The NextGen Prairie Championship is coming to The Legends Golf Club in Warman this year, the first Golf Canada event ever hosted by the course.
Almost 120 players from five provinces, and 36 players from Saskatchewan are on the pending registration list, Golf Canada started taking entries on Feb. 19. The 54-hole championship runs from June 13 – 15. Legends General Manager and Davidson Matyczuk said the club is delighted to host the event.
“We are very excited to have been given the opportunity to host this Golf Canada event,” Matyczuk said. “We can’t wait to welcome everyone to Warman and the Legends Golf Club this June. It’s going to be a great event for both the juniors in our province as well as those traveling from other provinces to participate.”
The Legends is a par-72 championship caliber course that plays over 7,200 yards from the back tees. Matzczuk said the competitors are all talented players and will be tested by the course in various aspects.
“The players should expect to see a very strong field with the top juniors from Saskatchewan competing alongside some of the top junior golfers in Canada. The Legends has a history of identifying worthy champions as proven by the list of winners in previously held provincial championships. We expect the course will provide a fair but challenging test where their skills, course management, and mental toughness will all be required to be successful,” he added.
The NextGen Prairie Championship rotates between Saskatchewan and Manitoba each year. In 2023 Nipawin’s Evergreen Golf Course hosted the event over three days in June. Killarney, Man. product Cala Korman and Alberta resident Kye Fisher were the champions that year. Both players are now Division 1 collegiate players in the United States. Matyczuk, a longtime professional that has played around the world on several professional tours. He said events such as the NextGen Championship could be key in any junior golfer’s development.
“A win in any NextGen Championship has proven to be huge. It is often a turning point in a player’s development as well as opening new opportunities going forward. Events like this are a fantastic means for individuals to begin to validate their skills and building their own personal belief that they can compete amongst the best Canada. I’m hopeful that for many players (and specifically the Saskatchewan players) that this event might become a defining experience. For some it comes in the form of a win or earning an exemption into the Canadian championships, but even if it doesn’t, this event hopefully lights a spark and gives them the confidence to keep advancing towards their individual goals,” Matyczuk added.
The NextGen Prairie Championship will also be part of the Canada Summer Games qualifying process in Saskatchewan. Golf Saskatchewan will release the entire qualification process in March.