New Zealand squad building on nation’s history of stellar play in BC
VICTORIA, B.C. – New Zealand golfers have a history of playing well in British Columbia.
Lydia Ko won the CP Women’s Open twice, in 2012 and 2015, at Vancouver Golf Club. And way back in 1992, the New Zealand men’s team that included future U.S. Open champion Michael Campbell, Phil Tataurangi, Stephen Scahill and Grant Moorehead won the World Amateur Team competition at Capilano Golf Club in West Vancouver.
Now, it seems, the New Zealanders are at it again in British Columbia at this week’s Astor Trophy competition at Royal Colwood Golf Club. New Zealand earned a big point Friday by winning its match against South Africa. New Zealand has played two matches this week and collected the maximum two points.
“It is a good start,” said New Zealand coach Jay Carter. “I think it feels like home for us here. Environmentally, it is pretty similar to what we experience back home. The weather today was perfect for us.”
The Astor Trophy, which has been played every four years since 1959, features teams from Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Great Britain & Ireland. Each four-woman team plays one another once during the five-day competition. Canada had the day off Friday.
Through three days of the competition, New Zealand is tied for the lead with Australia with two points. New Zealand can try and build on that lead Saturday, when the Australians have the day off. South Africa sits third with one point, while Canada and Great Britain & Ireland each have a half-point. Australia also earned a full point in its match Friday with Great Britain & Ireland. The two teams split their morning foursomes matches, but Australia took three of four singles matches.
After splitting its two foursomes matches with South Africa, New Zealand won two singles matches in the afternoon and tied the other two. The New Zealanders did it the hard way, coming from behind in three of the four singles matches.
“We were trailing 3-1 the whole day in the afternoon matches,” Carter said. “In a couple of those matches, I think the girls were never up in and battled back to square them. It is pretty pleasing.”
Amelia Garvey, runner-up at the British Women’s Amateur this summer and a collegiate star at USC, got things started for New Zealand by winning her opening match 2&1.
Carmen Lim, a talented 15-year-old who seems to hit the ball as straight as an arrow, came from two-down with three holes remaining to tie her match. Wenyung Keh was three-down through 13 holes and came to life with an eagle on the par 5 14th hole. She went on to win her match on the 18th hole.
“Usually match play isn’t about the first six holes, it’s about the last six and how you pull through,” said Keh. “I really grinded out there today.”
Julianne Alvarez also came from behind to earn her tie with South Africa’s Kaylah Williams.
New Zealand has never won the Astor Trophy and now is in a position to snap that long drought. Carter thinks his team has a nice mix of experience and youth.
Alvarez and Keh both just graduated from the University of Washington, where they won a NCAA Championship in their freshman year. Their college coach, Mary Lou Mulflur, was at Royal Colwood on Friday doing some recruiting and rooting for her two former players.
“They were both unbelievably clutch players,” said Mulflur, who is entering her 37th year as Washington coach.
The New Zealand players welcome any B.C. karma that might come their way the final two days of the competition.
“I remember Lydia Ko winning up here,” said Keh. “So hopefully we can get it done here. There’s still a lot of golf to play.”
Canada will return to action Saturday and play South Africa, while Great Britain & Ireland face New Zealand.
The Astor Trophy began as the Commonwealth Trophy and was first held at The Old Course at St. Andrews, Scotland in 1959. The name was changed to the Astor Trophy in 2007 to allow Irish players to compete on a Great Britain & Ireland team. Australia won the event when it was last contested in 2015 at the Grange Golf Club in southern Australia. Canada has won the Astor Trophy on two occasions, in 1987 and 1979.
Morning foursomes will begin at 8 a.m. and the singles matches are scheduled between 12:30 and 1:40 p.m. each day. There are two days remaining in the competition and admission is free for spectators.
Brooke Rivers gives Canadians a boost at Astor Trophy
VICTORIA, B.C. – Brooke Rivers’ debut on the international golfing stage is off to a splendid start as the 14-year-old from Brampton, Ont. helped put Canada on the board Thursday at the Astor Trophy.
Rivers, who is about to enter Grade 9, won both of her matches Thursday at Royal Colwood Golf Club as Canada earned half a point by tying its matches with Australia.
Rivers teamed with Noémie Paré of Victoriaville, Que., to win their foursomes match 2&1 over Australians Amelia Mehmet-Grohn and Kirsty Hodgkins. After a quick lunch, Rivers then went out and beat Australia’s Emily Mahar 2-up in their afternoon singles match.
“I am having so much fun,” Rivers said. “It is such a great learning experience, playing with people from different countries. Most of them are in university or finishing university. I can learn so much from them. It has been an incredible experience.”
The Astor Trophy, which has been played every four years since 1959, features teams from Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and Great Britain & Ireland.
Each four-woman team plays one another once during the five-day competition.
Australia and Canada split their two morning foursomes matches and then split their four singles matches.
Emily Zhu of Richmond, Hill, Ont., got Canada’s other win in singles Thursday, defeating Australia’s Stacey White 2&1.
“It was nice to be able to play well and get the win,” said Zhu, who earlier this summer won the Canadian Junior Girls Championship. “It was a really tight match. My opponent was really good. She made a bunch of putts.”
Thursday’s other match had South Africa facing Great Britain & Ireland. The teams tied both of their morning foursomes matches and split their four singles matches to each earn half a point.
South Africa looked to be on its way to tying the last singles match of the day and earning a full point, but GBI’s Emily Toy won the match on the 18th green when South Africa’s Kaylah Williams missed a four-foot putt for par.
The standings through the first two days of the competition have South Africa, New Zealand and Australia all tied with one point. Canada and Great Britain & Ireland each have half a point.
Canadian coach Matt Wilson was delighted to see his team get on the board after being blanked in its opening-day match Wednesday against New Zealand.
“It’s definitely helpful to get on the board in the first couple of days,” Wilson said. “We have a rest day Friday where we can do a bit of work and rest up and prepare for the final two days because they are going to be pretty tough.”
Wilson, who is Golf Canada’s Next Generation Director and National Junior Girls Coach, has been impressed with Rivers’ play. Rivers has won three of four matches the first two days.
“She’s 14, hits it long and has a lot of strengths that really suit this style of golf,” Wilson said. “She can turn the page pretty quickly if she has a bad hole and I have been impressed with how she has embraced the opportunity to play against top competition and test herself. She hasn’t backed down.”
Each team gets one day off during the competition. Canada’s day off is Friday, when South Africa will play New Zealand and Great Britain & Ireland face Australia.
The Astor Trophy began as the Commonwealth Trophy and was first held at The Old Course at St. Andrews, Scotland in 1959. The name was changed to the Astor Trophy in 2007 to allow Irish players to compete on a Great Britain & Ireland team.
Australia won the event when it was last contested in 2015 at the Grange Golf Club in southern Australia. Canada has won the Astor Trophy on two occasions, in 1987 and 1979.
Morning foursomes will be begin at 8a.m. and the singles matches are scheduled from 12:30p.m. to 1:40a.m. each day. There are three days remaining in the competition and admission is free for spectators.
New Zealand leads after opening-day of Astor Trophy competition
VICTORIA, B.C. – New Zealand swept all four of its afternoon singles matches Wednesday to take the lead after the opening day of the Astor Trophy at Royal Colwood Golf Club.
All four of those wins came over Canada after the two countries had split their two morning foursomes matches.
Five four-woman teams — Canada, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and Great Britain & Ireland — have gathered for the round-robin match play event that has been held every four years since 1959. All of the countries will face each other once during the five-day competition.
On Wednesday, South Africa played Australia, while Canada faced New Zealand. Great Britain & Ireland had the day off.
Ameilia Garvey put the first win of the afternoon on the board for New Zealand when she beat Naomié Paré of Victoriaville, Que. 4&3. Carmen Lim followed with a 3&2 win over Mary Parsons of Delta, B.C. Wenyung Keh beat Brooke Rivers of Brampton, Ont. 4&2 and Julianne Alvarez defeated Emily Zhu of Richmond Hill, Ont. 2&1.
The afternoon sweep clinched New Zealand’s win over Canada and gave the Kiwis one point for the team win on the day. Australia and South Africa split their six matches and each earned half a point for their teams. Canada was blanked.
New Zealand coach Jay Carter was delighted with his team’s opening-day results.
“They played nicely,” Carter said. “We have a strong team. Ameilia was runner-up at the British Amateur last month, Wenyung and Julianne both won the NCAA in college and Carmen is on the way up. She is only 15.”
“We played good, it was a solid day,” added Keh, a recent University of Washington graduate who won both of her matches Wednesday. “We’re happy with our results today. This is a course that is demanding off the tee. Once you are in the rough it is hard to stop the ball on these greens. Having good course management around here is important and our team did that very well today.”
The weather was perfect and scoring conditions were ideal Wednesday.
Canada won its only match of the day when Paré and Rivers won 2&1 over Lim and Garvey. The Canadians were steady, winning despite the fact they didn’t make a birdie in the match.
“They missed a few putts and were off line on one tee shot that cost them a hole,” Paré said. “I think we just played solid.”
“We were just very consistent throughout the round,” added Rivers. “The greens make it very difficult to get close to the pin and pars are a great score out here.”
Foursomes (or alternate shot as it’s known) is a format that is relatively new to both Paré and Rivers.
“Actually, it was a lot of fun,” said Paré, who is entering her senior year at Barry University in south Florida. “I haven’t played a lot of this format in the past. Brooke and I met a couple of days ago and our games really fit and we got along great. We just had a lot of fun today.”
Parsons and Zhu lost their foursomes match 2&1 to Alvarez and Keh despite the fact they combined for two birdies and an eagle.
“It was kind of a back-and-forth match, but we still played really well,” Parsons said.
The Astor Trophy began as the Commonwealth Trophy and was first held at The Old Course at St. Andrews, Scotland in 1959. The name was changed to the Astor Trophy in 2007 to allow Irish players to compete on a Great Britain & Ireland team.
Australia won the event when it was last contested in 2015 at the Grange Golf Club in southern Australia. Canada has won the Astor Trophy on two occasions, in 1987 and 1979.
New Zealand gets the day off Thursday, when Canada meets Australia and Great Britain & Ireland face South Africa.
Astor Trophy set to kick off at Royal Colwood
OAKVILLE, Ont. – Golf Canada is pleased to announce the four athletes selected to represent Canada at the Astor Trophy competition, scheduled for Aug. 29 – Sept. 1 at Royal Colwood Golf Club in Victoria, B.C.
Canada’s team will include Mary Parsons of Delta, B.C., Noémie Paré of Victoriaville, Que., Emily Zhu of Richmond Hill, Ont., and Brooke Rivers of Brampton, Ont.
The Astor Trophy competition is held every four years between teams from Australia, Canada, Great Britain & Ireland, New Zealand and South Africa. Each country is represented by four female players and each country contests foursomes and singles match play in a round-robin format.
The athletes selected by Golf Canada for the Astor Trophy were determined based on an assessment of world rankings and head-to-head results among those with a declared intent to compete.
“We’re thrilled to be hosting this international championship at one of the finest courses Canada has to offer,” said Golf Canada tournament director Adam Helmer. “Royal Colwood is in fantastic shape and will prove to be an excellent challenge for some of most talented junior golfers from around the world.”
Royal Colwood Golf Club is a private golf club located in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Designed by Arthur Vernon Macan in 1913, Royal Colwood is a traditional style parklands championship course set amongst 450 year old douglas firs and majestic garry oaks. One of a select few in the world, Royal Colwood received its Royal designation from King George V in 1931.
The 20-year-old Parsons recently competed at the Pan American Games in Lima, Peru, where she was part of Canada’s bronze-medal-winning mixed team. Parsons also finished fifth in the women’s competition in Lima. She is a junior at Indiana University, where this past spring she won her first collegiate event at the Lady Boilermaker. She was a semi-finalist this summer at the PNGA Women’s Amateur Championship. Parsons won the 2018 B.C. Women’s Amateur Championship and is a former member of Golf Canada’s National Junior Girls Squad.
Paré, 21, is heading into her senior year at Barry University in Miami Shores, Fla. Paré qualified for match play at the 2019 British Women’s Amateur and tied for second at the 2019 Quebec Women’s Amateur. She tied for 27th at the 2019 Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship at Red Deer Golf & Country Club.
Zhu, 15, is a member of Golf Canada’s National Junior Girls Squad. She finished third at the 2019 PGA of Canada Women’s Championship, placed 12th at the 2019 Women’s Porter Cup and was second at the 2019 Ontario Women’s Amateur. Zhu recently won the 2019 Canadian Junior Girls Championship at Lethbridge Country Club.
The 14-year-old Rivers finished eighth at the 2019 Ontario Women’s Amateur Championship and was runner-up in the 2019 Ontario Women’s Match Play. At time of selection, Rivers was the sixth highest ranked Canadian female on the World Amateur Golf Rankings.
Matt Wilson of Newmarket Ont., Golf Canada’s Next Generation Director and National Junior Girls Coach, will coach the Canadian team at the Astor Trophy competition.
The Astor Trophy has been contested every four years since the inaugural event in 1959. It began as the Commonwealth Trophy and the name was changed to the Astor Trophy in 2007 to allow Irish players to compete on a Great Britain & Ireland team.
Australia won the event when it was last contested in 2015 at the Grange Golf Club in southern Australia. Canada has won the Astor Trophy on two occasions, in 1987 and 1979. Canada last hosted the Astor Trophy in 1999 at Marine Drive Golf Club in Vancouver.
Past Canadian participants include Lorie Kane, Marlene Streit, Dawn Coe-Jones and A.J. Eathorne. Past international players include former world No. 1 Lydia Ko and Catriona Matthew, the captain of the 2019 European Solheim Cup team.
Golf Canada announces 2020 and 2021 Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship host venues
Some of Canada’s finest golf facilities will play host to another storied championship over the next two years.
After the completion of a bid application process for member clubs in Quebec and Ontario, Golf Canada announced today the Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship would be played at Royal Montreal Golf Club in 2020 and Westmount Golf and Country Club in 2021.
Tournament Director Dan Hyatt said the organizing committee and Golf Canada couldn’t have asked for a better scenario to unfold for its championship, an ‘A’ ranked event on the Women’s World Amateur Golf Ranking.
After a great track record of clubs the last few years, being able to bring the event to some of Canada’s best clubs is a real win, he says.
“We’ve been very lucky with the venues we’ve had recently, since they’ve embraced the women’s game really well. We couldn’t have asked for two better clubs to come to the table with such storied histories,” said Hyatt. “The event has become a ‘must-play’ for top internationals along with our top Canadians, and hopefully this will produce a runway of being able to continue to get great clubs with great history to play host.”
107th Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship
Royal Montreal Golf Club’s Blue Course will host the 107th playing of the Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship in 2020.
The Blue Course last hosted the RBC Canadian Open in 2014 and the very first Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship in 1901.
“It’s nice to go back to the place where it all began,” said Dan Hyatt. “The history and the facts speak for itself: Royal Montreal is a premium, top-notch club that will surely test the players.
“We’ve had some great conversations with the leadership there and it’s going to be an absolute privilege to bring the Canadian Women’s Amateur to one of this country’s most historic venues,” continued Hyatt.
The club, which is the oldest golf club in North America, first hosted the Canadian Open in 1904. It went on to host Canada’s national open nine more times – including 2014. Of note, Royal Montreal was the site of the last Canadian Open won by a Canadian when in 1954 Pat Fletcher, who served as the club’s head professional for nearly 20 years, captured the title.
Royal Montreal also welcomed the world in 2007 when it hosted the Presidents Cup.
“The Royal Montreal Golf Club is delighted to host a national golf championship again,” said General Manager Mike Kenney. “Having hosted the inaugural Women’s Amateur Championship in 1901, the membership is excited to have the best women’s amateur golfers test their skills on the Blue Course.
“Planning is well underway, and we look forward to welcoming all the players, coaches, family and friends to Royal Montreal in July 2020.”
Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship
In 2021, the Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship will be contested at Westmount Golf and Country Club in Kitchener, Ont.
Westmount, the home of famous amateur and Canadian Golf Hall of Fame member Gary Cowan, is no stranger to hosting some of the biggest events in Canadian golf. The club has hosted the 1957 Canadian Open, the 1990 CP Women’s Open, the 1969 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship, and most recently the 2009 Canadian Junior Boys Championship in the past.
“Westmount has a long history of supporting amateur golf and we are honoured to be able to continue that tradition by hosting this prestigious event for top female amateurs from around the world,” said club president Virginia Marshall. “I am confident that the competitors will find our Stanley Thompson course both beautiful and challenging.”
Opened in 1931, Westmount, with its gently rolling terrain and unrivalled setting, has been constantly ranked as one of Canada’s best courses.
It will prove to be a formidable test for the best female amateurs in the world in 2021.
“It’s hard to beat,” said Dan Hyatt of Westmount. “It’s just such a fun track to play. There is never a dull moment there and it’s been a top-15 club consistently over the last decade or so. Plus, they are doing a lot of good things for the women’s game there.”
The 2019 Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship wrapped up in July at Red Deer Golf and Country Club with American Brianna Navarrosa winning by one shot. Now Golf Canada looks ahead, with confidence and excitement, at the next two years.
“We can’t thank both Royal Montreal and Westmount enough for putting in bids to host our championship,” said Hyatt. “Having these caliber of clubs involved will only make it a stronger event for everybody moving forward.”
Canada wins bronze medal in mixed team event at Pan Am Games
LIMA, Peru – Sunday marked a historic moment in Canadian golf, with Team Canada taking home the bronze medal in the mixed team event—the first-ever medal for Canada at the Pan Am Games.
The mixed team event consists of the lowest female score and the lowest male score of each round combined. Canada closed at 16 under par, good for a collective score of 552 – eight strokes back of the winning American team. Paraguay captured the silver medal with a score of 549.
Mary Parsons of Delta, B.C., shot a final-round 70 (-1) at the Country Club Villa to finish fifth place individually at 2 over par (68-73-75-70). Teammate Brigitte Thibault of Rosemère, Que., closed with a 4-over-par 75 to finish in a tie for 9th, totalling 6 over par for the tournament (74-73-68-75). American Emilia Miglaccio was the gold medalist with a total score of 8 under.
“I think all four of us grinded out every shot to kind of get to where we are,” said Parsons, who was just one stroke back of silver heading into the 18th hole. “We knew coming down the stretch we had to keep pushing because it wasn’t going to be over until it’s over.”
Scenes from yesterday’s bronze medal winning performance by #TeamCanada at the #Lima2019 Pan Am Games ??
? https://t.co/pFpnNzbocf pic.twitter.com/2wH5kAQl6b
— Golf Canada (@GolfCanada) August 12, 2019
On the men’s side, Austin Connelly of Lake Doucette, N.S., paced the Canadians with 3-under effort in Sunday’s final round, finishing at 11 under overall with sole possession of sixth place. Joey Savoie of La Prairie, Que., carded a 2-over 73, bringing his total to 10 over par. Paraguay’s Fabrizio Zanotti emerged from a playoff to capture the gold medal.
“They are all on this team for a reason,” said coach Tristan Mullally. “They have all been a part of our national team program at some point — my job is to help them prepare for this course with logistics, photographs, advance questions with the greens staff. It’s an amazing golf course for the site – it’s a unique course with some real quality holes.”
2019 marks the second playing of golf at the Pan American Games, and is the largest sporting event ever held in Peru. Golf made its debut at the 2015 Games in Toronto after the sport was added to the 2016 Olympics in Rio.
The 2023 Pan American Games will be played from Oct. 22 – Nov. 5 in Santiago, Chile.
Click here for full scoring.
Canada’s Mary Parsons tied for second at Pan Am Games
LIMA, Peru – Canadian Mary Parsons shot 2-over-par 73 during the second round of the Pan American Games individual competition at the Country Club Villa.
Parsons (Delta, B.C.) led by a stroke after the opening round, but now sits three back of American Emilia Migliaccio at 1 under, tied with two other competitors.
Fellow Canadian Brigitte Thibault (Rosemère, Que.) also shot 2 over in the second round and is now at 5 over for the tournament in 16th place.
In the men’s competition, Austin Connelly of Lake Doucette, N.S., carded a round of even-par, staying at 2 under and in a tie for 12th. Teammate Joey Savoie of La Prairie, Que., is 4 over, with a share of 24th.
Canada is in 12th place in the mixed team event (low male and low female scores combined).
The field for the 2019 Pan Am Golf Competition includes 32 women and 32 men competing in women’s individual, men’s individual and mixed team competitions.
Lima 2019 runs from July 26 to August 11, bringing together approximately 6,700 athletes from 41 nations of the Americas and feature 62 disciplines in 39 sports. It is the largest sporting event ever held in Peru.
Full scoring can be found here.
Canada’s Mary Parsons leads after opening round at Pan Am Games
LIMA, Peru – Canadian Mary Parsons shot an opening-round 68 (-3) to take a one-stroke after the opening round of the Pan American Games individual competition at the Country Club Villa.
The 20-year-old Delta, B.C., native holds a minor lead over Venezuela’s Vanessa Gilly.
Fellow Canadian and National Team member Brigitte Thibault of Rosemère, Que., sits a 3 over par in a tie for 19th.
In the men’s competition, Canadian Austin Connelly of Lake Doucette, N.S., opened with a 2-under 69, good for a share of 8th. Teammate Joey Savoie of La Prairie, Que., is one behind Connelly, with a share of 10th.
The field for the 2019 Pan Am Golf Competition will include 32 women and 32 men competing in women’s individual, men’s individual and mixed team competitions (low female and male score combined).
Lima 2019, which will run from July 26 to August 11, will bring together approximately 6,700 athletes from 41 nations of the Americas and feature 62 disciplines in 39 sports. It will be the largest sporting event ever held in Peru.
Click here for scoring.
Garrett Rank becomes first Canadian to win Western Amateur since 1977
Garrett Rank, of Ont., beat the odds to win the 117th Western Amateur at Point O’ Woods Golf & Country Club on Saturday.
The 31-year-old Rank, an NHL referee, earned the George R. Thorne Trophy with a 3 and 2 victory over Daniel Wetterich, of Cincinnati, Ohio. The last mid-amateur to win the Western Amateur was Danny Green in 1997 at The Point, which was hosting the tournament this week for the first time since 2008.
“This is the end of a dream week,” said the Team Canada alumnus.
Rank, who finished fifth at 6 under in stroke play on Thursday, trailed in all four of his matches. He was 1 down after five in the final, but took the lead with a birdie at No. 7. Rank went 2 up after making a birdie on the ninth.
Wetterich answered with a birdie at No. 10, but Rank took control with back-to-back birdies at Nos. 14-15 to go 3 up. He parred the 16th to end the match.
Rank carded six birdies and won seven holes. Wetterich made four birdies and won four holes. The two didn’t tie a hole until No. 8.
“The front was back and forth, and it was fun,” said Wetterich, who graduated from Ohio State in the spring. “He just made a lot of putts, and he wouldn’t give me any wiggle room.”
A native of Elmira, Ontario, Rank played golf and hockey growing up and earned scholarships in both sports to University of Waterloo in Ontario. After being diagnosed with testicular cancer in his second year of college, he quit hockey and focused on golf.
In 2012, Rank was the runner-up to Nathan Smith at the U.S. Mid-Amateur at Conway Farms Golf Club in Lake Forest, Illinois.
“I’ve had a lot of close calls in big events,” Rank said. “To finally break through is huge. I’m a big believer in the more you put yourself under pressure you learn something every time. I relied on that.”
The win gives Rank an exemption into next year’s Evans Scholars Invitational at The Glen Club in Glenview, Illinois. Wetterich also received an invitation into the Korn Ferry Tour event.
“I’m really excited about how I played,” Wetterich said. “Overall, I’m really content with the week, and I will build on what I did [Saturday] going forward.”
Rank is the second Canadian champion – Jim Nelford won the tournament in 1977 at The Point. He’s the first international winner since Danny Lee in 2008.
“I know how important and cool this is in amateur golf,” Rank said. “It hasn’t sunk in yet, and I’m sure I’ll be even more proud when it does.”
After playing in the Canadian Mid-Amateur Championship on Aug. 20-23, Rank reports to NHL training camp Sept. 9. Even following a win at the Western Amateur, among the most prestigious tournaments in the world, Rank isn’t compelled to turn golf into a full-time job.
“I have no regrets about not being professional,” he said. “I have no doubt I could be a great pro and could do well in the game of golf. But I love my job. I have one of the coolest jobs in the world. I know how the ups and downs of golf work and have seen a lot of great players not make it.
“When you get to play in tournaments like this and have success, I don’t know why you would want to chase being a professional golfer.”
Nine Canadians to play 119th U.S. Amateur Championship
Nine Canadians, including two members of the Team Canada National Amateur Squad have qualified to play the 119th U.S. Amateur Championship.
Ninety-six sectional qualifiers were held across North America from July 1-24, including one at The Thornhill Club in Thornhill, Ont., on Monday, July 22. Cougar Collins of Caledon, Ont., and Jackson Bowery of London, Ont., earned the two automatic exemptions at The Thornhill Club.
Julien Sale (Reunion Island) produced one of the lowest scores of any qualifier when he carded 10 under 132 at Mendon Golf Club in Rochester, N.Y. on July 8.
Calvin Ross (Fredericton, N.B.) was the low qualifier at The Ledges Golf Club in York, Maine on July 15. The 2017 Canadian Junior Boys champion finished one stroke ahead of Team Canada member Joey Savoie (La Prairie, Que.), with both players earning qualification.
Colwyn Abgrall (Niverville, Man.) finished as the low qualifier at the sectional at Fargo Country Club in Fargo, N.D.
Étienne Brault (Mercier, Que.), Tristan Mandur (Mill Bay, B.C.) and Chris Crisologo (Richmond, B.C.) all finished as runners-up at their respective qualifiers, therefore earning exemptions.
Eight additional Canadians are alternates for the championship; Jacob Presutti (Brampton, Ont.), Étienne Papineau (St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que.), Tyson Turchanski (Calgary), Kade Johnson (Yorkton, Sask.), Jeevan Sihota (Victoria), Cameron Kellett (Lambeth, Ont.), Josh Whalen (Napanee, Ont.) and Garrett Rank (Elmira, Ont.).
Each qualifier consisted of two stroke play rounds on the same day. Over 7,000 players attempted to qualify for the 312-player field.
The 119th U.S. Amateur Championship is being held at Pinehurst Resort & Country Club in Pinehurst, N.C., from August 12-18.
Full results from all U.S. Amateur Championship sectional qualifiers can be found here.