The 14 players that competed in the 2022 Canadian Mid-Amateur Championship from Saskatchewan are back in the province and recollecting the week in Thornhill, Ontario.

Prince Albert’s Danny Klughart was the top local finishing the championship in a tie for 26th at 13-over par.

Shaun Dunphy of Saskatoon finished his 11th national event in a tie for 58th, the second highest placing Saskatchewan product and Regina’s Drew Kocur made the cut in his national debut and finished 71st.

All three players spoke to Golf Saskatchewan’s Clark Stork following the event.

KLUGHART

DUNPHY

KOCUR

Saskatchewan’s four competitors from the golf event are back in Saskatchewan and basking in the week that was at Niagara Falls for the 2022 Canada Summer Games.

Yorkton’s Ella Kozak was the top local tying for fifth in the 72-hole championship that ran from Aug. 17 to 20. She will also be eligible for the next Games in 2025.

Next up for the 16-year-old is the Team Canada – NextGen Selection Camp in Toronto from Sept. 8 to 11. Saskatoon’s Chase Pochylko will join her in an effort to make the national team.

Kozak spoke with Golf Saskatchewan following the Games.

Hallie Crozier of Regina placed 17th in the event. She wrapped up the season in Saskatchewan this past weekend at the Maple Leaf Junior Tour (MJT) Order of Merit Series Championship in Warman with a two-day score of 160. The 17-year-old will compete in the MJT National Championship in Florida later this year and continue to work with coach Henry Brunton with a goal of getting a scholarship.

On the boys side Hunter Kutcher and Darien Herlick tied for 14th at the Canada Games.

Kutcher is now heading to Kelowna to begin his collegiate career for the UBC Okanagan Heat.

Like Kozak, Herlick is eligible to compete in the Games again. He will stay in Saskatchewan for the time being and work with his coach before heading to Florida to work with Brunton.

After a pair of second place finishes in the Saskatchewan Mixed Championship Kim Brown and Dennis Vezeau have their first Saskatchewan Mixed Championship.

On Sunday at Elk Ridge Golf Resort the Saskatoon duo needed a playoff to hold off Elanne Krainyk and Colton McAllister for the championship. Brown and Vezeau birdied the first playoff hole to claim the win.

The bronze medal went to seven-time winners Kathy Ziglo and Ian Larocque who finished the tournament at 1-under, 143, four shots back of the co-leaders.

The complete results can be seen here.

In the event’s return to Elk Ridge 51 teams competed over 36 holes and two days. Next year’s Mixed Championship will be held at Moose Jaw’s Hillcrest Golf Club.

More photos of the event can be found here.

HEADINGLEY, Man. – Canada’s best female golfers 25 years or older will descend on Breezy Bend Country Club in Headingley, Man., August 30 – September 1, for the Canadian Women’s Mid-Amateur and Senior Championship, presented by BDO.

“There is a lot of anticipation around this year’s Women’s Mid-Amateur and Senior Championship, and we’re thrilled to get the competition started,” said Tournament Director, Daniel Suppa. “A competitive field of players are slated to tee it up this week, so we’re expecting a high calibre of talent at Breezy Bend.”

After a rainy start to the day, practice rounds resumed as scheduled on Monday ahead of the official start to the national championship on Tuesday. The 54-hole tournament is scheduled to wrap up on Thursday, with champions being crowned in four divisions: Mid-Amateur (25 and up); Mid-Master (40 and over); Senior (50 and above); and Super-Senior (60-plus).

Returning to the event is the Interprovincial Team competitions, for the first time since 2019. The Mid- Amateur and Senior teams will compete over the first 36 holes of the tournament.  

97 players will tee it up at Breezy Bend Country Club, located about 20 kilometres west of Winnipeg, Man. The Club is widely considered one of the premiere private golf courses in its region and has previously hosted the 2004 Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship as well as the 1979 Canadian Junior Boys Championship.

“Over the last six months, our volunteers, staff and Board have worked tirelessly to prepare the course and our facilities to host this special event,” said Shannon O’Brien, President of Breezy Bend Country Club. “We are very excited to have this opportunity to showcase our Club to some of the best golfers from across the country.”

“When we were first approached to host this prestigious tournament some four years ago, we jumped at the opportunity; this would be our chance to recognize, support and celebrate women’s golf in Canada,” added Cory Johnson, General Manager and COO. “Our club members, staff and enthusiastic team of volunteers look forward to providing a world-class championship event for our competitors and spectators alike.”

CANADIAN WOMEN’S MID-AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP
Since 2007, the Women’s Mid-Amateur has a provided women over the age of 25 a chance to compete on a national stage. From its inaugural year to 2014, the Canadian Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship ran in conjunction with the Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship. In 2015, the tournament shifted gears and joined forces with the Canadian Women’s Senior Championship.

Defending champion Christina Proteau will look to protect her title as Canadian Women’s Mid-Amateur champion after knocking off Nonie Marler in last year’s championship at Domaine Château Bromont in Bromont, Que. Proteau, of Port Alberni, B.C., has won the Mid-Amateur division a record six times, including four consecutive titles from 2011-2014. Marler, out of Marine Drive Golf Club in Vancouver, B.C., is back in the field again this year.

The winner of the Canadian Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship will receive an exemption into the 2023 Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship at Ashburn Golf Club in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

CANADIAN WOMEN’S SENIOR CHAMPIONSHIP
Conducted since 1971, the Canadian Women’s Senior Championship has featured many of the country’s top senior golfers. Canadian Golf Hall of Fame members Marlene Streit, Gayle Borthwick, Marilyn O’Connor and Margaret Todd all own senior championship titles. In the past, this competition has also featured a strong contingent of international players, particularly from the United States – most notably Nancy Fitzgerald. The Canadian Women’s Senior Championship has also been referred to as the CLGA National Senior Championship.

The 51^st playing of the Canadian Women’s Senior Championship will feature a star-studded field, headlined by none other than the defending champion, Shelly Stouffer. The 52-year-old is the fourth highest ranked woman on the World Amateur Golf Rankings and will look to successfully defend the Ada Mackenzie Challenge Trophy. The Nanoose Bay, B.C., native made headlines throughout Canada and the United States earlier this summer when she won the U.S. Women’s Senior Amateur Championship in Alaska, becoming the fourth Canadian to conquer the national title.

Judith Kyrinis, who is among the four Canucks to have completed the aforementioned feat, will challenge Stouffer in Manitoba. The Thornhill, Ont., native is no stranger to winning the championship, having previously done so twice before, with her most recent triumph in 2019.

2012 and 2015 champion, Terrill Samuel, is another name to lookout for this week in the Senior division. Samuel, a member of Weston Golf Club in Toronto, won the 2022 R&A Women’s Senior Amateur Championship in July, becoming the third Canadian behind Alison Murdoch and Diane Williams to win the coveted amateur event.

The winner of the Canadian Women’s Senior Championship will gain entry into the 2023 United States Golf Association Senior Women’s Amateur Championship at Troon Country Club in Scottsdale, Arizona.

The Interprovincial Team championship will return this year following two years of cancellation due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Team Ontario are the reigning champions, having bested Alberta by 15 strokes in 2019 to claim the Katherine Helleur Trophy. The team competition, featuring eight of Canada’s provinces this year, has been won a record 28 times by Ontario, including six in a row dating back to 2015.

For more information on the 2022 Canadian Women’s Mid-Amateur & Senior Championship click here.

Quick Links:
Player list
Tee times
Schedule of events
Course details
Championship history

Kathy Ziglo is the 2022 Ladies Lobstick champion after a back-and-forth match with Kim Brown Friday at Waskesiu Golf Course.

Ziglo was seeded second in the championship flight following two days of qualifying earlier in the week. She beat Lorie Boyle and Denise Hersikorn on route to the final with Brown. Ziglo lost to Brown in last year’s championship match.

She spoke to Golf Saskatchewan after the win.

The complete Lobstick results can be seen here.

Over 50 teams will tee it up today at Elk Ridge Golf Resort for the 2022 Saskatchewan Mixed Championship.

The alternate shot format event is a highlight on the Golf Saskatchewan calendar as couples, friends, and family members form teams and chase the title, or simply have a memorable weekend with their partner. Golf Saskatchewan Tournament Director Steve Ryde said once Elk Ridge was announced as the host for this event entry interest peaked.

“Elk Ridge is a premier facility in western Canada, for us to be able to come back to the resort after the change in management and host the mixed here where everything is right where you need, yeah we knew the site would be popular and we’re ecstatic to be at over 100 players. We know this will be an event to remember for years to come,” Ryde said.

Elk Ridge last hosted the Mixed Championship in 2018. Kathy Ziglo and Ian Larocque won the event that year, the duo are the reigning champions after winning the championship for the seventh time at Candle Lake this past year. Ziglo is coming off a Ladies Lobstick win on Friday as well.

Elk Ridge Head Professional Ryan Wells said welcoming golfers from across the province is exciting.

“We are very happy to be able to host the 2022 mixed provincials. Blaine (Fagnou) and his crew have the course in tournament shape for the PGA Tour Canada Elk Ridge Open at the end of June and have continued for all competitors of the Mixed Championship. The course will be a good challenge but also fair for all players. The community and staff are looking forward to showcasing our hospitality in all departments of the resort and all the changes the ownership group has done to this beautiful resort in it’s first year of reopening,” Wells said.

The event begins with a shotgun start at 11 a.m. Saturday. Day two will be a shotgun start at 8 a.m. on Sunday.

To find all the details on this year’s Mixed Championship click here.

The CP Women’s Open and the RBC Canadian Open draw hundreds of thousands of visitors to our country each year. As major contributors to the local economy, the cancellation of these tournaments due to the pandemic in 2020 and 2021 resulted in the significant loss of revenue for Golf Canada and the communities hosting the tournaments. The Government of Canada is committed to revitalizing major events and festivals and the hard-hit tourism industry, while strengthening communities and local economies.

Today, the Honourable Mona Fortier, President of the Treasury Board and Member of Parliament for Ottawa–Vanier, on behalf of the Honourable Helena Jaczek, Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario), announced an investment of nearly $4.4 million for Golf Canada to support the return of the CP Women’s Open and the RBC Canadian Open tournaments.

This non-repayable investment, made through the Major Events and Festivals Support Initiative (MFESI), is supporting the 2022 CP Women’s Open as well as the RBC Canadian Open, which took place in Toronto in June, to not only return to but exceed their pre-pandemic scale. With this support, Golf Canada is improving its digital presence, enhancing on-site offerings and accommodating more attendees.

This investment is ensuring that Golf Canada safely brings back visitors and succeeds in the future, while providing spillover economic and job benefits to businesses across the region.

Quotes

“The CP Women’s Open and RBC Canadian Open are great contributors to our region’s local economy. This Government of Canada investment supports the return and enhancement of Golf Canada’s Open events, bringing back hundreds of thousands of visitors to enjoy this major sporting event while generating revenue and jobs across southern Ontario.”

–The Honourable Helena Jaczek, Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario

“The CP Women’s Open and RBC Canadian Open have been missed during the past two years by many. The support announced today for Golf Canada will help bring these tournaments back even stronger while also creating important economic benefits and attracting tourists across the region.”

–The Honourable Mona Fortier, President of the Treasury Board and Member of Parliament for Ottawa–Vanier

“The CP Women’s Open and RBC Canadian Open attract hundreds of thousands of visitors each year to our country, generating significant revenues and creating jobs throughout the region. Today’s investment will not only help Golf Canada recover from the pandemic, but also position itself for future growth by bringing high-level talent, increased tourism revenues for local businesses and economic growth in the region.”

-The Honourable Pascale St-Onge, Minister of Sport and Minister for the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec

“Golf Canada is deeply appreciative of the support and vision of the Government of Canada in supporting the recovery and celebrated return of major festivals and events such as the CP Women’s Open and RBC Canadian Open. The investment in infrastructure afforded by FedDev Ontario’s support will have a profound impact on our spectator experiences and the long-term success of our National Open Golf Championships.”

–Garrett Ball, Chief Operating Officer, Golf Canada

Quick facts

• Golf Canada, the governing body for golf in Canada, represents more than 270,000 golfers and 1,400 member clubs across the country. 
• As an official event on the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour, the CP Women’s Open has been Canada’s national golf championship tournament since 1973. It has playing members from over 30 countries and has been televised in over 160 nations. The CP Women’s Open is the only Canadian event on the LPGA tour.
• RBC Canadian Open took place in Toronto between June 9-12, 2022, and attracted 132,000 attendees, a new tournament record.

• The Major Events and Festivals Support Initiative (MFESI) is a $200 million national fund to support major Canadian festivals and events that have been hit hard by the economic impacts of COVID-19 as they adapt and enhance their events. The program is delivered in southern Ontario by FedDev Ontario.
• Since 2015, the Government of Canada, through FedDev Ontario, has invested over $190 million in more than 180 projects in Ottawa, estimated to create over 8,000 jobs and maintain over 35,000 jobs.

Associated links

• FedDev Ontario
• Major Festivals and Events Support Initiative
• Golf Canada
• CP Women’s Open
• RBC Canadian Open

THORNHILL, Ont. – The 35^th playing of the Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship, presented by BDO, will play host to the top men’s amateur golfers in the country over the age of 25 this week at The Thornhill Club in Thornhill, Ont.

Monday’s practice round was spoiled by inclement weather, but all looks clear for a 7:24 a.m. start to round one on Tuesday morning. The national championship will conclude on Friday, August 26, where champions will be crowned in the Men’s Mid-Amateur and Mid-Master divisions, alike.

“The excitement continues to build around this year’s Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur championship,” said Tournament Director Adam Cinel. “An exceptional field of talent has joined us this week in Thornhill, and we expect they’ll bring the best out of each other as they compete for this prestigious title.”

The Thornhill Club, in their 100^th year of operation, has a rich history in championship play having previously hosted the 2014 Canadian Junior Girls Championship, the 2006 Canadian University/College Championship and the 2009 Toronto Star Women’s Amateur. In addition, the Stanley Thompson design was the site that played host to 1945 Canadian Open where Byron Nelson claimed his remarkable 11th victory in a row.

“The Thornhill Club is extremely excited to host the 2022 Canadian Men’s Mid-Am Championship, especially during our Centennial year,” said Todd McGrath, Head Golf Professional & Interim General Manager at The Thornhill Club. “The course is in excellent condition, and our Stanley Thompson design awaits some great play. All the best to the players and we look forward to crowning a champion at the end of the tournament.”

The inaugural Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship, held in 1987, was won by Graham Cooke at the Royal Montreal Golf Club in Île-Bizard, Qué. At the time, the tournament was played in the form of a match play competition, but in 2007, Golf Canada reverted to stroke play – a format that has since stuck.

The tournament is a 72-hole stroke play event, with a 36-hole cut to the low 70 players and ties. In the event of a tie at the end of four rounds, there will be a hole-by-hole playoff immediately following completion of 72 holes. The Mid-Amateur division will run concurrently with the Mid-Master division for players 40 and older. The Mid-Amateur champion will earn an exemption into the 2023 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship.

The Interprovincial Team championship will return this year following two years of cancellation due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Team Ontario are the reigning champions, having bested Québec by 12 strokes in 2019 to claim the R. Bruce Forbes Trophy. The team competition, first held in 1992, has been won a record 15 times by Ontario, including five in a row dating back to 2015.

A full field of 156 players is expected, headlined by three-time Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur champion, Garrett Rank. The Elmira, Ont. native won the event three years in a row between 2014 and 2016. Rank, an official in the National Hockey League, also finished as the runner-up in 2019. Following the week in Thornhill, the 34-year-old will join Johnny Travale and A.J. Ewart as part of Team Canada for the World Amateur Team Championships in Paris, France, August 29 – September 3. 

Defending champion Charles Fitzsimmons will be returning home to familiar territory this week. The 35-year-old played his junior golf at The Thornhill Club and won a club championship on these grounds in 2005. Fitzsimmons also has a University/College national championship to his name, from his time at Western University.

2021 Mid-Master champion Glenn Robinson is in the field this week and will bid to successfully defend his title at The Thornhill Club. The Middle Sackville, N.S., native defeated Ben Bandura in a playoff last year to capture the 40 and over title.

Other notable winners of the Men’s Mid-Am include Graham Cooke of Hudson, Que., who won it seven times between 1987 and 2002 and Stu Hamilton of Brampton, Ont., who won it on four separate occasions between 1990 and 1994. Together, the pair captured 11 of the first 20 championships played since the event was established in 1987.

Quick links:
Player list
Tee times
Schedule of events
Course details
Championship history & past champions

Kindersley’s Cort Tunall is the latest Saskatchewan golfer to attend university on a scholarhsip.

Tunall, 18, will attend the University of Houston-Victoria and compete in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for the Jaguars.

Tunall spoke with Golf Saskatchewan’s Clark Stork about his start in golf, development and road to Texas where he becomes the first Canadian to ever enroll in the facility.

For over four decades Ross Ethier has poured his life’s work into the Emma Lake Golf Course, the now 60-year-old is starting to visualize life without the course that’s been in the Ethier family since 1979.

Ray Ethier purchased the then nine-hole course when Ross was just 16 years old. According to Ross, the purchase for his golf-fan father was a place for him and his two brothers to work in the summer and then go to university in the winter. He stuck with the course; his two siblings went off on different career paths.

 The course was built in the 1960’s by Paul and Peter Kachur and opened in 1967. Ethier described the course as “swampy” with “two-by-12’s” running everywhere so you could walk. They started with drainage, updated the irrigation system in 1987, automated the system in 1990 and in 1995 the process of constructing the back nine began.

“I had an ariel photograph and I plotted it out with a compass,” Ethier said. “I walked through the bush followed by a cat, that’s how I cleared because it was solid bush. I knew what I wanted; we started off with a trail down the middle. At this time Weyerhaeuser was still open, they had to buy our wood, so this guy came out, cut it for the cost of the wood, he just kept going until I liked what I had.”

The one wish Ray had in the design was that the ninth and 18^th hole must meet back at the clubhouse eliminating the need for a snack shack on the course. Ethier said he was able to appease his father, but the work essentially doubled at the club.

“Equipment wise needs, golf carts, staffing, now we have 10 guys cutting grass. We have 25 staff, the service part, the restaurant isn’t a huge profitable thing but it’s something you need to provide,” he added.

One section of the labour force at Emma Lake is the grounds crew and marshals. Ethier said a steady group of guys will “marshal” and play golf the next. One of those men was David “Shorty” Hryhor who unfortunately passed away in 2016. To this day players teeing it up on hole one at the course will see the initials S-H written in a dollar sign format in the grass remembering Hryhor.

“He was wonderful character, everyone loved that guy,” Ethier said. “Just such a lovable guy and it was a bad shock.”

Ethier admits he’s spent a long time learning about the golf industry especially the turf care aspect. Aside from the constant changes of technology and the world Ethier has turned his focus over recent years in lengthening the course. Although popular and busy most years a familiar term continued to leave Ethier in the rough, that being that Emma Lake is a “nice little golf course.”

“There are so many courses around that never change anything, they maintain, may improve a tee box or something, but when you’re adding yards, and updating greens, the length change and expansion that way, nobody else is doing that. I guess for good reason those courses feel they don’t need to, but people get bored with the same course,” Ethier said.

The course has seen 100 yards added to holes three, five, seven, and eight. They have added 50 yards to hole six and hole 17 is now close to 560 yards. Bunkers have also been added to a couple 300-yard holes for some added difficulty.

As Ethier ponders what’s next with the course being open to a sale in the right situation he said their two tournaments that they host and support the Victoria Hospital Foundation in Prince Albert.

The four-person best ball event held in July raised $37,000 for the foundation this year. The annual Ray Ethier Tournament (a two-person event) is held every fall. Between the two tournaments Ethier said over $500,000 has been raised for the foundation.

“I want to be comparable; I want to be competitive,” he said. “The greens, the conditions, we do as good as job as anybody, we have a great layout, you never have the same shot twice, I tried to make you use every club in the bag, I hope I succeeded,” he concluded.