The No. 4 player in the world will out-duel No. 17 in the RBC Canadian Open 

Cameron Smith vs. Matt Fitzpatrick 

St. George’s Golf and Country Club – Toronto, ON 

6:40 AM ET (Thursday) 

Smith -125 

The RBC Canadian Open gets rolling on Thursday morning in Toronto. Rory McIlroy is the returning champion and it 9/1 to repeat, with Scottie Scheffler the favorite to win the tournament at 17/2. 

Those are smart plays. Both have good value. But the head-to-head matchups are more intriguing. 

These props are simple. Two golfers square off, whether they’re ever grouped together or not over the course of the tournament. Whoever fares the best overall pays off. 

The combination of Cameron Smith and Matt Fitzpatrick is the most intriguing. In part, that’s because it appears one of the biggest mismatches. 

Smith is currently the No. 4 player in the world. He’s behind only Scheffler, Jon Rahm and Patrick Cantlay. 

The Australian has played well of late. He finished tied for 13^th last weekend at The Memorial. In his last five starts, he has a win at The Players and third-place finish at The Masters. He also finished tied for 13^th at the PGA Championship. 

Meanwhile, Fitzpatrick is currently the 17^th-ranked player in the world. He missed the cut last weekend at The Memorial, failing to break par in either of his two rounds and finishing a +3. It was the second time in his last four starts that he’s missed the cut. 

That said, the Englishman sandwiched a second-place finish at the Wells Fargo Championship and a fifth-place performance at the PGA Championship in between those stinkers. He’s clearly running hot and cold. 

Go with the golfer who is more consistent. Go with the player who is better overall. Go with hotter hand. 

Cameron Smith will finish higher than Matt Fitzpatrick this weekend.  

Bill Liteley’s pick: Cameron Smith (-125)