Blair Hamilton Receives Exemption to RBC Canadian Open
7/4/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
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HOUSTON â€" University of Houston junior Blair Hamilton will compete in the PGA TOUR's RBC Canadian Open later this month after recently receiving a tournament exemption.
Hamilton, who is currently ranked No. 81 in the latest World Amateur Golf rankings, was one of 10 players to receive exemptions for the tournament, which will be held July 20-26 at Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville, Ontario, Canada.
Besides playing for the Cougars, Hamilton also is a member of Golf Canada's National Amateur Team.
He joins a field of PGA TOUR and international stars that includes World No. 3 Bubba Watson, World No. 5 Jim Furyk, World No. 8 Jason Day, World No. 13 J.B. Holmes, World No. 16 Matt Kuchar, World No. 17 Chris Kirk, World No. 22 Brooks Koepka, World No. 26 Brandt Snedeker, World No. 30 Ryan Palmer, World No. 40 Hunter Mahan, World No. 48 Graeme McDowell, World No. 65 Luke Donald, and World Golf Hall of Fame member Ernie Els.
This will be the first time that Hamilton has competed in the RBC Canadian Open.
"At first, I was sort of shocked. I knew that there was a chance, but I had to get in the mind frame that I was going to be in Monday's qualifying," Hamilton said. "After the shock wore off, I was excited and fired up. It's a dream come true."
In addition to playing in his first PGA TOUR event, competing in the RBC Canadian Open holds special significance for Hamilton for a couple of reasons.
"The RBC Canadian Open has so much history, and it's our national open," Hamilton said. "Glen Abbey Golf Club is about 15 minutes from my house, so it's going to be great to have all my friends and family come out. Playing in my backyard is going to be fun."
After leading the Cougars during the 2014-15 season, Hamilton received numerous postseason awards. In late June, he was named a PING All-America Honorable Mention, marking the second straight season in which a Cougar received All-America accolades.
Earlier, the Burlington, Ontario, Canada, native was named to the PING All-Central Region Team and was recognized as an All-American Athletic Conference selection in late May.
Hamilton, who is a product of M.M. Robinson High, shared the individual championship with Texas Tech's Clement Sordet at the NCAA Lubbock Regional on May 14-16 at The Rawls Course at Texas Tech, becoming only the third player in school history to win an NCAA Regional individual crown.
He also led the Cougars to the NCAA Championships for the second straight season and qualified for the Final Round of stroke play before finishing in a tie for 27th at 292.
Hamilton led the Cougars with a 72.03 scoring average and finished second with among the Cougars with 18 rounds of par or better. He also became the first player in school history to shoot three straight rounds in the 60s during an NCAA Regional.
He enjoyed three top-5 finishes in 2014-15 and earned the first individual title of his career with a score of 9-under-par 207 at the Border Olympics on March 13-14.
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