Kanaya's Impressive Birdie
Takumi Kanaya Secures Birdie on Fourth Hole with a 20-Foot Putt at 2026 RBC Canadian
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Takumi Kanaya drained a 19-foot, 6-inch birdie putt on the par-3 fourth hole Saturday during the third round of the 2026 RBC Canadian Open at TPC Toronto. The make moved the Japanese golfer to 4-under par for the tournament, six shots behind leader Ben James, according to PGA Tour.
Kanaya, 28, is a former World No. 1 amateur and nine-time professional winner. He entered the week ranked 99th in the FedExCup standings. A strong finish in Canada could be critical for keeping his spot in the upcoming FedExCup Playoffs, according to Sports Yahoo.
Kanaya's Key Birdie Putt on No. 4
Kanaya's tee shot on the 163-yard fourth hole landed on the left side of the green. That left him 19 feet, 6 inches from the cup. The left side is the safer part of the hole, which has water on the right. From there, he rolled in the downhill putt to move to 1-under for his round, per PGA Tour.
The birdie came after Kanaya opened his round with pars on the first three holes. He made his tee time at 9:05 AM EDT, paired alongside Norway's Viktor Hovland. Both players entered the day at 3-under par after rounds of 68 and 69.
Rookie Ben James Leads the Field at 10-Under
Ben James, a 23-year-old rookie, leads the tournament at 10-under par. James earned his PGA Tour card by finishing No. 1 in the PGA Tour University Rankings. He is making his professional debut this week. James said after Round 2: "I wasn't really thinking about results at all this week... just seeing where my game stacks up," per Golf Week.
Defending champion Ryan Fox of New Zealand sits at 8-under par, two shots off the lead. Fox is trying to become a back-to-back winner at TPC Toronto. Seventeen players are within three shots of the lead heading into the weekend, according to Sports Yahoo.
TPC Toronto Course Makes Putting the Deciding Factor
TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley's North Course stretches 7,389 yards and plays as a par 70. The course was renovated by architect Doug Carrick to meet PGA Tour standards. The greens are a mix of bentgrass and poa annua. Analysts say the green complexes are the hardest part of the course, according to Golf Week.
Data Golf analysts noted that clutch putting from 15 to 25 feet is the main thing separating players this week. The slope rating of 0.87 in Round 1 means even top players are not pulling away from the field on tee shots and approach shots alone. Sinking long putts — like Kanaya's on No. 4 — is how players move up the board.
What a Top Finish Means for Kanaya's Season
The 2026 RBC Canadian Open has a total purse of $9.8 million. The winner takes home $1,764,000 and 500 FedExCup points. For Kanaya, ranked 99th in the standings, a top-10 finish would be his best result of the 2026 season since a T17 at the Cognizant Classic, according to PGA Tour.
Kanaya missed the cut at the Canadian Open in 2025. A strong Sunday would help him secure a spot in the FedExCup Playoffs and potentially earn entry into the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills. The RBC Canadian Open is the third-oldest continuously running event on the PGA Tour, behind only The Open Championship and the U.S. Open, per Sports Yahoo.
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