PGA TOUR Americas

Canada’s Savoie hopes to build on top-five result to start PGA Tour Americas season

Joey Savoie (PGA TOUR Americas)

Canada’s Joey Savoie had a simple plan heading into the Bupa Championship: keep the driver in his bag.

The strategy paid off for Savoie, from La Prairie, Que., as he tied for fourth on Sunday in the first event of the PGA Tour Americas season. Savoie said that the conservative approach was necessary on the crowded fairways of PGA Riviera Maya in Tulum, Mexico.

“Jungle on both sides on every hole, water on every hole, pretty much, tough greens, fast greens, and windy,” said Savoie. “So it’s a mental test and a golf test second.

“I think it’s an overall test of endurance so I think my game plan is really well suited for that golf course.”

Clay Feagler won the event after bogeying the fourth playoff hole when fellow American Davis Shore double bogeyed it. Savoie tied for fourth at 2-under overall and, naturally, is tied for fourth in the Fortinet Cup standings after the one event.

Savoie isn’t exactly sure how the top-five finish early in the season will play out for him.

“I guess I’ll tell you after rest of the year,” said Savoie with a chuckle. “I’ve some good starts to the season, I’ve had some bad ones. 

“For me, the goal is to build on it, not let myself relax after that start. I want to keep my foot on the gas.”

Savoie will have a chance to floor it at the Totalplay Championship on Thursday at Atlas Country Club in Guadalajara, Mexico. He’s one of 14 Canadians in the field at the second of six events in the Latin American swing of the PGA Tour Americas.

It’s technically the inaugural season of the PGA Tour’s third-tier circuit after the Latinoamerica Tour merged with the Canadian Tour in the winter to form one long season with a break between the two phases.

“Schedule wise, it might be a little easier,” said Savoie as he waited for his flight to Guadalajara. “It can be easier to plan the year maybe but the big difference is the number events in Latino countries.

“The overlapping was only two or three events a year, so it wasn’t that big of a deal. There’s just no more overlapping.”

PGA TOUR — Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., is the highest ranked Canadian in the field at the Texas Children’s Houston Open. He moved up to 46th in the FedEx Cup standings thanks to a tie for third at the Valspar Championship on Sunday. He’ll be joined at Memorial Park Golf Course by Adam Svensson (75th) of Surrey, B.C., Ben Silverman (96th) of Thornhill, Ont., Taylor Pendrith (99th) of Richmond Hill, Ont., and Roger Sloan (192nd) of Merritt, B.C.

CHAMPIONS TOUR — Calgary’s Stephen Ames is ranked second in the Schwab Cup points list heading into The Galleri Classc this week. Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., is 42nd on the points list. The event at Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, Calif., tees on Friday.

DP WORLD TOUR — Aaron Cockerill of Stony Mountain, Man., will tee it up on Thursday at the Hero Indian Open in New Delhi. He’s the only Canadian at DLF Golf and Country Club.

LPGA TOUR — Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., is fifth in the Race to CME Globe standings heading into the inaugural Ford Championship. Savannah Grewal of Mississauga, Ont., is 38th and Maude-Aimee Leblanc of Sherbrooke, Que., is tied for 128th. Hamilton’s Alena Sharp was a tournament invite as she’s a member at Seville Golf and Country Club in Gilbert, Ariz., the event’s host course.

19th Hole

The R&A launches One Club membership initiative for golf fans worldwide

St Andrews, Scotland: The R&A today launched One Club, an evolution of its direct-to-consumer membership initiative designed to transform how fans and golfers around the world experience the sport year-round. 

One Club is free to join and provides members with a comprehensive array of year-round benefits, rewards, exclusive content and unique access to The Open, AIG Women’s Open and other prestigious R&A Championships. This includes the launch of a new global streaming service, R&A TV, powered by Endeavor Streaming.

It will also offer fans money-can’t-buy experiences and access to premium coaching and playing opportunities, allowing avid golfers and fans to take their passion for the sport to the next level. Members can interact directly through the platform by providing user-generated content and sharing their own stories and experiences of golf.

“We want golf to be more accessible and appealing for people of all ages and backgrounds,” said Neil Armit, Chief Commercial Officer at The R&A. “One Club helps to achieve this by bringing fans and golfers closer to the sport they love, whether that is through the excitement and drama of our Major Championships or the enjoyment they derive from playing the sport year-round.”

Key membership features of One Club include:

One Club is now available to sign up for free. For more information and a full listing of launch partners and benefits, visit OneClub.golf.

Amateur DP World Tour Epson Tour Korn Ferry Tour LPGA Tour PGA TOUR PGA TOUR Americas

Golf Canada’s Weekly Leaderboard powered by Titleist

PGA TOUR

Peter Malnati birdied the penultimate hole and got some insurance when Cameron Young bogeyed the final hole for a two-stroke victory at the Valspar Championship. It was his second career PGA Tour win and his first in more than eight years and this one earns him an invitation to the Masters next month. Malnati picked up his third top-15 finish in his last five starts. He had three top-15 results in his previous 30 starts. Young, the only player to card all four rounds in the 60s, recorded his seventh runner-up finish, the most by a player without a win since 1983. Mackenzie Hughes, who was in a three-way tie for the lead after the second round, had the lead after making a 45-foot birdie putt on No. 10 and was tied for the lead on No. 12 when he made bogey and Malnati made birdie. Hughes bogeyed the next hole as well after finding the water with his approach shot and never recovered. He finished tied for third, his best result of the season in eight starts and his best finish at this event in four starts. Hughes finished ranked second in Shots Gained: Putting and was one of only two players with fewer than 100 putts this week. …Adam Hadwin posted his third top-10 finish of the year and his second top-5 result in his last four starts.

POS SCORESTOTAL
T3Mackenzie Hughes68-68-69-70-9
T5Adam Hadwin68-71-68-69-8
T49Roger Sloan69-72-70-73+2
T49Adam Svensson66-72-69-77+2
T64Nick Taylor68-74-75-70+3
MCBen Silverman70-73 
MCTaylor Pendrith71-72 

NEXT EVENT: Texas Children’s Houston Open (Mar 28)

CANADIANS ENTERED:  Mackenzie Hughes, Taylor Pendrith, Ben Silverman, Roger Sloan, Adam Svensson 

PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS

Padraig Harrington overcame a double bogey down the stretch with back-to-back birdies to close out a one-stroke victory over Thongchai Jaidee at the Hoag Classic. It’s his seventh career Champions Tour win for the soon-to-be World Golf Hall of Fame member. Jaidee, who was making his third start of the season after spending several weeks at home rehabbing a back injury, left his approach shot short into the final hole and needed to make a pitch shot from off the green to force a playoff. Miguel Angel Jimenez finished two strokes back. Stephen Ameshad an eagle and three birdies over his final five holes to vault into fourth place and his fourth top-10 result in five starts this year. 

POS SCORESTOTAL
4Stephen Ames67-68-67-11
T42Mike Weir71-71-70-1

NEXT EVENT: The Galleri Classic (Mar 29)

CANADIANS ENTERED:  

LPGA TOUR

Nelly Korda overcame back-to-back bogeys in regulation to defeat Ryann O’Toole with a birdie putt on the first playoff hole to win the Fir Hills Seri Pak Championship. It was her second win in three starts this season and she has back-to-back wins after taking almost two months off since winning back in January. The victory also vaults her back into the No. 1 world ranking. O’Toole had a chance to extend the playoff but just caught the edge of the cup on a 15-foot birdie try. Gabriela Ruffels and Alison Lee finished in a tie for third. Ruffels needed a birdie on her final hole to make it a three-way playoff. …Brooke Henderson finished outside the top 20 for the first time in five starts this season. …After tying a career-low with a 64 to lead for the lead in an LPGA Tour event for the first time in her career, Maude-Aimee Leblanc made the weekend cut on the number after a second round 79.

POS SCORESTOTAL
T27Brooke Hendeson68-71-70-74-1
T58Maude-Aimee Leblanc64-79-75-73+7
T60Savannah Grewal69-74-77-72+8
MCAlena Sharp76-69 

NEXT EVENT: Ford Championship (Mar 28)

CANADIANS ENTERED: Alena Sharp, Brooke Henderson, Maude-Aimee Leblanc, Savannah Grewal, Maddie Szeryk (reserve)  

PGA TOUR AMERICAS

Clay Feagler outlasted Davis Shore, salvaging bogey on the fourth playoff hole to win the Bupa Championship and earning the honour of becoming the first-ever winner on the new PGA Americas Tour. It was also Feagler’s first professional win. Feagler had only conditional membership on the new Tour, an amalgamation of PGA Tour Canada and the Latinoamerica Tour, and only got into the tournament by winning a 6-for-3 Monday qualifying playoff. With the win, he earns a season-long exemption.  Including his Monday qualifying event, Feagler played a total of 95 holes of golf this week. Joey Savoie earned his first top-5 result of the season and was one of three Canadians to finish in the top-12. …Lawren Rowe’s final round 67 was the lowest of the day and enabled him to climb 24 places into the top 10.

POS SCORESTOTAL
T4Joey Savoie71-74-70-71-2
T7Lawren Rowe74-71-75-67-1
T12Jimmy Jones68-77-73-70E
T21Matthew Anderson69-79-75-68+3
T38Jeevan Sihota77-69-76-73+7
T41Max Sekulic75-72-73-76+8
T70Thomas Giroux73-76-81-75+17
MCStuart Macdonald76-75 
MCJohnny Travale76-76 
MCBrendan MacDougall79-74 
MCNoah Steele80-73 
MCChris Crisologo75-85 

NEXT EVENT:  Totalplay Championship (Mar 28)

CANADIANS ENTERED:  Matthew Anderson, Chris Crisologo, Thomas Giroux, Jimmy Jones, Stuart Macdonald, Brendan MacDougall, Lawren Rowe, Joey Savoie, Max Sekulic, Jeevan Sihota, Noah Steele, Johnny Travale, Chris Wilson (alternate)

EUROPEAN TOUR

Jesper Svensson erased a five-stroke deficit and tapped in for par on the first playoff hole to defeat Kiradech Aphibarnrat and win the Porsche Singapore Open. It was the first career European Tour win for the Swede. Svensson birdied the final two holes to match the course record on the final day with a 9-under 63 to hold a one-stroke lead until Aphibarnrat eagled the final hole to force the playoff. Overnight leader David Micheluzzi shot a final round 73 and finished in a tie for seventh. …Aaron Cockerill recorded his best result in over two months

POS SCORESTOTAL
T37Aaron Cockerill69-71-72-70-6

NEXT EVENT: Hero Indian Open (Mar 28)

CANADIANS ENTERED:  Aaron Cockerill

EPSON TOUR

Tour rookie Briana Chaco birdied two of the last three holes for a one-stroke victory over Jessica Porvasnik and Kim Kaufman in the inaugural Atlantic Beach Classic. Chaco, who never held a share of the lead all week until the final three holes, becomes the first rookie winner on the Tour this season. She was the only player who finished in the top five to break par in all three rounds.

POS SCORESTOTAL
T38Brigitte Thibault69-72-75+3
MCSelena Costabile78-79 
MCKate Johnston78-79 

NEXT EVENT: IOA championship (Mar 26)

CANADIANS ENTERED:  Selena Costabile, Leah John (a), Kate Johnston, Tiffany Kong, Brigitte Thibault

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CPKC Women's Open DP World Tour Epson Tour LPGA Tour PGA TOUR Americas

Canada’s Selena Costabile learns from former NFLers during Epson Tour pro-am round

Selena Costabile

Pro-am rounds can be a fun opportunity for serious golf fans to meet their favourite players and for the golfers to get some extra practice in ahead of that week’s tournament.

But for Canadian golfer Selena Costabile and former NFL players Josh Scobee and Marcus Pollard it was a chance to get into the intricacies of the athlete’s mindset. The trio were grouped together for the pro-am on Tuesday ahead of the Epson Tour’s Atlantic Beach Classic and got into a lengthy discussion as they made their way around the course. 

Costabile, who is from Thornhill, Ont., and Scobee bonded over the similarities between being a golfer and a placekicker.

“Because you really just have one shot to perform,” said Costabile. “He was giving me a lot of insights about how you have to have two different mindsets. One is in practice, and then once you get in to a competition or the tournament, on the course or on the football field, whatever that may be, you have to almost switch to more of a performance mindset.

“Trying to just get the ball between the posts is similar to trying to get the ball in the hole and do that as best as you can while not really thinking about the mechanical side of it.”

Scobee was a kicker on the Jacksonville Jaguars for 11 seasons before being traded to the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2015 and then spending a couple of months with the New Orleans Saints in 2016 before retiring the next year. He connected on 80.1 per cent of his field-goal attempts and 98.2 per cent of his extra-point attempts for a total of 1,046 points.

He said that he developed his “how and where” approach about six years into his career.

“I told her what I’ve always tried to do — and it’s not always easy — but what I tried to do was to separate practice from the games,” said Scobee. “Practice is where you’re trying to figure out how to do it. You’re working on your technique, and little things that you practice to be ready for the game or a tournament or whatever. 

“Then separating that from where to hit it, or where to kick it whenever I was playing. So I told her it’s the how versus the where, how to do it versus where to hit it.”

Pollard was a tight end with the Indianapolis Colts, Detroit Lions, Seattle Seahawks and Atlanta Falcons over 14 seasons, catching 40 touchdowns and over 4,280 receiving yards. Although Pollard didn’t have much to add to Scobee and Costabile’s conversation on mechanics, the kicker said he had a lot to say about mindset in general.

“It’s fun to get in front of other athletes that play different sports and go around the table and talk about what we all thought about or how we prepared,” said Scobee, “It all basically comes back to the same things and that’s the beauty of sports.”

Costabile said the conversation came at a good time for her because she has missed two cuts to start the Epson Tour season.

“I’m trying to work on leaving all the work of the off-season in the off-season and trusting that I did the work and now I just have to go out to play,” said Costabile. 

She’ll be joined by Kate Johnston of Ayr, Ont., and Brigitte Thibault of Rosemere, Que., in the field at Atlantic Beach Country Club. 

Thibault, in her first full season on the Epson Tour, made the cut at the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic on March 8 and again at the IOA Golf Classic on March 15. She said she was happy with those results because her ball striking has not been up to its usual standard.

“To be honest, the focus hasn’t been on cuts because you’re trying to win it so it’s been more annoying in that sense,” said Thibault. “But I’m still excited because to start the season the top 50 women’s golfers in the world were in Asia so the first three Epson Tour events were probably the strongest fields we’re getting the whole year. 

“To be able to really not feel like you have your game and still fight and put those scores up, I’m extremely proud of that.”

The 25-year-old said that her focus this off-season has been to focus on the natural motion of her swing.

“I’m diving more into my creative side and more into my given talent and working with that instead of trying to fit into a box,” said Thibault. “I’ve been more of a sponge, going into tournaments and seeing what tendencies show up with adrenalin instead of being so technical, because I had really tried to fit into a box with a certain swing and it looked better but then I kind of lost a bit of lag there.”

LPGA TOUR — Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., is the top-ranked Canadian heading into this week’s Fir Hills Seri Pak Championship. She is fifth on the Race to CME Globe season standings, having finished in the top 10 in three of her first four tournaments of the year. Rookie Savannah Grewal (29th) of Mississauga, Ont., Hamilton’s Alena Sharp, and Maude-Aimee Leblanc of Sherbrooke, Que., are also in the field at Palos Verdes Golf Club in Palos Verdes Estates, Calif.

CPKC WOMEN’S OPEN — Golf Canada announced on Wednesday afternoon that Mississauga Golf and Country Club would host the CPKC Women’s Open Aug. 18-24, 2025. It’s the first time the national women’s championship has been in the Greater Toronto Area since 2019 when Magna Golf Club hosted it in Aurora, Ont.

PGA TOUR — Nick Taylor is 11th in the FedEx Cup standings heading into this week’s Valspar Championship. Adam Hadwin, who is also from Abbotsford, B.C., won the Valspar in 2017 and is No. 30 in the points list. Five other Canadians are in the field at Innisbrook Resort’s Copperhead Course in Palm Harbor, Fla., including Mackenzie Hughes (71st) of Dundas, Ont., Adam Svensson (72nd) of Surrey, B.C., Ben Silverman (88th) of Thornhill, Ont., Taylor Pendrith (93rd) of Richmond Hill, Ont., and Roger Sloan (201st) of Merritt, B.C.

PGA TOUR AMERICAS — The PGA Tour Americas begins its inaugural season on Thursday with the Bupa Championship. The third-tier tour is a combination of the PGA Tour Latinoamerica and PGA Tour Canada, that ended last year. Twelve Canadians will tee it up at PGA Riviera Maya in Tulum, Mexico.

DP WORLD TOUR — Aaron Cockerill of Stony Mountain, Man., is 15th on the Road to Dubai standings, the European-based DP World Tour’s points list. He’s the lone Canadian in the field at this week’s Porsche Singapore Classic at Laguna National Golf Resort Club.

CPKC Women's Open

Mississaugua Golf and Country Club to host 2025 CPKC Women’s Open

2025 marks the first time the historic club will play host to the stars of the LPGA Tour; The 51st playing of Canada’s National Open Championship returns to the Greater Toronto Area for the third time since 2001.

In hosting the 2025 CPKC Women’s Open, Mississaugua Golf and Country Club will become only the eighth club to host Golf Canada’s four premier events: CPKC Women’s Open, RBC Canadian Open, Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship, and Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship.

Through CPKC’s community investment program, CPKC Has Heart, the event will once again be making a significant contribution to pediatric cardiac care in the host community.

The stars of the LPGA Tour are headed back to southern Ontario as Golf Canada and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) have announced that the 2025 CPKC Women’s Open will be contested at the historic Mississaugua Golf and Country Club from August 18-24, 2025.

The 2025 CPKC Women’s Open will mark the 21st time that the province of Ontario has hosted Canada’s National Women’s Open Championship and the first since 2022. The 2025 event will be the 51st playing of Canada’s National Open Championship and the first time that Mississaugua Golf and Country Club will challenge the stars of the LPGA Tour. 

In hosting the 2025 CPKC Women’s Open, Mississaugua Golf and Country Club will become only the eighth club to host Golf Canada’s four premier events: CPKC Women’s Open, RBC Canadian Open, Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship, and Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship.

“Together, with our partners at CPKC and the LPGA Tour, we are very proud to bring the 2025 CPKC Women’s Open to the world-class city of Mississauga and the prestigious Mississaugua Golf and Country Club,” said CPKC Women’s Open Tournament Director Ryan Paul. “Mississaugua Golf and Country Club has been an incredible partner to Golf Canada, hosting countless Golf Canada Championships at both the professional and amateur level. We are excited to add our National Women’s Open to this impressive list in 2025.”

Through its CPKC Has Heart campaign, CPKC once again will be making a significant charitable contribution to the host community. Since 2014, the CPKC Women’s Open has helped raise over $19 million in support of children’s heart health in North America.

“CPKC is thrilled to bring the 2025 CPKC Women’s Open to the city of Mississauga and back to the province of Ontario, which is an integral part of our North American network,” said Keith Creel, CPKC President and CEO. “We look forward to seeing the positive impact the tournament will have in helping young hearts across Ontario.”

A host community beneficiary of the 2025 CPKC Women’s Open will be named by CPKC and Golf Canada at a later date.

Originally founded in 1906, Mississaugua has overlooked the Credit River in Mississauga for more than a century. The Club, which features an 18-hole championship golf course, has a storied history of hosting not only provincial championships but national championships as well, including the RBC Canadian Open, Men’s Canadian Amateur, and Canadian Women’s Amateur along with the World Junior Girls Golf Championship. Mississaugua is a full-service club offering along with golf: a four clay-court tennis facility, a six-sheet curling rink, state of the art fitness centre, and year-round dining options.

“The Members of Mississaugua are thrilled to welcome the very best LPGA Tour players to the Club for the 2025 CPKC Women’s Open,” said Rodger Leslie, Mississaugua Golf and Country Club President. “Hosting this wonderful tournament at our historic club gives us the opportunity to not only showcase our championship golf course but proudly share Mississaugua with the rest of Canada and the world. We are looking forward to partnering with Golf Canada and the surrounding community of Mississauga as we prepare for this world-class tournament in 2025. A highlight of the event for Mississaugua is the philanthropic dollars that will be generated for local charities through the CPKC Women’s Open, a cause near and dear to the heart our members.”

The Tournament Partners of the LPGA awarded the CPKC Women’s Open with Tournament of the Year honours in the previous two years (2022 and 2023). Golf Canada and CPKC also received Gold Driver Awards for Best Volunteer Engagement in 2023, Best Sponsor Activation in 2019, 2022, and 2023 as well as Best Community and Charity Engagement in three of the last five full season campaigns.

“Being selected to host the prestigious CPKC Women’s Open in 2025 is a huge honour and allows us another opportunity to highlight the sport of golf in the mix of events we are bringing to our vibrant city,” said Victoria Clarke, CEO of Visit Mississauga. “We look forward to welcoming the world’s best female golfers and witnessing their incredible talent here in Mississauga, and to showcase the “cultural canvas” that is our city on the world stage.”

Canada’s National Women’s Open Championship has traditionally featured one of the strongest fields on the LPGA Tour vying for a total purse of $2.6 million USD. The 2024 CPKC Women’s Open – the 50th playing of the event – is being held at Earl Grey Golf Club in Calgary from July 23-28, 2024.

First conducted in 1973, Canada’s National Women’s Open Championship has allowed the brightest stars of the LPGA Tour to shine on Canadian soil to inspire the nation’s next generation of female golfers. Brooke Henderson’s historic victory in 2018 was the first time a Canadian had won the National Open since golf legend Jocelyne Bourassa 45 years earlier.

Information about volunteer opportunities and corporate hospitality for the 2025 CPKC Women’s Open at the Mississaugua Golf and Country Club will be available in the coming weeks.

Olympics

Olympics are moving closer to adding a mixed team event in golf for LA in ’28

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. — The Grant Thornton Invitational began last year to strong reviews from the PGA Tour and LPGA Tour players who took part in the first mixed-team event since 1999.

Next on the horizon are the Olympics.

The format already is set for the Summer Olympics at Le Golf National outside Paris. Just like in Tokyo and Rio de Janeiro, there will be 72-hole competitions for the men and the women. But Olympic officials are close to finalizing a team competition for the 2028 Games at Riviera in Los Angeles.

One person involved in the talks said an announcement could come as early as The Masters. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because details are not completed.

Among the details are how many teams would play and the format for the competition. The current plan for 2028 is for the men to start on Wednesday (instead of Thursday) and finish on Saturday. The team competition could take place on Sunday and Monday. The women would have a practice round on Tuesday and start their competition on Wednesday.

The International Olympic Committee tends to frown on awarding two medals from one competition, such as combining scores from individuals into a team medal. That’s why golf officials are proposing a separate event.

Still to be determined is how many countries will be eligible to compete. One option currently being discussed is 36 holes of fourballs to decide the team medalists.

The IOC would do well to consider singles. To have a team format (foursomes or fourballs) on Sunday, followed by singles scores from each male and female players could produce 54-hole scores.

Such is the format used at the Summer Youth Olympics, where golf was played first in 2014. At the last such competition, Atthaya Thitikul was part of the Thai team that won the gold over Akshay Bhatia and Lucy Li of the United States.

A mixed team event would require only two more days for the players. It’s unlikely any of the top players would be playing the following week at a regular PGA Tour event.

Lydia Ko and Jason Day won the inaugural Grant Thornton Invitational. Ko already has a silver and a bronze in her two Olympic appearances.

Brady McKinlay: On the Right Path to Success

Brady McKinlay was introduced to the sport of golf by his parents during his early childhood and it’s become a life long passion. While he describes himself as a late bloomer, the 23-year-old has today emerged as one of Canada’s top amateur golfers and he has ambitions of carrying that success onto the professional ranks.

“I remember my parents getting me a set of plastic clubs when I was five, it was a lot of fun to hit the ball around. It’s always been part of the family and I always enjoy playing golf,” recalled McKinlay, who describes his parents, Perry and Patti, as avid golfers.

Growing up in Lacombe, Alberta young Brady treated golf more as a hobby, as hockey was his primary sport. However, at the age of 15, he decided to focus his efforts on golf.

“I wasn’t the biggest guy and moving towards hockey might have been difficult so I decided to go with golf,” said the five foot eight inch amateur standout.

After making the decision to focus his attention on the sport, McKinlay has seen an upward trajectory in his overall game and has enjoyed notable success on the golf course as an amateur.

McKinlay says the process of working on his game and practising and making improvements every day is one of the things he enjoys most about the journey as a golfer.

“I was 15 when I started to compete in tournaments around Alberta and some of the top guys were quite ahead of me at that age,” he noted.

“In terms of the grind of practising on your own I guess some people might consider it difficult but that’s the part I enjoy the most – that time by myself to figure things out. Sometimes it’s incredibly frustrating but when you do finally figure it out, it’s that much better,” McKinlay continued.

“The practise side and working to get better is the part I enjoy most whether it’s part of a team or by myself.”

He would see breakthrough results from his hard work and dedication in 2022. That summer McKinlay would win the Alberta Men’s Amateur tournament.

“That was the first time that I really felt some serious validation and it gave me the experience to be more confident and be more free when I got into those situations where I might have a chance to win a tournament,” said McKinlay about his breakthrough win as an amateur. “I just got into that good mental state and golf was really fun that week.”

McKinlay would carry the momentum to his NCAA season where he would win the Ram Masters Invitational, Mark Simpson Colorado Invite and the Shocker Invitational tournaments.

“Coming off the win in the summer, I just had a lot more confidence. Also, my game plan going into tournaments was a lot better. And that was a big reason that I won three in a row,” said the Utah Valley University senior.

“My mental state was great, my game plan was great and my course management was great. I didn’t bite off more than I could chew but I was still super aggressive. Making those big shots when you’re fighting for a win is just the best feeling.”

McKinlay – who recorded another tournament victory at the Campenato Nacional por Golpes last November – speaks about what his game is like when he’s playing his best.

“I like to be aggressive off the tee. And my putting is pretty solid. Definitely nothing flashy,” he noted. “When I’m playing great I think it’s pretty boring. When I’m playing my best there’s not a lot going on inside my head. Not too many surprises.”

He adds that playing with confidence goes a long way.

“If you can’t manage your expectations or keep yourself in check you don’t really have a chance. I think the best players in the world have the biggest edge on the mental side of the game.”

McKinlay will be graduating from Utah Valley University this year and hopes to translate his amateur success to the professional ranks.

“The biggest thing is not so much which tour I play on but moreso to get some exposure to the professional game this summer. It’s going to be different playing professionally compared to paying in college or as an amateur but I’m excited to get started.”

The National Team member says it gives him a lot of confidence to know that he’s part of a program that has developed so many successful pros that are playing the sport at the highest level such as Nick Taylor, Corey Conners, and Mackenzie Hughes to name a few.

“It’s guys that were in our shoes and they’ve taken similar steps. It gives us confidence to know the coaches that we are working with have worked with these same guys to get them to where they are,” said the 23-year-old.

“Not everyone’s journey is the same but it gives me a lot of confidence knowing we are on the right path.”

Hole in One Report

Golf Canada Hole-In-One Report – Week of March 11, 2024

Each week we write to Golf Canada members who record a hole-in-one, congratulating them and asking if they’d tell us how it happened. These are their stories (edited for length and clarity).

Have you recently accomplished the feat of a hole-in-one? Tell us about it! Share your story, picture / video and course information with us at holeinone@golfcanada.ca.

Vicki Lacasse, Kanata Golf & Country Club, Hole #16

I was with two of my girlfriends and the two of them had gone ahead of me. I proceeded to ask my girlfriend what club they used and one of the girls said she had used a 5 hybrid. Even though I’ve never really been that successful on hitting the green, I decided to use my 5 hybrid anyway. I got up to the tee and hit my ball and one of my friends watched and said you hit the flag I’m like “yeah okay, whatever” but we weren’t sure if in fact the ball went in the hole so as we proceeded to get up to the hole, we all looked in and sure enough the ball was in the hole. I screamed at the top of my lungs. It’s something that is just amazing to think that I actually got a hole-in-one, so it was very exciting. After that we had a one hour social in the clubhouse for anyone that wanted to join us in celebration of me getting my hole-in-one with free drinks for the hour, so it was a very exciting day.

Darian Ducharme, Kawartha Golf Club, Hole #12

Hole #12, 104 yards (into the wind), 8 iron, I clubbed up, light swing, good loft and directly went into the cup. I was playing with my friend and we both heard it all the way at the white tees blocks.

Steven Webber, Tangle Creek, Hole #8

On September 18, 2023 I got a hole-in-one on hole #8 at Tangle Creek Golf Course in Barrie, Ontario. I used a 7 iron on the 147 yard hole. I was golfing with my brother-in-law Jerry Lukowski.

David Gurr, Victoria Park East Golf Club, Hole #6

Hi, my name is David Gurr and I got my first hole-in-one in 54 years of golfing! Yep, it finally happened for me! It happened at Victoria Park East Golf Club in Guelph, Ontario on April 12, 2023 during our first round of the year on the par 3 hole #6. The pin was front right 136 yards and I hit an 8 iron right at it, 2 bounces and in the hole it went. I was playing with my brother and two other long-time members. Seeing it was the opening day of the new 2023 season the course was packed with eager golfers, luckily, I had hole-in-one insurance and the bar tab was insured!

 

Gerry Tresierra, Big Horn Golf & Country Club, Hole #17

Almost scored a hole-in-one on hole #15 but on hole #17, it happened. 110 yards using my 9 iron! I was playing with John Silano, Les and Kirk! My first in 40 years and glad it happened on men’s night! I was awarded a medal from the Big Horn golf and country club along with some cash!

Donna Yost, Bear Mountain, Hole #14

The hole-in-one was at hole #14 on the mountain course. I used my TaylorMade 54 degree wedge to pop my lucky ball over the gully and master a one hop exciting hole-in-one. The distance to pin was approximately 64 yards. I took this photo above right before I hit the ball as it was so beautiful at that moment. The day had been a mixture of weather that could have sidelined the opportunity! Pouring sleet/rain and wind on hole #11 and 12. Cold and windy on the front nine. Crazy spring weather but us die hards hung in there and thankfully so! The ladies I was with for the momentous occasion were Danya Carter, Carla Anderson and Liz Stafford.

Mike Ebner, McCleery Public, Hole #3

Hole was playing 128 yards that day (into the wind), club was a pitching wedge. Played with fellow McCleery Club member Ron Wootton.