A young Kindersley golfer is celebrating a championship season.

Keaton Cote is the 2018 Golf Saskatchewan under-13 Order of Merit (OMT) champion. Kote has been competing in tournaments for four years. He said claiming the OMT championship was a pleasant surprise.

“I was hoping to win once or twice, I played on the Maple Leaf Tour (MJT) and was hoping to get some good scores there,” he said.

Cote played four MJT events winning once. He placed second twice in his age group as well as picking up a third-place finish in the OOM Championship. The now 13 year-old placed 30^th at the Golf Saskatchewan Junior Men’s Championship. Cote is following in his older brother and father’s footsteps when it comes to the game. He said winning the under-13 division wasn’t expected.

“I was surprised because Darien Herlick played really well.  It was great to get the trophy, I’m happy I got it. Maybe I can do it again in a couple years,” he said.

Cote will play in the under-15 age group next season. He said he’s looking forward to steadier competition and longer rounds.

“I’m excited, it’s going to be difficult, it will be harder but hopefully I can gain a few yards over the winter and make my overall game a bit better,” he said.

Cote will visit the Golf Dome over the summer to work on his game, but hockey takes over his winter schedule.

The PGA of Saskatchewan is recognizing nine individuals who contributed to the sport of golf in the province this past season.

During the provincial PGA’s annual buying show in Saskatoon on Tuesday the organization held their annual awards reception that consisted of 12 honours. Swift Current’s Jeff Chambers led the way with a trio of awards. Chambers was awarded the professional development award, the junior promotor of the year and the coach of the year. Chambers said working with young golfers is important for him.

“Coaching has become a big passion, I’ve reformed my passion for coaching in the last couple years just from opportunities from working with people. When I’ve seen their success, it pushed me a little harder,” Chambers said after receiving the coach of they year award.

Tor Hill professional Kevin Dietz was a two-time winner this year. He was named the Class A assistant of the year and teacher of the year. Upon receiving the teacher of the year award Dietz deflected the credit.

“I wasn’t expecting to win this. I love teaching, this is more of an award for my students who show up, allow me to teach them and put in the hard work,” he said.

The big year continued for Royal Regina professional Dean Brown. Brown was inducted into the Saskatchewan Golf Hall of Fame this year. The 46-year-old was named the PGA of Saskatchewan Professional of the Year to add to his trophy case.

“This is a team award,” Brown said during his acceptance speech. “We had a horrible year at the Royal Regina, nothing went right. You saw by the nominees that my assistance’s were nominated, obviously they did a great job at their jobs and that’s why I’m nominated, thanks guys,” Brown quivered.

Every year the PGA of Saskatchewan hands out 12 awards.

Sales rep of the year-Kyle Duffin

Frank Fowler Trophy and Peter Cushner Trophey-Jerry Christiansen

Bill Taylor Trophy-Conner Gill

Scott Knapp Trophy-Brennan Rumancik

Professional development-Jeff Chambers

Retailer of the year-Randy Volk

Junior leader of the year-Jeff Chambers

Teacher of the year-Kevin Dietz

Coach of the year-Jeff Chambers

Assistant of the year-CFR-Garrett McMillan

Class “A” assistant of the year-Kevin Dietz

Professional of the year-Dean Brown

Melville’s Chloe Sies capped her first year of collegiate golf with a personal best score in competitive play and a Canadian championship.

The two-time Saskatchewan junior women’s champion and the Red Deer Queens claimed the Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) title on Oct. 19 at Desert Blume Golf Club in Medicine Hat, Alta. The Queens earned a birth to nationals after placing second as a team in the provincial event they hosted a couple weeks ago. During the first of four rounds at the Canadian event Sies, 19, shot an 87. The weather improved for the rest of the tournament and so did Sies’ scores leading to a 75 in the final 18 holes. She said playing the best round of her life came at the right time.

“I shot a 76 at the Woodlawn in Estevan a couple years and I haven’t been able to break that, but I finally did. It felt great,” she said.

Sies said the wind gusted upwards of 60 kilometres and hour during the first round, she didn’t blame the elements for the slow start but admitted the changing conditions helped lower all the scores.

“All four rounds could have been better of course,” she said. “It got progressively better, I was able to wear shorts one day. The weather was super nice the last three days.”

Her four-round total of 323 was good enough for sixth overall in the 24-player field. Sies finished 25 strokes back of champion Emily Romancew of the John Abbott Islanders. As a team, the Queens ran away with the gold medals finishing 24 shots better than the second-place Medicine Hat Rattlers. The championship is the first for the Red Deer school in the Alberta Collegiate Athletic Conference (ACAC). Sies said the reality of a national title is starting to sink in.

“It’s taking a while to sink in for us, we couldn’t really believe it,” she laughed. “It’s been surreal for the last couple days, now it’s starting to sink in, people are starting to say congratulations in the hallways. It’s starting to get more real.”

That concludes Sies rookie college season. She won her first tournament earlier this fall and placed second at the Saskatchewan Women’s Amateur Champion this summer. She said the central Alberta courses are still open for a couple days so she hopers to play a couple more rounds. The college has indoor hitting nets for the athletes to continue to work at their game over winter. The team will travel to British Columbia for a camp in March to prepare for next season.

Bill Newis first visited the Holiday Park Golf Course in Saskatoon in 1962 after graduating from the University of Saskatchewan. The course had just been constructed and Newis knew the property was the perfect site for a tremendous club.

Newis graduated with a degree in engineering and calls Priddis, Alberta home but for 26 years he has had a vested interest in Holiday Park. In the early 1990’s the city of Saskatoon asked the 2016 Saskatchewan Golf Hall of Fame inductee to draw out a long-term redevelopment plan for the 27-hole course. In 1994 the plan was initiated by the city and work began on the course. Newis said the process has been ongoing a long time.

“We’ve worked whenever the funds were available since 1992 to slowly and progressively move through the plan. I keep telling them if you guys keep going at this pace I won’t see the result,” he joked this week from his Calgary area home.

When first built in the early 1960’s, “thousands” of trees were planted around the course including oak and willows. At the time Newis visited the course he described the “wooded ornaments” as “scrawny.” He didn’t return to the course until 1992 when the trees had become full grown. Newis said the trees will play a factor in the redesign of holes 14 and 17.

“The tees will be a major undertaking because they are in a hillside and you will have to destroy a lot of the tree growth on there to get step down tees,” he said. “A couple of major trees on the course will have to be trimmed up or removed to open up the view to the greens and then two new greens will go in.”

The most recent upgrades to the course included four new tee boxes and greens on the regulation course plus another hole revamping on the nine-hole executive course. The renovations included irrigation work at various points on the facility and a water feature. According to the city of Saskatoon’s Andrew Roberts the recent work cost upwards of $1.5 million. Newis pointed to Holiday Park’s par-three holes and how they enhance the playing experience.

“Everybody has the opportunity to get a hole-in-a-one, it doesn’t matter what type of golfer you are. Everybody gets excited when they step up to the tee on a par three. The have some really strong, attractive par threes here with big rolling greens. They really stand out on the golf course,” he said.

Over 100 full grown trees have be relocated at the course as well in recent years. Newis said when the work is done Holiday Park will be a premier club in Canada.

“When it’s done in my view it will be one of the finest public 18-hole courses in Canada. There has been lots of changes to the course since 1962 and I’m convinced when it’s done it will be one of the best,” he said.

Roberts, the manager of special use facilities and capital planning for the city of Saskatoon explained the funding for the renovations has been generated by green fees. Newis and city officials follow the plan and complete the upgrades in stages when they are feasible.

“Once the funding has reached a level we feel we have enough funds to do a significant project that will have minimum impact to the golfers and provide the best benefit we will start the process,” Roberts said.

They meet with the architects, they look at what’s left on the development plan, what should be tackled next, the scope of the project, develop a design, tender out for a construction and proceed. Roberts said the next project is likely five to six years away. Newis estimated without the redevelopment plan in front of him that five greens and three tee box replacements are still left on the public track and one hole revamping remaining on the executive course. Roberts echoed Newis’ thoughts on the end result when the work is complete.

“It’s always been in a great location, it’s got lots of forest type parkland setting, the river is viewable from several holes. I would agree with that assessment that it will be a very good golf course. Saskatoon itself is very lucky, we have an abundance of quality golf courses based on our population and I’d count Holiday Park as one of them,” Roberts said.

Roberts estimates the final work will come in two or three stages.

A love of golf has led three Moose Jaw golfers to get more involved in the sport.

Drive The Green Golf is a local golf media company that’s making waves in the provincial golf community, through a podcast and website, as well as tournament organizing.

Last month, Drive The Green hosted the Labour Day Classic at the Hillcrest Golf Club in Moose Jaw and the $8,500 raised from that event was recently donated to the Hillcrest’s DropZone Project.

“We thought it was a perfect opportunity for us to get our name out there as to what we can do and then also, we’re members at the Hillcrest, so we wanted to put on a tournament to raise funds to get new bathrooms,” said Hetherington.

“[The tournament] was an unbelievable success for the first year, we had over 100 golfers in it, it was a two-man scramble tournament that was a unique style tournament. We’re happy it worked out really well and the course is happy.”

The DropZone Project is to install new bathrooms at the Hillcrest, which is something that is much needed at the facility.

Hetherington said they were very happy to help contribute to the project, “After putting the $8,500 in, they up over $15,000, so they’re getting close to their end goal, we’re glad that we could help out,” he said.

Through Drive The Green, the goal is to run more tournaments similar to the Labour Day Classic next season and help out local organizations. Hetherington said they can provide scoring features and everything that someone needs to run a tournament.

“We have the ability to use Golf Genius, they’re a scorekeeping app that we use for the tournament to help streamline things a little bit,” he said. “There are lots of people that put on corporate events or fundraisers, those types of things and we’re more than happy to help put on a good event.”

In addition to the tournament organizing, the trio at Drive The Green also want to shine a light on golf in Saskatchewan and Canada, including putting together a “Top-Five Golf Courses in Saskatchewan” ranking.

Hetherington said Saskatchewan and Canada have more than meets the eye when it comes to the sport and they’re hoping to highlight that.

“We have a Canadian focus, we’ll do a weekly recap of how they did (on the PGA Tour) and we did a Top-Five Saskatchewan Courses article and we’re hoping to expand that a little bit and bring more of a focus on golf in Saskatchewan,” said Hetherington. “We got some pushback on courses that didn’t make the list, so we’re hoping to make it an annual thing, do some course reviews next year and help drive some exposure to the hidden gems across the province.

“We’ve also linked up with a PGA Tour professional out of New York to provide some tips and things like that,” he added.

For more on Drive The Green, check out their website at drivethegreengolf.com.

The golf season in Moose Jaw wrapped up on Wednesday with the final rounds happening at the Hillcrest. The Lynbrook Golf Club closed out its year over the weekend.

Article courtesy Marc Smith/discoverMooseJaw

LONDON, England – A global consensus amongst leaders in public health, public policy and sport backs golf in the race to tackle physical inactivity and the prevention of a range of non-communicable disease (NCD) including heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer of the breast and colon.

Evidence linking golf and health, commissioned by the World Golf Foundation and supported by The R&A, was presented this week in London at the 7th Congress of the International Society for Physical Activity and Health (ISPAH). The biennial scientific meeting is widely regarded as the world’s flagship physical activity and public health event attended by more than 1,000 delegates from 60 countries.

Recognition that playing golf has significant physical health and wellness benefits and can provide moderate intensity physical activity to persons of all ages, comes just months after the World Health Organization (WHO) published its Global Action Plan for Physical Activity. The Global Action Plan targets one in four adults, and four out of five adolescents (11-17 years) who are insufficiently active, and charts how countries can reduce physical inactivity in adults and adolescents by 15% by 2030.

The scientific consensus for golf is evidenced in research led by the University of Edinburgh and published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine. Findings reveal that playing golf is associated with a range of physical and mental health benefits, and further collaborative efforts to improve access for the sport are needed.

New studies are underway to discover if playing golf improves strength and balance, contributing to a key public health goal of fall prevention in healthy aging and into conditions such as dementia and Parkinson’s disease.

Marking the close of the ISPAH Congress, public health practitioners, policymakers and golf industry leaders were hosted at a satellite event in the Palace of Westminster by the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Golf.

The @GolfAndHealth Project will study the varied health and well-being benefits of #golf, considering any risks, with results to be published in international peer-reviewed journals.

Details ➡️ https://t.co/rX01kcrNGL pic.twitter.com/JzCvyNVQju

— Golf Canada (@TheGolfCanada) October 18, 2018

Steve Brine, Minister for Public Health and Primary Care, said, “Physical activity of any type comes with a range of physical, social and mental benefits. For some, golf can be a great way to stay active and there’s growing evidence about ways the sport can help those living with long term conditions such as Parkinson’s and dementia. And for those who haven’t discovered their favourite sport yet it’s never too late to get inspired, connect with people and improve your wellbeing.”

Martin Slumbers, Chief Executive of The R&A, said, “Golf is working hard to encourage more people into the sport, who will realize its many health benefits. With 60 million golfers spanning six continents, golf has found common purpose in working with public health practitioners and policymakers to optimise the health benefits of playing the sport.

“We recognize the importance of the World Health Organization Global Action Plan for Physical Activity and we will work with our affiliates and partners around the world to help improve health and well-being through golf”.

Professor Fiona Bull, WHO Programme Manager, Non-Communicable Disease Prevention, said, “Non-communicable disease is responsible for nearly three quarters of all premature deaths globally, including 15 million deaths per year in people aged 30 to 70 years.

“The new World Health Organization global action plan and the implementation toolkit ‘ACTIVE’ aims to help all countries improve the environments and the opportunities for all people to be more active. Golf is a popular sport for men and women and it is great to see golf’s global leadership recognizing health priorities and identifying ways golf can be more accessible to more people.

“I took up golf in my 30s but thought it was a very technical, expensive and elitist sport. Thankfully a 6 week ‘come and try course’ showed me how easy it was to enjoy golf as a beginner and how active playing 9 holes can be. I am looking forward to seeing how golf can attract many more girls and women to enjoy the sport and be more active and healthy”.

Annika Sorenstam, Major Champion and a global ambassador for golf and health, said, “As the recent international consensus statement highlighted, golf is great for the health of people of all ages – it benefits those playing the sport and even tournament spectators.

“Given the health benefits, we must work together to make golf more accessible if we are to achieve our sport’s full potential.”

The 2018 International Consensus Statement on Golf and Health to guide action by people, policymakers and the golf industry was published last month in the British Journal of Sports Medicine.

A further Golf and Health Scientific Meeting will be held on Thursday 18 October 2018 at Mytime Active, High Elms Golf Course, Bromley, UK – a club promoting healthy lifestyles. Researchers from Asia, Australia, Europe and the USA will discuss their respective projects and the future direction of research on golf and health.

Golf equipment representatives are currently in the middle of buying show season with the Saskatchewan stop next on the tee box.

The PGA of Manitoba hosted their annual show two weeks ago, last week industry colleagues gathered in Alberta for a few days. Ken Morrow, the executive director of the PGA of Saskatchewan said the organization started the show make it easier for company reps to meet with course officials in under a single roof.

“It’s to get everyone together in one place,” Morrow said to Golf Saskatchewan leading up to the show that’s been held for over three decades. “Rather than have the reps from the different companies trying to travel around the province. Especially at this time of year, we know what that can be like.”

The show will be held Oct. 23 and 24 at Prairieland Park in Saskatoon. Golf professionals, proshop managers will have a chance to meet with representatives across the golf equipment lines. Mike Langin is the Territory Sales Manager for TAYLORMADE Golf Canada covering the Saskatchewan, Manitoba, and Lakehead areas. He said shows build relationships and is important for success on both sides.

“The show is important to attend to show support for the zone that supports us as well. It’s a key relationship to provide our professionals and accounts with many vendors to prepare both parties for the following season,” Langin said.

He is one of the newcomers to the Saskatchewan zone. Langin showcased the TAYLORMADE brand in Manitoba and Alberta. He said he’s excited for his second Saskatchewan event.

“With last year being my first year in the zone, it was an excellent opportunity to meet with many accounts and faces in a short amount of time. With this being my second merchandise show in Saskatchewan, it is a great couple of days to see many accounts and CPGA Professionals from across the province,” He added.

There are currently 27 exhibitors registered and over 60 buyers responding to their invites. One of the exhibitors is Paige Lawrence, the adidas Golf Territory Marketing Manager for Saskatchewan and Manitoba. She also said the show is great for business.

“The show is vital in bringing our zone together. It’s great to be able to connect with customers and have industry leaders all in one place celebrating the accomplishments of our peers” Lawrence added.

Registration is still open for the two-day event that will also feature the PGA of Saskatchewan annual general meeting and awards gala on Oct. 23. Interested buyers can email Morrow at k.morrow@sasktel.net.

Coming off another successful Saskatchewan Golf Hall of Fame (SGHF) induction gala last month at the Royal Regina Golf Club, Murray Eddy is pleased with where the organization is at.

Approximately a decade ago, the Saskatoon golfer approached Byron Harvie regarding the possibility of enshrining accomplished players in Saskatchewan. Eddy said local golfers that excelled at certain levels are already recognized but not by their designated sport.

“All the golfers that have had success are in the Saskatoon Sports Hall of Fame along with hundreds of athletes from other sports, just kind of buried in there. I thought it would be a good idea if golf had its own Hall of Fame,” the long-time Saskatoon Golf and Country Club member.

Eddy and Harvie continued to discuss the possibility for about a year before the date for the first induction gala at The Willows. 19 people were part of the inaugural class on Sept. 18, 2010. Since then, 49 individuals and four teams have been enshrined. Eddy, who chaired the first event, said he’s happy with how the Hall has grown.

“I think it’s gotten pretty good. Byron (SGHF chair), Brian Lee (SGHF secretary) and whoever did the lion’s share there, but they’ve done an excellent job of setting it up. The first event was a bit of a fundraiser as well, we’ve had a bank account ever since,” he said.

Eddy said ensuring the inductees earned their success in the province is an important factor in the qualifications. He added that expanding on the criteria could help promote the game.

“Maybe we could have a separate section for juniors, I don’t know,” he said. “You can do something spectacular at the junior level and not play anymore golf after going into the working world. Something you do at the junior level may not necessarily qualify you for the Hall of Fame except maybe for a junior level. That’s a discussion that hasn’t been had yet.”

The SGHF committee consists of 11 people, Lee, the executive director of Golf Saskatchewan is a non-voting sitting member. Inductees must meet several criteria before being nominated, the Hall has categories of player, distinguished service, and teams. The Wascana Country Club in Regina hosted the second induction gala. The Riverside in Saskatoon hosted the others until the committee decided upon the Royal in Regina. Eddy said eventually he hopes the Hall finds a permanent showcase somewhere.

“I’m glad the group took the bull by the horns and got it going. I think we have somewhere around 50 people in there, I think the next thing there would be a home for it,” he said.

All the inductee’s bios and more information on the SGHF can be found here.

Junior golf instructors spent the last three days developing their skills at The Willows in Saskatoon with the help of Golf Canada and the PGA of Canada.

Derek Ingram is the head coach of the nation’s National Amateur Team and the Canadian Young Pro Squad. He led the clinic from Tuesday to Thursday. Ingram said the seminar went well.

“It went great,” Ingram told Golf Saskatchewan after the clinic wrapped up. “I love coming to Saskatoon. The facility is perfect, we got a nice day to do some of the training outdoors. The participants were super eager and excited and well receptive to the information.”

Ingram performs one of these clinics a year, he said on rare occasions he conducts two courses a year. During the three days the clinic covers planning of lessons, analyzing performances, safety, ethical decisions and management of golf programs. He said coaching golf and young players is crucial due to the one-on-one focus that is involved.

“People have to be prepared, if they want to coach junior golfers, players new to the game or even players that have been playing for years, you want to be prepared, organized and professional. You want to have a positive impact on the student,” Ingram said.

Steve Ryde is a member of the PGA of Saskatchewan and coaches junior golf in Saskatoon and for Golf Saskatchewan. He said taking part in the three-day seminar will enhance his approach to the game.

“Derek’s approach on using the ground to gain power off the tee, really stuck with me. As well as a refined lesson plan for students is something that I will add to my tool kit of being a golf coach. Also, each student, whether you’re five, or 55, learn a different way. This is very important as an instructor or coach, so you can deliver the pertinent information to the student, Ryde said.

“I’m not good enough to keep track of my handicap.”

Craig Loughry, Golf Canada’s Director of Handicap and Course Rating, is tired of hearing that.

“The purpose of the Handicap System is to make the game of golf more enjoyable by enabling players of differing abilities to compete on an equitable basis,” the Golf Canada Handicap Manual states.

“If you’re playing golf regularly, you’re keeping track of your scores in some fashion,” he points out. “You’re golfing for a reason or reasons, whether it’s for the competition against yourself or others, recreation, socializing, whatever. It obviously is a significant part of your activity schedule, so why not keep track on an ongoing basis?

“If golfers didn’t care about keeping score, then courses wouldn’t need scorecards, but they seem to have to replace thousands every year.”

Loughry is right. Everyone tracks their progress in just about every other facet of their lives, so why not in their golf games? In business or other pursuits, you expect a level playing field, right? A Golf Canada handicap factor provides both for your golf life.

Additionally, you never know when not having a Golf Canada handicap factor will come back to haunt you.

Knowing zero about your handicap can find you playing off a zero handicap.

A couple of personal anecdotes…

Years ago, I was invited to play in a pro-am. When I showed up at registration, I was asked for my handicap. When I said I didn’t have one, I was told I would have to play off scratch, from the pro tees. Some of my drives barely made the tee block from where my fellow amateurs (the ones with official handicaps) were playing from. Needless to say, I started posting every score after that humiliation.

My wife (who faithfully maintains an accurate handicap factor) plays in the member-guest tournament at a friend’s club every summer. The club sends out a friendly note leading up to the event.  It says, “it is the member’s responsibility to provide a handicap factor from an accredited golf association for their guest(s). Failure to do so will result in your guest(s) playing from scratch. Please note that scorecards, letters or ‘she shoots about an 85’ are unacceptable.”

If you have a Golf Canada Gold-level membership, the lengthy list of benefits includes an official handicap factor. It’s easy to post your adjusted scores online or at any Golf Canada member course and there’s even an app for your phone. It’s easy to join online even if you’re not already a member of a club and start tracking your scores right away.

Now that I’ve persuaded those of you who haven’t maintained a current and accurate factor (you must post all scores using the easy-to-understand Equitable Stroke Control system) to get on the bandwagon, here are some other handicapping notes.

Active Seasons

Regrettably, the end of the Canadian golf season is approaching. Each provincial golf association decides on what is called the “active season” for handicap posting purposes.

By province, the active seasons are:

• British Columbia March 1-Nov. 15
• Alberta March 1-Oct. 31
• Saskatchewan April 15-Oct. 31
• Manitoba April 15-Oct. 31
• Ontario April 15-Oct. 31
• Quebec April 15-Oct. 31
• Nova Scotia April 15-Oct. 31
• New Brunswick May 1-Oct. 31
• Prince Edward Island April 16-Nov. 14
• Newfoundland and Labrador April 1-Nov. 30

Going South This Winter?

It’s never been easier to post out-of-country scores if you’re lucky enough to play in a warmer clime this winter.

“Essentially, all you have to do is simply change the Canadian flag icon to the international one and then start typing in the most unique part of the club/course name,” says Taylor Stevenson, Golf Canada’s manager of member services.

As well, says Loughry, the International Golf Network (IGN) allows Golf Canada members to link their golf membership (handicap record) from Canada to their U.S. club(s). What’s the advantage of that?

“You only need to post your score once and that score automatically gets posted into the other record. This is not only important now for our many members who travel and golf outside the country, but will be more so when the World Handicap System is implemented.”

We Are The World

In 2020, the new unified World Handicap System will be implemented to make handicaps truly consistent and equitable around the globe. The new system will feature more flexibility and reflect the changes in how the game is played worldwide.

For example, both competitive and recreational rounds will count for handicap purposes, the number of scores needed to obtain a new handicap will be reduced and, perhaps most importantly, the result will be a consistent handicap that is portable from courses to course and country to country.

There is even a calculation that considers the impact that abnormal course and weather conditions affected your score.

Click here for more on handicapping.