Corey Conners’ Red-Hot Run: Why Canada’s Top Golfer Is the Name to Watch This PGA Season

Canadian golfer Corey Conners ignited Royal Portrush on Saturday with a blistering 5-under-par 66 that rocketed him 41 places up the Open Championship leaderboard and planted him firmly inside the top 10 at -4 overall. Teeing off in the morning’s first group after narrowly making the cut, Conners looked nothing like a golfer fighting for weekend tee times. He opened with a birdie at the 1st, poured in back-to-back birdies on 7 and 8, and shrugged off a rare three-putt bogey at the turn by answering with birdies at 10 and the par-5 12th. His exclamation point came on 18, where a 42-foot bomb drew one of the loudest roars of moving day and capped a round that led the field in strokes gained: total. The surge was fueled by a simple speed adjustment on Portrush’s slick greens. After leaving putts short during the first two rounds, Conners ranked 14th in strokes gained: putting for the day and missed just three birdie chances inside 10 feet. Off the tee, the normally steady Canadian was back to his fairway-finding best, giving himself repeated looks on a links layout playing firm and fast. Conners is the lone Canadian to survive to the weekend in Northern Ireland, and his Saturday fireworks extend an impressive 2025 major résumé. The 33-year-old is one of only 18 players to make the cut in all four majors this season, highlighted by a top-10 at Augusta. He appeared headed for another strong week at Pinehurst before a wrist injury forced a late withdrawal. Fully healthy again, Conners said entering The Open that “things feel back to normal,” and Saturday’s ball-striking clinic backed up that confidence. Beyond chasing Canada’s first Claret Jug since 1954, Conners has plenty at stake in Sunday’s final round: valuable FedExCup points, a potential automatic Presidents Cup berth, and a chance to equal or surpass his career-best finish in a major. With the putter heating up and Portrush expected to stay scorable, the former Valero Texas Open champion suddenly looks like a dark-horse threat for a podium finish. Key search phrases: Corey Conners Open Championship, Corey Conners Royal Portrush 66, Canadian golfer leaderboard surge, Open Championship 2025 Canadian, Corey Conners birdie streak, Corey Conners wrist injury update.