Doug Ghim, Ricky Castillo, Sam Ryder and Chandler Blanchet were in that group too.

So was Adam Svensson, the low Canadian among the chasers with a bogey-free 65, and his week already had a strange subplot. During a three-man playoff in U.S. Open qualifying, Svensson picked up his ball marker without realizing the playoff for the remaining alternate spots was still alive. He ended up as second alternate, which likely costs him a trip to Shinnecock. He did not hide from it. "Nothing but my fault," Svensson said.

Defending champion Ryan Fox, who won here last June in a four-hole playoff, opened with 66. Fox was 4 under through 11 holes and then parred his last seven, leaving him two back in a tie for 19th. Taylor Pendrith also shot 66. Nick Taylor, Tommy Fleetwood and Matt Fitzpatrick all opened with 67.

Not every Canadian enjoyed the soft conditions. Corey Conners, the highest-ranked Canadian in the world, shot 1-over 71. Mackenzie Hughes posted 69, and Mike Weir, making his 33rd start in this event, shot even-par 70.

Crowded at the Top

History says a six-way tie on Thursday is more of a starting gun than a statement. Only five of the 23 completed events on the PGA TOUR this season have been won by a first-round leader or co-leader, according to Golf Today.

Friday brings the cut and, if the rain stays away, a firmer golf course. With 18 players within a shot of the lead, the question is which of the six can turn a hot opening day into a 36-hole lead.

The PGA TOUR's own Round 1 recap (opens in a new tab) has more details. For how Fox won it last year, read our 2025 final-round recap.

Sources: PGA TOUR, AP, The Canadian Press, theScore, Golf Today. More golf coverage on Undrafted.

Photo: PGA TOUR.