KELOWNA, B.C. — Playing in his second season on the Mackenzie Tour- PGA Tour Canada, Team Canada’s Jared du Toit fired a second-round 5-under 66 to grab the outright lead at the GolfBC Championship. Five players remain two back heading into the weekend.
In his back nine, du Toit made three consecutive birdies on Nos. 4-6, followed by a bogey on the seventh hole. He ended his round on a high-note, with an up-and-down birdie from the bunker on the par-5 ninth hole.
“Definitely happy to birdie the last there,” said du Toit. “It’s finally coming together. You hear it all the time, but if I just stick to it, I like my chances. I’m not surprised at all that I’m up there [on the leaderboard]. Hopefully in two more days, I can tell you the same.”
The Calgary native set the tournament record last year at this event with a 10-under 61 in the third round. Du Toit rose to prominence in 2016, when he played in the RBC Canadian Open as a 21-year-old amateur. He played in the final group with Brandt Snedeker and went on to finish in a tie-for-ninth. He was the low amateur and low Canadian at the PGA TOUR event.
Du Toit fellow Team Canada Young Pro Squad member Taylor Pendrith had a worldwind day. The Richmond Hill, Ont., talent carded a 8-under-63 to tie for the low round of the day with Jeremy Paul from Heidelberg, Germany. Pendrith climbed up 86 spots to sit tied for seventh after two rounds.
After picking up the 18-hole co-lead Thursday at the GolfBC Championship, Mark Anguiano and Zach Wright are two back of du Toit with three others, at 9-under 133. They both followed up their 9-under 62s in the opening round with second-round, even-par 71s.
Wright carded three birdies and three bogeys in his up-and-down round. Reflecting on his day, the 24-year-old was most disappointed with his putting.
“I couldn’t get anything going,” said Wright. “On the front nine, I didn’t make that many putts. I couldn’t get my putter going at all. I kept grinding, and nothing kept going in, so I just fell apart at the end and made bogeys.”
Wright held the 36-hole lead by two shots last week at the Bayview Place DCBank Open but went on to tie for sixth after a third-round 73. The Louisiana State University alum entered this week No. 3 on the Order of Merit.
Anguiano of Bellflower, Calif., carded four birdies and four bogeys during his second-round play. His back nine included three consecutive bogeys, on Nos. 10-12, before closing with a birdie on the 17th hole. Playing in the afternoon wave, the 25-year-old faced heavier rain and wind compared to the players who teed off in the morning, but the California State University-Fullerton alum chose to focus on the positives.
“It was pretty up and down today,” said Anguiano. “I had a stretch in the beginning of the back nine that really stung, but I was really happy with the way I bounced back mentally. Even though I made only one birdie coming in, I gave myself a lot of looks. I’m still happy with where I am.”
Among the 21 Canadians in the field, six players advanced to the weekend. In addition to du Toit and Pendrith, David Rose (West Vancouver, B.C.), Team Canada Young Pro Squad’s Stuart Macdonald (Vancouver, B.C.), James Seymour (Aurora, Ont.) and Ryan Williams (Vancouver, B.C.) made the cut to head into round three.
Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada— Among the 21 Canadians in the field, Jared du Toit from Kimberley, B.C.,
fired the lowest opening round, with a bogey-free, 6-under 65 and sits tied for sixth on Thursday after the opening round of the GolfBC Championship.
“It was the weirdest thing. I was playing a practice round and wasn’t playing great, and I was like, ‘Man, I don’t know how I shot 61 here, it’s kind of tough.’ But it is definitely good to have that 61 in the back of my mind.” said du Toit.
Mark Anguiano, Grady Brame, Jr. and Zach Wright carded matching rounds of 9-under 62 and are tied for the lead. They hold a two-shot lead heading into the second round.
Playing in the first group of the morning wave, Anguiano set the tone early with a bogey-free, 9- under 62. He carded nine birdies during his play at Gallagher’s Canyon Golf and Country Club, a round which included four consecutive birdies on Nos. 2-5. Anguiano came one shot shy of tying the tournament record, set last year by Canadian Jared du Toit in the third round.
Anguiano, who was fighting a left-knee injury last week at the Bayview Place DCBank Open presented by Times Colonist, almost withdrew before the final round in Victoria due to the pain. He went on to tie for 23rd in the event.
“I didn’t even warm up in the last round, and I was thinking of not even playing on the last day,”said Anguiano. “It was hurting that bad, but physically I feel better. It’s about 80 percent thisweek. I took good care of it.”
Joining Anguiano atop the leaderboard is Louisiana native Brame. He combined seven birdies with an eagle for a matching, bogey-free 9-under 62. His eagle on the par-5 ninth hole was the result of a stellar second shot from 205 yards. Using his 6-iron, the ball landed on the fringe and narrowly missed the hole, ending up 10 feet past the pin. He made the putt for eagle and closed the round with five additional birdies. Brame followed a tie-for-fourth finish at this year’s Q- School USA East No. 2 with two consecutive missed cuts in the first two events of this season.
Wright played his last four holes six-under par with an eagle-birdie-birdie-eagle finish. The 9- under 62 from the Louisiana State University alum consisted of two eagles, seven birdies and two bogeys. The 24-year-old started the season with a runner-up finish at the Freedom 55 Financial Open and entered this week No. 3 in the Order of Merit.
Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada—Wes Heffernan claimed the Freedom 55 Financial Canadian Player of the Week Award after a sixth-place finish in Victoria. The Calgary, Alberta, native did so in dramatic fashion, jarring his shot from the fairway on the 15th for eagle and chipping in for birdie on the 18th to shoot 68.
“Golf has allowed me to travel the world and play something I have a huge passion for.” Heffernan said. “When I mentioned I was struggling a bit, sometimes you forget how much it means to you and how much fun it can be if you just let it happen. The past few years I’ve tried to have as much fun as possible, and you see the scores when you do that. When you have fun, you play a lot better.”
After his third round, Sam Fidone mentioned he would likely be feeling some nerves on his stroll up to the first tee Sunday.
Fidone appeared to make that stroll with all the confidence in the world, striping his first tee shot down the Uplands Golf Club fairway to begin his march toward a bogey-free 65 and commanding five-stroke victory.
Going into the day, the Lufkin, Texas, native had built a two-stroke lead over Blake Sattler due to three consecutive scores in the mid-60s. As the afternoon moved on, the nail drew closer to the coffin as Fidone’s lead slowly increased.
On the 11th green, the 25-year-old fist-pumped the entire 10 yards from where he stroked his putt to the hole, and as he picked up his ball from the bottom of the cup he essentially put down any hopes other players had of winning the tournament.
“The putt on 11 was kind of my ‘let’s go get them, you have the control and the dominance over everyone right now’ moment,” said Fidone. “I just continued to game plan the rest of the day, but that putt was really the catalyst to bring me in and make me feel really solid.”
The moment came after a near flawless front-nine that included three birdies and no bogeys. The rest of the back nine was much of the same, consistent golf that allowed him an easy tap-in on the last hole to solidify himself as a Mackenzie Tour winner.
“I definitely feel like I’m on the right trajectory,” said Fidone. “I feel like my game is trending, and my attitude towards my game is trending, in the right direction. I’m making more mature decisions every time I step up to the tee, and I think that’s the biggest part about winning at every level.”
Fidone spent the spring tightening up his game on the Adams Tour, winning the Options for Independence Houma Classic in April, with rounds of 70-67-69-65. Fidone’s only other start this year on the Adams Tour resulted in a second-place finish after losing in a playoff at the Business First Bank Classic, firing scores of 69-63-66-69.
While Fidone cashed his check for $36,000, the Children’s Health Foundation of Vancouver Island also won in a big way. With the help of volunteers, sponsors and donations made by the Victoria community, at the closing ceremony the tournament announced it had raised $180,000 for the foundation.
Next on tap for the Mackenzie Tour-PGA TOUR Canada is the third and final stop of the B.C. Golf Swing, a three-tournament stretch through Vancouver, Victoria and Kelowna. A field of 156 golfers will tee it up at Gallagher’s Canyon on June 14-17 to see who can join Fidone, and last week’s winner, Jordan Niebrugge, in the 2018 winner’s circle.
Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada
VICTORIA, B.C.— With low scores hard to come by Saturday afternoon at Uplands Golf Club, Lufkin, Texas, native Sam Fidone fought through a windy day to shoot 66 to take a two-stroke lead over Blake Sattler into the final round of the Bayview Place DCBankOpen presented by Times Colonist.
Three Canadian players head into Sunday’s round in the top ten. Team Canada’s Jared Du Toit is the top Canadian three strokes off the lead, alone in third. He is joined by Calgary’s Wes Heffernan (-9) and Stonewall’s Aaron Cockerill (-8) who sit T5 and T9, respectively.
Beginning the day in the second-to-last group, Fidone quickly narrowed the gap to one shot between him and overnight leader Zach Wright, with back-to-back birdies out of the gate.
“I watched Wes (Heffernan) make a 35- or 40-footer on one, so I decided to do the same thing,” said Fidone. “Holes 1 and 2, making birdies, that start affirmed to me that I was doing the right things.”
From there, Fidone cruised through the rest of the nine despite tough conditions, taking advantage of the par-5 seventh, with his third birdie of the round.
“I looked at the Weather Channel this morning and saw 17- or 18 mile-per-hour winds. On Monday, I said ‘I hope it blows out here at least one day,’ and I got my wish,” said Fidone.“Being from Texas, a windy part of the world, it’s fun to play in wind, and I don’t actually mind it that much.”
The defining moment of the round came on the par-5 12th hole. Despite hitting his tee shot a bit fat by his own admission, Fidone hit his second to the edge of the fringe, 15 feet from the hole. Utilizing a shot he learned from a friend at Southern Methodist University, Fidone elected to belly-wedge the ball, taking a potential unpredictable jump from the collar out of the equation.
Fidone watched his shot roll into the hole, giving him a three-stroke lead.
“I’ve never made an eagle like that, I’ve never bellied an eagle, so watching it go in was awesome.”
After making his only bogey of the day on the 13th, Fidone made five consecutive pars to finish off his 66.
“I’ll stick to the same morning routine I always do tomorrow,” said Fidone. “it’s impossible not to think about what ifs, but you have to finish that thought and get on to the next task at hand.”
The Bayview Place DCBank Open is the second of three events on the B.C. Golf Swing, which entails tournaments in picturesque Vancouver, Victoria and next week’s Tour stop in Kelowna.
Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada—Despite heavy rainfall making for a damp Friday afternoon, three Canadians are inside the top five, all within 3 shots of the lead, at the Bayview Place DCBank Open presented by Times Colonist at Uplands Golf Club.
Aaron Cockerill shot 1-over on his opening nine of the day, equaling his worst nine-hole score of the year. The Winnipeg, Manitoba, native would significantly improve that number on his back nine, making birdie on five of his last seven holes to shoot 30, equaling his lowest nine-hole score of the season and ending the day T2.
Despite playing in just two events last season, Calgary’s Wes Heffernan managed to finish the season 36th on the money list, thanks to a runner-up finish at the ATB Financial Classic. Heffernan is quickly taking advantage of what he says will be another shortened season, following Thursday’s 65 with a 66 to sit in a tie for fourth heading into the weekend.
With family in the area, Jared Du Toit showed off his acclimation for island golf in the second round, shooting the second-lowest round of the day at Uplands Golf Club—a bogey-free 64. Following a massive drive, Du Toit eagled the par -5 seventh after sticking a 7-iron to five feet. Du Toit shares fourth with fellow Canadian Heffernan.
With three Canadians from the morning wave, Wes Heffernan , Jared Du Toit, and Aaron Cockerill, leapfrogging Wright as he prepared for his second round. the overnight leader kept his nose to the grindstone, making birdie on his first hole of the day to set the stage for a seven-birdie, three-bogey 66.
“I had to battle out there, that’s for sure,” said Wright, who watched the players teeing off in the morning coming in dry as he was getting a rain suit prepped for the afternoon. “Towards the end, [the greens] were getting softer, but early on they were just skipping because they were so wet but still firm.”
Being on the wrong side of the draw didn’t appear to inhibit the Louisiana State University alumni’s game. The second-place finisher of last week’s Freedom 55 Financial Open hit 15 greens Friday, and he takes a two-stroke lead over Aaron Cockerill and Sam Fidone into the weekend.
“When you’ve been in the hunt recently, it helps when you’re in the hunt again the next week because you’re more familiar with it. So you can just play your game,” said Wright. “There’s always a little bit of nerves, but I’ve been handling it very well so I’m going to just keep playing my golf game.”
Going into Saturday’s action, Wright doesn’t intend to change anything and will continue to rely on the game that has him two ahead.
“I’m going to just keep playing golf. There’s not really a secret formula to it,” said Wright. “Sometimes you have it going on and you just have to play golf, and it happens.”
Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada — Taylor Pendrith, a highly touted Canadian golfer who finished the 2015 season as the third leading money winner on the Mackenzie Tour order of merit, shot his lowest professional round since 2015 with Thursday’s 64 after the first round of the Bayview Place DCBank Open at Uplands Golf Club.
Aaron Cockerill is eyeing the prize of Freedom 55 Financial Canadian Player of the Week after finishing the first round as co-low Canadian alongside Taylor Pendrith. The Winnipeg, Manitoba, native opened with a 64 which included a chip in on the 18th hole for his fourth birdie in a row to close out the round.
Wes Heffernan from Calgary, Alberta, sits T8 just three strokes behind the lead.
When you’re on, you’re on and Zach Wright didn’t lose any momentum on the ferry ride across the pond from Vancouver to Victoria.
Wright was near perfect during the first round making nine birdies and just a single bogey to fire an 8-under 62.
“I hit a couple close again and just had to tap it in,” said Wright, coming off a second-place finish at last week’s Freedom 55 Financial Open in Vancouver. “My putter got going on my seventh hole, I made one and then it just kept going.”
The 24-year-old kept it simple early on, making birdie on his second hole of the day before giving the stroke back when he failed to get up-and-down on the par-3 14th hole. From there in, Wright played flawless golf, making three straight birdies from 7-9 to finish the front in 32 strokes, and added another on his 10th for four in a row.
The 2016 Louisiana State University grad polished off his 62 with another stretch of four-straight birdies from 14-17 to sign for his lowest ever score on the Mackenzie Tour.
“I hit a bunch of fairways today which made it easy because it’s a short course,” said the Phoenix, AZ, native. “If you put yourself in the middle of the fairway you’ve got wedges in and you can attack the golf course.”
Wright made eight starts on the Web.com Tour last season, and after making only a single cut, appears to be on a mission in Canada to reclaim status with his improved golf game.
“When you’re playing well you don’t really think about the score, you’re just looking for your next birdie, per se, so I was just trying to hit good shots and make putts,” added Wright. “playing well, it’s easy to come in here with confidence.”
Trailing Wright is Blake Sattler, who fired a first-round 63 with an eagle on his 16th hole.
VANCOUVER — Jordan Niebrugge putt the lights out this week at the Freedom 55 Financial Open at Point Grey Golf and Country Club. That was fitting since, while growing up, that was the only club the Bridgeton, Mo., golfer had in his bag.
At age 3, Niebrugge didn’t receive a wedge from his dad until he could prove he was able to two-putt on the green, and after that he didn’t own a long iron until he could get up and down from anywhere around the putting surface.
Progressive thinking, learning the game backward.
Twenty-one years later, with his parents beaming from outside the ropes, Niebrugge tapped in for par on the 72nd hole to win his first professional tournament, shooting rounds of 68-66-68-72 to win by two strokes.
Niebrugge went into the final round in a unique position, up five strokes on the field with the finish line just 18 holes away.
“I knew I was playing great golf, and I knew if I took care of what I needed to, I’d be standing here at the end, and for the most part I was able to do that,” said Niebrugge, who towers over most at 6 feet 4 inches.
“I guess that’s why you build a big enough lead, so you don’t have to make all the putts coming in.”
Niebrugge built his lead on a two-and-a-half-round stretch of bogey-free golf from the second round until the final round’s ninth hole. It was the back nine Saturday, when Chris Williams and Zach Wright faltered, that Niebrugge made his biggest move, shooting 33 to head into Sunday at 16-under.
Based on his scores the first three days, while Niebrugge may not have been sniffing the roses on Sunday, he was able to do what he does best, not overthink the game and take advantage of opportunities when they presented themselves.
For the fourth consecutive day, Niebrugge birdied the first hole to boost his confidence. Another on the third helped last year’s runner up at this event make the turn in 35 strokes. From there, not even a couple of closing bogeys on 16 and 17 could prevent Niebrugge from lifting the trophy.
“I like the golf course, it’s right in front of you,” said Niebrugge. “I hit a lot of 3-irons off the tee and had a lot of wedges and 9-irons in. I knew I was hitting it great going into the green, so I just had to get those chances.”
Niebrugge elected to defer Monday’s opportunity to qualify for the U.S. Open in order to prepare for the Web.com Tour’s Rust-Oleum Championship taking place next week in Mundelein, Ill.
Meanwhile, Riley Wheeldon of nearby Richmond, British Columbia, shot his third 70 of the week to tie for 10th and win the year’s first Canadian Player of the Week Award.
Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada
VANCOUVER, British Columbia — It’s unexplainable, even by his own account, but once again, Cody Blick has signed for a round in the 60s on the B.C. Golf Swing. On Friday it came in the form of seven birdies offset by a lone bogey for his second consecutive 66.
Blick’s 12-under total through two days of the Freedom 55 Financial Open at Point Grey Golf and Country Club is good enough for a share of the lead alongside Thursday’s overnight leader Chris Williams.
Leaderboard: Freedom 55 Financial Open
Carding red in Canada’s Western-most province is nothing new for the San Ramon, California native. Looking back at the last nine tournaments Blick has played in British Columbia, Friday’s 66 actually hurt his scoring average, which now sits at 65.8.
At a loss for words over how he has managed to sustain this level of play within B.C., the San Jose State University alum notes that a change in strategy he implemented this offseason has helped him the past few days.
“My first year up here, even last year, I was hitting a lot of irons off the tee,” said the 24-year-old. “These courses are tight, but if you just commit to a line and hammer driver, even if you hit it in the trees you can easily punch it up around the green and make par.”
Blick admired Rico Hoey, a 2017 member now on the Web.com Tour, for this trait when he played alongside him last season. The strategy seems to be working for Hoey, who tied for 15th at the Web.com Tour’s Nashville Golf Open last week.
“All he does is hit these little 10-yard fades and he just hammers it,” said Blick. “Then he goes and finds it and wedges it on.”
Starting on the back nine, Blick got off to a pedestrian start with the putter by his own accounts, making the turn in 35 before going on a run on the front nine — with birdies from holes 3-6 and another on No. 9 to polish off his 66.
Blick mentioned his distance tactic again when discussing Point Grey’s fourth hole, where he’s made birdie in each of the first two rounds.
“You can get right next to the green, and then it’s just up-and-down for birdie,” said Blick. “It’s just a more aggressive and more confident game plan.”
With four top-10 finishes in 2017, Blick is no stranger to the top of the leaderboard as he draws into the final pairing again Saturday.
Meanwhile, Williams once again managed a bogey free round, adding two back-nine birdies to his trio on the front for a 67.
The pair will meet on the first tee on Saturday afternoon at 1:05 p.m.
Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada
VANCOUVER — It’s unexplainable, even by his own account, but once again, Cody Blick has signed for a round in the 60s on the B.C. Golf Swing. On Friday it came in the form of seven birdies offset by a lone bogey for his second consecutive 66.
Blick’s 12-under total through two days of the Freedom 55 Financial Open at Point Grey Golf and Country Club is good enough for a share of the lead alongside Thursday’s overnight leader Chris Williams.
Carding red in Canada’s Western-most province is nothing new for the San Ramon, Calif., native. Looking back at the last nine tournaments Blick has played in British Columbia, Friday’s 66 actually hurt his scoring average, which now sits at 65.8
At a loss for words over how he has managed to sustain this level of play within B.C., the San Jose State University alum notes that a change in strategy he implemented this offseason has helped him the past few days.
“My first year up here, even last year, I was hitting a lot of irons off the tee,” said the 24-year-old. “These courses are tight, but if you just commit to a line and hammer driver, even if you hit it in the trees you can easily punch it up around the green and make par.”
Blick admired Rico Hoey, a 2017 member now on the Web.com Tour, for this trait when he played alongside him last season. The strategy seems to be working for Hoey, who tied for 15th at the Web.com Tour’s Nashville Golf Open last week.
“All he does is hit these little 10-yard fades and he just hammers it,” said Blick. “Then he goes and finds it and wedges it on.”
Starting on the back nine, Blick got off to a pedestrian start with the putter by his own accounts, making the turn in 35 before going on a run on the front nine—with birdies from holes 3-6 and another on No. 9 to polish off his 66.
Blick mentioned his distance tactic again when discussing Point Grey’s fourth hole, where he’s made birdie in each of the first two rounds.
“You can get right next to the green, and then it’s just up-and-down for birdie,” said Blick. “It’s just a more aggressive and more confident game plan.”
With four top-10 finishes in 2017, Blick is no stranger to the top of the leaderboard as he draws into the final pairing again Saturday.
Meanwhile, Williams once again managed a bogey free round, adding two back-nine birdies to his trio on the front for a 67.
The pair will meet on the first tee on Saturday afternoon at 1:05 p.m.
Riley Wheeldon is the low Canadian through two rounds in Vancouver. Wheeldon started his day 3-under through his first two holes after an eagle at the par-5 12th. The Richmond, B.C., native is looking for his first Mackenzie Tour win since 2013.
Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada
VANCOUVER — Having played collegiate golf in Seattle, Chris Williams is no stranger to playing in the Northwest, showing off his acclimation with a tournament-leading 65 in the first round of the Freedom 55 Financial Open on Thursday.
Though it may feel like home, Point Grey Golf and Country Club hasn’t always been kind to the 26-year-old, who missed the cut last year after a tie for 41st the year prior. So, what gave this year?
“Since it’s such a short season here in Canada I would only start playing well the sixth, seventh or eighth event of the year,” said Williams. “This season I went down and played in Latinoamerica, so I basically played a full schedule and felt really comfortable with my game rather than coming to this as the first event of the year.”
Williams comes into the event not only comfortable, but also playing some of the best golf of his professional career. The Idaho native capped off his prelude venture on PGA TOUR Latinoamerica circuit with a tie for third earlier this month at the Puerto Plata DR Open, firing a final-round 66.
Williams took a while to heat up Thursday. Starting on the back-nine, he made his first birdie on the fourth hole before adding another on the par-5 18th to make the turn at 2-under. Another birdie at the first set the stage for a hole-out from the fairway on 5, catapulting Williams up the leaderboard.
“I started off slow, hitting it in the trees and making some good pars, but then I found something,” said Williams. “On the back I made a few putts and the eagle on five and it snowballed from there. All of a sudden I was 7-under.”
Playing in the morning wave Thursday, Williams led a crowded leaderboard by just one with half the field still left to play. He noted that with the amount of talent on the Mackenzie Tour, he envisioned an afternoon player potentially claiming the lead. That would never come to fruition as the sixth-year pro headed to his hotel as the lone leader.
On Williams’ heels is Jordan Niebrugge, craving a victory after three top-threes in 2017, and Cody Blick, a self-proclaimed lover of the BC Golf Swing, who came just a stroke away from a 59 in Victoria last season.
The top Canadian honours is shared by Andrew Funk and Jimmy Jones Jr., who are knotted in a tie for 14th place at 3 under par. Funk made six birdies on his way to a 3-under total, and Jones birdied his last hole of the day in his first professional event.
