Two of the five Saskatchewan players participating in the Canadian Junior Girls Championship in Lethbridge, Alta. have made the cut and will play two more rounds.

Brooklin Fry of Shell Lake and Regina’s Autumn Neiszner placed in the top 70 golfers at the event. Fry, 14, followed her opening round of 74 with another solid score of 78 on day two. She sits at eight-over par and in a tie for 36^th overall. The Memorial Lake Golf Club member tees off Thursday at 7:30 a.m.

Neiszner, who golfs out of the Wascana Country Club is in a tie for 66^th place after her round of eight-over, 80 on Wednesday. She will begin her third round at 9:31 a.m. Thursday.

Ella Kozak of Yorkton finished the event at 21-over, Creighton’s Lauren Fox was 33-over, and Veronika Duchscherer of Nipawin finished at plus-57.

As a team, Saskatchewan placed sixth at 26-over par.

Yanjun Liu of Vancouver leads the field at minus-10.

The leaderboard can be found here.

TaylorMade’s new M6 driver is bringing more forgiveness and distance to golfers of all levels. Played by tour professionals and high handicap players, the M6 a complete golf club designed for ease-of-use and exceptional performance. M6 features ball speed and distance technology to help golfers achieve a stable ball flight that can keep their shots more online and further down the fairways. Improved aerodynamics and an Inertia Generator combine to help golfers get the most out of their swing and Injected Twist Face ensures industry-leading ball speeds and distance. The M6 driver is perfect for golfers looking for a simplified approach off the tee box without foregoing performance.

Key Features

• Speed tuning resin is injected behind each M6 driver club face to ensure each piece is at the USGA designated legal limit for ball speed production.
• Twist Face and Hammerhead 2.0 technologies combine to offer golfers more accuracy on mishits from the heel, toe, and bottom of the club face.
• An Inertia Generator has been installed to allocate more weight low and back in the golf club head for maximum club head speeds and more forgiveness.

TaylorMade M6 Driver Detailed Review

Design and Technology

TaylorMade engineers reallocated 54% more carbon in the M6 driver club head versus the previous generation M4. A lighter weight skeleton allowed for an Inertia Generator to be added to the club head for improved club head speeds and more forgiveness when golfers don’t find the middle of the club face. The total redistribution of weight makes the M6 both more forgiving and more aerodynamic than any other driver in TaylorMade’s lineup. Going beyond forgiveness, TaylorMade is promising that everybody gets faster thanks to their proprietary process of optimizing every driver using their tuning resin injection.

The M6 driver is one of the most well-accepted drivers in this year’s class. M6 appeals to golfers of all skill levels and swing types. For players that simply want to get a club and have more fun playing golf, the M6 is the perfect option. The larger footprint and sharp silver to black contrast make the M6 easy to align and confidence inspiring on the tee box. Twist Face helps add directional stability for players that need to hit more fairways. M6 is designed for simplified distance and forgiveness and can help make you better this season.

I tested the TaylorMade M6 driver and was immediately surprised by how forgiving this driver seemed to be. The larger size filled me with confidence, and I knew I had enough protection to swing freely without fearing a big miss. During strikes that I would consider very poor, my ball speeds remained stable. My biggest takeaway from hitting the M6 was just how forgiving it was while still producing some of the lower spin, long drives that I have seen from smaller profiles. This season, I believe the M6 driver will be TaylorMade’s best-selling product due to its diverse performance and attractiveness to so many golfers. I would never hesitate to put this club into the hands of golfers of almost every ability. The M6 driver is long at a variety of club head speeds and much more stable than other low spin drivers it competes with.

Anytime you are testing equipment it is important that you match the specification of that club to clubs that perform well in your hands. For this testing session, I outfitted the M6 with my gamer shaft, the Tensei Pro Orange 70TX model and grip of choice. I set the hosel of the 10.5-degree club head down to 9.25 for a more penetrating ball flight and a slightly open club face at address. My most common miss is to the left and using the loft sleeve to manipulate my shot shape is invaluable for my confidence standing over my tee shots. My final thoughts of the M6 were simply how effortless it seemed to be to get the maximum performance from this club. All-together, TaylorMade has succeeded in producing a club that is friendly and can be used by golfs of any category.

Specs

The TaylorMade M6 driver is available in three separate club heads with differing degrees of loft. 9, 10.5, and 12-degree head exist to help golfer dial in their launch and spin characteristics. There is also a D-Type M6 driver that comes in lofts of 9 and 10.5-degrees. The D-Type driver is designed to help players eliminate their sliced tee shots by presenting a closed club head at address. Both models feature a loft sleeve that is adjustable up to 4-degrees to either increase or decrease loft.

Stock shaft options for the M6 driver include the Fujikura Atmos Orange shaft in 50-gram weights with amateur, regular, and stiff flexes. The Fujikura Atmos Black shaft is also available in 60-gram weights and regular, stiff, and extra-stiff models. We always recommend that each golfer be custom fit for their new club to ensure they receive a complete build made for their swing. TaylorMade offers an extensive selection of aftermarket and exotic shafts and grips that can be purchased for an additional price.

Conclusion

The M6 driver is TaylorMade’s superior option for average golfers and many weekend players. M6 provides distance advantages for many swing types and more forgiveness than smaller profiles such as the M5. M6 is more consistent on golf shots that are struck in the toe, heel, and bottom sections of the club head and make the ideal choice for players that frequently see their strikes patterns divert away from the sweet spot. Injected Twist Face, Hammerhead 2.0, and the Inertia Generator technologies combine to make M6 one of the most complete and forgiving driver options ever produced and if you are in the market for a new club at the top of your golf bag, the M6 is a must-try.

Author Bio

Paul Liberatore was born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona. He has been an avid and passionate golfer for over 30 years, and loves learning and increasing his knowledge on the game. While still in college, Paul co-founded the AccuHit Company with his father and helped it to become one of the most recognized golf training aids in the world. A lawyer by day, his true passion is his website Golfers Authority which delivers the very latest in golf equipment reviews, buyer guides, tips, and advice that helps players take their golf game to the next level.

Saskatoon’s Kathy Ziglo has entered three events on the Women’s Order of Merit Tour (OMT) this season, she has wins in all of them.

The Saskatoon Golf and Country Club member followed her Saskatoon Ladies’ Open and Women’s Amateur Championship win with a victory in the Pharmasave Ladies’ Open at the Weyburn Golf Club on July 27.

Ziglo shot a two-over, 74 in the one-day event to hold off Regina’s Kim Walker by three shots. Denise Hersikorn, also of Regina placed third with a score of eight-over, 80. Moose Jaw’s Lorie Boyle was fourth at 81, Tara Busch used her home course advantage to finish in a top-five spot tied with Carolyn Kryba and Karen Mario, both from Regina at plus-15, 87.

The win netted Ziglo 250 OMT points, she jumps over Saskatoon’s Kim Brown for first place in the standings. Abra Thompson is in third.

All the results and the OMT leaderboard can be seen here.

Next up on the schedule is the TS&M Woodlawn FrameTech Ladies Classic in Estevan on Aug. 3 and 4.

Brooklin Fry is picking up more and more national golf championship experience as the weeks pass and it is showing in the 14-year-old’s results.

Coming off an appearance at the Canadian Amateur Women’s Championship last week Fry, 14, sits in a tie for 24^th after round one of the Canadian Junior Girls Championship in Lethbridge, Alta.

The Shell Lake product shot two-over, 74 in the opening round on Tuesday setting herself well ahead of the cut line and within a shot of the top-10. The Memorial Lake Golf Club member kept her card quite clean during the opening round posting a couple birdies and two bogeys. A seven on the par five, 15^th was her biggest blemish on the day.

Provincial junior girls champion Autumn Neiszner is hovering near the projected cut line after day one, the Wascana Country Club player shot a plus-10, 82, she’s tied for 74^th. Ella Kozak of Yorkton sits in a tie for 82^nd at plus-11. Creighton’s Lauren Fox shot a 91 to open her first national championship event, she’s in a tie for 111^th and Veronika Duchscherer of Nipawin is tied for 117^th at plus-25.

In the inter-provincial competition, Saskatchewan sits in fifth place overall at plus-12. British Columbia leads at minus-two.

The full leaderboard can be seen here including the ladies’ round two tee times. The cut line is expected to be the top 70 golfers with ties.

Euna Han of Coquitlam, B.C. is the leader at eight-under.

One of the biggest drawing cards for a golf course is simply the beautiful views nature can provide along with playing on top-notch surfaces such as perfectly trimmed greens to finely manicured tee boxes. Without maintenance staff, none of this would be possible, I guess you could say the crews are unsung heroes.

Late in the afternoon on July 18, out of nowhere a plough wind blew through the Saskatoon Golf and Country Club (SGCC) forcing the final four players, referees, and staff beelining it for the clubhouse. Everyone was safe but the course was littered with fallen trees and branches, benches and even a cart windshield but, according to SGCC superintendent Terry McNeilly said the course conducted some tree thinning ahead of this year that helped with the situation.

“We did a lot of pruning in the spring and took down a lot of the big branches,” McNeilly said a week after the storm postponed the Saskatchewan Men’s Amateur Championship playoff between Danny Klughart and Jehremy Ryde. “That saved us having to clean up a big mess. Without the pruning we did in the spring that storm would have been three times as bad.”

The referees met and decided to postpone the playoff until the next morning. The weather did clear up in the evening, but most golf course maintenance staff works early in the day and wasn’t available to assist in the cleanup as the 18^th fairway and green was unplayable. The SGCC staff was out bright and early getting the hole free for play. McNeilly said preparing the course for large events or on tight timelines is nothing new.

“We’ve had situations where we’ve been flooded out and stuff,” he said. “It’s all hands-on deck, you start by getting rid of the water and debris, that type of thing. You then work on the playing surfaces, and then into the rough and non-playing areas, you just clean it up”

The SGCC has about 12 to 14 staff on their maintenance crew. McNeilly said the staff got the course back to normal about four days later but, Mother Nature had other plans.

“The morning of the playoff everyone was working on cleaning up, we finished cleaning up from that storm yesterday (July 24) and then we got another storm this morning so we’re starting all over again,” he explained.

In case you are out on the course and threatening weather is coming, safety is the number one concern, even with their eyes on an amateur and mid-amateur championship both Klughart and Ryde put their safety first.

“There was a branch pretty close, I turned around and asked an official if we could go in?” Klughart explained shortly after marking his ball. “I turned around and there was one pretty close to me. That was pretty wild.”

Ryde said he thought they had time to finish the hole as the weather moved in.

“It wasn’t in my mind to hurry,” Ryde said. “I saw the TaylorMade flag by the green whipping, I yelled at my caddy to not go anywhere near the trees and let’s get out of here.”

Klughart eventually went on to win the championships Friday morning.

Stroke Play

How to Proceed When Unsure of Rules in Stroke Play

Q. What should I do when I don’t know how to proceed in stroke play?

A. When you don’t know what to do in stroke play, you may seek a ruling from the Committee or play two balls if you are uncertain of what to do (see Rule 20.1c). Before playing two balls, you should declare which of the two balls you would like to score with. When you are done and prior to returning your scorecard, the facts must be communicated to the Committee, otherwise the player is disqualified.

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.

LETHBRIDGE, Alta. – Top junior golfers from across North America will head to Lethbridge Country Club from July 30-August 2 to compete in the 65th playing of the Canadian Junior Girls Championship.

The impressive field is led by the Team Canada National Junior Squad, with all five members set to chase the Brokenshire Trophy in Lethbridge; Céleste Dao (Notre-Dame-de-l’Île-Perrot, Que.), Sarah Beqaj (Toronto), Emily Zhu (Richmond Hill, Ont.), Ellie Szeryk (London, Ont.) and Monet Chun (Richmond Hill, Ont.).

Dao is the defending champion, having won last year’s event by three strokes. She took the lead in the second round, but an impressive charge in the final round secured her the championship. Three birdies on her final five holes allowed her to separate from runner-up Emily Zhu.

In total, 16 of Canada’s top 50 golfers from the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR) are included in the field.

“Lethbridge Country Club is the perfect host for our national Junior Girls Championship,” said Tournament Director Adam Cinel. “Its signature holes and fantastic layout will provide a great challenge for the best junior golfers across North America as they chase Canada’s national title.”

A practice round will be conducted Monday, July 29 prior to the championship’s opening round on Tuesday, July 30. Following the first two rounds of play, the field will be reduced to the low 70 players and ties with the top ten juvenile’s and ties included in the final round.

A tie for the championship will be decided by a hole-by-hole playoff immediately following the conclusion of play.

The 2019 Canadian Junior Girls champion will receive an exemption into the 2020 Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship.

Founded in 1909, Lethbridge Country Club has been on its current site since May 1932. Designed by renowned Canadian golf course architect Stanley Thompson, the course runs adjacent to the Old Man River. It was the site of the 2012 Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship, which was won by Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand, who carded a course record 65 in the third round. A 14-year-old Brooke Henderson finished sixth.

“We are thrilled to be hosting this strong field at Lethbridge Country Club and welcoming this prestigious championship to our course,” said Brian Huculak, General Manager of Lethbridge Country Club. “The golf course is in tremendous shape and we look forward to showcasing its beauty as well as the great city of Lethbridge.”

The Canadian Junior Girls Championship has a long list of distinguished past champions, including Canadian Golf Hall of Famer and major champion Sandra Post, and current LPGA superstar and Canadian professional golf victory record-holder Brooke Henderson.

An inter-provincial team competition will take place over the first two rounds. The two best scores of the three golfers from each provincial team in rounds one and two count towards the team’s score. The lowest aggregate score over rounds one and two determines the champions, who will claim the Mary Pyke Trophy.

Quebec will look to defend their team competition title. The trio of Dao, Élizabeth Labbé (Lévis, Que.) and Emily Romancew (Pierrefonds, Que.) shot four over, four strokes ahead of British Columbia.

Additional information about the tournament, including the full field and tee-times is available here.

NOTABLES

Céleste Dao, Notre-Dame-de-l’Île-Perrot, Que.
The 18-year-old played the 2019 US Women’s Open and is the highest-ranked Canadian in the field on the World Amateur Golf Ranking (No. 311). Dao also played the 2018 CP Women’s Open and placed fifth at the World Junior Girls Championship in September 2018. She currently leads the Future Links, driven by Acura Junior Girls Order of Merit and is sixth on the Golf Canada National Women’s Order of Merit.

Annabelle Ackroyd, Calgary
Ackroyd earned an exemption into the Canadian Junior Girls Championship in her home province by winning the Future Links, driven by Acura Western Championship in June. The 17-year-old defended her title as Alberta Junior champion earlier this summer.

Ellie Szeryk, London, Ont.
The sister of Team Canada Young Pro Squad member Maddie Szeryk, Ellie was in the hunt at last year’s Canadian Junior Girls Championship. She won the 2018 Golf Ontario Women’s Amateur Championship and played well at the 2018 World Junior Girls Championship. Szeryk also teed off at the South American Amateur Championship in January 2019.

Monet Chun, Richmond Hill, Ont.
Now in her third season on the Team Canada National Junior Squad, Chun won three tournaments in 2018. Although she missed the cut at the 2018 Canadian Junior Girls Championship, she finished in a tie for fourth at the tournament in 2017 and in the top ten in each of the previous three years. Chun also finished third at the AJGA C.T. Pan Junior Championship in April 2019.

Emily Zhu, Richmond Hill, Ont.
A runner-up performance at last year’s tournament was an incredible accomplishment for Zhu, who was only 14 years old at the time. She made the cut at the 2018 Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship, becoming one of the youngest players ever to do so. Zhu won the AJGA Natural Resource Partners Bluegrass Junior and played well at the Women’s Porter Cup this season.

Sarah Bejaq, Toronto, Ont.
Bejaq placed fifth at last year’s Canadian Junior Girls Championship and joined the Team Canada National Junior Squad shortly thereafter. She posted top-10 finishes at both the 2018 Ontario Women’s Junior and Amateur Championships. Bejaq was one of six Canadians to play at the World Junior Girls Championship last year.

FAST FACTS

Dao’s win in 2018 broke a streak of three straight years in which a British Columbia golfer won the individual event: Susan Xiao in 2017 (Surrey, B.C.), Naomi Ko in 2016 (Victoria, B.C.) and Michelle Kim in 2015 (Surrey, B.C.).

Nine-time LPGA winner and major champion Brooke Henderson, from Smiths Falls, Ont., won the event in 2012 at River Spirit Golf Club in Calgary, Alta.

The lowest single-round score in the tournament’s history is a 66 – Karen England (1997), Kristy Finlayson (1998), Elyse Archambault (2010) and Hannah Lee (2015).

Heather Kuzmich won four straight Canadian Junior Girls Championships from 1981-1984.

Four Canadian Golf Hall of Fame members are past champions of the event: Betty Stanhope-Cole (1956), Judy Darling Evans (1957), Gail Harvey (1958-60) and Sandra Post (1964-66).

Current LPGA golfer Alena Sharp was the 1999 Canadian Junior Girls Champion.

The 2019 Canadian Junior Girls champion will receive an exemption into the 2020 Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship.

When golfers have a tee time booked at their favourite club or on a trip with the sport a large part of the itinerary many look to the weather forecast before heading out hoping for a seasonally warm summer day. If you are going to spend upwards of five hours on the course skin care needs to be a requirement even when the sun isn’t shining.

Elizabeth Holmes is a Health Policy Analyst with the Canadian Cancer Society, she said some of the precautions people can take before heading out on the course for an extended period are creating your own shade with an umbrella, cover your skin with tightly woven clothes, and wear a wide brimmed hat and sunglasses. However the most important item to remember is checking the UV index and if it’s three or more take precaution with sunscreen.

“You are looking for that broad spectrum sunscreen with 30 SPF (sun protection factor),” she said. “30 is the minimum we encourage everyone to look for. Finding the brand or formula that works best for you, what are you going to apply that feels nice and what are you going to apply properly? I would suggest something that is sweat or water resistant, that usually has a timeframe on it of about 60 to 80 minutes.”

The mindset of most people heading outside for any extended period whether it’s work, or recreation is that if it’s cloudy outside they are safe from any sun damage to their skin. According to Holmes, that is false information and precautions need to be taken.

“We can’t see UV rays so they still get through clouds,” she explained. “That’s why it’s really important to check your UV index for the day. When it’s three or more you need to practice sun safety. In general between April and September in Saskatchewan you should practice sun safety no matter the weather when you are outside.”

Wind can also be a factor for more than a fade off the tee or slicing around a fairway dogleg in search of a birdie. A breeze, where there is no shortage in Saskatchewan can elevate your chance of getting a sunburn.

“Sometimes a windburn is actually used to refer to a sunburn,” Holmes said. “People think because it’s a cloudy windy day that they don’t need to practice sun safety. Sometimes it is a strong wind but sometimes it’s actually a sunburn people have gotten because they haven’t practiced sun safety. It’s important to practice sun safety when it’s cloudy and windy and dress accordingly to the weather.”

People that are fair skin, have light eyes and hair are more susceptible to skin damage from the sun. If you have suffered sunburns as a child you are also more at risk to serious skin damage. Holmes said there are some symptoms to watch out for if you do spend significant amount of time outdoors.

“If you have a mole or wart and there is a change in the shape, size, or colour you want to get that checked out. If you have a sore that isn’t healing, patches of skin that bleed, itch or become red or any kind of new growth that comes out of nowhere. It’s really just check your skin regularly for changes and know what’s normal for you and if something doesn’t look quite right get it checked out. It might be nothing, but it might be skin cancer so it’s important to be proactive about getting it checked out,” she said.

The Canadian Cancer Society has much more information available here.

The Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship will continue for the next two days but unfortunately no Saskatchewan ladies will be chasing a national title.

Representing the province was Kim Brown, Chloe Sies (pictured), Brooklin Fry, and Alex Schmidt. All four players missed the cut at the event hosted by the Red Deer Golf and Country Club.

Fry, 14, was the top performer shooting a two-round total of plus-24. The Shell Lake product was in decent shape after day one carding an eight-over, 80 but she shot 88 on Wednesday dropping her back in the field of the world’s best amateur women golfers.

Melville’s Chloe Sies had a much better round during the second day of the event carving ten strokes off her score but unfortunately her 91 on Tuesday left her too far back of the cut line. She finished at plus-28.

Kim Brown also posted a better round during the second day of the championship going from 91 to 88 but her plus-35 leaves her behind the cut line.

Alex Schmidt posted rounds of 95 and 97 meanwhile picking up valuable experience for what is expected to be many more national appearances.

North Carolina’s Jennifer Chang is the leader at minus-eight,

A champion will be crowned on Friday.