CALEDON, Ont. – Mackenzie Hughes wrapped up Saturday’s third round of the RBC Canadian Open in prime contention to bring it home.

The 34-year-old Dundas, Ont., native shot a six-under 64 and now sits tied for sixth at -12, just two strokes back of co-leaders Matteo Manassero and Ryan Fox.

The tournament’s low Canadian attributed his strong performance to consistency off the tee, which allowed him to play with confidence.

“I’ve been putting the ball in play quite a bit, driving it pretty nice,” said Hughes, in the post-round media availability. “I feel like that’s taken some pressure off the putter and the short game.”

With this attitude and strong play, he believes he’s well-positioned to chase a potentially historic victory.

Hughes, who ranks 50th in the Official World Golf Rankings, will be looking for his third PGA Tour win, his first since 2022, and first in his native land’s biggest tournament on Sunday.

Talking about the support he’s received at TPC Toronto, Hughes expressed pride and is aiming to channel that energy into triumph.

“I’m very proud to be from here,” said the 34-year-old. “I can feel that pride out there for us and just for people being Canadian … The support’s been phenomenal, and I hope tomorrow it’s the loudest day yet.”

While this could be the first time Hughes comes away with the glory in front of his home country’s fans, it’s the second year in a row he has been in a great position heading into Sunday.

In 2024 at Hamilton, Hughes entered the final round tied for second and briefly topped the leaderboard. However, three bogeys in the last 10 holes sank a chance of winning and prevented a Canadian from claiming the RBC Canadian Open title in consecutive years for the first time.

“It was easy to kind of look forward and imagine what it would be like to win tournaments 10 minutes from my house and win the Canadian Open,” he said Saturday, recalling the experience. “It was difficult not to have that in your mind. I think it affected me.”

Tomorrow is his shot to fulfill a lifelong aspiration.

“I’ve dreamt from a young age about doing something like this,” said Hughes. “Now that I get to actually do it, I tell myself, ‘Hey, you’ve got to lean into this. You’ve got to embrace it and enjoy it.’”

Hughes is set to tee off at 1:25 p.m. on Sunday and knows that in the final round, anything can happen.

“It’s anyone’s game at this point.”