After a back and forth day at Royal Colwood Golf Club, Eli Cole tapped in for par on the 18th green to capture the 109th Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship.

Cole, 23, of Beverly Hills, Calif., entered the final round in a three-way tie for the lead alongside, Ricardo Celia, 21, of Colombia and Corey Conners, 21, of Listowel, Ont.

On Friday, the championship came down to the final hole at Royal Colwood Golf Club after Cole and Conners both hit the 18th green in regulation tied at 6-under par. Cole cozied his 15ft birdie putt up to the hole and tapped in for a regulation par only to watch Team Canada’s Conners three-putt from outside 50ft for bogey to hand Cole the Canadian Men’s Amateur title.

“I never thought Corey was going to three putt, he’s just such a classy player and he’s so good,” Cole said. “I was lucky to play with him the last few days, he was just a great guy all the way around yesterday and today, start to finish.”

As a graduate of Texas Christian University, Cole recently recovered from a double fracture of the tibia and fibula – An injury that left him sidelined from golf from nearly a year.

“It’s been a long road and if I said I did it by myself I’d be lying, so many people have helped me along the way,” he stated. “I’m really lucky to have come in contact with the people I have and everyone associated with TCU has just been incredible and everyone over in Canada this week have been so friendly.”

Cole carded an even-par 70 to finish at 6-under 276 for the championship to earn the coveted exemption into the 2014 RBC Canadian Open at Royal Montreal Golf Club and also a spot into next week’s 2013 U.S. Amateur.

“One of my goals is obviously to play on the PGA TOUR and now I’m about 1-millionth of the way there playing in the event,” he stated. “I have to stay healthy knowing my history but I couldn’t be more excited, I absolutely love it up here in Canada.”

Finishing in a tie for second one-stroke behind Cole at 5-under par 277 were Team Canada’s Corey Conners and Taylor Pendrith, 22, of Richmond Hill, Ont. Conners carded three birdies on his back nine to post a 1-over 71, while Pendrith thrilled fans holing out from 179 yards for eagle from the middle of the 18th fairway to post a 2-under 68 final round.

Colombia’s Celia, finished in solo fourth at 4-under 278 after a final round 2-over 72, while Team Canada Development Squad member, Adam Svensson, 19, of Surrey, B.C., finished in solo fifth at 3-under 279 after 4-under 66 on Friday.

Full final results from the 2013 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship are available here.

Ricardo Celia, Corey Conners and Eli Cole all sit atop the 109th Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship leaderboard after the third round at Royal Colwood Golf Club in Victoria, B.C.

Celia, 21, of Colombia, carded the round of the day after a 4-under 66 on Thursday. His third round was highlighted by five birdies, three of which he rolled in during his final five holes with his Colombian teammate Mateo Gomez on the bag.

“He really helped me out there today, he gave me the right club on my second shot into 18,” Celia said. “I hit it to 30ft and finished with a birdie. Tomorrow I’m just going to go out there, have fun and enjoy the challenge.”

Tied for the lead at 6-under 206 with Celia are Team Canada’s Conners, 21, of Listowel, Ont., and Eli Cole, 24, of Beverly Hills, Calif, who carded a 1-under 69 on Thursday.

Cole, a recent graduate of Texas Christian University, wowed fans following the final group early in the third round. Through five holes, Cole was 5-under par after holing out from the greenside bunker on the par-3 4th and rolling in a 8ft eagle putt on the par-5 5th hole.

“You always think that kind of shot is possible but you know the chances are slim to none,” Cole stated about his hole out. “Fortune was definitely on my side the first few holes today.”

The California native isn’t long off recovery from a serious injury that halted his golf career. While at TCU, Cole suffered a double fracture of the tibia and fibula playing a fun game of soccer that sidelined him for an entire season.

“It would mean a lot to win this but I still have a long way to go, anything can happen out here” he said. “I’m just having fun, it was great with the volunteers and the crowd today. It’s just exciting and I’m happy to be back playing again tomorrow.”

Conners played alongside Cole in the final group and posted an impressive 5-under 30 over his opening nine, but struggled over his closing holes posting two late double bogeys for an even-par 70. Despite his back nine mishaps on Thursday, the Team Canada National Squad member is ready to make a run at the title tomorrow.

“It obviously would be really special to win, I can’t really put it into words,” Conners said. “I’m just going to try to do my thing tomorrow and make it happen.

Sitting three strokes behind the leaders in a tie for fourth at 3-under par are Scott Secord, 20, of Calgary and Team Canada’s Taylor Pendrith, 22, of Richmond Hill, Ont. Secord posted a 2-under 68 on Thursday, while Pendrith carded a 1-under 69.

The 2013 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship resumes tomorrow, Friday, August 9, 2013, with the final round at Royal Colwood Golf Club beginning at 7:30 a.m.

Taiwan’s Yu-Chian Hsiang fired the low round of the championship during the second day of play at the 109th Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship.

Hsiang, 16, carded a bogey-free 7-under 65 around Gorge Vale Golf Club on Wednesday to position himself one-stroke ahead of overnight leader Corey Conners, at 7-under 135 heading into the third round.

“Whatever position I’m in heading into tomorrow, I’m just going to keep doing what I’ve been doing,” the high school sophomore said. “I’m just going to try to continue hitting fairways because it doesn’t matter if I’m in first place or second place, I’ll try to do my best tomorrow.”

A native of Taiwan, Hsiang moved to the United States last year and has been residing in Rowland Heights, Calif. This tournament marks his first trip to Canada and he stated he was happy with his second round play.

“Today I tried to keep it on the fairway and I made a couple of putts,” he said. “I just tried to focus on every single shot out there.”

Heading into the third round, Hsiang has a strong contingent of players challenging for the lead including, first round leader and Team Canada’s, Corey Conners, 21, of Listowel, Ont. Conners posted an even-par 70 at Royal Colwood Golf Club on Wednesday and currently sits at 6-under 136 for the championship.

California native, Eli Cole, 24, of Beverly Hills, carded the low round of the day at Royal Colwood Golf Club. His 4-under 66 leaves him in solo third for the championship at 5-under par.

Rounding out the top five were Paul Misko, 24, of Thousand Oaks, Calif., who posted a third round 1-under 69, while Andrew Whalen, 19, of Ephrata, Wash., sits in solo fifth at 3-under 139.

In Willingdon Cup Inter-Provincial Team Championship play, Team British Columbia, comprised of Charlie Hughes of Langley, B.C., Kevin Carrigan of Victoria and Team Canada Development Squad Member, Adam Svensson, of Surrey, B.C., came out victorious after a even-par 140 on Wednesday to finish at 1-over 285 for the championship. The squad edged out the Team Ontario’s contingent of Chris Hemmerich, Garrett Rank, and Stephane Dubois by a single stroke.

In addition, Team Canada’s National squad continued their strong play on Wednesday. Heading into the third round, five members of the program currently sit inside the top-15 including, Corey Conners, Justin Shin, 21, of Pitt Meadows, B.C., Taylor Pendrith, 22, of Richmond Hill, Ont., Adam Svensson, 19, of Surrey, B.C., and Chris Hemmerich, 20, of Kitchener, Ont.

The 2013 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship resumes tomorrow, Thursday, August 8, 2013, with third-round play at Royal Colwood Golf Club beginning at 7:30 a.m. The third and final rounds will both be contested solely at Royal Colwood Golf Club with the champion being crowned on Friday, August 9.

The winner of Canada’s oldest national golf championship will earn an exemption into the 2014 RBC Canadian Open at the Royal Montreal Golf Club. In addition, the winner will also be exempt from local qualifying for the 2014 U.S. Open and receives an exemption into the 2013 USGA Amateur Championship and, if applicable, the U.S. Amateur Public Links, U.S. Junior Amateur, U.S. Mid-Amateur and USGA Senior Amateur Championships.

Corey Conners, 21, of Listowel, Ont., carded the low round of the day at Gorge Vale Golf Club at the Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship.

Conners, a member of Team Canada’s National Squad, rolled in seven birdies during his opening round 6-under 66 and heads into the second round with a three-stroke lead over a strong contingent of Canadian and international players.

“I was very comfortable out there, it was one of my better ball striking days of all-time,” Conners said following his round. “I hit every shot how I wanted to and my misses were barely off target and still in good spots, so I’m really happy with the score.”

Currently ranked No. 43 in the world, the Kent State University standout wasn’t surprised at his strong play on Tuesday. Having narrowly missed the cut recently at the RBC Canadian Open at Glen Abbey Golf Club, Conners stated he came to Victoria with plenty of confidence.

“I missed the cut by two shots, but it gave me a lot of confidence knowing that even though I didn’t quite have it [last week], if I would have played well it showed me that I could hang with the top professionals on the PGA TOUR.”

Six players currently sit three strokes behind Conners in a tie for second at 3-under including, Andrew Whalen, 19, of Ephrata, Wash., Chris Worrell, 22, of Enid, Okla., Jake McLeod, 18, of Australia, Paul Misko, 24, of Thousand Oaks, Calif., Cameron Jones, 20, of New Zealand and Team Canada’s, Taylor Pendrith, 22, of Richmond Hill, Ont.

In Willingdon Cup Inter-Provincial Team Championship play, Team British Columbia, comprised of Charlie Hughes of Langley, B.C., Kevin Carrigan of Victoria and Team Canada Development Squad Member, Adam Svensson, of Surrey, B.C., currently sit one stroke ahead of Team Ontario and Team Manitoba at 1-over 145 for the championship. Team Alberta and Team Quebec currently sit only two strokes out of first heading into the final round of Inter-Provincial play tomorrow.

Team Canada’s National and Development Squad programs had a strong showing on Tuesday. In addition to Conners and Pendrith’s opening rounds, Justin Shin, 21, of Pitt Meadows, B.C., currently sits in a tie for 8th at 2-under par, while Garrett Rank, 25, of Elmira, Ont., and Kevin Kwon, 18, of Pitt Meadows, B.C., sit in a tie for 21st at even-par.

The 2013 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship resumes tomorrow, Wednesday, August 7, 2013, with second-round play at Royal Colwood Golf Club and Gorge Vale Golf Club beginning at 7:30 a.m. Rounds 3 and 4 will be contested solely at Royal Colwood Golf Club with the champion being crowned on Friday, August 9.

At the conclusion of play on Wednesday, the field will be cut to the low 70 players and ties and Golf Canada will also crown the 2013 Canadian Men’s Amateur Inter-Provincial Team champion.

The winner of Canada’s oldest national golf championship will earn exemptions into both the 2014 RBC Canadian Open at Royal Montreal Golf Club as well as the 2013 U.S. Amateur Championship at The Country Club at Brookline in Brookeline, Mass. Additionally, the winner is eligible to receive exemptions into the U.S. Amateur Public Links, U.S. Junior Amateur, U.S. Mid-Amateur & USGA Senior Amateur Championship, if applicable.