Slotted into the schedule directly after The Open, the date has made it easy for the game's top players to ignore a tournament that was once rated among the most prestigious on the golf calendar.
Open champion Darren Clarke will not attend and neither will golf's two biggest draws -- Rory McIlroy or Tiger Woods -- but a field headlined by world number one Luke Donald is one of the deepest in recent Canadian Open memory.
Donald, the first world number one to play here since Vijay Singh in 2004, will be joined by young guns Rickie Fowler, Rickie Barnes and a crowd-pleasing mix of veterans including Ernie Els, John Daly, two-time winner Jim Furyk and Spaniard Jose Maria Olazabal, who will make his Canadian Open debut.
Adding a bit more international flair to the 107-year-old national championship are Masters champion Charl Schwartzel, South African compatriot and 2010 Open champion Louis Oosthuizen, Australian Geoff Ogilvy, England's Paul Casey and Colombian Camilo Villegas.
The event's title sponsor, Royal Bank of Canada, has been a big reason for luring some of the sport's top names. While US PGA Tour events cannot hand out appearance fees, fulfilling sponsorship obligations are a top priority.
As well as being title sponsor of the Canadian Open, the bank put together Team RBC, a stable of golfers that includes, Donald, Furyk, Els, Anthony Kim and Matt Kuchar - all who will tee it up at Shaughnessy. "Obviously, I have a sponsorship with RBC and it's part of the reason why I'm here," Donald said.
"But as a player, you're always trying to play against the best players in the world and challenge yourself, I think that's part of the reason why I travel around the world."
For Team RBC and other players there are plenty of perks on offer, including a luxury charter jet that transported players to Vancouver from Sandwich, England, site of this year's Open Championship.
The stunning tree-lined Shaughnessy layout, celebrating its 100th anniversary, was also a big drawing card as it is nestled up against the Strait of Georgia and provides a stern test.
The last time the Canadian open was staged on the par-70 layout in 2005 it played as the most difficult non-Major event on the US PGA Tour schedule that year.
"It's set up like a US Open, Major-style golf course, very demanding off the tee, the rough is up, the greens are small," said defending champion Carl Pettersson. "I wish we played more golf courses like this on Tour."
The tournament will also include plenty of Canadian content, something that was lacking at last week's Open Championship where, for the first time in over a decade, there were no Canadians among the field at a Major.
No Canadian has claimed their national championship since Pat Fletcher in 1954 and there is little confidence that drought will end this weekend.
Mike Weir has long been the great Canadian hope but the 2003 Masters champion's game has been in shambles, losing his US PGA Tour privileges this year while missing the cut in 12 of 14 events adding a paltry $23,312 to his career earnings.