Swift Current’s Brennan Rumancik tied for the low round of the day and sits in a tie for third-place thanks to a five-under 65 in Friday’s round two of the Elk Ridge Open.

Rumancik vaulted 37 positions up the leaderboard after an opening round 73 on Wednesday. He said there was no pressure, he simply played his game on a tough Elk Ridge course.

“It was just a great day of golf,” he said to Golf Saskatchewan after his round. I hit my driver really good, it’s definitely the best that I’ve hit it. I’ve been really working on a little bit more of a cut shot off the tee, a little bit more of fade. I’m traditionally a draw ball striker, but I went with the cut shot to keep it in play and it worked out really good today.”

Rumancik hit every fairway allowing himself to attack the pins. He said his day on greens was just as good.

“Everything pretty much went down today, I hit a lot of good iron shots. I didn’t get it as close as I would have liked a lot of times, but it was windy, it was tough out there,” he said.

Rumancik sits six shots behind the leader, Raoul Menard who also shot 65 on Friday. He will play in the second last group alongside fellow Saskatchewanian Kade Johnson of Yorkton.

Johnson followed his opening round of 71 with 68 in round two, he’s tied for sixth.

Their group tees off at 10:26 a.m. on Saturday. The trophy presentation will be held in the afternoon.

The top amateur in the tournament is Tayden Wallin of Humboldt. The 2017 Saskatchewan junior champion is at plus-five, he’s tied for 30th.

The complete results can be seen here.

You can hear more from Rumancik below as he spoke with Golf Saskatchewan’s Clark Stork Friday evening.

Saskatoon’s Jackson Wingert is currently assisting in friend Alex Swinnerton’s success at the Elk Ridge Open as his caddy but in late August it was the Willows Golf and Country Club junior enjoying an experience on the course.

Wingert took part in the 12^th Junior Skills Challenge National Event at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley in Caledon, Ontario. Junior players from across Canada converged on the course to compete in putting, chipping, and driving competitions. Wingert said the event consisted of a two-player fun event on the first day, that unfortunately was rained out. On the day of the competition, he feels it went well leading him to a second-place finish in the boys 15 – 18 age group.

“It was pretty good, it could have been a lot better,” Wingert said. “I did well on the chipping, the driver wasn’t very good, and I lipped out every putt.”

He added that despite the skills challenge not being an actual round of golf the experience was similar in that every shot counts in a competition.

“You have to make sure every shot is good. We only got three shots in each event so you can’t make any mistakes, just like a tournament,” he explained.

Wingert has been a part of the Western Canada Summer Games team and enjoyed other golf experiences with potentially many more to come. He said taking in the event and playing a round at Osprey Valley was something special.

“It was really cool, just to go down there. All three of their courses down there, unbelievable how nice it is,” Wingert said.

He was able to qualify for the national event through a regional competition held in 2019 at Wildwood Golf Course in Saskatoon. Golf Saskatchewan is hosting a challenge on Saturday, Sept. 18 at The Willows. Wingert said the experience is positive and juniors of all skill levels are welcome.

“It’s just a really good, fun experience. It doesn’t matter if you win, it’s just different than actually playing in a round, I really enjoyed the local one and especially the one in Toronto,” he said.

As part of the agenda in Toronto, Team Canada coach Derek Ingram worked with the competitors for an hour on the driving range.

Professional golf may be in Alex Swinnerton’s future but his debut in a professional event will be hard to top.

The Saskatoon golfer, who calls Waskesiu home in the summer started shaky in round one of the Elk Ridge Open on Thursday, but the 17-year-old found his groove on the back nine and finished with a sparkling two-under, 68. He sits in a four-way tie for sixth, one shot behind a logjam at the top of the leaderboard at three-under par.

“Honestly, I didn’t have high expectations going into this, it’s my first pro event,” he said after the round. “Now that I have the first round out of the way, shooting two under, I can play a little conservative but attack pins when I can tomorrow.”

Swinnerton was one of just 14 players to shoot under par in round one. There are 114 players in the field. He is the low amateur after 18 holes and the top Saskatchewan player.

Friday’s projected cut line is plus-four. Swinnerton is well below that mark. Going into the Open and playing all three rounds was his goal however that’s not on his mind as of yet.

“I’m not really looking at the cut right now, I’m just going to play my own game. We will see where the day goes, make birdies when I can and keep it conservative,” Swinnerton added.

The Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada took notice of Swinnerton’s round posting on their social media channels (above). Swinnerton said possibly seeing his name on the Golf Channel leaderboard is quite exciting.

“I didn’t even think about that, that’s pretty cool. Definitely for my name to be on tv, that would be a pretty cool feeling,” he concluded.

After round one, eight Saskatchewan players are at or under the cut line. The complete first round results and tee times for Friday’s second round can be found here.

The Canadian Mid-Amateur and Senior Women’s Championship wrapped up last week in Bromont, Quebec and a pair of Saskatchewan players are reminiscing about the experience.

Rosetown’s Sue Skinner has participated in several national championships throughout her amateur career. She said going into the Saskatchewan Senior Championship her game needed some tweaking.

“Pivoting from playing my home course that has struggled with drought conditions to playing provincials on a prime course with great green conditions at The Legends, but I managed to adapt with extra practice time. Luckily for me the week before nationals I played at the Ladies Lobstick in Waskesiu, that provided me an opportunity to play a wonderful course with great green conditions. That was a perfect warmup and confidence booster before nationals,” Skinner told Golf Saskatchewan.

Skinner shot rounds of 83, 86, and 85 at the championship played at Golf Château Bromont, she placed in a tie for 21^st at 35-over par. Admittedly Skinner wants a few shots back from the 54-hole tournament but she did achieve her goal of a top-30 finish.

“The course set-up, length, and wet courses conditions the first couple days made for some tough conditions,” she said. “My first two rounds were pretty steady, not to say that I wouldn’t have liked to get some of those shots back, but I was pleased with my scores overall after day two. My final day I did struggle on the front nine with a couple blow up holes and penalty troubles but managed to finish strong, so I was delighted to turn the round around.”

Skinner added the overall experience was positive including the safety of the players as COVID-19 measures continue to be in place.

“In a word, it was amazing,” she said of the week. “The course was in a beautiful tourist area with ski hills, hiking and bike trails, a beautiful golf course on the foot of a mountain. The vistas were absolutely breathtaking. It’s always enjoyable to meet golfers from all over the country.”

You can hear more from Skinner below who chatted with Golf Saskatchewan’s Clark Stork after returning to Saskatchewan.

Regina golfer Shannon Scott echoed many of Skinner’s sentiments.

New to the provincial competition circuit Scott was ecstatic to make the trek to the Montreal area. She said despite keeping COVID-19 guidelines intact the event went off without a hitch.

“Even with COVID people were friendly and outgoing,” Scott said. “I think because everyone has been couped up for so long everyone wanted to talk and socialize. Even though there were no events to socialize everyone was very friendly, the service was awesome there.”

Making her national appearance debut, Scott admitted the course conditions were difficult, but she played hard and made the most of the opportunity.

“I felt sorry for them because they had three days of rain before we got there so the course was wet, we had very little roll on our drives. That made a couple of the long par fours hard to get on in two. It seemed to dry up and the people that used carts were able to drive on the course, so everything was timely and worked out well for everyone I thought,” Scott added.

The Royal Regina Golf Club member ended up in 54^th place at 57-over. Scott said she’s pleased with the result and has a new-found admiration for the game and hopes to work on her skills and return to nationals. An 11-handicap, she wanted to provide some comfort to other players on the fence of chasing opportunities like a Canadian Championship appearance.

“When I went to nationals it wasn’t just the low handicappers, there was others like me, around that 12. I was kind of in the middle of the pack. Just a few strokes difference I’d be up 20 places. If the opportunity is there, it doesn’t matter where your handicap is. It’s hanging out with a bunch of girls doing what you love,” she concluded.

You can hear more from Scott below, she also chatted with Golf Saskatchewan’s Clark Stork after returning to Saskatchewan.

For the first time since 2016, a PGA Canada Tour event is in Saskatchewan.

The Elk Ridge Open tees off for the first round Thursday at Elk Ridge Resort. On Monday the opening ceremony was held with several guests including tournament ambassador, Graham DeLaet.

The two-time Saskatchewan amateur champion (2005, 2006) officially opened the event with a ceremonial tee shot alongside Premier Scott Moe. DeLaet said seeing the Tour back in his home province is fantastic.

“It’s great to see this kind of turn out for something like this,” he said. “The Mackenzie Tour – PGA Tour Canada is where I got my start back in 2006 when I turned pro, obviously it has a special place in my heart. So does golf in Saskatchewan.”

Over 30 players from Saskatchewan will compete in the 54-hole event including newly designated professionals and amateur winners, Kade Johnson and Ty Campbell. DeLaet said the sport is strong in Saskatchewan and events like the Elk Ridge Open could be the break for some players.

“You see all these young Saskatchewan men teeing it up now trying to chase the dream. This is where it all starts,” he added.

Also, in the 114-player field is former Saskatchewan resident and 2011 amateur champion Troy Bulmer (above). He resides Vernon, British Columbia now but has become a regular on the Mackenzie Tour. Bulmer said playing an event back in his home province is special.

“It’s nice to be back home,” he said. I couldn’t be happier to be back, to see so many familiar faces in and around the area. It’s nice to be back at the (Prince Albert) National Park here at Elk Ridge. It’s just so nice to be back home and feel that Saskatchewan hospitality.”

The practice rounds are underway Wednesday. The first groups tees off at 7:30 a.m. for round one, a champion will be crowned on Saturday afternoon.

For all the details of the event click here.

Ada Dillon’s early start in golf isn’t any different than others, tagalong with mom and dad, start hitting shots, enjoying the game, and sticking with it.

This started for the 12-year-old Onion Lake resident at three years old at St. Walburg. Dillon said she started swinging her dad’s clubs but quickly realized she would be left-handed and needed her own. This year Dillon swung her lefty clubs at the Maple Leaf Junior Golf Mini Tour National Championship in Tsawwassen, British Columbia. She said there are a couple factors aiding her enjoyment of the game.

“I really like meeting new people, competing, and being outdoors,” she said about her love of the sport.

Dillon decided to expand her experiences on the course and compete on the MJT Mini Tour for the first time this season back in June. She said playing in a tournament was a great learning experience but a positive one.

“It was fun, very hard, but I had lots of fun and met so many new people,” she beamed.

Overall, she played in five tournaments over the summer including the national championship where she competed in the 11-12 girls’ division, she shot 199 over 36 holes. Aside from being her first time on an airplane, the trip was a highlight of the summer.

“It was very, very, fun,” she said. “The golf course was very, very, beautiful too.”

Dillon added that seeing the ocean and the mountains were also favourite memories from her time in B.C.

She said that golf will continue for her, and she hopes to compete at the junior provincials in the future. She also has a message for kids in small communities when it comes to golf, or other sports and activities.

“Don’t be afraid to try new things,” she concluded.

One of the most decorated Saskatchewan golfers in history, Saskatoon’s Brad Birnie will be inducted into the Saskatchewan Golf Hall of Fame on Sept. 18.

Birnie sat down with Golf Saskatchewan’s Clark Stork to discuss his illustrious career and the honour of being enshrined later this month.

The 50th installment of the Canadian Women’s Mid-Amateur and Senior Championship has come to a close in Bromont, Quebec.

Saskatchewan was represented at the event by Saskatoon’s Dianne Bethune, Shannon Scott of Regina, Rosetown’s Sue Skinner, and Robin Acton of Lloydminster.

Skinner led the locals with a 54-hole score of 35-over, 254. She tied for 21st.

Bethune, who plays out of Holiday Park Golf Course tied for 39th with a three-day score of 47-over par, 266.

Acton climbed 11 spots on the leaderboard Thursday in the final round thanks to an 86, her lowest round of the championship. She was 53-over par, 272, good enough for 46th.

Scott finished with a 91 in the final round at Golf Château Bromont. The Royal Regina Golf Club member was 54th at 57-over par, 276.

Nanoose Bay, British Columbia golfer Shelly Stouffer won the championship at seven-over par.

The complete results can be seen here.

*Golf Saskatchewan will hear from a couple of the ladies upon their return to Saskatchewan.

It was quite the summer to remember for 12-year-old Regina golfer Carter Schmidt.

Schmidt started playing golf when he was younger the same most do, going to the course with their parents and hitting a few shots here and there. He said the fact each day brings a different game is a big reason he likes the sport.

“I like that its all on me and that everyday is a new day,” he told Golf Saskatchewan recently.

A couple years ago Schmidt, who plays at the Wascana Country Club and Sherwood Forest near Regina, entered his first tournament at Sherwood. This year he played a couple junior events in Regina and Swift Current. What he also accomplished was not one, but two hole-in-ones. The first came back on May 18 at Wascana on the 98-yard, par-3, 11th hole.

“From the angle I couldn’t see the hole, I hit it well and said that might be in! My friend ran up to the hole and said, yes, it is in,” Schmidt explained.

His second ace was recorded on Aug. 21 at Sherwood on hole one. A par three, that was playing at 128 yards.

“I used an eight iron, as soon as it went in, I almost lost grip of my club,” Schmidt beamed.

Schmidt plans to keep playing competitive golf as he gets older but he’s also very fond of hockey too. Until he chooses which sport to play, he will compete in both. For now, he knows that he got fortunate this summer for the shots, the odds are 12,000 to one to record a pair of aces in a lifetime.

“It’s pretty hard, its just the luck of the game,” he said.

Justin Wood admitted he didn’t know what was in store for him at his first Canadian Mid-Amateur Championship that occurred Aug. 24 – 27 in Fort McMurray, Alberta.

The former Unity resident, who now resides in Saskatoon said he made good decisions all week at the Fort McMurray Golf Club, and it paid off with the highest finish for a Saskatchewan player at the event since Tyler Wright was fifth in 2017. Wood never shot higher than two-over par in four rounds and secured a bronze medal for his efforts.

“I didn’t really have much of an expectation, good or bad,” he told Golf Saskatchewan this week. “I was just going to see what the course was like and see what happened. I’ve been hot and cold all summer, going into a couple tournaments where I was feeling like I was playing pretty good I didn’t play very well and then ones I was going in playing bad I played pretty well. I thought I would just go into my first mid-am and have some fun.”

His approach worked well, the 26-year-old finished at five-over, 293 (72, 73, 74, 74). He tied Alberta golfer Matt Williams for third. The winner, Charles Fitzsimmons won the championship at just one-under par. Wood said he kept the golf ball in play and never really got into trouble at the treelined course.

“I played really smart out there, I didn’t take any unnecessary risks for myself. I hit a lot of iron shots into the middle part of the greens or into the fat part of the greens and just tried to par the course to death. I knew the tough pins; I did a really good job of using the pin sheets and just knowing where to leave it. I didn’t make as many birdies as I needed to win but I definitely kept most of the big numbers and a lot of bogeys off the card,” Wood said.

He said the response from the Saskatchewan golf community has been fantastic, including his hometown of Unity and in Saskatoon. Now that he can look back on the accomplishment Wood said he’s proud of his performance and hopes to make a run again in the future.

“I appreciate it a bit more now that I can relax and don’t have to hit anymore shots,” he laughed. “It was a fun four days. I really think too much about where I was at in the tournament, I just tried to treat it like I was playing at the Sask. am, like I belonged in the final group. I was pretty nervous on the first couple holes in the third and fourth rounds being in the final group but after that I was pleasantly surprised with how comfortable I was in that position. Hopefully that leads to some more of that kind of stuff in the future. That would be awesome,” he concluded.

More from Wood below:

Another Western Saskatchewan born player saw his name near the contenders at the championship in Fort McMurray. Kindersley’s Kyle Wiebe shot 12-over par, 300 at the event and placed solo in 12^th overall.

“Going into Fort McMurray I was feeling alright with my game and then you get there and play a practice round and you see how tough it is, you are thinking this will be a true test of golf,” Wiebe said. “Luckily I was able to keep it together for the most part other than about five or six bad swings. It was a fun week.”

Wiebe opened with a solid 74, lost a little traction in the middle two rounds shooting 78 and 77 but he rebounded fantastically on the final day with a 71, one of just five players in the field under par in the last round.

“The last day, it came together on the range, I was like okay, we’re finally loose, feeling good to go. Mentally I was right into it for a final round performance, and I made it happen,” he explained.

Over the last few years Wiebe has climbed the amateur ranks in Saskatchewan, going from 47^th at the 2018 amateur championship all the way to a fourth-place finish in 2020. He said his showing in his first Canadian Mid-Amateur Championship last week gives him confidence to compete with the best Saskatchewan and the nation has to offer.

“I have had a couple people ask me that here, 12th that’s pretty good national wise. When you think about it, a lot of good players in that age bracket. It’s hard to put in words when you think about it but yeah, I am proud of what I did,” he said.

More from Wiebe below:

Among the 13 Saskatchewan players making the cut in Fort McMurray was Michael Smith from Saskatoon. A self-proclaimed late bloomer Smith has only been competing a few years. He said to make the Saskatchewan team this year and perform well at nationals was extremely satisfying.

“I went from, to be honest in my late 20’s I was a 10 handicap and then I started going to Clinton (Schmaltz) at The Willows and really worked hard on my game. I’d have never expected to make the team this quickly, its good. It is definitely a confidence booster,” he explained.

Smith started the event with an 87 and never predicted he’d be around for the final two rounds, however a 77 on day two kept him in the field after the cut. He finished with a 76 and 78 to conclude the championship at 30-over par, 318. He was 51^st.

“Fort McMurray is one of those courses where a guy from Sask. doesn’t have a lot of reps in terms of difficulty of the course and the pressure of playing an event like that. I hope to do well but it doesn’t always pan out that way,” he said.

He feels that with more experience (this is his second national event) he can compete in these tournaments and not just make cuts.

“It kind of motivates me to get better and just keep working on my game and hopefully eventually I can start contending in events like this,” Smith added.

More from Smith below:

For Birch Hills golfer, Jeff Whitfield, his first national appearance was also a very positive and eye-opening experience. He said Golf Canada made the event very welcoming and he enjoyed his time in northern Alberta.

“It was good, it was very good,” he said. “This was the first time I’ve been to a Canadian event, so it was well worth going. I didn’t play as well as I wanted to but it was a very good experience. It was well put on and all the other guys from Saskatchewan were really great guys to go with.”

Whitfield opened with a 77 before shooting 88, 86, 83 for a four-day total of 334. He said the Fort McMurray Golf Club had a layout not many Saskatchewan courses can emulate so making the cut was a goal he attained.

“You definitely want to make the cut, you don’t want to make it on the number, especially when the number is 21,” he joked. “The goal was to make the cut for sure and do as well as you can, it was tough. Coming from the prairie courses, Elk Ridge is probably the closest to that you’d see for tree lines. It was incredibly frustrating at times, but everybody had to play the same course. It was a good test.”

Like all the competitors, the response back in Saskatchewan was positive on their performances which included 13 of 16 players playing all four rounds. Whitfield reiterated the fact his home course was very proud of his representation at the championship.

“For sure, everybody was throwing congratulations that I talked to. I haven’t made it to a men’s night, I’m sure my score will come up. Its good. Everybody else sems to be from the big fancy clubs but there are some really great nine-hole tracks in Saskatchewan that get left out and Birch Hills is one of them,” Whitfield added.

More from Whitfield below: