OAKMONT, Pa. — Nick Taylor grinded it out after a lengthy weather delay Sunday at the U.S. Open to record his best career major-championship finish.
Taylor was the only Canadian left at Oakmont Country Club through the afternoon, as the final few groups suffered through a 96-minute delay due to rain and unplayable course conditions.
Although Taylor struggled through his closing five holes, he told Sportsnet he’ll take a lot of positives from this week. He shot a 4-over 74 in the final round will finish inside the top 25.
Taylor’s previous best major finish was a tie for 29th at the Masters in 2020.
Taylor was grouped with Scottie Scheffler for Sunday’s finale at Oakmont, where he got off to an incredible start, leaving his first approach shot to just five feet and converting the birdie. He got a brutal break on the second hole, landing his approach to pin high but with the slope of the green and how much action he got on it from a wet fairway, it rolled back 50 yards en route to Taylor making a double bogey.
Play was suspended at 4:02 p.m. ET due to weather and resumed at 5:37 p.m. Taylor was on the 12th green with a 9-foot birdie putt which slid by.
Battling through heavy rain that made a difficult golf course even harder, Taylor bogeyed three of his final five holes as he couldn’t quite get his feels dialled in with either his approach shots or his putts.
But, he said, being paired with the game’s best player and navigating arguably the hardest golf course on the PGA Tour calendar, will do wonders for his confidence moving forward.
Through early afternoon on Sunday, however, there looked like there might have been some Canadian history made.
If Taylor was able to stay inside the top 10, it would have been just the third time in over 20 years where Canadians have finished inside the top 10 in at least three of the four men’s major championships.
Corey Conners finished tied for eighth at the Masters and Taylor Pendrith finished tie for fifth at the PGA Championship.
The last time such a tidy collection of results happened for Canadians at majors was in 2004 when Stephen Ames finished tied for ninth at the PGA Championship and the U.S. Open. Mike Weir finished tied for ninth at The Open Championship and tied for fourth at the U.S. Open.
Weir, of course, pulled off the feat himself in 2003 after winning the Masters and following that up with a tie for third at the U.S. Open and a tie for seventh at the PGA Championship.
Taylor, Pendrith, Conners, and Mackenzie Hughes are all in the field at The Open Championship next month at Royal Portrush and could still pull off the feat.
Pendrith had one of the rounds of the day Sunday, a 1-under 69.
He rode a hot putter into the house through his back nine, making four birdies in his final seven holes — including three in a row from Nos. 12-14.
He told Sportsnet that he “feels good” heading into next week at the Travelers Championship, another signature event on the PGA Tour schedule.
“Overall, I’m a little disappointed with (Saturday’s) round because I felt like I was in a decent position to be right there with a good round yesterday and it just ate me up. It can happen out here,” Pendrith said. “To finish with a nice day today feels good. I’ll take the positives from today’s round and move forward.”
Hughes shot a 5-over 75 Sunday but managed to hold on tight through his back nine — as he was 5-over for just his first nine holes. Hughes earned his way into next week’s signature event via his spot in the Aon Swing 5. It’s a great accomplishment with there being fewer PGA Tour cards available for 2026 at the end of this year and with guaranteed FedExCup points available.
But next week will also mark eight events in a row for Hughes, which means a pivot in his routine.
“It’s hard for me but a lot of times I just need to do less,” Hughes told Sportsnet. “After rounds this week I really didn’t do any practice of any kind. That’s not because I don’t want to, but I just feel like my energy needs to stay up and this golf course takes a lot out of you.
“When you’re in week seven you need to make those sacrifices. Less practice, more rest. Week number eight — buckle up. For me, it’s tough because I’m trying to do minimal work. I’m wired to go grind and put in the time. I’m on an unusual stretch so that’s what you have to do.”
Conners was the fourth and final Canadian to tee it up at the U.S. Open. He made the cut as well but withdrew prior to Sunday’s final round due to a wrist injury.
For now, Conners is still in the field at the Travelers along with Taylor, Hughes, Pendrith, and Adam Hadwin.
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