AUGUSTA, Ga. – Augusta National went nearly 80 years before having female members. Now the club is inviting its first female competitors.

The Augusta National Women’s Amateur begins next year, a 54-hole event for top amateurs from around the world who will become the first women to play a tournament at the home of the Masters.

Fred Ridley, who took over as club chairman in October, said the new tournament will expand Augusta National’s goal to inspire young people, following in the footprint of the Asia-Pacific Amateur, the Latin America Amateur and the Drive, Chip and Putt competition for children.

He said the Augusta National Women’s Amateur was for a “segment of our sport that is … vital to the future of golf.”

“We believe this event will have a long-lasting impact on the game,” Ridley said.

Women have long played at Augusta National, but it wasn’t until the fall of 2012 that the club invited its first women as members – former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and South Carolina financier Darla Moore. The latest member is former USGA president Diana Murphy.

“I’ve said many times that our country is a story of our great institutions evolving and becoming more inclusive over time,” Rice said. “This is one of the great institutions, not just American institutions but international institutions, so it’s evolved and it’s become more inclusive, and that’s very exciting.”

Ridley said the opening two rounds would be held at Champions Retreat in Augusta, with the final round moving to Augusta National on Saturday, April 9, extending the week at the Masters. The finals of the Drive, Chip and Putt would be on Sunday, followed by practice rounds for the Masters.

But the announcement caused one conflict.

The first LPGA Tour major of the year, the ANA Inspiration, typically is the week before the Masters in Rancho Mirage, California. The tournament invites leading amateurs, meaning they would have to choose between playing with the best on the LPGA Tour or a tournament with a final round at Augusta National.

“We have no intentions of competing or taking away from the ANA Inspiration,” Ridley said. “We think that to have one week where the future greats of the game and the current greats of the women’s game are all competing on a big stage, it’s just very exciting.”

He said he has spoken to LPGA Commissioner Mike Whan, and that Whan “understands our motivations for doing this.”

Whan was on site at Augusta National, where cellphones are prohibited, and unable to respond to a request for comment. But the LPGA issued statement.

“We have a real opportunity currently to make the weekend prior to the Masters a celebration of women’s golf unlike anything we have experienced previously,” the LPGA said. “While this announcement may create some initial challenges for our first major, navigating multiple opportunities for women’s golf is a good problem to have.”

The 72-player field will be determined by winners of recognized amateur events around the world and by the women’s world amateur ranking. There will be a 36-hole cut to the low 30 scores before moving over to Augusta National.

Ridley said tickets would be sold by lottery, which is sure to attract by some margin the largest crowd for an amateur event simply for the opportunity to walk the grounds of Augusta National in the spring.

The winner will get a five-year exemption to the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, provided she remains an amateur.

But she won’t get a green jacket.

“The green jacket certainly is an iconic part of the Masters,” Ridley said. “We plan to have a very distinctive award for the winner of this event, and we think in time that will become iconic. I can assure you it will be very, very nice.”

Annika Sorenstam was among those in the audience when Ridley announced the new tournament.

“Look at the big picture,” Sorenstam said. “Little girls knowing they have a chance to play on the biggest stage? That would send me to the range.”

AUGUSTA, Ga. – The new, more social, Tiger Woods was only occasionally seen Wednesday as he made his way around the front nine of Augusta National in the final tune up for a Masters green jacket that suddenly seems very much in reach.

There weren’t many trips down memory lane with playing partner Fred Couples and no long conversations with the firefighter from Massachusetts, who had to look up occasionally at the grey skies and wonder what bolt of lightning would strike him next as he played alongside the greatest golfer of his time.

It was Woods as he might have been 10 years ago, deep in concentration and fixating so much on the smallest details that he walked off a section of the sixth green to measure just which spot he needed to land his ball on when play finally begins for real.

Woods had his game face on, and for his legions of fans that’s probably a good thing. He had a few smiles with Couples, but if the next smile out of him comes when he’s being fitted for a green jacket on Sunday, well, that’s all right with them.

The feel-good Tiger probably can’t win one of those, anyway, no matter how good his game has recently become. That’s probably why a practice round on Tuesday that included Phil Mickelson for the first time anyone can remember didn’t exactly disintegrate into a love fest.

The old Tiger playing with a touch of arrogance and a chip on his shoulder most certainly can.

That’s a bit shocking considering the path Woods has taken in recent years. Back problems, personal problems and drug problems have combined to keep him mostly on the sidelines as a new generation of golfers has taken flight.

Indeed, it’s hard to figure out just where Woods is. His swing is fine, his back feels good, and he’s been back in contention on Sunday in the last few tournaments of his latest comeback.

But he’s less than a year out of rehab, where he went after being busted for DUI in the early morning hours last May on a Florida highway. Woods was so out of it that he told police he was driving to California, and toxicology tests later revealed five different drugs in his system.

And it’s got to be hard to get the killer instinct back when you’re suddenly trying to be friends with guys you made your life’s mission to beat.

“I walked past Tiger on the range just before he came in and spoke to you guys, and I said, ‘I never thought I would see the day, Tiger and Phil playing a practice round at Augusta,”’ Rory McIlroy said. “So we had a bit of a laugh about that.”

That it took Woods until he was in his 40s to be able to relate to most of his fellow players – and some of his fans – isn’t all that surprising for anyone who has read the exhaustive new biography “Tiger Woods” that details his great successes and biggest lows.

The book describes him as a product of his parents, who were determined to raise a champion but also raised a loner who found his only solace on the golf course.

“Even the most basic human civilities – a simple hello or thank you – routinely went missing from his vocabulary,” authors Jeff Benedict and Armen Keteyian wrote. “A nod was too much to expect.”

There were a few nods on Wednesday, though they were perfunctory at best. On the seventh hole, Woods actually mouthed “thank you” to fans who cheered him on the way to the tee box, and earlier on the driving range he signed a few autographs.

Most importantly, though, the driver was finding the fairway and the putts were going where he wanted. In the practice round a day earlier, Woods had made eagle on both the par-5s on the back nine.

If he hasn’t exactly been fan friendly, it doesn’t seem to matter to those who continue to watch him in numbers no other player can come close. He’s a legend with flaws, but a legend nonetheless and any mention he might be nearby always gets fans rushing to whatever hole he’s playing.

Woods fit in fine Wednesday in a curious practice round pairing with the 58-year-old Couples and Matt Parziale, the amateur golfer and professional firefighter who squeezes in amateur tournaments between shifts at the firehouse in Brockton, Massachusetts. Parziale won the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship to get a spot in the Masters at the age of 30.

Woods complimented Parziale’s game, and said nice things to a Masters representative about his caddie father after the round. But this was clearly a day to fine tune his game, a day to get ready for his first Masters in three years.

There were a few smiles at the end of nine holes, but the real smiles can wait until Sunday.

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. – Canadian duo of Brooke Henderson and Alena Sharp began the LPGA’s first major of the season on a high note.

Henderson, a Smiths Falls, Ont., product, led the way with a 2-under 70 boosted by a three-birdie string on the front nine before dropping a stoke on the par-4 15th. The 20-year-old trails the leaders by four strokes heading into Friday’s second round at the Mission Hills Country Club.

“Yeah, I played really well today, so I’m happy—I got off to a really fast start on the front nine, three birdies, 7 through 9, which was exciting to get to 3-under making the turn,” said Henderson. “Unfortunately, on the back, some putts didn’t fall and things didn’t go quite my way. But I’m excited with the 2-under start, and hopefully it will continue on through the weekend.”

Hamilton’s Alena Sharp, Olympian teammate alongside Henderson, kicked off the ANA Inspiration with a 1-under 71 to sit tied for 36th. Sharp will look to improve on her best result in the ANA Inspiration, which came in 2016 with a T56 finish. She’ll tee-it-up in Friday’s opening slot at 7:10 a.m.

.@BrookeHenderson sits -2 after the first round of @ANAinspiration. Trails lead by 4 pic.twitter.com/xETLuTTS58

— CP Women’s Open (@cpwomensopen) March 30, 2018

Lexi Thompson is smiling and having fun again at the ANA Inspiration.

A year after a rules violation cost her four strokes in regulation in an eventual playoff loss, Thompson shot a 4-under 68 on Thursday to finish three strokes behind leader Pernilla Lindberg.

“I don’t know if I would say it’s a relief,” Thompson said. “I was just really looking forward to just playing this week. I love coming here.”

Thompson also again overpowered Michelle Wie on a hot afternoon at Mission Hills, four years after routing her in a final-round showdown for her first major title.

Wie fought dizzy spells on the front nine in a 75 that left her in danger of missing the cut.

“I had the mad spins,” Wie said. “I just got really dizzy. I don’t know why or how. I don’t know.”

Wearing a black dress in the mid-90s heat, she birdied the second hole, then dropped five strokes in four holes with two double bogeys and a bogey.

“I fouled five balls out there on the front nine,” said Wie, the Singapore winner four weeks ago. “One that I whiffed in the rough.”

She felt much better on the back nine, but still couldn’t keep up with Thompson. The distance disparity was particularly pronounced on the par-4 12th when Thompson cracked a 348-yarder 72 yards past Wie.

“Probably my farthest,” Thompson said. “This golf course definitely sets up for my game off the tee. I get to just aim up the right and fire away.”

That got her in trouble on the par-5 ninth – her 18th – when she drove into the left trees and made her lone bogey.

Lindberg birdied her final two holes for a bogey-free 65, playing in the last group to finish the round. The 31-year-old Swede is winless on the LPGA Tour.

“I often get the question, favourite tournament, favourite golf course, and I always say this event and this course,” Lindberg said. “I like this place and I always feel good playing here.”

Beatriz Recari and Ayako Uehara were a stroke back, and Jessica Korda, Ha Na Jang and Stanford sophomore Albane Valenzuela shot 67. In Gee Chun and Cristie Kerr were at 68 with Thompson, Chella Choi, Sung Hyun Park and Brittany Altomare.

Recari had a bogey-free round , saving par on the par-3 17th with a 10-footer. The 30-year-old Spaniard has three LPGA Tour victories.

“I’ve always felt very comfortable here,” Recari said. “I felt like if I was going to win a major, it was going to be on this course.”

Uehara birdied her final two holes. The Japanese player credited instructor Ted Oh for her strong play. “Now I have confidence,” she said.

Korda birdied the 18th after bogeying 16 and 17. She birdied the first four holes and was 6 under after 11.

“A couple of weird shots there, especially on 17,” she said.

The winner last month in Thailand in her return from reconstructive jaw surgery, Korda reached the par-5 ninth with a driver from the right first cut. She hit driver off the deck twice two weeks in the Founders Cup.

“I actually caught way more air than I expected,” Korda said. “That’s kind of what I’m just trying to do is have fun out there, hit shots that normally I would probably not hit in a tournament.”

She travelling with a mini Goldendoodle puppy named Charlie.

“It’s so nice to have a puppy with you to distract you,” Korda said. “He’s so cute.”

Playing partner Lydia Ko, the 2016 winner, had a 70. She closed with a double bogey after finding the water fronting the green from the fairway bunker.

Jang birdied the final three holes for the last of her nine birdies.

“Any golf course straight ball is very important, but Mission Hills is more important,” she said.

Jang left the LPGA Tour in the middle of last season to return home to spend more time with her mother, left alone when she and her father were away. Her mother is visiting the U.S. for the first time this week.

“I’d like to play the LPGA again, but my mom’s more important than myself,” Jang said.

Valenzuela topped the seven amateurs in the field.

“I love this course,” Valenzuela said. “I feel really comfortable on it.”

Autistic brother Alexis is working as the Swiss Olympian’s caddie.

“I love having him on the bag,” she said.

Stacy Lewis had a 72 in her return from a rib injury sustained practising before the Thailand event. She won in 2011 at Mission Hills and lost a playoff to Brittany Lincicome in 2015.

Defending champion So Yeon Ryu failed to make a birdie in a 75.

RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. – Alena Sharp made the most of Friday’s opening tee slot, posting a 4-under 68 to climb 25 spots into a tie for 11th at the mid-way point of the ANA Inspiration.

The Hamilton, Ont., native notched five birdies against one bogey on the par-4 12th, bringing her to 5 under par for the tournament — seven strokes back of the leading Pernilla Lindberg and Sung Hyun Park, the 2017 CP Women’s Open champion.

Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., slipped with a 3-over 75 to sit at 1 over par, making the cut on the number.

We see you, @alenasharp07! ?? The Hamilton native posted a 4-under 68 to currently sit T9 at the @ANAinspiration ?

A post shared by Golf Canada (@thegolfcanada) on Mar 30, 2018 at 11:51am PDT

Park and Lindberg shared the lead at a tournament-record 12-under 132, three strokes ahead of Jessica Korda after two rounds in hot and mostly calm conditions at Mission Hills.

Lexi Thompson was 4 under after an even-par 72, undone by a series of short missed putts a year after a rules violation cost her four strokes in regulation in an eventual playoff loss.

“I hit it really well today,” Thompson said. “I just struggled on the greens.”

Fighting dizziness caused by a virus, Wie followed her opening 75 with a bogey-free 67 to get to 2 under.

“Saw one golf ball today, which was good,” Wie said.

With little fanfare five groups in front of the Thompson-Wie morning pairing, the fourth-ranked Park shot a 64 for the best round of the week. The U.S. Women’s Open champion played a nine-hole stretch in 7 under. She holed out for eagle from 100 yards on the par-4 15th to cap the run.

“I was super-focused at the U.S. Open, and felt just as focused today,” the 24-year-old South Korean player said. “I just felt really good about my driver. The shots fell in just as I wanted.”

Lindberg had a 67 in the final group of the morning session. The 31-year-old Swede had the first-round lead at 65, and was the only player without a bogey the first two days.

“Just not put myself in too much trouble and then my short game and putting have been great,” Lindberg said. “I’m just collecting so much experience out here every year, that I’m getting more and more ready just to be in this situation. Every time I’m there, I’m just so much more comfortable.”

She hit inside 2 feet to set up birdies on the par-4 13th and par-4 14th and parred the final four holes. The leaders broke the 36-hole record of 11 under set by Lorena Ochoa in 2006.

Thompson missed five putts inside 4 feet, four of them to the right side. She three-putted the par-3 fifth and par-4 12th, missing from 4 and 3 feet on 12. She also missed a 4-foot par try on 13.

The 2014 champion rebounded to birdie three of the last four , beginning the run with a downhill 12-footer on the par-4 15th. She went right at the back left pin on par-3 17th and got a 4½-footer to fall on the left side, then hit a lob wedge to 4 inches on the par-5 18th.

Wie often sat and rested in the shade in the 90-degree morning heat on the 97-degree day. She walked with a sun umbrella and relied on caddie Matthew Galloway more than usual.

“I just sat down every chance I could,” Wie said. “My caddie helped me a lot out there, just getting all the numbers. I asked him to read every putt for me because I just couldn’t see everything.”

Wie was stricken Thursday afternoon, leading to two double bogeys and a bogey in a four-hole stretch.

“Yesterday I wasn’t prepared for it at all,” said Wie, the winner four weeks ago in Singapore. “I felt good, felt good on the range, and all of a sudden I started seeing multiple golf balls, and that scared me a little bit. But today I woke up feeling dizzy. I knew exactly what I was getting into.”

Korda birdied five of the last 10 holes in a 68 to get to 9 under. She won last month in Thailand in her return from reconstructive jaw surgery.

“It all depends on if these putts are going to drop or not,” Korda said. “That’s the difference out here.”

Jodi Ewart Shadoff (67), Charley Hull (68), Amy Olson (68) and Ayako Uehara (66) were 7 under.

Stanford sophomore Albane Valenzuela was 6 under after a 71.

“I had to kind of save my pars today, but still a good round overall,” the Swiss Olympian said. “I put a good fight out there.”

Valenzuela was one of four amateurs to make the cut, with Rose Zhang (70), Atthaya Thitikul (71), Lilia Vu (70) also advancing. Zhang and Thitikul were tied for 34th at 2 under, and Vu was tied for 41st at 1 under. The 14-year-old Zhang, from Irvine, won the ANA Junior Inspiration on Sunday to get into the field.

Dawson Armstrong entered the second Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada Qualifying Tournament as an amateur. He still is. But as he said, after a final-round 66 that earned him medalist honors on a cool, drizzly day, “I won’t be one for much longer.” The Lipscomp University senior had a spotless scorecard Friday, with four birdies and an eagle to come from behind on the final day to win the event by a stroke over fellow Americans Justin Doeden and Christopher Hickman. Americans Ian Davis (fourth) and Dalton Ward (fifth) rounded out the top five. Armstrong will be fully exempt on the Tour for the entire 2018 season, while Doeden, Hickman, Davis and Ward earn exemptions into the first eight tournaments on the schedule.

Armstrong began the final round at TPC Sawgrass’ Dye’s Valley Course tied for fifth place, and he began his last 18 holes in style, making birdie at No. 1. He added birdies at No. 5 and No. 9 to move to 3-under for the day and 8-under overall. It was his birdie on the ninth that really gave him momentum. Facing a 40-foot putt for birdie, Armstrong canned it. He made a similar-length putt, on the 17th, when he just missed the green on his second-shot approach into the par-5. From four yards off the green and 35 feet overall, Armstrong elected to putt, making that, as well, which—although he didn’t know it—cemented the victory.

Canadian Max Gilbert finished T15 – good for fully exempt status for the first four tournaments subject to the first reshuffle.

Fellow countrymen Eric Banks and Austin James, both graduates of Team Canada’s Amateur Squad program, earned conditional status by finishing T35 at 1 over par. Canadian Raoul Menard also finished T35, making four Canadians to earn status at this Qualifying event.

The third of five Qualifying Tournaments begins next week in Arizona, from April 3-6, at The Wigwam Golf Resort’s Gold Course in Phoenix.

Click here for full scoring.

AUGUSTA, Ga. — A look at some of the anniversaries this year at the Masters:

75 years ago (1943)

Bobby Jones and Clifford Roberts decided after the 1942 Masters to stop the tournament for the rest of World War II. According to the Augusta Chronicle, the club’s greenskeeper raised turkey and cattle on the grounds while the club was closed. Roberts said in his autobiography that the cattle destroyed several azalea and camellia bushes and ate the bark of several young trees. There were plenty of WWII connections to the Masters. Jones was commissioned as a captain in the Army Air Corps, and his unit landed at Normandy a day after the D-Day invasion. Leading the Normandy invasion was Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, who later became a member at Augusta National during his two terms as U.S. president.

50 years ago (1968)

The 1968 Masters is best remembered for five words: “What a stupid I am.” Roberto de Vicenzo birdied the 17th hole in the final round to take a one-shot lead over Bob Goalby, only to bogey the last hole. The Argentine was so angry at his bogey that he didn’t properly check his card, which was kept by Tommy Aaron, and he signed for a 4 on the 17th instead of a 3. Under the rules, he had to accept the higher score, giving him a 66 instead of a 65. And instead of an 18-hole playoff the next day, Goalby was the winner by one shot. Goalby closed with a 66 to finish at 11-under 277. De Vicenzo had won the British Open a year earlier, but this scorecard blunder remained his most famous moment until his death last year.

25 years ago (1993)

Bernhard Langer won the 1993 Masters for his second green jacket, closing with a 2-under 70 for a four-shot victory over Chip Beck. His first Masters victory in 1985 was remembered for Curtis Strange twice going for the green when he had the lead and finding water. The 1993 Masters featured Beck choosing to lay up when he was trailing. Langer had a three-shot lead when Beck laid up on the par-5 15th from 236 yards away. He made par, while Langer followed with a birdie to stretch the lead. There was one other similarity to Langer’s victories. He was harshly criticized in 1985 for saying “Jesus Christ” in the Butler Cabin interview while expressing surprise at Strange’s lead. The controversy led to Langer becoming a Christian, and when he won in 1993, he said it again because it was Easter. “I sometimes joke that I’m the only one to mention ‘Jesus Christ’ in Butler Cabin twice,” he said.

20 years ago (1998)

Mark O’Meara became the first player since Arnold Palmer in 1960 to birdie the last two holes for a one-shot victory in the 1998 Masters, which also was the last year the Augusta National gallery witnessed a Jack Nicklaus charge. O’Meara holed a 20-foot birdie putt on the last hole for a 67 to beat Fred Couples and David Duval, and at 41 he became the oldest first-time winner of the Masters. Couples had a wild back nine with a double bogey on No. 13 and an eagle on the 15th. Duval missed birdie chances on the 17th and 18th for a 67. He was in Jones Cabin watching O’Meara when Augusta National chairman Jack Stephens told him: “Don’t worry, David. Nobody ever makes that putt.” O’Meara made the putt. Nicklaus, 58, birdied four of his first seven holes and pulled within three shots of the lead, causing so many roars that even Tiger Woods in the group ahead backed off putts. But he had to settle for a 68 and tied for sixth.

15 years ago (2003)

“The Green Jacket is going north of the border!”

Mike Weir of Sarnia, Ont., captivated an entire country, becoming the first Canadian and left-handed golfer to win The Masters tournament. The Canadian golf Hall-of-Famer missed the cut a week prior to The Masters, which eventually helped him get back to his fundamentals—especially with added pressure from Tiger Woods in his prime years. Playing over a condensed three days due to rain, Weir leaned on his accuracy and short game to execute his game plan, putting him in position to win. Weir forced a playoff with Len Mattiace, a then two-time TOUR winner, back at the 10th hole. With Mattiace struggling, Weir had a safe two putts to win, becoming the 2003 Masters champion.

Weir captured the ’03 CareerBuilder Challenge as part of a three-win season — including the Masters — en route to being named the Lou Marsh Award winner as Canada’s athlete of the year. He’s the last golfer to win the honour.

10 years ago (2008)

Four months after Trevor Immelman had a tumor removed from his diaphragm, the South African won the 2008 Masters by three shots over Tiger Woods. And it wasn’t even that close. Immelman had a five-shot lead with three holes to play until hitting into the water for double bogey at No. 16. He closed with a 75 and joined Arnold Palmer in the record book with the highest closing round by a Masters champion. Only four players broke par in the final round. For Woods, it was his second straight year finishing as the runner-up at Augusta National in his bid for a fifth green jacket. Among those who had a chance were Brandt Snedeker, who briefly tied for the lead with an eagle on No. 2, and Steve Flesch, whose hopes ended with a tee shot into Rae’s Creek at No. 12.

5 years ago (2013)

Adam Scott won the 2013 Masters in a playoff over Angel Cabrera, and Australia had a Masters champion after more than a half-century of trying. Scott thought he had it won with a 20-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole, only for Cabrera to stuff his shot into 3 feet for birdie as Scott was signing his card. They both made par on the first extra hole, and Scott ended it with a 12-foot birdie putt at No. 10 on the second playoff hole. Greg Norman, who knew nothing but hard luck at Augusta National, was watching from Florida and said when it was over, “I’m over the moon.” It was a wild week for Tiger Woods, who was on the verge of taking the lead on Friday when his wedge into the 15th hole hit the pin and went back into the water. Woods took his penalty drop in the wrong place, which was pointed out by a rules expert watching on TV. The rules committee at the Masters failed to act on the information, and when it was clear a penalty was involved, the committee gave Woods a two-shot penalty and allowed him to stay in the tournament despite having signed for an incorrect score. Woods finished four shots behind.

AUGUSTA, Ga. — The mantra of practice makes perfect was the storyline for Toronto’s Vanessa Borovilos on Sunday at the Drive, Chip & Putt finals at Augusta National.

Borovilos, playing in her third championship, won the Girls 10-11 age division by the slightest of margins with a one-point victory in the 10-player field.

“You have to practice a lot to win or to do well here,” said Borovilos in a greenside interview with Golf Channel.

Practice makes perfect – what a champion! RT to congratulate Vanessa ???pic.twitter.com/AkYXIdgThq

— Golf Canada (@TheGolfCanada) April 1, 2018

Borovilos finished 5th in 2016 and 4th in 2015. She plays out of Credit Valley Golf & Country Club and credits Brooke Henderson and Jordan Spieth as her favourite athletes.

With the win, Borovilos becomes the second Canadian to win a division at the Drive Chip & Putt finals—Savannah Grewal captured the 2017 Girls 14-15 division.

Local qualifying began in May, June and July, held at more than 260 sites throughout the United States. The top-three scorers per venue, in each of the four age categories in separate boys and girls divisions, advanced to 50 subregional qualifiers in July and August. Two juniors in each age and gender division then competed at the regional level in September and October, held at some of the top courses in the country, including several U.S. Open and PGA Championship venues.

The top finisher from each regional site’s age/gender divisions – a total of 80 finalists – earned a place in the National Finals.

The Canadian equivalent—Future Links, driven by Acura Junior Skills Challenge National Event— will be contested on July 21 at Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville, Ont. Learn more here.

MEN’S AMATEUR TOP 10

Solid performances turned in by all four members of Golf Canada’s National Squad this past week.

Top ranked Hugo Bernard continued to improve upon his career-best world rankings, climbing eight more places to No. 51 as he finished runner-up at the Azalea Invitational, eventually losing in a three-man playoff.

Joey Savoie finished fifth at the same tournament, which helped him climb 12 places in the world rankings while No. 5 Josh Whalen ended up in a tie for 11th, which was good for a five place gain in the world rankings.

Chris Crisologo picked up five places in the world rankings after finishing seventh at the CBU Lancer Men’s Golf Joust. It was the sixth consecutive top 10 result for the National Team member and the first time this season he has finished outside the top 3.

Charles Corner made the biggest gain among the Top 10, picking up 21 spots in the world rankings after finishing fourth at the UTSA/Lone Star Invitational. It was his fourth career top 10 result.

Biggest move: Carter Graf of Sylvan Lake, Alberta, gained 724 spots in the world rankings after taking medalist honours at the MJT Humber College PGM Classic.

Complete World Amateur Golf Rankings can be found here.

WOMEN’S AMATEUR TOP 10

Celeste Dao made the biggest move among the Top 10, picking up 40 places in the world rankings after finishing runner-up at the CJGA Humber College PGM Western Championship. Dao finished one stroke shy of fellow Golf Canada Development Squad member Monet Chun. The result moved Dao up two spots in Canada to No. 6.

Valerie Tanguay climbed 33 spots in the world rankings after finishing in a tie for fourth at the Clemson Invitational. It was the second top five result of the year for the senior at Oklahoma, who finished just three strokes behind the eventual winner while playing as an individual.

Vanessa Ha gained 20 spots in the world rankings after taking medalist honours at the Sacramento State Invitational. The senior at San Francisco posted a record-breaking 54-hole performance to claim the tournament title for the second time in two years and third career collegiate win.

Top ranked Maddie Szeryk moves up two places to No. 28 in the world rankings after finishing in a tie for seventh at the Clemson Invitational. The Golf Canada National Team member has eight top 10 results in nine events and has recorded 20 rounds of par or better this year, which ranks only behind her freshman and junior seasons at Texas A&M.

Biggest Move: Brigitte Thibault of Rosemere, Que., gained 373 spots in the world rankings after finishing in a tie for ninth at the PING/ASU Invitational. It was the third top 10 result of the season for the freshman at Fresno State, who makes the leap into the top 20 of the Canadian rankings, settling in at No. 17

Complete World Amateur Golf Rankings can be found here.

MEN’S TOP 10

Corey Conners jumps back into the Top 10, climbing 39 spots in the world rankings after finishing in a tie for 13th at the PGA’s Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship. It marked his carer-best finish to date on the PGA Tour and the second straight tournament in which he has gone into the final round with a shot at winning. The result was worth 2.24 world ranking points as he takes over the No. 9 ranking in Canada after being outside the Top 10 for the last eight weeks.

Adam Svensson moved up 31 spots in the world rankings after finishing in a tie for sixth at the Web.com Tour’s Louisiana Open, his third top-10 result in his last five events. The result was worth 2.66 world ranking points.

Top ranked Adam Hadwin maintained his No. 42 world ranking after a solid showing at the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play event. Hadwin picked up one win, taking down world No. 1 Dustin Johnson, and halved his two other matches to finish just a half point shy of qualifying for the knockout stage. His results earned him 4.65 world ranking points.

Other notable results: No. 8 David Hearn finished tied for 50th at PGA Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship; No. 10 Roger Sloan finished 69th at Web.com Tour’s Louisiana Open;

Click here for Men’s Official World Golf Rankings.

WOMEN’S TOP 10

Maude-Aimee Leblanc made the biggest move among the Top 10, picking up 33 spots in the world rankings after finishing in a tie for 39th at the LPGA’s Kia Classic. It’s her best result in three LPGA events this year and was worth 1.61 world ranking points.

Top ranked Brooke Henderson slipped a spot in the world rankings down to No. 14 after finishing in a tie for 22nd at the Kia Classic.

Other Notable Results: No. 2 Alena Sharp and No. 5 Anne-Catherine Tanguay missed the cut at LPGA Kia Classic;

Click here for full Women’s Rolex World Rankings.

The first step on the path toward the PGA TOUR begins this week at TPC Sawgrass, as 132 players take to the Dye’s Valley Course to earn status on the 2018 Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada. Below are the details for the USA East Q-School #1, the second of five qualifying tournaments this season, along with storylines to follow this week in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.

There are 12 Canadians among the athletes, including former National Amateur Squad members Matt Hill (Sarnia, Ont.), Austin James (Bath, Ont.) and Eric Banks (Truro, N.S.).

Winner of the Mackenzie Tour Order of Merit in 2012, Hill has spent time on PGA TOUR Latinoamérica and the Web.com Tour in recent years. The North Carolina State product was the author of one of the greatest seasons in collegiate golf history in 2009, when he won the NCAA Championship, seven other individual tournament titles and the Jack Nicklaus Award as the country’s top collegiate golfer.

James was the 2016 Big South Conference Player of the Year, thanks to a win at the 2016 Big South Conference Championship, while competing at Charleston Southern University. James won the 2014 Canadian Junior Championship and made it to the quarterfinals of the 2016 U.S. Amateur.

CANADIANS IN THE FIELD

Eric Banks (Truro, N.S.)
Raoul Menard (Granby, Que.)
Max Gilbert (St-Georges, Que.)
Vincent Blanchette (St-Jean-Sur-Richelieu, Que.)
Austin James (Bath, Ont.)
Matt Hill (Sarnia, Ont.)
Sameer Kalia (Campbellville, Ont.)
James Jones (Tampa, Fla.)
Branson Ferrier (Barrie, Ont.)
Andrew Jensen (Ottawa, Ont.)
Cooper Brown (Renfrew, Ont.)
Joseph D’Alfonso (Caledon, Ont.)

OAKVILLE – Team Canada alumnae and LPGA Tour veteran Jennifer Kirby is stepping away from professional golf.

The news broke as the Paris, Ont., native confirmed her decision via an interview with TSN’s Bob Weeks.   In the article, Kirby cites a lack of passion and enjoyment for her decision to leave the game.

As soon as Weeks shared his article on Twitter Friday, messages and kudos started to pour in for Kirby.  The LPGA Tour veteran showed class, taking the time to respond to each one.

It was a pleasure to have the opportunity to coach @kirbyjennifer @TheGolfCanada. Smart, tough, dedicated – a real winner! Plus many laughs too! With skills like that success in life will follow you! #alwaysadragon ??? https://t.co/mLGQct50bJ

— Derek Ingram (@dingramgolf) March 24, 2018

I admired you as a golfer growing up. And then I got to know you, and beyond a golfer, this is one of the many reasons I admire you as a https://t.co/4cVvm2wLZX listened to your heart and were honest. So excited for what the future holds for you?@kirbyjennifer https://t.co/euWp3s7QS9

— Brittany Marchand (@Britt_Marchand) March 24, 2018

Jen is a fantastic young lady, over and above being a great player. Tour life is hard, JK got a great education at Alabama and will be a great addition to any business! Wish her all the best https://t.co/DuFSO2nO8V

— Tristan Mullally (@tmullallygolf) March 23, 2018

Kirby joined Golf Canada’s Team Canada program as a member of the Development Squad in 2007 before graduating to the National Team in 2010. In 2009, Kirby made history by becoming the first golfer to win Ontario Junior, Ontario Amateur, Canadian Junior and Canadian Amateur titles.

“As an amateur they gave me every opportunity I could ask for,” Kirby said.  “I travelled all around the world representing my country. They gave me all the tools to succeed and all the opportunities to play against good competitors. Every day I’m very thankful to have gone through that program.”

She led the University of Alabama Crimson Tide to a national title in 2012.

In 2013, she won her first event as a professional – Canadian Women’s Tour event in Quebec – and secured her LPGA Tour card on her first attempt, where she finished 5^th.

Her time on the LPGA and Symetra Tour had mixed results.

Kirby doesn’t know what lies ahead for her, but she hinted to Weeks that she may like to pursue a career coaching or mentoring girls just getting into professional golf.

On behalf of all of us at Golf Canada, best wishes Jennifer. Thank you for everything you’ve done for Canadian golf.