The second round of the provincial Men’s Amateur and Mid-Amateur Championships didn’t start well for David Stewart but the result is still the same, the top of the leaderboard.

Stewart, 32, mishit his opening drive on hole one at the Dakota Dunes Golf Links Wednesday but managed to save par assisting in the Saskatoon resident’s four-stroke lead going into the third and final round of the tournament. Stewart carded a trio of birdies and one bogey on the front nine, the Saskatoon Golf and Country Club member picked up another pair of birdies on the final nine holes to finish with a three-under, 69. He had a one-shot lead over Roman Timmerman going into round two after firing a 68 on opening day. Timmerman, 19, now sits tied for second place, four shots back along with Yorkton’s Kade Johnson. Johnson had the day’s low round at 66, combining that with Tuesday’s 75, the Deer Park Golf Municipal Golf Course member and Timmerman sit at 141.

Jehremy Ryde of Eston also made up ground during round two, he posted a two-under 70, dropping his overall score to 142, five back of Stewart. Prince Albert’s Danny Klughart is tied with Ryde in fourth place.

Six golfers are tied for sixth position at 143; Dan Lambert, Scott Thompson, Mitchell Matichuk, Mike Herperger, Liam Courtney, and Justin Wood are all in the running for the championship that will conclude Thursday.

The tournaments top three players will represent the province at nationals, as well as an alternate.

Round three gets underway at 7:06 a.m., the final group of Stewart, Johnson, and Timmerman tees off at 12:57 p.m.

The complete results of both the Amateur and Mid-Amateur Championships can be found here.

David Stewart continues to play great golf.

The two-time Saskatchewan Order of Merit Tour (OMT) winner this season sits a stroke better than Roman Timmerman in the Men’s Amateur Championship and a pair of shots ahead of Jim Born in the Mid-Amateur (25 years-old and up) after the first of three rounds at Dakota Dunes Golf Links.

Stewart, 32, carded one birdie on the front nine and eight pars, the scorching heat didn’t slow down the Saskatoon Golf and Country Club member on the back nine. He birdied hole 10, hit a bogey on number 12 before rattling off birdies in three of the final four holes to finish with a four-under, 68.

Timmerman, 19, also has two victories on the OMT this season. The Riverside Country Club golfer was the early leader with a one-under, 71 before Stewart verified his card at the scorer’s table. Like Stewart, Timmerman was one-under on the front nine. He picked up an eagle on hole 16, that was followed by a bogey and a birdie to cap his round.

Born, who plays out of the Lloydminster Golf and Country Club is tied for third place with Saskatoon’s Marc Sweeney at two-under, 70. Behind the top three sits five golfers tied at 71, nine competitors are tied for 10^th place at even-par 72.

Players entered either the Amateur Championship, or the Mid-Amateur; or they can compete for both titles. A complete list of the leaderboards can be seen here.

The first of 42 groups will tee-off at 7:06 a.m. Wednesday for the second round of the 54-hole tournament.

Despite being “frustrated” with not currently playing on the PGA Tour, Weyburn’s Graham Delaet is using the time off to his and his family’s advantage.

Delaet hasn’t competed on the tour since last October but he said being home with wife Ruby and their twins, Roscoe and Lyla has been a blessing.

“The golf part is frustrating, but our kids mean more to me than anything in the world. That has been the one nice thing about being at home a lot is spending time with the kids and family,” Delaet told Darren Zary with the Star-Phoenix. The 36-year-old was in Saskatoon along with Ruby for their fifth annual fundraising event for their namesake Foundation. Delaet said the Graham Slam charity golf tournament has raised over $1.5 million and provided special memories for young golf fans.

“It is super neat for these kids to be able to play in something like this, Ryder Cup type format and meet a PGA Tour player. That would have meant a lot to me as a teenager,” he said.

Delaet has been dealing with a back issue that kept him from not being able to build on his over $11 million in career winnings. Delaet is seeking to play another three to four years at least, that will allow his children to experience a portion of his career, something “to make them proud of me,” he said.

For now, he said there is no timeline on his return to the tour.

“We’re basically in the stage to find out what the problem is and what the next step is. I’m going different places, seeing different doctors and trying to put it all together and see what the next step is,” he said.

The eight-year PGA Tour professional won the Saskatchewan Men’s Amateur Champion in 2005 and 2006. Golf Saskatchewan made a $1,500 towards the Graham and Ruby Delaet Foundation this past week in Saskatoon. Golf Saskatchewan executive director Brian Lee said the organization was happy to give back to the province’s youth.

“It was with great pleasure Golf Saskatchewan donated to the Graham Slam event with proceeds towards the Ronald McDonald House. We hope these funds will assist in making the lives of Saskatchewan people better,” Lee said.

This week’s Saskatchewan’s Amateur Men’s Championships will have some southern flair back in the field of over 120 golfers.

Former Saskatoon resident Torrie Coghlin has entered the championships for the first time since 2015. Coghlin moved to Alabama in 2004 to play golf. He now calls the state home, along with his wife Sarah and daughter Jenna. Coghlin, the mid-amateur champion in 2010, and two-time runner-up started the trash talking among the Saskatchewan men’s golf fraternity with a Facebook post filled with predictions of events on and off the course. He said the post has been a hit among the competitors.

“It was all just stereotype fun,” he laughed about the post. “It’s the truth which is funny, I like that kind of comedy. It was basically to give everyone a chuckle.”

Coglin won the Alabama Mid-Amateur Men’s Championship in 2013 as well. He said he tries to come back to Saskatchewan once a summer to play in a tournament. He added that with both the Men’s Amateur Championship and Mid-Amateur (+25) Championship being played at the same time at Dakota Dunes Golf Links the choice was easy.

“With both tournaments at a great venue, I thought it would be a great choice. I can stay at my parents’ place, my daughter can come up, if I go somewhere else I must travel and all that. This year was a no-brainer,” he said.

Coghlin’s post did throw light-hearted predictions on the early favourites but he couldn’t decidedly pick a winner. Having been gone for 14 years he said many of the top younger players he’s never met. He said he’s excited to see the likes of Roman Timmerman, Carson Harcourt, and Kade Johnson play. Coghlin said he will compete for his second championship but the comradery of the players is above the results.

“When I play in the State tournaments in Alabama you finish your tournament and go home. Here, you stick around, hang out, see how everyone did, have a beverage or two, have some laughs. I think it’s pretty unique,” he said.

Golf Saskatchewan decided to play both the men’s tournaments together to make it easier for participants who wish to play for both championships. Everyone will tee-off from the same blocks. Manager of sport and tournaments Steve Ryde said the Dunes will play three great rounds.

“Dakota Dunes is a championship links style venue that will challenge every aspect of one’s golf game. The eventual champions will emerge with their mental and physical game tested to the utmost extreme,” he said.

Regina’s Tyler Wright is the defending amateur champion. He’s not entered into the tournament this year. Brad Phelps of Saskatoon won last year’s mid-amateur tournament. He tees off at 12:12 p.m.

The first group will tee-off at 7:06 a.m. and the final group will take the course at 1:06 p.m. The results and groups can be found here.

SILVIS, Ill. — David Hearn and Mackenzie Hughes were the top Canadians, finishing T16 at the John Deere Classic on Sunday.

Brampton’s Hearn was one to watch this weekend. The 39-year-old recorded third place and second place performances during the first two rounds but finished tied for sixteenth alongside Hughes after a fourth round 1 under.

Hughes moved up 18 spots to end tied with Hearn and five other players after firing 6 under to finish at 14-under-par 270.

Michael Kim didn’t just win his first PGA Tour event on Sunday. He dominated in a fashion never seen at TPC Deere Run.

Kim’s prizes? A little over a million bucks, a two-year exemption on tour and a trip to the British Open.

Kim shot a final-round 66 on Sunday to win the John Deere Classic by a record-setting eight strokes. Kim, who turned 25 on Saturday, finished at 27-under 257 to break Steve Stricker’s tournament record from 2010 by one shot.

Kim also qualified for next week’s Open at Carnoustie _ an unexpected bonus for a player who had missed five of his last six cuts before his breakthrough in the Quad Cities.

Kim also made 30 birdies for the week, a season high on tour in 2018.

“To be able to finish out in style like this, it means a lot,” said Kim, who nearly quadrupled his season earnings with a winner’s share of $1.044 million. “To be sitting here with a trophy, I’m at a loss for words.”

Bronson Burgoon, Francesco Molinari, Joel Dahmen and Sam Ryder all finished at 19 under.

Kim took all the drama out of the final round with birdies on his first three holes and secured the largest margin of victory during the tournament’s stay at the course, which began in 2000. J.P. Hayes (2002) and Vijay Singh (2003) won the event by four strokes.

Kim, who had previously had just one top-10 finish in 84 career starts _ a third at the Safeway Open two years ago _ entered play with a five-shot lead. It was the biggest edge for a third-round leader at the John Deere Classic since Stricker’s six-stroke advantage eight years ago.

Kim, a former star at Cal who had struggled to find his footing as a pro, made it obvious from his first swing that he wasn’t about to let anyone catch him.

Kim knocked in a 13-foot birdie putt on the opening hole, and then holed two more from 15 and 24 feet to give him seven straight birdies dating back to the end of Saturday’s round _ and a seven-shot lead.

The field might have felt a glimmer of hope when Kim dumped his tee shot into the greenside bunker on the par-3 seventh hole.

But Kim got his bunker shot to within 7 feet and made the downhill par putt, and he walked to the next tee with an eight-shot edge.

“Even the last couple of weeks, I felt like my game was getting there,” Kim said. “I just felt like I needed just a couple of good starts to the rounds.”

Kim surpassed Stricker’s mark with a 21-foot putt on No. 16. The understated Kim finally let loose, holding his hand to his ear in a nod to a cheering gallery.

Kim’s day ended on No. 18 in emotional fashion when he saw his brother, father and mother _ all of whom had made a surprise trip in hopes of seeing him get his first win _ on a video screen.

“I teared up a little bit on the green,” Kim said. “To see my parents here … it made me even more nervous.”

SYLVANIA, Ohio — Canadian Brooke Henderson narrowly missed her seventh LPGA Tour victory Sunday, finishing third at the Marathon Classic.

The 20-year-old from Smiths Falls, Ont., had a one-shot lead heading into the final round and cruised through the first 14 holes of the day before running into trouble with bogeyes on Nos. 15 and 16.

Thidapa Suwannapura of Thailand beat American Brittany Lincicome in a playoff to win the tournament after both finished 72 holes tied at 14-under 270.

Henderson had four birdies, including three on the first six holes, finishing the round 2-under 69 for a 13 under total.

Henderson has six LPGA Tour wins, two shy of Sandra Post’s record for most by a Canadian woman.

Brittany Marchand of Orangeville, Ont., finished in a tie for 32nd place at 6 under. Hamilton’s Alena Sharp was 3 under for a share of 49th.

Wasn’t the finish she expected but @BrookeHenderson did amazing this weekend, finishing in third @MarathonLPGA and climbing to fourth in the Race to CME Globe!
Leave your supportive comments for her ⬇️❤️pic.twitter.com/octO3CRvxs

— Golf Canada (@TheGolfCanada) July 16, 2018

The best amateur golfers from Saskatchewan and beyond will converge on Dakota Dunes Golf Links next week and compete for the provincial men’s amateur and mid-amateur championships.

The 107^th edition of the Saskatchewan Men’s Amateur Championship and 32^nd Mid-Amateur Championship will take place July 17 – 19 at the Dunes. Previous champion and Saskatchewan Golf Hall of Fame member Colin Coben will be in the field of over 120 golfers. The Delisle product said the amateur event is a highlight on his summer schedule.

“It’s a blast, I get excited about it. That’s great for golf when you are 63-years-old, and you still get excited about the game,” Coben said.

The field will feature many of the Order of Merit Tour leaders including two-time winners this season David Stewart and Roman Timmerman. Carson Harcourt won the Publinx championship this season, the Kipling product sits behind Stewart and Timmerman in the overall standings. Coben said he watched Timmerman win the Lobstick Open in Waskesiu earlier this year and was impressed with the 19-year-old’s game.

“It’s amazing what those young guys can do,” Coben said. “That’s youth for you, the game has developed so much. Fitness is part of it, equipment is part of it, golf courses are almost obsolete for these guys.”

Coben has been a part of four Saskatchewan amateur teams and another 13 mid-amateur teams in his career. He also has a handful of senior championships in the province. He will compete in both the amateur and mid-amateur field. Players will tee off from the same box, participants over 25 years of age can enter both competitions. Saskatchewan golf pundits predict Coben to be among the leaders after the 54-hole event even at the age of 63. He said a high finish or championship is the goal but overall the event is about the comradery.

“I am going to enjoy it and hopefully I can play decent. When you do play well the young guys look over, that old bugger played good today, he shot 72 or whatever,” he laughed.

“These kids can shoot lights out when they get the ball in the hole, there’s a knack to that,” Coben said.

Phil and the breach of Rule 13-2 

Prior to teeing off Sunday at the Military Tribute at Greenbrier Country Club Phil Mickelson walked to the front of the teeing ground and moved some grass with a kicking motion. He then went back to tee off and started a conversation with his fellow competitor and caddie. “I’m not sure if that was legal,” explained Mickelson. He then teed off.

Walking up the fairway, he asked a referee and a short time later, it was confirmed, Phil had incurred a two-stroke penalty for breach of Rule 13-2. As this breach occurred on the teeing ground, all he had to do was move a few feet away and tee off from the new position and he wouldn’t have incurred a penalty, because it would not have been on his line of play.

To watch the video, click here.

Although the rules may seem complex, this one makes sense. Remember, the rules matter!

13-2/14 – Breaking Branch Interfering with Backswing on Teeing Ground

 QUESTION: On the teeing ground, a player broke off a branch of a tree which was interfering with his swing. The player maintained that such action was not a breach of Rule 13-2 because his ball was not yet in play. Was the player correct?

ANSWER: No. The player was in breach of Rule 13-2 for improving the area of his intended swing. Although Rule 13-2 allows a player to eliminate irregularities of surface on the teeing ground, it does not allow him to break a branch interfering with his swing. The penalty would apply even if the player, before playing his next stroke, re-teed elsewhere on the teeing ground – see Decision 13-2/24.  In the Phil situation on the teeing ground, as he did not break off any grass, if he simply moved over a couple of feet in either direction (abandoned his teeing area) for the shot he would have been ok to proceed without penalty.

Josh Nagy has been to the National Junior Men’s Golf Championship before but now he’s attending as a provincial champion.

The 16-year-old Saskatoon product outlasted 53 other under-19 golfers over 54-holes to claim the 92^nd Saskatchewan Junior Men’s Championship Wednesday at the Moon Lake Golf and Country Club. The Saskatoon Riverside Country Club member said he’s had good luck at the host course winning back-to-back events.

“It feels great, I won here a couple weeks ago on the Maple Leaf Junior Tour (MJT) and I really wanted to get this,” Nagy told reporters after the win.

Nagy had to come from behind for the victory. He trailed Saskatoon’s Connor Scissons by five strokes after round one. Nagy improved on his first round 76 by carding 68 during round two which vaulted him into the lead. Weather conditions heavily deteriorated during the final round leading to shifting of the leaderboard behind Nagy but his 79 held up enough for the win. He said playing well over all three days was key.

“I was pretty consistent, I kept the ball in play most of the time. I had one bad hole today, but the week was good,” he said.

Nagy will lead Team Saskatchewan into the National Junior Championship later this month in Medicine Hat, Alta. Nagy qualified for the event last year through the MJT. He said attending the tournament as a provincial champion has a special feel.

“To be on Team Saskatchewan is a big honour, it feels awesome,” he said.

Saskatoon’s Bradley Moser, also a Riverside member finished in second place, just a shot back of Nagy, Deer Valley golfer Cole Obrigewitsch finished in third place.

The tournament format does feature divisions broken down by age, you can see the complete results here.

The Junior Women’s Championship wasn’t as close as the men’s side, Shell Lake teenager Brooklin Fry tore past the field Wednesday running away with an 11-stroke victory over Ella Kozak.

Fry had a one-shot lead over Carey Mclean after round one, Mclean jumped over Fry during the middle round, but Fry wouldn’t be denied in the third round. The 13-year-old shot her third straight round of 83 to secure the provincial title with a total of 249. Fry said she couldn’t take a shot off throughout the tournament.

“I just had to make sure I was playing my best because we don’t play with everybody, so you don’t know what they shoot. I just tried my best to get to the top,” she said.

Saskatoon’s Sarah Grieve placed third after beating Mclean in a one-hole playoff, both finished with scores of 261.

Fry will also lead Team Saskatchewan into the National Championships; the women’s event is slated for July 31 to Aug. 3 in British Columbia. She said her expectation was to be on the team at the start of the season.

“I kind of thought I had a shot, I was thinking about it,” she said.

Full results for the women’s championship can be found here.

Carey Mclean was a stroke off the pace at the Saskatchewan Junior Women’s Championship on Monday, the Deer Valley golfer has swapped positions and leads the pack into Wednesday’s final round.

Mclean, 16, shot 84 during the opening round of the tournament at the Moon Lake Golf and Country Club, one more than Brooklin Fry of Shell Lake. On Tuesday during the second round, Mclean improved with an 81, Fry, 13, carded an 83 for the second straight day. Mclean’s card was tidy, four bogeys scatted the front nine, another four bogeys littered the back. She managed a birdie washing out a lone double-bogey on hole 11. Squeezed in the middle of the two is 12-year-old Ella Kozak, the Yorkton product posted the day’s low round at 78, ten strokes better than her opening round of 88.

Sarah Grieve of Saskatoon sits at 171 (87, 84) for the tournament, six strokes back of Mclean and four behind both Kozak and Fry.

Lauren Fox rounds out the top-five at plus-28, with back-to-back rounds of 86.

The complete championship results can be seen here.

The championship’s final round will begin at 7:30 a.m.