Over 60 of the best junior boy and girl golfers across Western Canada will tackle the Deer Park Golf Course in Yorkton this upcoming weekend.

The Acura Future Links Prairie Championship returns to Saskatchewan this year. The event rotates between Manitoba and Saskatchewan each year. 17 girls and 46 boys will make up the field that tees off for the 54-hole championship on Thursday beginning at 7 a.m.

Regarded as one of Saskatchewan’s top-ranked 18-hole golf courses, Deer Park Municipal Golf Course’s already challenging terrain is dotted with numerous water and sand areas.

“Golf Canada and Golf Saskatchewan are delighted to present the 2019 Future Links, driven by Acura Prairie Championship at such a terrific venue,” said Steve Ryde, the tournament director and Sport Development and Championships Manager with Golf Saskatchewan. “We are confident Deer Park Municipal Golf Course will challenge Canada’s premier junior golfers as they showcase their skills.”

The top five boys will earn exemptions into the 2019 Canadian Junior Boys Championship Aug. 11 to 15 at Covered Bridge Golf & Country Club in Hartland, N.B. Should there be a tie for the fifth position, a playoff will be conducted following the conclusion of play.

The top five girls (including ties) will receive an exemption into the 2019 Canadian Junior Girls Championship July 29 to Aug. 2 at Lethbridge Country Club in Lethbridge, Alta.

The Saskatchewan players are listed below:

• Lauren Fox, Creighton
• Brooklin Fry, Shell Lake
• Sarah Grieve, Saskatoon
• Ella Kozak, Yorkton
• Carey McLean, Deer Valley
• Autumn Neiszner, Regina
  ————————————-
• TJ Baker, Prince Albert
• Logan Chernoff, Estevan
• Ryan Chernoff, Estevan
• Parker Dale, Saskatoon
• Tommy Danielson, Saskatoon
• Will Danielson, Saskatoon
• Steven Duchscher, Saskatoon
• Colby Friedrich, Battleford
• Chase Gedak, Estevan
• Darien Herlick, Weyburn
• Adam Husli, Regina
• Cole Jenkins, Prince Albert
• Hunter Kutcher, Regina
• Josh Nagy, Saskatoon
• Alex Swinnerton, Saskatoon
• Carter Timmerman, LeRoy
• Cort Tunall, Kindersley
• Jackson Wingert, Saskatoon

All the details and live scoring can be found here.

Saskatoon’s Kathy Ziglo has gotten off on the right foot this golf season picking up a win in her debut Order of Merit Tour (OMT) event this past weekend.

The Saskatoon Golf and Country Club member battled the blustery elements over 36 holes at Dakota Dunes Golf Links holding off a trio of ladies in second place to win the Saskatoon Ladies Open. Ziglo was the lone golfer in the 38-player field to break 80 during round one on Saturday. She shot a 77 on the opening day. Ziglo said her everyday game is suited for windy Saskatchewan days.

“It was consistently three clubs, sometimes even four,” she said. “I am blessed sometimes; I have a low ball flight so I generally play the wind well. Everything I did wrong was with my short, my mistakes were not element based.”

With a six-stroke lead over Autumn Neiszner going into the second round Ziglo knew she needed to be consistent to potentially win the championship.

“I was struggling to find some intensity to hold onto, Sunday was a battle of attrition,” she said of her second round 82. “I knew from playing behind Kim (Brown) and them that no one was making a move up the leaderboard, so I knew if I got in without major mistakes I was good. I limited my mistakes. I didn’t have any bad holes, I just had blah holes. I bogeyed myself to death.”

Ziglo, a long-time golfer who got her start at Deer Park in Yorkton earned 500 points on the women’s OMT with the win. Neiszner, Carrie Lambden, and Brown all tied for second at plus-25, ten strokes back of Ziglo. The trio each earned 350 OMT points. Regina’s Kim Walker placed fifth at plus-28. Despite competing in the amateur women’s division, Neiszner was was awarded the junior women’s plaque.

Brown leads the early season OMT race with 850 points, Ziglo is next thanks to the win. She said getting off to a good start feels good ahead of the women’s amateur in a couple weeks.

“It’s always nice to get one early because you never know when you get older to see if you still have it or not,” Ziglo chuckled. “It’s good when you can come out and shoot a good score, it was good.”

Ziglo will be back in the women’s amateur field this year after taking a year off. The event runs from July 3 to 5 at the Moon Lake Golf and Country Club.

Click here to register or find all the results and current standings from the women’s OMT.

A massive overall of the Cooke Municipal Golf Course’s (CMGC) irrigation system is paying off in waves for the 110-year-old club.

In the works for an estimated 10 years, a $2.4 million upgrade was completed last fall. According to CMGC head professional Darcy Myers, the renovations could not have been more successful.

“We couldn’t be happier,” Myers said to Golf Saskatchewan. “Start up this spring we turned our water on at the end of April with no issues whatsoever. We were able to get water to all the necessary areas to get things opened up. We continually see improvements in the turf conditions everyday.”

The Cooke is owned by the city of Prince Albert so the funding for the project needed to be approved by city council. Work was started in the fall of 2017 and took about a year to complete.

“Our existing irrigation was well past it’s life expectancy, we were continually fighting breaks and broken sprinklers,” Myers explained.

Myers said with the water system working spotlessly the groundskeeping crew at the course can focus on regular maintenance and enhancing other parts of the 18-hole facility. Costs are also down due to more efficient use of the water. He said they expected a trickle-down effect, but the benefits have exceeded their expectations.

“We were hoping for it but to see it come to fruition we couldn’t be happier. This was some short-term pain for a long-term gain. It’s just going to get better in the future,” he said.

During the process crews tripled the capacity of the course’s retention ponds on holes three and five. A new green was constructed on hole five and a couple holes were altered as part of the work. Several tee boxes were revamped too.

The CMGC is a unique club because they are partnered with the Prince Albert Curling Club. The facility is utilized by residents of the city 365 days a year. Myers said the members, visitors, and staff are pleased to see council recognize the importance of the year-round recreation site.

“It’s a busy facility,” he said. “We’re 110 years old this year so you have to put some money back into the course to keep it moving forward. It’s been a long time coming but we’re happy where we are right now.”

The CMGC recently hosted the Ladies Northern event to positive reviews. Next up on their schedule is the Adult-Junior Scramble on June 15.

Ella Kozak continued the strong start to her golf season with an 11^th place showing at the Future Links Western Championship earlier this month.

Kozak, 13, shot three consistent rounds of 79 at Wolf Creek Golf Course in Ponoka, Alta. to finish at plus-24. Kozak’s 54-hole stats include four birdies, 28 pars, 17 bogeys, four double-bogeys and a tough seven on a par four during her first round.

Kozak is now preparing for this week’s Future Links event at her home course, Deer Park in Yorkton.

Estevan’s Jace Carlisle (pictured) was in the boy’s field at the event that ran from May 31 to June 2. The TS&M Woodlawn member, and employee finished in 21^st place at 231 (76, 82, 73). The 17-year-old’s card consisted of one birdie, 38 pars, 12 bogeys, a pair of double-bogeys and a seven on a par four during round two.

Carlisle will not be in the field during the Acura Prairie Championship due to his graduation from Estevan Comprehensive School on Friday.

Four Saskatchewan based golfers attended a Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour (MJT) event in Red Deer, Alta. on the weekend.

Saskatoon’s Micah Tangjerd, 17, placed seventh in the junior boy’s category. Tangjerd shot 169 (84, 85) over the two-day event at River Bend Golf Course. He was also the closest to the pin winner in his age group.

Three 16-year-old players were in the juvenile boy’s field as well. Taylor Lofgren, also of Saskatoon shot rounds of 84 and 86 to place 13^th in the category. Eastend golfer Rylan Egland placed 19^th at 193 (93, 100) and Morgan Prefontaine of Shell Lake came in 20^th with 197 (102, 95).

At the MJT Mini Tour event, also held at River Bend nine-year-old Lucas Sturgeon of Saskatoon placed fifth in the boys 9-10 age group. Sturgeon shot 90 during the one-round event. Jace Egland, 11, of Eastend also shot 90, he finished fourth in the boys 11-12 age division.

The next Saskatchewan tournament on the MJT schedule is in Swift Current at the Chinook Golf Course on June 22 and 23.

HAMILTON, Ont.  — Using a loonie as his ball marker, Rory McIlroy fired a final round 9-under par 61 to win Canada’s National Open Championship, the RBC Canadian Open in his first appearance.

McIlroy’s 22-under-par 258 is the lowest 72-hole score ever carded at the RBC Canadian Open. The previous record of 263 was held by Johnny Palmer (1952), Scott Piercy (2012) and Tim Clark (2014). His final round 61 is also the best final round at the 110-year-old event, breaking the record of 62 held by Andy Bean (1983).

The 30-year-old entered Sunday’s final round sharing the lead with Americans Matt Kuchar and Webb Simpson. He started his round by lipping-out a chip for eagle on the first hole, en route to birding four of his first five holes. With the win the Northern Irishman claimed his 16^th PGA TOUR title.

“It’s been a while since I played like this and sort of put my foot down, but it was so nice to do it today,” said McIlroy. “I’m very proud of what I’ve done today. Hopefully this sets up well for the rest of the year, too.”

McIlroy becomes only the sixth player to win the career Triple Crown, having won the U.S. Open in 2011 and The Open Championship in 2014. He joins an exclusive club that includes Tommy Armour, Walter Hagen, Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino and Tiger Woods.

“The reception from the Canadian crowds have been incredible this week,” added McIlroy. “They couldn’t have been any better. They’ve been so welcoming all week. I can’t wait to come back next year.”

McIlroy is the first golfer to win the RBC Canadian Open on his first attempt since Chez Reavie in 2008 and the first European to capture the title since Sweden’s Carl Pettersson in 2010.

Ireland’s Shane Lowry and American Web Simpson finished tied for second at 15-under par 265 for the tournament. Americans Matt Kuchar and Brandt Snedeker finished tied for 4^th at 13-under.

Adam Hadwin fired an even-par 70 in the final round, finishing as the low Canadian at 12-under par 268 on the tournament. Hadwin was awarded the Rivermead Cup for the fourth time of his career as low Canadian.

“The crowd was amazing all week,” said Hadwin. “That reception coming up 18 was something special. I pictured it with being a few more [strokes] under earlier in the week, but they were amazing. I’m just disappointed I couldn’t get it done in front of them.”

By virtue of his sixth-place finish, Hadwin qualifies for the 2019 Open Championship being held July 14-21 at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland. Also earning an exemption in the 2019 Open Championship was Northern Irishman Graeme McDowell. New for 2019, the RBC Canadian Open is included in The Open Qualifying Series. Up to three players who are not already exempt earned places in the 148^th Open Championship at Royal Portrush

The 2020 RBCCO is being held at St. George’s Golf and Country Club in Toronto from June 8 to 14.

Click here to view the full leaderboard for the 2019 RBC Canadian Open.

ANCASTER, Ont. – Golf Canada’s plans to elevate the RBC Canadian Open have paid off.

Laurence Applebaum, Golf Canada’s CEO, called the 2019 edition of the tournament a success on Sunday, even as the national sport organization was still adding up its figures.

“I can categorically say that the RBC Canadian Open 2019 will be a record year,” said Applebaum at a morning news conference before most pairings had teed off in the final round of the national championship. “It’s going to be a record on basically every single metric we look at.”

Golf Canada reported a 65 per cent increase in attendance, a total of approximately 120,000 people over seven days. Beer sales, always a point of pride for the only Canadian stop on the PGA Tour, doubled from last year’s event at Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville, Ont.

Setting the stage for a thrilling Sunday finish at the #RBCCO

Tickets ➡️https://t.co/7mfBsjhFcY pic.twitter.com/ZoSzqMSSUn

— RBC Canadian Open (@RBCCanadianOpen) June 9, 2019

That growth was part of a plan initiated by Golf Canada, lead sponsor RBC, and the PGA Tour, to raise the RBC Canadian Open’s profile.

The overall purse was increased to US$7.6 million for 2019, up from $6.4 million. The date was also moved from late July to the first week of June, a more advantageous position in golf’s calendar, a week before the U.S. Open instead of a week after the British Open.

A pair of concerts were added to the event, with country music stars Florida Georgia Line playing on Friday night and Kingston, Ont., rock group the Glorious Sons performing on Saturday night.

“I think we saw on Friday and Saturday that music and golf do work together,” said Mary DePaoli, executive vice-president and chief marketing officer for RBC. “Anecdotally there were so many people that came to hear music but got here early to see some golf.”

The Hamilton Golf and Country Club hosted the Canadian Open for the first time since 2007. It will welcome the national championship in 2023. St. George’s Golf and Country Club in Toronto will hold the event in 2020 and 2024, with the hosts for 2021 and 2022 expected to be announced by the end of this year.

June 6, 1944 is remembered as a historic day and one of the most important dates of the Second World War. Considered the turning point in the Allied victory in World War II, nearly 150,000 troops including 14,000 Canadians landed or parachuted in Normandy off the coast of France. On Thursday, June 6^th, the RBC Canadian Open will pay tribute to the 75^th anniversary of D-Day with a 6:30am opening ceremony at the 10^th tee War Memorial. The HMCS Star Navy Band and Colour Guard will perform the national anthems and a bugler will also perform just before the first group tees off. At 12:10pm, the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum will perform a WWII ceremonial fly over including a Lancaster Bomber, Dakota Paratroop Plane and B25 bomber—all three of which served as part of D-Day. As a thank you for their service, all active duty and veteran members of the Canadian Armed Forces will receive FREE admission on Thursday and discounted admission throughout the week.

For the eighth time in nine years Colin Coben is the Men’s Senior Lobstick champion.

The Saskatchewan Golf Hall of Famer had won seven tournaments in a row before West Kelowna’s Glen Erickson claimed the title last year. The Delisle product found his groove again this year and shot one over par over 54 holes to win and hold off super senior champion Gary Tuffs (below). Coben said he knows the Waskesiu Golf Course very well and that helps him be successful on the marquee track.

“I’ve paid my dues, I’ve played there since I was a young man,” he said. “And I’ve been hitting the ball well.”

After firing a meticulous 65 during the practice round last Monday, Coben shot a consistent 211 (70, 71, 70) to beat Tuffs by four strokes. He said playing consistent over the three rounds is key to winning the event.

“It is, I can’t remember all the other years, but I think it was very similar to being around par. You don’t shoot a lot 65’s where everything goes in the hole. I just like the golf course and the greens were awesome. It helps when you get a good feel for them,” Coben said.

Warren Gnam placed third at plus-six. Lionel Fauchoux was in the hunt at seven-over, Blair Sterling rounded out the top five of the 239 player field. Coben said the event itself is a must play on his yearly schedule.

“It’s a testament to the golf course, Waskesiu, it’s comradery. I just see all the groups there and how much fun they are having. On the night we had off about a dozen of us went on a great fishing trip, so that makes it all. It’s a social event, everyone is up there to socialize and try to make some birdies,” he said.

The complete results can be seen here.

Coben is in the field for the Men’s Lobstick that begins Monday. For the eighth time he will try to become the first golfer to win both the senior and men’s event in the same season.

The team of Jerry Christiansen, Carla Odnokon, Carrie Lambden, and Carol Spanks are at the top of the Pro Lady mountain.

The PGA of Saskatchewan event was held at the Moon Lake Golf and Country Club on June 4 to coincide with International Women’s Golf Day. The format for the annual event is one PGA professional and three amateur women making up the foursomes. Scoring is based on two best net.

Christiansen’s team shot minus 19 to win the one day, 18-hole tournament. The foursome of Dean Brown, Karen Sullivan, Chris Macgregor-Kristoff, and Tarina Ly were a shot back at minus 18. Sam Wills, Karen Mario, Jolaine Arndt, and Kathy Erhardt rounded out the top three at 17 under par.

The tournament features an individual pro leaderboard as well, Clinton Schmaltz was the low professional at 67. Four golfers made up a logjam in second place at four under, John Greenough, Brown, Sloane Harder, and McLaren Taylor all fired 68’s. Odnokon and Chambers tied at three under.

The complete results can be seen here, click “guest” login.