CALEDON, ONT. — A year ago, Sudarshan Yellamaraju teed it up in the RBC Canadian Open, playing in front of a small gathering of family and friends. He posted two rounds in the 70s at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley, missed the cut and left to rejoin the Korn Ferry Tour.
Most spectators had never heard of the young Canadian, let alone know his story.
It was much the same for A.J. Ewart, a Vancouver product who first played in the Open as an amateur in 2022 and then again last year as a professional. In both starts, he completed his two rounds and took the weekends off. The entourage following him were mostly people who shared his last name.
This year, however, the two golfers can expect more attention. A lot more.
Large galleries and louder cheers will follow them as they return to their national open as full-time PGA Tour members and as two golfers who have had exceptionally strong seasons so far. Yellamaraju is currently 48th in the FedEx Cup standings, the top Canadian, and Ewart is 85th, ahead of veterans such as Taylor Pendrith and Mackenzie Hughes.
“Things have changed in a year,” said Ewart, who made a big leap from PGA Tour Americas to the PGA Tour. “Now I know I belong out here and I can compete out here. Being a member of the tour, I know I’ve earned my place out here, and I have the right to be here. So yeah, I’m excited.”
The first time Ewart went to an RBC Canadian was in 2011 when it was held at Shaughnessy in Vancouver. His father, Brad, was a member of the media and managed to get passes for he and A.J. They followed Adam Hadwin, who was near the top of the leaderboard and had a massive gallery following him.
“I remember Adam having been in contention,” recalled Ewart. “We watched him. It was hard to watch him, because everybody got behind him. But my dad and me, we were inside the ropes, and so that was cool.”
Sean O’Hair was the winner and, years later, Ewart was paired with him in a mini-tour event where he brought up the story.
“I told him that I watched him there,” said Ewart, “and he kind of felt embarrassed with how old he felt. But that was pretty cool. That was kind of my first memory of a Canadian Open.”
For Yellamaraju, the spotlight this week will be intense. He has finished inside the top 20 six times and earned more than $2 million for his play. His big breakout came at the Players Championship where he finished fifth, the best performance by a rookie in more than a decade.
His breakout season, coupled with his memorable name and well-documented unconventional pathway to the game, means he will get tremendous attention.
“There will probably be a lot more people watching me, I think that’s for sure,” he said of what he expects this week. “Ultimately it will be positive, and I definitely look forward to it.”
Yellamaraju has not only turned the heads of fans from all over but also those of his peers, especially the Canadian players on the PGA Tour. They understand how different the week of the RBC Canadian Open is for the home boys. Some weeks on tour you’re barely noticed, but on Canadian soil you are the centre of attention.
“He’s very impressive,” said Pendrith. “Obviously he’s been playing amazing last few months. For him to come out as a rookie at these big events and perform well week after week is very impressive. I think his game – he bombs it, he hits his irons well and putts great – he’s kind of got it all.”
“It’s been fun to watch him,” added Nick Taylor. “He got off to a great start, played well in some big golf tournaments. I think what’s most impressive is that he’s gotten off to some rough starts at times and really battled back to make cuts or have a great finish. He’s obviously very talented.”
As far as assistance with dealing with the overwhelming he will experience this week at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley, Yellamaraju said he’ll deal with as it comes, trying to ensure it helps rather than hinders his game.
“I’ve not really asked them about that to be honest,” admitted Yellamaraju. “I mean I kind of know what to expect. I do a pretty decent job of kind of blocking out all the attention and all that stuff as much as I can. I have always just learned through experience.”
What an experience it will be for both Yellamaraju and Ewart. The two were once billed as future stars of Canadian golf and that future is now.
