CALEDON, Ont. – If not a Canadian in the RBC Canadian Open winner’s circle tomorrow, and there is that chance with Sudarshan Yellamaraju three shots off the lead through 54 holes, the man most fans here at TPC Toronto would want to see in that position is Tommy Fleetwood.
Fleetwood is one of the most likeable men in the sport, but more than that Canadians have a soft spot for the Englishman after the classy way he handled his heart-breaking playoff loss to Nick Taylor three years ago at Oakdale Golf and Country Club.
Fleetwood said he’s always felt the love in Canada, this being his third time playing the country’s national open. But even he senses the spot for him is softer among the crowds this week.
“Maybe since (2023) there’s been a little bit of extra support for me,” said Fleetwood, cracking a smile, after his 3-under 67 Saturday moved him to 11 under par, two shots back of Jackson Suber.
But with due respect to the reigning FedEx Cup champion, the better story would be Bud Cauley hoisting the trophy.
Cauley, one shot back of Suber with rounds of 69-63-66, has been through hell and back as a PGA Tour player. Once upon a time he was a young star sure to be a multi-time winner in the big leagues. He turned pro at the 2011 U.S. Open and became one of few players in tour history to earn membership via sponsor’s exemptions with four top-15 finishes in seven starts.
A three-time first-team all-American at the University of Alabama, tournaments were eager to have Cauley in their fields that year. The RBC Canadian Open was among them, and Cauley rewarded officials with a T13 at Vancouver’s Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club.
“I just remember the golf course being very hard. I remember Tommy Gainey playing well the first round and saying we should have a U.S. Open here, kind of forgetting that we were not in the United States,” said Cauley, chuckling, when reflecting on that 2011 RBC Canadian Open.
But nothing is given in golf, and Cauley’s first two seasons on the PGA Tour did not deliver the success most anticipated for him. In 2014, he suffered a shoulder injury that required surgery and cost him starts the following season. He bounced back with a nice campaign in 2016-17, but in 2018 tragedy struck when Cauley was a passenger in a single-car accident in Dublin, Ohio, during the Memorial Tournament. He broke six ribs and his right leg and sustained a collapsed lung and a concussion. He posted on Instagram that he felt “lucky to be alive.”
Cauley returned to the tour that fall and played well enough over the next two seasons to finish inside the top 100 on the FedEx Cup ranking. But in 2020 he began to experience pain in his side. Due to complications from his post-accident operation, Cauley ultimately underwent more surgeries that led to various setbacks and he spent three years on the sidelines in total.
He returned to the PGA Tour in 2024 at the WM Phoenix Open, earned his card back through a medical extension the next year, and finished T6 at the 2025 Players Championship. That week, his good pal and former Alabama teammate Justin Thomas said he would “do some really, really weird things” to see Cauley get his first win.
“I’ve obviously played golf my whole life and been able to meet a lot of great people and develop a lot of great friendships, him definitely being one of them,” said Cauley of the support of Thomas and his peers on the PGA Tour. “So, you know, it’s great to be doing this with really good friends and guys that support you and pull for you, that just makes it even more fun.”
One former player in position to appreciate Cauley’s resiliency is Graham DeLaet. Here doing analysis for TSN and Golf Channel, DeLaet underwent multiple back surgeries during his career, from which he returned several times. He was ultimately forced to retire from competitive play in 2022.
“There are multiple layers. The want to go through it all to come back is a lot, it takes a lot out of you,” said DeLaet. “So the want is one thing. The ability to come back and play at a high level and believe that you can, you kind of forget how to play when you are gone for long. It takes a while to figure out how to play this kind of golf. When you are with your buddies, every pin is in the middle of the green, you hit 4-iron right at it or whatever. Out here, there is so much more thinking involved. And then to be in contention and playing at that kind of level is that one more step forward. It’s super impressive.”
“We’re not supposed to cheer for anybody in the media,” added DeLaet, “but every single guy here would be very excited to see him win.”
Cauley, as he should, is being careful not to get ahead of himself going into tomorrow’s final round, which is expected to be weather-plagued. But he’s not out here to finish second either. He’s made it all the way back to the PGA Tour, yes. But one more goal remains.
“I will say, just since I was injured and playing golf now and having gotten married and starting a family, I think my perspective has changed and my priorities I think are in order,” stated Cauley. “So it’s not the most important thing in the world to me. But it is very important. I work really hard at it, so that’s why I come out here and play is to try to win tournaments.”
