Team Alberta leads Inter-Provincial Team Championship by three over Team British Columbia
CALEDON, Ont. – There is a familiar name atop the leaderboard, as two-time defending champion Shauna Liu is among four players tied for the lead at the 2026 Canadian Junior Girls Championship, presented by BDO at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley (Heathlands) in Caledon, Ont.
Liu, of Maple, Ont. got off to a tough start in Tuesday’s opening round with three consecutive bogeys through holes two through five. Liu made the turn at 2-over but carded four birdies on the back nine including one at no. 18 to finish with a 2-under 69.
“I didn’t start off too great, but I was able to figure it out with my shots and sink quite a few putts coming in,” said Liu following her round. Liu added that her ball striking and putting “saved her” on Tuesday.
The two-time defending champion and Team Canada NextGen member is in familiar territory, and while she has won this event before, she still approaches every tournament the same way.
“I have a sense of I know I can do this, I know I have done this. Then again there are different people competing this year and the course is different and everything is a little different, so you never really know, but we’re just here to play good golf and see what happens.”
One of her playing partners on Tuesday was Kirra St-Laurent of Australia who also finished with a 2-under 69 and like Liu, got off to a difficult start but was able to rebound and close her day with a birdie on 18.
“My putting was really good today, I didn’t really miss too many putts, I two putted really easily and I made a lot of putts under 15-feet for birdie so that was nice,” said St-Laurent who credits her short game as her strength.
“It’s always been so consistent for a few years now, I don’t really lose any shots on short game and that’s pretty much the same every tournament so that’s the best part and most consistent.”
St-Laurent, who considers Quebec City, Que. to be home recently completed her freshman year at SMU (Southern Methodist University) in Dallas, Texas where she earned a top 5, top 10 and two top 20s after only joining in the spring.
Evelyn Ma of Markham, Ont. is also tied with the group at 2-under. Ma held the solo lead at 4-under through 15 holes before a double bogey on no. 16 brought her back into the co-lead. Ma later narrowly missed a chance to retake the solo lead on 18, just putting her birdie attempt past the hole.
Ma has enjoyed a successful run over the past couple weeks, having won two AJGA tournaments and is riding that momentum into the national championship this week.
“It really shows me what I am capable of, and it motivates me to keep working hard to be in positions like that,” said Ma on her recent run of success.
Zixuan Tan of Montreal, Que. is also co-leader at 2-under after carding four birdies during her round on Tuesday. The group hold a one-shot lead over 2023 Canadian Junior Girls champion and Team Canada NextGen member, Eileen Park of Red Deer, Alta. and Ceilidh Spare of North Gower, Ont. who both sit at T5 following rounds of 1-under 70. The leaderboard beyond six players under par is crowded with 18 players currently within four shots of the co-leaders.
In the Juvenile division, Tan and Ma are tied for the lead at 2-under in the race of the Florence Harvey Trophy. Players in the field under the age of 17 as of August 1, 2026 are eligible to compete in the Juvenile division.
Team Alberta has finished the opening round atop the leaderboard in the battle for the Mary Pyke Trophy at a combined 3-over to lead the defending champions from British Columbia (B.C.). Coryn Tardif of Sylvan Lake, Alta. shot a 1-over 72 and Saylar May of Rocky Mountain House, Alta. added a 2-over 73 to count towards the team score on Tuesday. Teammate Raylee Denton of Red Deer, Alta. finished with a 3-over 74.
Team B.C. has one returning player from the winning team last year, Emma Kral of Victoria, B.C. who finished the day at 7-over 78. Teammates Anna Wu (Victoria, B.C.) led the way with a 2-over 73 and Charlotte Tam (Burnaby, B.C.) added a 4-over 75 to count towards the combined team score of 6-over. Team Ontario currently sits third at 7-over. The inter-provincial team competition is contested over the first two rounds, featuring teams from all 10 provinces. Each day, the lowest two of three individuals 18-hole scores count towards the team total. Following Wednesday’s second round, the field will be cut to the low 70 players and ties.
The Canadian Junior Girls Championship was first contested in 1955 and operated by the former Canadian Ladies Association (CLGA) until the amalgamation of CLGA and Royal Canadian Golf Association (now Golf Canada) in 2005.
The Canadian Junior Girls Championship has a long list of distinguished past champions that have etched their name on the Brokenshire Trophy. Past champions include Canadian Golf Hall of Famers Lisa Meldrum (2000), Alena Sharp (1999), Sandra Post (1964-66), Betty Stanhope (1956), Judy Darling (1957), Gail Harvey Moore (1958-1960) and Gayle Borthwick (1961). LPGA Tour players Maude-Aimée Leblanc (2006), Brooke Henderson (2012) and Maddie Szeryk (2013) also lifted the Brokenshire Trophy. Stollery Family Team Canada Women’s Head Coach Salimah Mussani (1996, 1998) is also a past Canadian Junior Girls Champion.
The 2026 Canadian Junior Girls champion will receive an exemption into the 113th Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship and both the 2027 Canadian Junior Girls Championship and 2027 U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship, if eligible.
For the leaderboards following the opening round of the 2026 Canadian Junior Girls Championship, presented by BDO, click here.
