Nick Taylor ended a 69-year drought at the RBC Canadian Open for Canadian golfers.he sank 72 foot eagle putt Beats Tommy Fleetwood on the 4th hole of a playoff. The crowd went wild and the curse was finally lifted when a security guard tackled Adam Hadwin, a Canadian who was about to celebrate with Taylor.
In a week when the topic of golf took the spotlight from the event with the merger of the PGA TOUR and LIV Golf, a Canadian regained attention in historic fashion.
Taylor was a national hero to Canadians, who longed for one of their golfers to win a national championship. He had to contend with a late rising Fleetwood if he wanted to make the playoffs.
Sinking a 72-foot putt instead of going for birdie was a great way to end the drought. At least he had 20,000 fans watching the playoffs and through his first three holes it felt like the playoffs would never end.
As announced live by CBS’s Jim Nantz, it was the longest putt Taylor hit in his PGA Tour career and was a monumental way to secure his second PGA Tour victory.
The first two holes of the playoff were played at the par 5 18th hole.
On the first hole of the playoff, both players had tight lies to the right of the green but managed to raise them for birdies. The second playoff had a completely different result, but the result was a tie.
The 3rd hole of the playoff is the 9th par 3. Fleetwood landed a birdie putt to win, but he pulled it away and had to par.
Finally, Taylor took the lead on the day’s fourth trip through the 18th. He fell behind on the putt, but the ball was looking only at the hole. Everyone knew it when the ball approached the flagpole. It hit and fell into a hole, and everyone went mad.
Taylor then had to hold back tears during the post-round interview. It was clear how much this championship meant to him and to all who attended.
