Rookie Ben James Leads RBC Canadian Open 2026 After Round 2 With Koepka and Fleetwood Two Shots Back

Friday at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley threw up the kind of story that golfdoes not always script so neatly, a rookie in his first professional tournament holing a 25-foot eagle putt on the very first hole of his second round and then going bogey-free all day long to card a 63 and sit alone at the top of the leaderboard heading into the weekend.

Ben James is 22 years old, was an All-American all four years at the University of Virginia, earned his PGA Tour card through the Tour University ranking, and came to Caledon, Ontario for what was supposed to be a quiet professional debut and instead finds himself leading a tournament one week before the US Open at Shinnecock Hills with Koepka and Fleetwood two shots behind him and a full weekend of golf still to play.

James sits at ten under par after rounds of 67 and 63, having not made a bogey in his last 33 holes across two days, while five players including Sam Burns, Jackson Suber, Haotong Li, Keith Mitchell and Jesper Svensson share second place at nine under.

Brooks Koepka had a round that told two completely different stories on the same day, he doubled the 13th after losing his tee shot and then bogeyed the 14th to fall back, but came home with four birdies and an eagle on the back nine including a 379-yard drive on the par-five 18th to finish at 68 and sit eight under alongside Tommy Fleetwood, who shot 65 and is still hunting his first Canadian Open title after losing in a playoff here three years ago when Nick Taylor holed a famous 72-foot eagle putt.

Eric Cole, who shared the overnight lead, shot 76 and missed the cut, which also means he will not be at the US Open next week after falling outside the top 60 in the world rankings.

Sportscape feels that Ben James leading the RBC Canadian Open in his professional debut the week before the US Open is one of those stories that the sport of golf hands you every so often and asks you not to overthink it the kid made no bogeys in 33 holes, said he had no expectations, and just went out and played, and sometimes that is the most dangerous combination in professional sport because there is genuinely nothing to lose and everything to gain.