On Feb. 4 TaylorMade released the Stealth lineup of drivers to the world with rave reviews.

Golf Saskatchewan joined TaylorMade Territory Sales and Marketing Manager for Saskatchewan Mike Langin at the Ramada Golf Dome to showcase the Stealth Plus, Stealth, and Stealth HD drivers.

To book a custom fitting in your area visit TaylorMade’s website.

The final spring season of Alex Schmidt’s collegiate golf career got off on the right foot this week.

The Lewis-Clark State College Warrior senior shot rounds of 80, 82, and 77 for a 54-hole total of 239, plus-23 at the Ottawa University Arizona Sterling Grove Shootout in Surprise, Arizona on Monday and Tuesday.

The Regina products performance led her team to a third-place finish in the tea competition while Schmidt tied for fourth, just 10 strokes back of the winner. Warriors Head Coach Brady Campbell said on the Lewis-Clark website that Schmidt continues to play great golf for the school.

“It was great to see the girls come back today and forget yesterday,” Campbell said. “Alex continued to do what she has done all year with another top 5. Deana and Kyla gave us some solid rounds”.

The Warriors will be in Henderson, Nevada from March 15 and 16 for the Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate event for the teams next competition.

Kindersley’s Brody Istace was in action again this week for his second event of the spring with the Columbia International University (CIU) Rams.

The 36-hole CIU Invitational was held at the Columbia Country Club in Blythewood, South Carolina on Feb. 21 and 22. Istace tied for 13^th with a two-round score of 158 (80, 78). The winner was plus-6.

As a team the Rams finished second behind Spartanburg Methodist College.

The school’s next event is the Truett McConnell Golden Tiger Invitational on March 13 in Gainesville, Georgia.

The odds of hitting a hole-in-one is 12,500 to one, 14 percent of golfers will hit another ace in their playing career, but what about the odds of putting a one on your card in back-to-back days?

Numbers weren’t readily available to break down the timeline percentages for two aces in a two round or day span but add Warman’s Dan Hesje to the list of who has accomplished the incredible feat.

Hesje, a member at The Legends Golf Course in Warman dropped his tee shot on hole 15 (93 yards) at Harbor Golf Club & Resort on July 17, 2021. The 37-year-old was playing in Elbow with his father. The next day at The Legends, Hesje hit the “perfect” drive on the 343-yard par four eighth hole for his second hole-in-one while playing with a group of good friends.

Both days provided some fantastic moments for the lifetime player and has fueled his fire to take the game more seriously once again.

Hesje spoke with Golf Saskatchewan to relive the memories from two amazing days in July at two marquee courses.

Kindersley’s Brody Istace has begun the spring season of his senior year at Columbia International University.

The Rams men’s golf team was in action this week at The Golf Club at Sanctuary in Waverly, Georgia for the Coastal Georgia Men’s Winter Invitational. Istace shot rounds of 85, 81, and 82 to finish in a tie for 68^th place at plus-32, 248.

As a team the Rams finished in 10^th place out of 15 schools.

Istace and the Rams will now prepare for their home event in Columbia, South Carolina for the CIU Invitational from Feb. 20 to 22.

More and more Saskatchewan student-athletes will begin their seasons in the days ahead including:

• Roman Timmerman (Southern Arkansas University) | Feb. 28 *Timmerman began his season last week
• Will Danielson (Milsaps College) | Feb. 28
• Alex Schmidt (Lewis-Clark State College) | Feb. 21
• Autumn Neiszner (Keiser University) | Feb. 21

Wawota’s Theoren West has committed to play college golf at Bellevue University in Nebraska beginning this spring.

West, 18, graduated last June and has been working steady since but on advice from his parents he was encouraged to pursue a post-secondary education. West put together a Next College Student Athlete (NCSA) account and he said the process to commit to Bellevue was swift.

“After golf season I was just working and dad told me I have to ‘get off my butt’ and find a place to go to school,” he said to Golf Saskatchewan. “I made an account on NCSA and within an hour of being on it the coach called me and asked if I wanted to come down. I went down, I liked it, so I committed.”

The Bellevue Bruins compete in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) and have seen a god amount of success so far in the 2021-22 season. The team has six wins already this year out of 11 events dating between September and October of last year. The school also enters many events under coach Rob Brown. West said the winning culture and size of the campus were key factors in his quick decision.

“Number one is how small the school is, there is only 500 people on campus and that’s more comfortable for me because that’s where I come from. They play a lot really good courses like Whistling Straights and TPC Deere Run, and courses like that so that made me excited. They have a really good team and do a lot of winning so I like that too,” West added.

West plans to study business at the school, but he admitted that could change.

The turnaround is quick for the Golf Kenosee member as well. He will leave home on Feb. 25 and hopes to compete in the schools first event of 2022 at the Friends University in Wichita, Kansas on March 7 – 8.

You can hear more from West in his interview with Golf Saskatchewan’s Clark Stork.

The city of Yorkton is committing $7.6 million to construct a new clubhouse for Deer Park Municipal Golf Course.

At the city’s Jan. 31 council meeting the group voted to move ahead with the project that should be completed in time for the 2023 golf season.

Golf Saskatchewan sat down with Yorkton Mayor Mitch Hippsley and Director of Recreation and Community Darcy McLeod to discuss the construction and the excitement of replacing the current building that dates back 60 years.

A younger, committed, driven group of Luseland area residents with assistance from a lot of know-how are revitalizing Luseland Bells Acres Golf and Country Club.

Curtis Reschny farms the land near the nine-hole course and lives in the community of 600 people on with a view of the course that opened in 1963. He told Golf Saskatchewan that the recent conversion of their sand greens to synthetic grass has lit a spark among the town and area.

“After seeing the enthusiasm from the people in the area and from the community after we did the greens its really motivated us to carry on and keep doing what we’re doing,” Reschny said.

Talks of transitioning the greens to synthetic grass began with thoughts of replacing just a few at a time over a longer period, but on the advice of secretary-treasure Ryley Magnus who has a financial background suggested the club fundraise and replace them all. The funds raised before construction began and the project was paid off with monumental support according to Reschny.

“We have had fantastic support from the community and surrounding area, it’s been unreal,” he beamed. “The support has been phenomenal; people are happy to see things going on.”

Next on the club’s wish list is an upgrade to the irrigation system that the group hopes will build more momemtun coming off their busiest season ever. With upgrades to the watering system the club will also touch up around the greens.

“We’re doing hydro-grass seeding around the new greens, same as any construction site, they had their skid-steers digging out the old sand greens. Around the greens is not the way it should be so this spring we have a contractor company lined up to hydro-seed some nice grass and get around the greens cleaned up,” he said.

Last year the club also put some care into the clubhouse with fresh paint, flooring, some appliances and other minor upgrades. This year the plan is to construction new washrooms to accommodate the growing crowds for men’s night and everyday play.

The course purchased two carts for rentals that were very popular. More carts are eventually planned according to Reschny.

In the past the club has hosted a ‘Bosses Night Out’ event that Reschny described as a community Christmas party. Due to COVID-19 the event is on a two-year hiatus. An online auction is currently underway on Facebook that features over 100 donated items. The auction closes Saturday night at midnight. It’s expected to raise over $30,000, well above their goal. Overall, the future is bright at Bells Acres and Reschny is confident the club will continue to be a vibrant, key meeting place for the town and region.

“This little community is getting more young people sticking around so they’ve joined the committee and they are eager. These young people are ambitions, they want to improve it, it’s been really good. I’m not taking anything away from what anybody, but the young blood has been really great.”

Roman Timmerman has kicked off his final spring college golf season with a solid showing at the Houston Classic.

The Southern Arkansas University (SAU) senior put a 54-hole score of 223 together to finish in a tie for 14^th at the event that concluded on Tuesday. The Saskatoon product and 2021 Saskatchewan Men’s Amateur champion shot 75 in the opening round Monday morning. Timmerman followed that with a 78 in round two, also on Monday. Tuesday he caped the event with a 70 to help lead the Muleriders to a seventh-place finish as a team at the Golf Club of Houston in Humble, Texas.

The SAU men’s golf team will compete again on Feb. 28 and March 1 at the Broncho Invitational in Oklahoma City.

Several other Saskatchewan student-athletes will begin their spring seasons in the next few weeks.

For more details on the players competing south of the border click here.

The governing body of amateur golf in Saskatchewan is announcing another event for the 2022 schedule.

Golf Saskatchewan will hold a 36-hole, Four-Ball championship on May 21 and 22 at Valley Regional Park and Golf Course. Golf Saskatchewan Manager of Championships Steve Ryde said the organization is excited to launch this team event.

“For over half a century, Golf Saskatchewan has run successful team events such as the Women’s Rosebowl and the Mixed Championships. To bring back another team event, open to all genders, is great for golf in the province. Our individual stroke-play events focus on high level golf but opening a new avenue to compete for a provincial title with someone close to you is extra special,” Ryde said.

The stroke play format for the two-day event over the Victoria Day weekend consists of a two-person team, with the lowest score from either team member counting for their team score.

“Similar provincial events have been played in the past, but this is a new focus on a popular format. You now have the ability to lean on your partner.” Executive Director Brian Lee said.

Valley Regional Head Professional Conner McGill worked in collaboration with Ryde on the finalizing of the event. McGill said he’s wanted to bring a Golf Saskatchewan tournament to the course that’s highly regarding among the Saskatchewan golf community.

“Obviously it’s exciting to host a new event,” McGill said to Golf Saskatchewan. “We always hear people say, I’ve never played there before, so it’s nice to try to attract a few people that haven’t played Valley Regional before. I’ve always wanted to host a Golf Saskatchewan event; I just wasn’t sure if it was possible without a driving range. It’s something a little more, not just a one-player stroke-play event, it’s kind of perfect.”

Valley Regional is a “hidden gem” located between Saskatoon and Prince Albert. The course features tree lined fairways, rolling terrain, and a “peaceful” atmosphere of a small Saskatchewan town. Camping is available at the park. McGill said players will be pleased with spending the May long weekend at Valley Regional.

“We’re going to try to have the course in as good as shape as possible for such a big event. We will just keep doing what we do daily with the customer service and hopefully the weather holds off and it’s good in May,” McGill said.

Registration opens for all events on April 15.

Sask Sport has named Chase Pochylko their 2021 Youth Male Athlete of the Year.

Nominated by Golf Saskatchewan, the 17-year-old Saskatoon product was named the winner during the amateur sport association’s virtual awards gala on Thursday. Pochylko had several people to thank upon receiving the honour.

“A huge thanks to my parents for their endless support throughout my journey in golf,” Pochylko said. “They’ve just helped me so much through the years. I’d like to thank all my coaches in my junior golf career. I’d like to thank Sask Sport for putting on this ceremony and just helping grow the amateur sports scene here in Saskatchewan.”

Pochylko capped a great season that included a trip to both the amateur and junior Canadian championships, an appearance at the Elk Ridge Open, a win at the Maple Leaf Junior Tour National Championship, and the 2021 Saskatchewan Order of Merit junior men’s championship.

“I’d like to thank all my friends and family who have supported me so much over the years. It really helps me stay motivated in pursuing my dream,” Pochylko concluded.