Former OUA golf champ Garrett Rank three shots back after 1st round of Canadian Open

BURLINGTON, Ont. - Garrett Rank, former Waterloo Warriors men's golf standout and current National Hockey League (NHL) referee, shot an opening round 69 at the RBC Canadian Open and sits just three shots behind the leader.

Rank was a two-time Ontario University Athletics (OUA) individual champion and a four-time OUA all-star while attending the University of Waterloo.  In 2012, the Elmira, Ont. native was named the Warrior's Athlete of the Year.

After five consecutive pars to open the tournament, Rank double-bogeyed No. 6.  However, following consecutive pars on No. 7 and No. 8, Rank birdied No. 9 to finish the front nine just one over par. 

The back nine opened in a similar fashion with Rank stringing together a run of five consecutive pars before draining back-to-back birdies on No. 15 and No. 16.  Rank finished his round in dramatic fashion with an eagle on No. 18 to finish -3.  Rank sits just two shots back of fellow Canadian amateur Jared du Toit.

In the opening round, Rank averaged 320.0 yards per drive while finishing with a greens in regulation percentage of 61.11%.

Following his playing days at the University of Waterloo, Rank pursued a career in refereeing before making his regular season NHL debut Jan. 15, 2015 in a game between the Buffalo Sabres and the Minnesota Wild.

Rank will tee off on Friday afternoon at 2:25 PM on No. 10 with Andrew Landry and the aforementioned du Toit.  

Rank is looking to become the first Canadian to win the event on home soil since Pat Fletcher won the tournament in 1954.