David Hearn Finding His Stroke, Making New Fans

About 14 hours after Jason Day's emphatic fist pump and corresponding roar sealed the fate of Canadian David Hearn at the RBC Canadian Open, the native of Brantford, Ontario, was back on the driving range.

But he wasn't grinding, trying to find out what went wrong.

Instead, he was hosting his fourth-annual charity golf classic (this time, benefiting the David Hearn Foundation, his new initiative) at Beverly Golf and Country Club—just over 45 minutes away from Glen Abbey (35, if you took the HOV lanes)—and he wasn't showing any scars of his defeat. He was chatting with sponsors, golf-course staffers, and youngsters alike. He was smiling.

Despite some tired eyes—he admitted it was harder to fall asleep on Sunday night than Saturday—Hearn was doing just fine.

For the first time in his professional career, the tall 36-year-old slept on a PGA Tour lead going into Sunday. He was ahead by two shots over the world's No. 3 ranked Bubba Watson, and also two up on Day, ranked ninth—both elite players who would show how elite they were by the time the sun set. Watson, who earned a legion of fans thanks to his monstrous drives and quirky personality—he also wouldn't let assembled media forget that he was "half Canadian" (his wife Angie is from Pickering, Ontario)—birdied five of his final six holes to finish at 16-under par.

Day, the eventual winner, birdied his final three holes to finish at -17. He said afterwards that it was "great to feel like a Canadian for a week" and received a warm welcome, despite the fact that he played the role of villain to hero Hearn.

Hearn acknowledged he was in a position unlike any other he had been in his career before teeing off. Day and Watson had been there, done that.

"All I was thinking about was winning the golf tournament," he said. "I've never had that thought before."

Despite two wayward drives to begin his round, he started with two birdies. "More nerves than anything," he said. The crowd assembled around the first tee was at least 10 people deep, and they serenaded Hearn with a slightly beer-infused version of "O Canada." They got halfway through before Hearn took off his cap to acknowledge, and quiet, them.

"It was an amazing experience to have those ovations coming to the first tee and coming off 18-green," he said. "I've never had that outpouring of support from people, from beginning to end."

Hearn isn't as noticeable a dresser as his countryman Graham DeLaet—who eventually withdrew on Friday due to an injured thumb—nor does he have a major title to his credit like Mike Weir, who is on a leave of absence from golf and missed this year's tournament, which would have been his 25th. And usually, Hearn's emotions are hidden behind his sunglasses.

On Sunday, however, Hearn had all of Canada rooting for him.

"Not having Graham and Mike there was disappointing, and I'm sure the fans would have loved to have seen them play, but it was a fun week for me," he said. "I was happy to be the guy to carry the flag."

Hearn hoped he gained a few fans in the process. From the yells of, "Hearnsy!" (how hockey is that?) and "Go Canada" from the crowd Sunday, he can take comfort in knowing that he likely did just that.

"Canadian fans are incredibly passionate and very supportive of our home-grown players.

They see us at the Canadian Open each year, but maybe they don't get a glimpse of all our players and how good our games are on Tour," he said. "I had a chance to showcase myself in front of all of Canada this weekend."

Hearn is now taking two weeks off before playing in the fourth major of the year, the PGA Championship. Hearn hit tee shots on the par-3, 12th hole at Beverly for every group at his charity event (he even made one of them for a hole-in-one) but once that was done, he admitted he probably would not swing a golf club for a week.

It's a well-deserved rest for Hearn, who has played the last four weeks in a row, including a trip to the British Open.

Despite a playoff loss earlier in July, he has already earned $1.7 million this year (approximately $600,000 more than his next-best season). So, is this the best golf he's ever played?

"It would be hard to argue that that's definitely the case," he stated. "I've never had results like that before. I'm very excited about where my game is at, and this is something I've been working toward for a very long time."

Up until the last 30 minutes of the Canadian Open, there was a chance for history. The fans were loud. The weather was perfect. The course was immaculate. And Hearn was having a good time.

"It was incredibly fun," he said. "And, it was something I'll remember for the rest of my life."