The 2025 Saskatchewan Junior Golf Championships begin Tuesday at the Lloydminster Golf and Curling Centre (LGCC).

This is the first time since 2008 the course has played host to the championships, 110 players are registered.

The overall under-19 champions will receive exemption into the Canadian junior championships, plus several other age divisions will be contented all the way to under-12.

Manager of Golf Operations Marty Wheaton is a huge supporter of junior golf and is excited to welcome the players.

“This is a fantastic week for junior golf and golf in general here at the LGCC.,” Wheaton said.

“We have hosted many junior events such as the Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour and last year’s Saskatchewan Summer Games, but this event is the top players of all age groups. We are ecstatic to host them.”

Tee times will begin with the Junior Women’s Championships at 7 a.m. The Junior Boys Championships will start at 8 a.m.

Ella Kozak of Yorkton is the reigning junior women’s champion, she aged out last summer.

Defending junior men’s title holder Ryan Mosher is in the field.

The event will conclude, weather pending, on Thursday afternoon.

For draws, results, and more information on the Saskatchewan Junior Golf Championships click here.

What a week it’s been for Jesse Gibson on the golf course.

Gibson, 33, won the Reliance Gregg’s Central Amateur Championship in late June. Sunday he tied for second at the Concorde Group Corp Saskatoon Men’s Open Golf Championship while taking the top amateur prize. PGA Professional Phil Jonas won the event hosted at Riverside Country Club (RCC) and Holiday Park Golf Course on Saturday and Sunday.

Gibson was a star junior player in Saskatchewan, attended a Division 1 school in the NCAA before moving to a Division 2 program. Following that he returned to Saskatoon and left golf behind.

In 2024 he returned to the competitive circuit at the Saskatchewan Amateur Championships, he missed the amateur cut by five shots, his 224 at the Royal Regina Golf Club would have had him inside the top 22 in the Mid-Am (25+) Men’s Championship is entered.

He spoke with Golf Saskatchewan following the two impressive finishes in the Bridge City.

It was an extra special stop on the Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour (MJT) at Tor Hill Golf Course on June 28 and 29 in northwest Regina.

Not only did over 85 top juniors from Saskatchewan, Alberta, and Manitoba travel to the Queen City for the 36-hole event, Carla and Trever Crozier were on hand to welcome the players at registration. The Crozier’s daughter Hallie played her first MJT event at Tor Hill several years ago before building an impressive resume leading to college at Ferris State University. Hallie has since suffered a brain injury. The family wanted to be at the event to welcome the players and thank many for the support since Hallie’s incident down in Michigan last year.

On the course, two junior women stole the show and added titles to their season.

Youran Zhu of Saskatoon won her third event of the year taking the under-15 women’s age group by nine shots over Alyxa Melsted of Wynyard. The two have competed hard against each other all season, Melsted has one win in Swift Current this season, Zhu’s only second place showing.

Newcomer Callie Glover is playing well too, the Foam lake golfer was third.

Tayla Perry of Regina won the women’s 15 to 19 age group with an impressive showing of 72 and 77, 10 shots better than Yuna Lee, also of the Queen City.

Warman player Tina Liu was in the hunt as well placing third at 164.

The under-13 men’s division was won by Hudson Deibert of Regina. The 10-year-old carded rounds of 74 and 79. His 153 was 18 strokes better than second place golfer Cohen Bridge of Corman Park.

Rising star Jun Lee has another title. The Royal Regina Golf Club shooter held off 21 other competitors to win the under-15 men’s age group in a playoff over Austin Nesbitt of Pilot Butte. Each player had a score of 144 after 36 holes.

Melville’s Keaton Kreklewich placed third with rounds of 79 and 74.

The champions in the under-17 and under-19 men’s age groups were won by a brother duo from Strathmore, Alta.

Connor Riou won the under-17 division with a score of 150, just three shots better than Humboldt’s Tryce Wallin and Kolton Spenst of Saskatoon.

Parker Riou won the men’s overall competition with a score of 145 (73,72).

Hudson Heistad of Avonlea was second in the under-19 category at 155. Isaac Shanks of Regina rounded out the podium in the junior age bracket.

To see the complete results of the event click here.

The next MJT event is July 28 and 29 at Moon Lake Golf and Country Club.

The next Order of Merit Tour on the junior circuit is the Notah Begay III Saskatchewan Championship at Dakota Dunes Golf Links starting on Wednesday, June 2.

All photos courtesy Jeff Chambers.

Ella Kozak of Yorkton is the 2025 Regina Ladies Open champion.

The Reigning Saskatchewan junior champion put on a show for two days at one of the largest women’s events of the year shooting 74 on day one at the Wascana Country Club and Tuesday (June 24) the Deer Park Golf Course member shot a stealthy 68 at Murray Golf Course to win the event in her debut playing in the historical championship.

Kim Walker (Regina) continues her excellent start to the season, she carded a 79 at her course on Monday. Walker shot 80 on day two at the Murray. She did win the senior division.

Rounding out the top three was Crystal Piero, also of the Queen City. She posted back-to-back 83’s to place on the podium.

Kim Ryan won the Marguerite Slack Award for Net 65+ player, her net score of 142 (70-72) was four better than Sherry Banadyaga.

Swift Current player Kathy Hopfner was the super-senior champion. The Elmwood Golf Club member also took that category last week at the Saskatoon Women’s Open at The Willows Club.

To see the complete results of the Open click here.

The 2025 Saskatoon Women’s Open was held at The Willows Club on Monday and Tuesday with 65 players in the field from across Saskatchewan.

This year’s field size was increased by over 50 percent from last year’s event.

The overall champion was Regina’s Kim Walker who took her second straight event following a win at the Ladies Northern in Prince Albert earlier in June. The Wascana Country Club member posted rounds of 72 and 74 to win by five strokes over Kim Brown of the Bridge City. Kathy Ziglo and Elanne Krainyk joined Walker and Brown in the final group and tied for third place.

Ziglo was awarded the senior title, Kathy Hopfner of Swift Current won the super-senior age group and Rose Halbach was the low net champion.

To see all the results click here.

Walker spoke after the win praising the support for the event and her thoughts ahead of the Regina Ladies Open next week.

It was a round to remember Sunday for Saskatoon’s Grace Odnokon at the 2025 NextGen Prairie Championships in Warman.

Playing round three of the Golf Canada event, Odnokon and tournament champion Maggie Zhang shot 66 in the final round to set a women’s course record in the process. Odnokon’s record breaking round vaulted the Saskatoon Golf and Country Club junior eight places up the leaderboard into a tie for fifth place and an exemption into the Canadian Juniors Girls Championships later this summer.

Chloe Wills of Kyle and Regina player Tayla Perry both made the cut at the event, Golf Canada’s first stop ever at The Legends Golf Club. Wills tied for ninth wit a score of 233, Perry was 12th at 237.

Reigning NextGen Prairie champion and Saskatchewan junior title holder Ryan Mosher tied for second place in the junior men’s championship.

The Riverside Country Club member also earned a national position, but he had already earned that with his performance at the NextGen Western Championship earlier in June.

Also gaining an exemption into the Canadian Junior Boys Championships was Dane Giesbrecht. The Warman product and Legends member tied for fifth thanks to a third-round 70 on Sunday.

In all 19 Saskatchewan junior men made the cut at the event.

Odnokon and Mosher spoke after the champonships.

To see much more about more the NextGen Prairie Championships from Golf Canada click here.

After two finals losses including last year, Payton Ochitwa has his first Men’s Lobstick Championship.

The Saskatoon product was the eighth seed in the championship flight bracket, and tied for 18th overall in the Lobstick Open to start the week, the former Saskatoon Golf and Country Club player and staffer went to work on the field.

He defeated Jay Smith, Shaun Dunphy, Cory Selander, Shawn Loney, and finally Scott Mackay in the final match on Saturday.

To see the complete results from the Men’s Lobstick click here.

He spoke to Golf Saskatchewan following the victory in Waskesiu.

WARMAN, Sask. – The Legends Golf Club in Warman, Sask. gears up to host its first-ever Golf Canada event for the playing of the 2025 NextGen Prairie Championship, June 12-15.

The NextGen Championship series returns to the province for the first time since 2023 and welcomes 120 of western Canada’s best Junior golfers – 90 Junior Boys and 30 Junior Girls – for 54 holes of competition. The field will be reduced to approximately the top 52 individuals in the Junior Boys division and top 17 players in the Junior Girls division after 36 holes, with the final round taking centre stage on Sunday, June 15.

Similarly to previous stops on the NextGen Championship circuit this season, exemptions into each of the Canadian Junior Championships will be awarded to the tournament’s top finishers. In the Junior Boys Division, the top six players, including the low medalist following the conclusion of the final round, will earn exemptions into the Canadian Junior Boys Championship set for August 11-15 at Gowan Brae Golf & Country Club in Bathurst, N.B.

In the Junior Girls division, the top six finishers from the event, including ties, will help round out the field at this year’s Canadian Junior Girls Championship taking place August 12 – 16 at Club de golf Sainte-Marie in Sainte Marie, Que. The top two players in both divisions will also earn exemptions into the 2025 Canadian U15 Championship set for August 27-29 at Pitt Meadows Golf Club in Pitt Meadows, B.C.

Notably, the event will also serve as one of three qualifiers to make up Team Saskatchewan for the Canadian Summer Games set to take place August 18-22 at Bally Haly Country Club in St. John’s, N.L. A pair male and female players above the age of 19 will each qualify for the event.

Playing in his home province, Ryan Mosher of Saskatoon, Sask. will look to successfully defend his title after definitively taking the event by three strokes in 2024. The NextGen Prairie Championship will be Mosher’s second appearance of the Championship season, having played in the NextGen Western Championship at Trestle Creek Golf & Resort earlier this month.

Chase Lassman of Parkland County, Alta., Lucas Sturgeon of Saskatoon, Sask., and Ryan Badger of Edmonton, Alta. will also be in the NextGen Prairie Championship field just weeks after competing against one another in a playoff to decide the NextGen Western Championship.

Yeeun (Jenny) Kwon of Vancouver, B.C. will headline the Junior Girls’ division this week and will be vying for her second NextGen Championship victory this month after claiming her maiden title at Trestle Creek Golf & Resort.

“We are so proud and excited to welcome the NextGen Prairie Championship to the Legends Golf Club – partnering with Golf Canada is proving to be a wonderful opportunity,” said Davidson Matyczuk, head golf professional, Legends Golf Club. “The Legends has been a strong supporter of junior golf in Saskatchewan and Manitoba and with this Championship, we are now able to extend that support to the national stage. We are certainly looking forward to welcoming everyone to Warman and the Legends Golf Club this week.”

The Legends Golf Club offers a unique caveat of being a links-style course – the first layout of its kind on the 2025 Championship season. Operating since 2011, the course has become one of the premier golf experiences in Saskatchewan and has hosted provincial amateur championships at the junior, mid-amateur and professional level.

Though the course’s wide and undulating fairways offer a sense of comfort for players off the tee, thick patches of fescue strenuously defend the property and force players to rethink their club choices on every hole.

“Competitors should expect a fair but challenging test of their skills, course management and mental toughness to be successful,” continued Matyczuk. Bunkers at nearly every hole location and water lurking on 10 of the 18 holes makes approaching the green a challenge, pairing up formidably with a series of tight pin locations to challenge the short game of those who dare to be aggressive at The Legends Golf Club.

“Historically having success in a Next Gen Championship will open up new opportunities and provides validation that they can compete amongst the best in Canada. We are confident that our links-style layout will identify the top performers from the field of 30 Girls and 90 Boys as they compete for not only the individual titles, but for exemptions into the Canadian Junior Girls Championship and the Canadian Junior Boys Championship later this summer.”

To follow the live leaderboard of the NextGen Prairie Championship throughout the week, please click here.

About the NextGen Championships

The NextGen Championships are a high-performance junior golf series which totals six competitions. From May to July, six championships will take place across Canada where the region’s best junior golfers will compete to earn exemptions into their respective 2025 national junior championships. NextGen Championships provide junior players an opportunity to develop and showcase their skills at the highest level of tournament golf.

Marc Sweeney of Saskatoon is the winner of the 2025 Men’s Lobstick Open.

The Saskatoon product fought from behind on day two Tuesday at Waskesiu Golf Course with a solid 66 holding off Danny Klughart by one shot.

Ryan Wells and Scott Mackay tied for third.

After day one everyone in the field of 80 players was chasing Prince Albert’s Cory Selander. The Cooke Municipal Golf Course member tied Shawn Strelau’s course record of 63 in round one on Monday. Selander shot 76 in the second round and tied for fifth with Connor Scissons.

Selander is the top seed in the Lobstick bracket in the championship flight. In his first match on Wednesday afternoon he takes on his father Cliff Selander.

For complete results and details about the Lobstick which wraps up Saturday can be found here.

Myles Johnson has returned to Saskatchewan for the summer with some extra luggage from his second year at the University of Victoria.

The Martensville product and Vikes golf team member competed in the Canadian University/College Championship at Rivershore Golf Links in Kamloops, B.C. from June 3 to 6, the team claimed the silver medal and Johnson placed 47th overall.

The Riverside Country Club member opened with an 85 in the first round , but responded nicely over the final three days shooting 73, 78, and 76 moving up 21 spots on the leaderboard on the final day.

UBC won the men’s championship. Johnson was the only Saskatchewan player in the field of 97 players from.17 different schools.

He spoke with Golf Saskatchewan following the event and his plans for the summer before heading back to Victoria in August.