All Elmwood Golf and Country Club head professional Brennan Rumancik seems to do is win.

Rumancik went back-to-back at the PGA of Sask Tour Championship on Tuesday.

After claiming the title in 2018 at Dakota Dunes Golf Links, Rumancik did it again in less-than-desirable elements at the course south of Saskatoon. Rumancik opened day two of the match play event in the semi-finals, after securing a pair of victories on Monday.

In the semis, Rumancik was 3 down through six holes against Kevin Dietz. Both players went back and forth, with Rumancik taking the victory on the 18th green. With the rain pouring down and the temperature low enough to almost be counted on one hand, an even more dramatic match was in store in the final.

Rumancik came into the event as the second seed. His opponent in the final was top-seeded Ryan Wells of Prince Albert. 18 holes solved nothing between Rumancik and Wells, so a playoff was needed. The first playoff hole proved fruitless, but Rumancik put his foot down on the second.

The reigning PGA of Sask ‘Player of the Year’ drained a 20-footer for birdie to claim the 2019 Tour Championship.

The final event of the summer season was the third win for Rumancik. He won the Oakcreek Zone Championship up in Nipawin, then won the professional flight of the Pro Junior event at his home course in Swift Current.

With two straight seasons of three event wins, including those aforementioned Tour Championships, Rumancik makes a strong case to repeat as the Player of the Year. Rumancik will have to wait until late October to learn his fate regarding the prestigious honour.

The PGA of Sask Awards Show runs October 29-30, in conjunction with their Merchandise Show, at Prairieland Park in Saskatoon.

Story originally published on www.swiftcurrentonline.com
Authored by Eric James

Delisle’s Colin Coben and Weyburn’s Rick Hallberg are the top ranked locals after one round of the Canadian Men’s Senior Championship in Scarborough. Ont.

Early on Coben, playing in his 31^st national golf event, was sharing the lead at one-under par. The Vallleyview Regional Golf Course member shot three-over to sit in a seven-player logjam in 20^th after the opening round.

Hallberg, who plays out of Golf Kenosee finished his opening round at Cedar Brae Golf Club at plus-five. Hallberg is tied for 33^rd.

Saskatchewan Super Senior Champion (65+) Rick Hillestad shot eight-over on Tuesday, the Saskatoon resident is tied for 85^th overall. In the Super Senior division Hillestad sits in a tie for 18^th.

Saskatchewan Senior Men’s Champion Ken Rodgers of Regina posted an 81, 10-over to sit in a tie for 96^th. Swift Current’s Brent Wotypka carded a first-round score of plus-12, 83.

As a team Saskatchewan sits in eighth place at plus-13. Ontario and Alberta are tied for the lead at two-over.

The second round will be played Wednesday beginning at 5:30 a.m. local time.

To see more from the leaderboard click here.

Despite turning 41-years-old at the end of the year, Tyler Wright has had a Hall of Fame worthy amateur golf career. The Regina product is one of three inductees that will be enshrined into the Saskatchewan Hall later this month in Saskatoon.

Wright was an active child living in the Queen City playing sports 12 months of the year including golf, a pastime he picked up from his grandpa Louie who lived a few doors down the street. Grandpa Louie made Wright a set of clubs from some of his dad’s clubs and he’d hit balls in the backyard or alley when he was about six or seven years old. When Wright was nine he attended a junior clinic at the Regent Par 3 course that included a couple rounds at the Royal Regina Golf Club (RRGC) under the tutelage of Joe Trudell. As they say, the rest is history. Wright got his first membership at the Royal when he was 10 and played an estimated 25 to 30 rounds. From the next year through high school he averaged well over 100 rounds per summer. In 1990 he won his first organized tournament and the fire simply burned brighter for him.

“I don’t know if there was ever a conscious moment where I thought I was going to be good at this game until much later,” Wright explained to Golf Saskatchewan. “I started just loving the game and then I started playing tournaments. I won in my eyes, my first significant tournament, the James Tire Junior Invitational was the name of it, it was at the Wascana Country Club. It was provincial class golf course and tournament. I managed to beat Luke Sheard coming down the stretch, I shot 90-90. That was kind of the beginning of when I thought, you know what? I could be pretty good at this game.”

Junior success continued to follow Wright, he won the gold medal at the 1993 Saskatchewan Summer Games and his team won the under-13 gold medal. He began to win his age group around Regina in events and club championships, but his first provincial tournament turned out to be a real ‘watershed’ moment and turning point in his young career in Yorkton.

“It was the first time where I went, well I’m capable of this but if I don’t put the work in,” Wright admitted. “I think that spring I was spending a little more time hanging out with my grade 8 friends and getting ready for that high school transition. Once I came back from that I realized that if I want to do this it’s going to have to be a more of a full commitment.”

He went on to win the Regina High School Championship in 1995, the City Junior Championship in 1997 and the provincial high school gold medal in 1996. Wright also made the Saskatchewan juvenile team in 1995. His provincial high school victory caught the eyes of several American colleges and he chose to attend Idaho State University on a Div. 1 scholarship. Along with the scholarship he was awarded the Leddy-Heywood Scholarship on two occasions. The substantial financial bursary was given to students that excelled at sport and other aspects of high school life. Wright contributed his time playing golf to that accomplishment.

“It’s not meant to be a cliché that golf is a gentleman’s sport. You learn a lot of life lessons, learning to manage yourself in an individual sport like golf is a completely different experience than managing yourself on a team. You have people to pick you up or a coach to take care of you, you have several supports, in golf’s case you don’t have those supports. You must learn to be self confident, to be resilient, when you are struggling on a course, we all know this. When you play you are going to have a bad shot or bad holes, how you respond to that directly correlates with life,” Wright said.

Wright redirected his college career to the University of Regina and played basketball for the Cougars for five seasons while still playing competitive golf in the summers. He is a five-time member of the Saskatchewan Willingdon Cup team (2001, 2005, 14, 15, and 17). He finished in seventh at the Canadian Mid-Amateur Championship in 2015, at that point the highest ever finish for a Saskatchewanian at the mid-am. He bettered that with a fifth-place finish at the Wascana in 2017. A lengthy list of wins kept piling up in and around Regina as well including just this year when he won the second provincial Mid-Master’s (40+) title at the RRGC. Wright was already selected for the Hall before that win given his success. When he heard the news from SGHOF secretary Brian Lee, he was speechless.

“You wish to leave a legacy in all walks of life,” he said. “In this case leaving a legacy in a sense for my family, friends, and children making the Hall is hard to put into words. I dreamed of winning golf tournaments and fortunately the legacy has resulted with me being honoured with this induction, it’s very special. When Brian called me it was absolute elation,” he beamed.

Wright will be enshrined along with fellow Wascana member and mentor Randy Gilewich and Gary Brandon on Sept. 21 at the Riverside Country Club. He said going in with those two and joining the prestigious list of past inductees is remarkable.

“There is so many of them that have supported me and sent their congratulations,” he said. “Guys that you emulate, you want to be like. You probably want to compete with them in tournaments and beat them in tournaments, to be in the Hall with them is very special. Those individuals will forever be people I aspire to be like on and off the golf course.”

Wright was able to win his most recent event this summer with his daughters Scarlett and Indyana at his side along with his wife Jennifer. His father, Larry was his caddy and his mother walked the grounds of the Royal showing her support. Wright said their support has been immeasurable through out his career and life and any future wins is more about them than his own selfishness.

“I don’t think it’s as much about modelling the winning, of course I want to win, of course I will set those goals, of course I’m going to play provincial tournaments and represent Golf Saskatchewan at national tournaments. I think it’s the process to get there that needs to be modelled. The practice I put in I think is something that I think is of the most value to children. It’s what I valued as a young kid,” he said.

Wright is currently the vice-principal at O’Neill High School in Regina. He was inducted into the Regina Sports Hall of Fame alongside his father in 1995.

Tickets for the gala in Saskatoon are on sale now and available here.

You can hear much more from Wright who spoke with Golf Saskatchewan’s Clark Stork following the announcement.

– Winner receives exemption into USGA’s 2020 U.S. Senior Amateur Championship –

– Eight past champions and three Canadian Golf Hall of Fame Honoured Members in the field –

TORONTO – The 2019 Canadian Men’s Senior Championship, conducted by Golf Canada, will be contested at Cedar Brae Golf Club from September 10-13, marking the 58^th playing of the national championship.

A full field of 156 competitors aged 55-and-over will take to Cedar Brae in hopes of joining the championship’s stellar list of notable winners. Returning to defend his Canadian Men’s Senior title is Brady Exber of Las Vegas, who cruised to a 7-stroke victory in 2018 with a score of 10-under par (278).

Also looking to hoist the John Rankin Memorial Trophy at Cedar Brae are seven additional past champions, including Canadian Golf Hall of Fame honoured members Gary Cowan of Kitchener, Ont., Graham Cooke of Hudson, Que. and Doug Roxburgh of Vancouver. Other past champions in the field include Paul Simson of Raleigh, N.C.; David Schultz of Calgary; Jack Hall of Savannah, Ga; Michael Mercier of Juno Beach, Fla.; and Gene Elliott of West Des Moines, Ill.

“We have exceptionally talented and accomplished golfers who are ready to take on a stellar golf course in Cedar Brae,” said Tournament Director Akash Patel. “Our hosts at Cedar Brae Golf Club have pulled together a great team of volunteers and the course is sure to provide North America’s best senior golfers with a solid test of their skills. The 2019 Canadian Men’s Senior Championship will undoubtedly be an exciting competition.”

Practice rounds take place Monday, September 9. Championship play will be conducted Tuesday, September 10 through Friday, September 13, with 18 holes of stroke play each day. Following the opening two rounds, the field will be reduced to the low 70 players and ties. The champion receives an exemption into the 2020 U.S. Senior Amateur championship to be contested at The Country Club of Detroit, in Grosse Pointe Farms, Mich.

A 65-and-over Super Senior Championship will run concurrently throughout the championship, crowning a champion after 72 holes of play. In 2018, Doug Roxburgh claimed a two-shot victory in the division over Quebec City’s Michel Roy.

An inter-provincial team competition for the Phil Farley Memorial Trophy will also be contested over the tournament’s first two rounds. In 2018, Team British Columbia captured the inter-provincial team championship with a score of 9 over par. Team Alberta and Team Quebec finished a single shot back to tie for second.

Originally opened in 1922, Cedar Brae has proven itself a revered destination for golfers seeking one of the best golf course experiences in Toronto. The club has evolved from its early beginnings, moving locations and changing its name before spreading its roots at its current location. The course was designed by Mr. C.E. (Robbie) Robinson.

Visiting golfers regularly praise Cedar Brae’s layout, course conditioning and large fast greens that require a deft putting touch.

“Cedar Brae is proud and excited to host the 2019 Canadian Men’s Senior Golf Championship,” said Cedar Brae’s General Manager and Chief Operating Officer, Martin Piché. “Our staff and member-based volunteer team have been working hard to prepare for the event. We know the players will enjoy the amenities and pure golf experience Cedar Brae has to offer.”

Additional information, including a full list of competitors, can be found here.

NOTABLE COMPETITORS

Gary Cowan of Kitchener, Ont.
Cowan, 80, was named the Canadian Male Golfer of the 20th Century in 2000 by Golf Canada – then known as the Royal Canadian Golf Association. A former Canadian Junior Boy’s (1956) and Canadian Amateur (1961) Champion, Cowan went on to win the United States Amateur Championship on two occasions (1966 and 1971). He turned professional at age 52 and played on the PGA TOUR Champions where he earned three top-10 finishes. Cowan’s amateur status was reinstated in October, 2018.

Gene Elliott of West Des Moines, Ill.
The 57-year-old won five titles in 2018. In addition, he finished 3^rd at last year’s Canadian Men’s Senior.

Brady Exber of Las Vegas, Nev.
The 63-year-old is back north of the border to defend his Canadian Men’s Senior Championship title. Exber, a member of the Las Vegas Golf Hall of Fame, was a quarterfinalist at the 2019 U.S. Senior Amateur.

Graham Cooke of Hudson, Que.
The 72-year-old is a member of the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame and has won the event four times (2001, 2002, 2008 and 2009). Cooke holds the record number of wins at the Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship with seven.

Jack Hall of Savannah, Ga.
The 62-year-old won the event in 2015 and finished 4^th last year. In 2018, he won both the National Senior Amateur Hall of Fame and the Georgia Senior Match Play Championships.

Doug Roxburgh of Vancouver B.C.
The 2014 winner of the event is a member of the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame and was the Super Senior Champion in last year’s tournament. The 67-year-old won the Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship four times (1972, 1974, 1982 and 1988). He also has the record for most wins at the B.C. Men’s Amateur Championship with 13.

FAST FACTS
Conducted since 1962.

Golfers must be 55 and over to be eligible.

In 1995, the 70 and over Canadian Super Senior division was added and is contested through the first two rounds.

The 2018 playing marked the first time this competition was contested over 72 holes.

The inter-provincial competition, which began in 1977, occurs concurrently over the first two rounds.

The champion is awarded the John Rankin Memorial Trophy.

The winner of the Super Senior division is awarded the Governor’s Cup.

Calgary’s Bob Wylie has won the event seven times since 1985.

Nick Weslock won the event six times between 1973 and 1983.

Paul Simson became the first person to win the British, U.S. and Canadian senior titles in the same year in 2010.

The winner receives an exemption into the 2020 U.S. Men’s Senior Amateur Championship.

ABOUT THE COURSE
Located in the scenic Rouge Valley in the north east part of Toronto, Cedar Brae boasts a challenging and award winning 18-hole course designed by renowned golf course architect and Stanley Thompson disciple, CE (Robbie) Robinson.

Cedar Brae’s layout boasts mature trees and natural tranquility bordered to the east by Rouge National Urban Park – Canada’s only Urban National Park.

The club hosted the 1976 CP Women’s Open, then known as the Peter Jackson Classic, as well as other provincial championships and qualifiers.

Cedar Brae, par 71, will be set up to play 6,463 yards. Par 3s will average 192 yards, par 4s will average 380 yards and the par 5s will average 520 yards.

Regina’s Dr. Randy Gilewich will be honoured in a couple weeks for an illustrious amateur golf career that has spanned over four decades.

Gilewich, 58, has been active on the sports scene since his early days in the Queen City, hockey and curling in the winter, and baseball and golf occupying the summer months. Golf began at the Regent Par 3 course in Regina, Gilewich and his younger brother would pedal their bikes “halfway across the city” with three clubs in tow to play. After a couple years the pair, aged four years a part, Randy being the eldest, they began expanding their game at the Craig Golf Club near the Caledonian Curling Club, still a fair distance from their southeast Regina home.

In 1974, Gilewich’s parents got memberships at the Wascana Country Club (WCC), a “two-mile bike ride” from their house he said. From there the passion really developed. Gilewich said the brothers would ride their bikes to the course in the morning, play 18 holes, have lunch and play another 18 before venturing home. He said the Wascana was where he learned about golf, and the game.

“You got to learn the historical part of it and the protocol part of it,” he said. “The older guys had to wear a suit and tie to get into certain parts of the club, as kids you didn’t. They always sat us in the other part of the club. We certainly learned the history from those older guys.”

When learning of his 2019 Hall of Fame induction Gilewich’s mind floated back to those days and his mentors including other members such as Tom McNall (2017), Kirk McGregor (2018), Doug Mader (2011), and Keith Reever (2010). Gilewich also pointed out the likes of Ben Reid, Doug McAlpine, and Ross Reibling for their tutelage and life-long friendship.

Gilewich was part of a thriving junior program at the WCC with upwards of 150 kids taking part. He continued to play throughout high school and kept his membership during his university days in Saskatoon in the College of Dentistry, his current career. After graduating he was right back to Regina and back into the game playing on several Willingdon Cup teams. Gilewich was bound to revitalize the tournament scene in the city as well, he was a driving force behind the return of the Regina Men’s City Amateur after a 10-year hiatus, he also created the Saskatchewan Southern Senior Men’s Amateur this season. He has done extensive work with the long running Diamond in the Rough junior camp currently hosted at Deer Valley. Despite all the personal accomplishments Gilewich says his relationships are the mark of success.

“The biggest thing that I have gotten and tried to give back over the last 10 years is the people I’ve met along the way,” he said. “The relationships I have developed and are still here to this day. You might not remember your scores and you remember your teams and maybe some of the stuff you’ve did but, there’s no question you always remember the people you met along the way and the journey you’ve had.”

Gilewich was a Saskatchewan junior team member in 1979, played at seven Canadian amateur events, four of those as a member of the provincial team. He played in five national mid-amateur championships plus participated in the Canadian Club Champions’ Championship in 1996 and the Canadian Crown Life Championship in 1984. He’s also a two-time provincial mixed winner with Kim Walker. The resume is lengthy for Gilewich but even he said it’s hard to say what he’s prouder of, the on-course accolades or off-course triumphs.

“It’s a different sense of accomplishment,” he admitted. “If I had to honestly answer it, I’m very happy and excited for my playing stuff and I’d love to get back to that level and make some senior teams but the fact we have the city amateur going, the senior tournament that’s coming along, the ladies’ tournament, the involvement with the LPGA, the involvement with the mid-amateur at Wascana, I’m as proud of that.”

Gilewich will be inducted alongside Gary Brandon and fellow Wascana player Tyler Wright. When he received the call from Hall of Fame Secretary Brian Lee, he thought someone was playing a prank.

“What are you doing on the 21^st? I thought there is the kiss of death because he didn’t tell me. I said nothing. Brian said you better get up to Saskatoon because you are being inducted with Tyler. Of course I said I’m being punked here right?” Gilewich laughed. “He said no, and it was just goose bumps. It was unbelievable, the two words I have is I was very humbled and honoured.”

Another key portion of Gilewich’s non-playing career was his 25-year involvement with Canada’s chapter of the Bobby Jones Scholarship Foundation. He became entrenched in the organization after meeting another mentor, Roger Thompson in Hamilton during a national championship tournament. Thompson was an acquaintance of another Wascana member and took Gilewich out for a practice round at his Hamilton club. By the time the week was over Gilewich was recruited for the Foundation. During his time he was able to take two boys to St. Andrews in Scotland and received spectacular treatment at the college on the “Home of Golf.” He said the best thing about the Bobby Jones Foundation is the focus isn’t 100 per cent on golf, the participants were given other experiences including a “royal tour” of the grounds.

As Gilewich scrambles for tickets to the gala on Sept. 21 at the Riverside Country Club the moment is still surreal to him and he’s looking forward to a wonderful night.

“You never get into the game for anything like this,” he added. “As my dad said, do what you love and love what you do. It’s just such an honour. I’m so thankful.”

Tickets for the gala can be purchased here.

You can hear plenty more from Gilewich who spoke with Golf Saskatchewan’s Clark Stork.

The PGA of Saskatchewan has announced their annual award nominees ahead of their buying show and year-end celebration in late October.

The Saskatchewan zone honours were first established in 1992 and have seen some minor alterations over the years according to the organization’s website. The buying show and awards gala will be held on Oct. 29 and 30 at Saskatoon’s Prairieland Park.

Here is the list of categories and nominees:

Professional of the Year
Dean Brown – Royal Regina Golf Club
Craig Prentice – Willows Golf & Country Club
Gus Vogelsang – Murray Golf Course

Assistant of the Year – Class A
Sloane Harder – Saskatoon Golf & Country Club
David Semko – Riverside Country Club
Ryan Wells – Cooke Municipal Golf Course

Assistant of the Year – Apprentice
Mark Sheardown – Willows Golf & Country Club
Sam Wills – Deer Valley Golf Club
Cole Zawislak – Royal Regina Golf Club

Junior Leader of the Year
Jeff Chambers – Elmwood Golf Club
Paul Schatz – Tor Hill Golf Course
Jason Schneider – Wildwood Golf Course

Teacher of the Year
Jeff Chambers – Elmwood Golf Club
Kevin Dietz – Tor Hill Golf Course
Clinton Schmaltz – Willows Golf  & Country Club

Coach of the Year
Kevin Dietz – Tor Hill Golf Course
Jeff Chambers – Elmwood Golf Club
Jason Schneider – Wildwood Golf Course 

Retailer of the Year
Dean Brown – Royal Regina Golf Club
Craig Prentice – Willows Golf & Country Club
Randy Volk – Saskatoon Golf & Country Club

Category Dropping

Nearest Point of Complete Relief

1. How do I find the nearest point of complete relief and when is it used?
2. The nearest point of complete relief is used for taking free relief from an abnormal course condition, a dangerous animal condition, a wrong green or a no play zone. It is the estimated point where the ball would lie that is nearest to the ball’s original spot, not closer to the hole than that spot, in the required area of the course, and in a position where the condition you are taking relief from doesn’t interfere with the stroke you would have made from the original spot if the condition was not there (see Definition of Nearest Point of Complete Relief à Shown below).

Definition: Nearest Point of Complete Relief

Your reference point for taking free relief from an abnormal course condition (Rule 16.1), dangerous animal condition (Rule 16.2), wrong green (Rule 13.1f) or no play zone (Rules 16.1f and 17.1e), or in taking relief under certain Local Rules.

It is the estimated point where your ball would lie that is:

• Nearest to your ball’s original spot, but not nearer the hole than that spot,
• In the required area of the course, and
• Where the condition does not interfere with the stroke you would have made from the original spot if the condition was not there.

Estimating this reference point requires you to identify the choice of club, stance, swing and line of play you would have used for that stroke.

As Saskatoon’s Anna Young continues to chase her LPGA dream, the five-time Saskatchewan amateur champion is giving back to the sport as well.

On Wednesday, coincidently or not, the day the Humboldt Golf Club (HGC) celebrated their 75^th anniversary, Young hosted a free, junior golf putting and chipping clinic with the help of 2018 provincial mid-amateur champion Mike Herperger, an HGC member. Young has hosted junior clinics in Saskatoon on previous occasions as well, she said the game has offered her so much it’s time to pay back.

“I love what golf has done for my life,” she said. “I love golfing and I love doing it as my job but, I just think there’s such a big opportunity for family orientation, hanging out with your friends outside away from technology. I think it’s good to get outside and not be on your phone. Golf has given me a lot of good things outside the game that I would love for future generations in Saskatchewan to enjoy the game and get into it, it’s easier to start when you are nine or 12.”

Over 20 kids showed up for the 90-minute lesson on the HGC practice green. The attendees appeared to enjoy the clinic that was fuelled by Fuzzy Peach prizes throughout the afternoon.

The Humboldt course also has some special meaning to Young, her mom was a Humboldt resident, she won her fourth of five amateur titles at the course and she was still proudly wearing her green and yellow ribbon showing support for the Humboldt Broncos, the same ribbon she wore at the CP Women’s Open in Regina last August.

“There’s always good vibes winning a tournament at a course, always good vibes. It’s really nice, I remember the range and clubhouse and course, but I was having trouble picturing the putting green. I had to come early so I could figure out where everyone had to chip from and not be in anyone’s way. I’m hoping to get a round in to,” she said.

The last time Golf Saskatchewan spoke to Young was following the Open at the Wascana Country Club. She continues to reside in Florida playing golf on a regular basis.

“I’ve been playing Mini-Tour events, state opens and Monday qualifiers,” she explained. Since I had to choose between LPGA qualifying last year and the Canadian Open which is a blessing in disguise to not have status because I was able to plan an entire schedule the way I wanted to. Hopefully it will be good preparation for next year if I have full status on the LPGA or Symetra Tour it would be good to plan every week instead of running last minute to tournaments.”

The 26-year-old is currently through stage one of the three phase process to receive an LPGA card. The next two stages will take place in October and November. She said she’s confident in her game and ability and isn’t going to do much different following the first step.

“I’m going to do exactly what I have been doing all year, I’ve been playing really well. What I have learned from my golf game I play better one shot at a time, basically living life one day at a time in preparation of that,” she said.

Regina born golfer Shannon McGeady is being enshrined in the Queen City’s Sports Hall of Fame.

The 2007 provincial amateur champion and current professional at Tobiano Golf Course in Kamloops, B.C. is one of six 2019 inductees into the Hall of Fame. McGeady said her career path in the sport got started when her family built a house near the Wascana Country Club.

“I was a member when I was ten and started playing there with my family,” she explained to Golf Saskatchewan following the announcement. “It was a great place, they would pretty much drop me off at the golf course on their way to work and pick me up on their way home, it was a pretty good way to spend a summer as a kid.”

McGeady didn’t start playing competitively until her mid to late teens. When she was about 15 years old she started competing on the junior Saskatchewan circuit and the provincial championships. She won three Regina high school girl’s championships during her days at Leboldus High School. She had a chance to attend Marshall University in the United States following graduation but made the choice to stay home, something McGeady still stands by.

“I am so lucky where I am today that if I think I would have gone my life would have taken a completely different path,” she explained. “It could have been equally as good but I’m just very happy where I am today. No regrets.”

McGeady went on to post-secondary education in Lethbridge and studied under the Professional Golf Management (PGM) program in hopes to pursue a career in the industry. In 2007, after four consecutive Regina women’s championships McGeady claimed the Saskatchewan amateur title.

“It was surreal moment, I was going to school at the time taking the PGM program to be a professional and it was my last summer before I finished school so I knew it would be my last summer of amateur golf if I wanted to pursue the professional route,” she explained. “It was a pretty cool experience to know it was my last big summer as an amateur and I was able to play well enough in Swift Current that year to get the win so that was pretty cool.”

The Regina Sports Hall of Fame made the induction announcement in early August. Her credentials include one junior national experience and six Canadian Amateur Championship appearances. Long-time Rider Neal Hughes, famed University of Regina basketball coach James Hillis and athletics great Georgette Reed are among the class. McGeady said when she received the phone call with the news it was hard to believe.

“At first I thought it was a joke,” she laughed. “I didn’t expect it and when I realized it wasn’t I was so shocked I didn’t know what to say. I was honoured and grateful and it still feels surreal. It’s weird to think of myself with those other amazing people, I can’t even find words for it.”

McGeady and the rest of the 2019 class will be enshrined at a gala event in Regina on Oct. 12 at Evraz Place.

Looking back, McGeady knows this honour wouldn’t have been possible without positive support from her family and the Regina golf community, especially the Wascana. She hopes future junior golfers continue to grow and excel at the game.

“Kids at a young age just want to have that, I go to a golf course and I have fun,” she said. “As they get older they will want to play more and hit balls more. It’s all about parents bringing them to the course and creating a positive environment where they get to run around outside with their friends or mom and dad and as they get older they want to do what dad is doing or see what mom is doing. They will then create it on their own as to I want to play this, I want to compete, I want to be this person.”

McGeady is optimistic with the way women’s golf is headed, she said the sport is much more popular now than it was when she was young growing up in Saskatchewan. She credits Brooke Henderson for a large part of the growth but also the other five female pros in B.C. as well as the women she grew up with in Saskatchewan.

“I’m just grateful and honoured about the induction, it’s very surreal. Golf in Saskatchewan shaped and molded me for the profession that I’ve chosen,” she concluded.

McGeady spoke with Golf Saskatchewan’s Clark Stork after the announcement.

It’s been approximately four years since the Jon Barber family took over the lease at the Regina Beach Golf Club and the group’s hard work is starting to pay off.

The land the nine-hole course is on just outside the resort town is federal reserve land managed by the Kinookimaw Beach Association. The Barbers operate the course and the reviews are coming back positive. The most glaring change at the course is remarkable upgrades to the late 1950’s-built clubhouse that were undertaken about a year and a half ago.

“There had been no improvements made since then,” said Debbie Giesenger, the clubhouse manger told Golf Saskatchewan during a recent course visit. “It was time to give it a facelift and have a place that people enjoy to come to. When they are done golf they can sit and enjoy a meal or have a couple drinks.”

The newly renovated building features a restaurant and lounge as well as a new deck overlooking the first fairway. The clubhouse is completely winterized as well and for the first-time last year was open all year round. Giesenger said word was slow getting around that they were open despite the golf season ending but overall the venture was a success.

“Our chef has a very good reputation,” she said. “I would say that since we were open through the winter and our social media promotion our restaurant revenues are up about least 30 percent from last year. Our restaurant is very highly rated.”

The town of Regina Beach is highly regarded as a resort community just a short drive from Regina on Highway 11. The year-round population including nearby Buena Vista is about 1,400, in the summer months that swells to 5,000 along the shores of Last Mountain Lake. Giesenger said even with plenty of other family activities in the community the golf course is a huge benefactor.

“Most businesses make or break in the summer, most of them close in the winter but a few of us stay open. For the golf especially, we have a lot of people spend their summers here. We also have a lot of people that camp all summer, I think they do that because of the golf. It’s convenient, they are adjacent to us in the campground,” Giesenger added.

With the clubhouse upgraded and flourishing lots have work has now focused on the course itself which like the building has been neglected. The maintenance crew has been diligent working for nearly a half of a decade to get the course to a passable grade. Giesenger said they have done much better than that.

“I am not sure what they’ve done or how they’ve done it but right from the very start of the season people marvelled what excellent condition the greens are in,” she beamed. “According to golfers they have been excellent, and they’ve stayed that way all year. I’ve had numerous golfers say the greens have never looked so nice.”

Assistant greenskeeper Harry Watts has been alongside Jon on the maintenance staff since the lease signing. He took one summer off but considers the course his second home. He said even the crew is shocked by the condition of the putting surfaces this season.

“We were surprised because our sprayer blew half of our chemical out at the end of the year last year and we had to do some calculations and use our heads,’ he explained. “We managed to get the right amount of chemical on all the greens still. We took the sand off and it was like we didn’t even have a winter.”

Watts said getting ahead on the course hasn’t been easy but everyday the crew seems to become more efficient thanks to lots of underground work that is allowing for the course to become more attractive for players of all levels.

“Last year we started getting our fairways on automatic sprinklers with timers, two years ago we got all the greens and tee boxes on timed, pop up sprinklers so we don’t have to hand water those,” Watts explained. “We have three fairways that are all on automatic sprinklers now too. We don’t have to worry about them getting enough or too much water. We come in the morning, the greens and boxes are nice and damp, we don’t have to worry about it.”

Even with the headway the family has made at the club Watts said there is more to do.

“I have been here four years and I don’t think I’ve gone a year without a water break. I’ve probably fixed 80 some years. Some are a foot break, some of them are 20, it just depends,” he added.

With the improved conditions and increased traffic both in the clubhouse and on the course the family has been able to focus on the future. They hired a proshop staff member that is also a coach. That allowed the course to focus on a junior program. They had spring lessons and any junior golfer that paid the lesson fee was able to put that towards a membership. The club hosted weekly lessons over the summer as well with much success. The year-end family fun event was packed. Every Monday the juniors played with the coach following along providing tips.

Regina Beach has a couple designated ladies’ time slots for both nine-hole players and 18. There is the customary busy men’s nights and couple’s have a league as well. The year-end couple’s tournament is one of their larger events. Overall they club has approximately 200 members.

The season is winding down across Saskatchewan, but the staff looks forward to the winter traffic whether it’s on their potentially groomed cross-country ski trails, snowmobilers, or ice fishers, the future is bright at the Regina Beach Golf Club.

“It’s just a nice easy day out, it doesn’t take five hours, you can come in normal nice clothes,” Watts promoted. “You don’t have to book two days in advance, it’s very affordable, family orientated, I recommend it to everyone.”