Star-studded field commit to CP Women’s Open
REGINA – Golf Canada, in partnership with title sponsor Canadian Pacific (CP), has announced that many of the world’s top players have committed to compete in the 2018 CP Women’s Open from August 20-26 at Wascana Country Club in Regina.
The early player commitments to challenge for the $2.25 million USD purse—one of the largest prizes on the LPGA Tour—will include golf’s brightest stars along with rising talents in Canadian golf. Among player commitments are nine of the top 10 players from the 2018 LPGA Official Money list, including 14 of 15 in-year LPGA Tour event winners and 10 past CP Women’s Open champions.
No player will generate more excitement this August in Saskatchewan than Canadian sensation and CP ambassador Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., who will compete in her eighth career National Women’s Open. The six-time LPGA Tour winner and major champion has amassed 27 top-10s since joining the LPGA Tour in late 2015. The graduate of Golf Canada’s National Team program is a former world No. 1 amateur who represented Canada at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, where she finished T7.
“This is a really exciting time to be a Canadian golf fan and a fan of the LPGA Tour,” said Ryan Paul, Tournament Director for the CP Women’s Open.
“There is tremendous momentum in Canadian women’s golf with a depth of talent at all levels of the game. Combine that with arguably the strongest field on the LPGA Tour and we can guarantee that golf fans in Saskatchewan will be treated to a spectacular world-class event at the CP Women’s Open this August in Regina.”
Canadian Golf Hall of Fame honoured member and CP ambassador Lorie Kane, a four-time winner on the LPGA Tour, will be competing in Canada’s National Women’s Open Championship for a record 28th consecutive time.
Joining Henderson and Kane in competing on home soil will be LPGA Tour members Alena Sharp of Hamilton, Maude-Aimée LeBlanc of Sherbrooke, Que., Brittany Marchand of Orangeville, Ont., and Anne-Catherine Tanguay of Quebec City. The six Canucks will be joined by several more Canadian professional and amateur golfers to be confirmed in the coming weeks.
Thailand’s Ariya Jutanugarn leads a stellar list of early LPGA Tour player commitments confirmed for Wascana. Jutanugarn is a nine-time winner on the LPGA Tour, with her most recent victory coming at the U.S. Women’s Open earlier this month. The 22-year-old, who won the 2016 CP Women’s Open, currently ranks No. 2 in the Rolex World Rankings and is No. 1 on the LPGA Tour Official Money List.
Three-time Canadian Women’s Open champion Lydia Ko will be looking for a record-setting fourth title. The New Zealand native’s wins in 2012, 2013 and 2015 tie her with Americans Meg Mallon and Pat Bradley for most victories at Canada’s National Women’s Open. The 21-year-old has 15 LPGA Tour victories in total.
Defending CP Women’s Open champion Sung Hyun Park will be looking to capture her fourth LPGA victory this August in Regina. The native of South Korea currently holds the No. 6 spot on the Rolex Women’s Golf Ranking.
Lexi Thompson, who occupies the No. 3 spot on the Rolex Women’s World Rankings, will look to add her first victory in Canada to an already impressive golf resume that includes nine career wins on the LPGA Tour.
So Yeong Ryu, who won the inaugural CP Women’s Open in 2014, will also be competing at Wascana. Ryu, Jutanugarn, Park and Ko are among 10 past champions competing this year along with Brittany Lincicome (2011), Michelle Wie (2010), Katherine Kirk (2008), Cristie Kerr (2006), Laura Davies (1996) and Juli Inkster (1984).
Jutanugarn (No. 1) and Henderson (No. 5) join seven other top-10 players on the LPGA Tour Official Money List who are confirmed to compete in Regina later this summer. Other top-10 commitments include Moriya Jutanugarn (No. 3), Minjee Lee (No. 4), Hyo Joo Kim (No. 6), Jessica Korda (No. 8), Pernilla Lindberg (No. 9) and Eun-Hee Ji (No. 10).
Other exciting early commitments include in-year LPGA Tour winners Annie Park, who recently earned her first LPGA victory at the ShopRite LPGA Classic Presented by Acer and Jun Young Ko, who won this year’s ISPS Handa Women’s Australian Open. International stars Shanshan Feng, ranked No. 4 on the Rolex World Ranking along with world No. 14 Anna Nordqvist are also committed to compete.
The 156 golfers teeing-it-up at Wascana Country Club will represent one of the strongest fields on the LPGA Tour with more than 92 of the 100 players on the LPGA Tour Official Money List expected to compete.
CP Has Heart Charity Campaign to benefit the Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation
Canadian Pacific will continue its history of making a substantial donation to the host community through its CP Has Heart community investment program. In the four years of CP’s title sponsorship of the CP Women’s Open, $6.5 million has been raised to support children’s heart health in communities across Canada.
This year, the campaign will be supporting pediatric cardiology at Saskatchewan’s new Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital in Saskatoon. Funds raised through the CP Women’s Open will help assist a dedicated cardiology space and specialized equipment in the new hospital, currently under construction and scheduled to open in 2019.
With a nature theme running throughout the hospital, the “Frog Pod” will be specifically used to treat pediatric cardiology patients and will include three echocardiography exam rooms, a pulmonary function technology lab, an exercise challenge room, and a regular exam room. Directly across the hall, included in the pod, is a staff echo cardiology reading room.
“CP is extremely proud to partner with Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital, and to bring the 2018 CP Women’s Open to the great city of Regina,” said CP President and CEO, Keith Creel. “Saskatchewan is a vital region to our company, and we are honoured to support the Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital, as they help to strengthen the youngest hearts across the province.”
The funds raised through CP Has Heart will undoubtedly go a long way in helping children’s healthcare in Saskatchewan.
“We are sincerely thankful to CP, Golf Canada and the CP Women’s Open for supporting our efforts to help Saskatchewan’s little hearts through further development of the provincial pediatric cardiology program at our new children’s hospital,” said Brynn Boback-Lane, President and CEO of Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundations. “This heartwarming gift will have a tremendous impact on Saskatchewan’s young patients, their families and our entire pediatric cardiac team.”
In addition to being a world-class sports property, the CP Women’s Open leaves a lasting legacy in the event’s home community.
“Golf Canada is proud to work alongside incredible partners at CP and the LPGA Tour in bringing world-class golf to Wascana Country Club, the city of Regina and the province of Saskatchewan for the first time ever,” said Golf Canada’s CEO Laurence Applebaum. “We are honoured to work alongside our partners in supporting the CP Has Heart Campaign which will make a difference in the lives of so many through the support of pediatric cardiac care at Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital.”
CP Inaugural Women’s Leadership Summit to take place during tournament week
As part of the weeklong excitement of the CP Women’s Open, Golf Canada is proud to announce that the inaugural Women’s Leadership Summit will take place Tuesday, August 21 at Hotel Saskatchewan. Keynote speaker Hayley Wickenheiser, five-time Olympic medalist, will be joined by the likes of LPGA Champion Lorie Kane; CP Vice-President of Grain and Fertilizer, Joan Hardy; and many more like-minded businesswomen from across the province for a day of networking, empowerment and philanthropy.
KIDS 17-AND-UNDER GET IN FREE
Golf Canada and CP are committed to offering a fan friendly, family event with the CP Women’s Open. To introduce more juniors to the sport, children aged 17-and-under get FREE admission to the CP Women’s Open for the entire week.
Tickets for this year’s CP Women’s Open are available here.
Jared du Toit top Canadian at GolfBC Championship finishing in fifth
KELOWNA, British Columbia, Canada—Jared du Toit was the low-Canadian this week, finishing fifth, at 16-under 268 at the GolfBC Championship.
“At the end of the day, I did a lot of good things. I hit the ball really well.” du Toit said. “Made a couple early, which I would’ve hoped got [Cunningham] thinking a little bit, but [it] turns out it didn’t. Not much you can do about that.”
The Kimberley, B.C. native started off strong firing 4 birdies in the front nine. In his back nine he fired one birdie and a bogey on hole 16 finishing 4-under 67 on Sunday.
“I was in the mix, seven of my last eight rounds. These guys are pretty good out here, so pretty happy with all that. Hopefully I can keep the trend going, get myself in the mix and keep knocking on the door for that elusive victory,” said du Toit.
With his dad on the bag, it was a special Father’s Day for George Cunningham as he picked up his maiden Mackenzie Tour – PGA Tour Canada victory. He carded a 5-under 66 to win by two shots.
After his career-low round of 9-under 62 in the third round, Cunningham started the final round with a three-shot lead. Sunday, he started with four consecutive pars, before carding a birdie-eagle stretch on Nos. 5-6. He added an additional birdie on the par-5 ninth hole to make the turn at 19-under, holding a two-shot advantage. Coming down the stretch, with his closest competitor, P.J. Samiere, making bogey at the last, Cunningham sealed the deal by sticking a wedge from 91 yards to three feet for a birdie putt he made. It was good enough to finish at 20-under for a two-shot victory.
With his grandparents also in the gallery, it was a Father’s Day to remember for the Cunninghams. His grandparents, John and Carlotta Cunningham, drove close to 2,630km from their home in Tucson, Ariz., to watch their grandson play.
“On the 18th hole, my dad told me to make the putt and count it as his Father’s Day gift,” said Cunningham with a smile. “I guess I got that out of the way.”
The 22-year-old is a father himself, to three-year-old daughter Charlotte.
“I’m really excited to tell my daughter,” said Cunningham. “I’m excited to call her and talk to her about my win. I know she’s excited for me to come home. I’ll be home after the next event.”
Cunningham earned his first Mackenzie Tour – PGA Tour Canada victory in just his third professional start. The 22-year-old competed as an amateur at this season’s Q-School USA West No. 2 in Phoenix, where he finished third. Shortly after graduating in May from the University of Arizona, he turned pro and missed the cut in the first two events of the season—in Vancouver and Victoria.
“After the first two weeks, I knew I was going to need something special this week, and I did,” said Cunningham. “That’s what everyone is playing for, and I just came out on top this week.”
With his win, Cunningham moves to No. 4 on the Order of Merit, with $36,000 in earnings. Zach Wright claimed the top earnings’ spot after his runner-up finish. He’s pocketed $41,900 this season.
Gabsa withstands 4-hole playoff, secures first Symetra Tour win
FORSYTH, Ill. — It took 76 holes, but Isi Gabsa (Munich, Germany) did not melt under pressure or in the sweltering central Illinois heat, coming out with her first Symetra Tour win at the 34th annual Forsyth Classic presented by Decatur Park District.
When the final round was complete at Hickory Point Golf Course, Gabsa and Jillian Hollis (Rocky River, Ohio) were tied at 13-under par. They proceeded to play No. 18 in a sudden-death playoff format until a winner was decided. On the fourth playoff hole, Gabsa prevailed thanks to a birdie conversion.
“I’m still not realizing that I won, especially after the four playoff holes,” said Gabsa, who went 2-under par on the afternoon before the playoff. “It’s just speechless. To win in a playoff, it’s always a little bit special. A win is a win at the end. It always feels great.”
For a minute on the third playoff hole, it seemed as if Hollis would put an end to things. Her approach was well inside that of Gabsa, leaving her with the first solid chance at victory.
“I had like a 15-foot putt up the hill. I hit it perfect, I hit it right on my line,” said Hollis, who carded a 4-under par final round to reach the playoff. “It was supposed to break a little left and it just stayed straight.”
The birdie opportunity for Hollis even had Gabsa sweating.
“I was pretty sure she would make it,” Gabsa said. “I already had put my ball back and ready to congratulate her. But, we went back and did it all over again.”
That they did and this time Gabsa did not miss her mark. For Hollis, the runner-up title is nothing to be ashamed of in her first career Symetra Tour start.
“My last hole I had a downhill putt, just hit a little hard through the break,” said Hollis. “Congratulations to her, she played awesome. I proved that I can shoot the scores to win out here. I can shoot my personal best score and follow it up with another good round today. Just to be able to get into a playoff was great. It has been fun this week.”
A two-time winner on the Ladies European Tour (LET) Access Series, this win shows Gabsa exactly why she came to the United States to compete on the road to the LPGA Tour, playing on the Symetra Tour to give herself a chance at the highest level of women’s professional golf.
However, the routine won’t change.
“It will be the same next week, preparing for a tournament the same way,” Gabsa said. “I think the pressure is a little bit off when you win, but you still want to play well the next week and prepare the same way you did this week.”
With the Island Resort Championship in Harris, Mich., up next on the Symetra Tour schedule, a greater than 400 mile trip calls. However, you can bet Gabsa will find some time to celebrate between now and the first round on Friday.
“Our plan is to go to the Hofbräuhaus in Chicago and get some good German food,” said Gabsa, who had her mom on the bag for the win. “Probably have to do that tomorrow afternoon, get some schnitzel, yeah.”
Tough course or easy, Brooks Koepka repeats as US Open champ
SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. – Brooks Koepka has the game to win a U.S. Open on any course.
One year after Koepka overpowered the wide fairways of Erin Hills in a U.S. Open remembered for low scoring, he navigated his way through the brutal conditions of Shinnecock Hills and closed with a 2-under 68 to become the first repeat champion in 29 years.
Curtis Strange, the last player to go back-to-back in this major, watched the entire final round Sunday as the Fox Sports reporter on the ground, and they shared a brief hug off the 18th green after Koepkatapped in for bogey and a one-shot victory.
“Man, it feels good to hold this thing again,” Koepka said with the silver trophy in his arms.
His victory Sunday might not have been possible if not for grinding out a 72 on Saturday in conditions so severe the last 45 players to tee off in the third round didn’t break par. The USGA conceded the course was over the top and pledged to give it more water and slow it down.
Bogeys gave way to birdies, and no one took advantage like Tommy Fleetwood of England. He made eight birdies – none on the two par 5s – and missed an 8-foot birdie putt on the final hole for a 63, only the sixth player in U.S. Open history to go that low.
“Yeah, but I wanted a 62,” said Fleetwood, who finished one shot back and had to settle for the silver medal.
Fleetwood was one shot behind when he finished, and Koepka still had 11 holes to play as Shinnecock Hills began to get crisp under another sunny sky.
Koepka never lost the lead.
With a putting performance and calm demeanour reminiscent of Retief Goosen when he won the previous U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills, in 2004, the 28-year-old Koepka began the back nine with three pivotal putts – one for birdie, one for bogey, one for par.
The biggest might have been his bogey on the nasty little par-3 11th.
Koepka pulled it to the left, down the slope and into thick grass. He chopped that up the slope with so much speed that it raced across the green and into the bunker. He blasted that out to 8 feet and made the putt to keep his lead at one shot.
“I think that was like making a birdie, maybe even making an eagle,” he said. “Because it could have been a big momentum shift there, and we could have been playing tennis just going back and forth. To make bogey there was pretty incredible and I think kind of the reason why we won.”
He wasn’t through. He hacked out of the hay over the green at No. 12, pitched beautifully to 7 feet and made the par. Two holes later, after another drive into grass so thick he wasn’t sure he could get it out, Koepka rolled in an 8-foot for another par save.
Koepka seized control with a wedge to 3 1/2 feet for birdie on the par-5 16th for a two-shot lead, and he never flinched until it no longer mattered. Koepka pulled his approach to the 18th off the grandstand, pitched on to about 12 feet and two-putted for a bogey.
He finished at 1-over 281, 13 shots higher than his winning score at Erin Hills last year. It was the first time since 2013 at Merion that no one broke par in the U.S. Open.
“I enjoy the test,” Koepka said. “I enjoy being pushed to the limit. Sometimes you feel like you are about to break mentally, but that’s what I enjoy. I enjoy hard golf courses. I enjoy playing about the toughest in golf you are ever going to play.”
That it was, starting on Thursday, and especially on Saturday.
Koepka opened with a 75, the highest first-round score by a U.S. Open champion since Raymond Floyd at Shinnecock Hills in 1986. He was 7 over for the championship through seven holes of the second round when he ran off six birdies for a 66 to get back in the game.
Dustin Johnson, part of the four-way tie for the lead to start the final round, couldn’t keep up with one of his best friends. Johnson was one shot behind at the turn until a trio of three-putt bogeys on the back nine. A birdie on the final home gave him an even-par 70 to finish alone in third and remain No. 1 in the world.
Koepka moved to a career-best No. 4 in the world ranking.
A year ago, Johnson called him on the eve of the final round to offer advice. On Sunday, they were playing side-by-side without exchanging words, each trying to play a course that was considerably softer than the previous day.
“We didn’t really speak too much,” Koepka said. “He was busy grinding his tail off and I was busy grinding mine. We’re extremely close. I love the guy to death. It would have been fun to dual it out with him coming down the end, having to make some putts.”
Only one of them did, which is why Koepka is the U.S. Open champion.
Americans have won the last five majors – all of them in their 20s – and Koepka joined an elite group as only the seventh player to go back-to-back in what is regarded as golf’s toughest test. Next up is Pebble Beach, and a chance to join Willie Anderson as the only player to win three in a row. Anderson won his third straight in 1905. Ben Hogan won three straight that he played, missing in 1949 after nearly getting killed when his car struck a bus.
Masters champion Patrick Reed flirted with the second leg of the Grand Slam. He was tied for the lead when he ran off five birdies in his opening seven holes. Reed spent too much time in the high grass on the back nine and closed with a 68 to finish fourth.
So Yeon Ryu wins Meijer LPGA Classic
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – So Yeon Ryu found her winning touch at Blythefield Country Club
Ryu won the Meijer LPGA Classic on Sunday, closing with a 5-under 67 for a two-stroke victory over Caroline Masson. The 29-year-old South Korean player has six LPGA Tour victories, winning twice last year.
“I’ve been working really hard with my coach and my psychologist, trainer, whole my team,” Ryu said. “Finally I was able to find the last piece to put everything together, so it’s really, really meaningful to me.”
The two-time major champion birdied the par-5 16th and par-4 17th and parred the par-4 18th to finish at 21-under 267.
“I’ve been really, really struggling. I had a lot of crazy moments,” Ryu said. “I had some good rounds, I had some really bad rounds, so I couldn’t even really finish top-10 compared to any other season. So, all those reasons just drove me crazy.”
Two strokes behind Anna Nordqvist and Lee-Anne Pace entering the round, Ryu had six birdies and bogey in the final round.
“I was really calm today,” said Ryu, set to open her NW Arkansas Championship title defence Friday. “Of course I prayed like thousand times, but I was really calm. I was able to focus on my game instead of think about other players.”
Masson closed with a 70-foot birdie putt for a 68.
“Super happy about the finish today. Second place is great,” Masson said. “I was trying to win it today, but it just wasn’t quite enough. I think I made a couple good putts and I missed a few very makeable ones, too, so I guess you just have to make those if you really want to win.”
Lydia Ko shot a 67 to finish third at 18 under.
“I don’t remember this course being this easy and I don’t think it was easy, but it just shows the amount of talent that’s on our tour,” Ko said, “It’s just good to have a great week. This is a tournament I really love playing.”
Nordqvist and Pace each shot 73 – after each had a 64 on Saturday – to tie for fourth at 17 under with Jacqui Concolino (66), Azahara Munoz (68) and Angela Stanford (70).
U.S. Women’s Open winner Ariya Jutanugarn shot a
tournament-record 62. She birdied five of the first seven holes,
eagled No. 8 and added three more birdies to finish 12th at 15
under.
“I just like really want to go out and have fun, especially play with like Emily (Tubert) like one of my best friends,” Jutanugarn said. “And have so much fun today.”
Team Canada player and Amateur, Jaclyn Lee, was the top ranked Canadian. She recorded a 69 on Sunday to finish the tournament 10-under T35. Anne-Catherine Tanguay (69), Brooke M. Henderson (73) and Alena Sharp (75) shared the 44th.
Celebrating 125 years of Rosedale Golf Club
Every day, tens of thousands of harried commuters inch along in bumper-to-bumper traffic on Ontario’s major artery, Highway 401. Down the Yonge Street off-ramp they inch along like lemmings, heading for downtown offices. Few realize they are just a long par-5 away from one of Canada’s oldest and grandest golf clubs, Rosedale.
Founded 125 years ago, Rosedale Golf Club evolved from the defunct nine-hole Deer Park Club. The club relocated several times before settling in its present location, cradled in a verdant tree-lined valley, in 1910. A founding club in 1895 of what then was called the Royal Canadian Golf Association (now Golf Canada), it played host to the 1912 and 1928 RBC Canadian Opens, the 1912 Canadian Ladies’ Championship, the 1924 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship, two PGA of Canada Championships and a variety of provincial amateur tournaments.
But, as Head PGA of Canada Professional Andrew Donaldson says, Rosedale’s members are content these days with keeping their oasis in the middle of Canada’s largest city just that—a quiet enclave with a tradition of understated elegance.
“Rosedale is known, but not known, if that makes sense,” says Donaldson. “A lot of golfers have heard of it, know its reputation as a great classic layout, but just aren’t sure where it is or exactly what it is.”
Although the present layout originally was designed by Scottish-born Tom Bendelow, it was totally redone shortly after by famed American architect Donald Ross and the club is justifiably proud of that status.
Another note of historical importance is the fact that Rosedale was the home club of George S. Lyon, winner of the 1904 Olympic gold medal for golf in St. Louis. A stunning feat, no doubt, but so was his record here in the country. Picking up the game at 38, two years later, in 1898, he won the first of his incredible eight Canadian Men’s Amateur Championships
On Saturday, June 16, Rosedale Golf Club will officially celebrate its quasquicentennial—its 125th anniversary. The day will include welcoming back some of its professional alumni for a member-pro scramble, a hickory event courtesy of the Golf Historical Society of Canada, followed by a gala dinner.
Without a doubt, all will be conducted with the decorum and class that has typified stately Rosedale Golf Club throughout its admirable history and will do so into its future.
Johnson shares lead in a US Open that plays like one
SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y. – The return to a classic U.S. Open course brought back the kind of scoring that gave this major its reputation.
Dustin Johnson played some of his best golf Thursday and yet the world’s No. 1 player barely beat par in the treacherous wind at Shinnecock Hills. Johnson holed a bunker shot for birdie, kept his mistakes to a minimum and joined Ian Poulter, Scott Piercy and Russell Henley at 1-under 69 for a share of the lead.
“You had to focus on every single shot you hit – putts, everything,” Johnson said. “It was just difficult all day.”
No need to tell that to Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth and a long list of golf’s bests who had their hopes crushed in gusts that approached 25 mph that made fairways look more narrow and the shin-high rough difficult to avoid.
In his return to the U.S. Open after a two-year absence, Woods opened a major with a triple bogey for the first time in 15 years. He added back-to-back double bogeys on the back nine and staggered to a 78.
Spieth waited until the second hole to make a triple bogey, blasted out of a bunker and over the 11th green, and then took three shots to get on the putting surface. McIlroy found trouble just about everywhere and shot 80, his highest first-round score in a major.
“It was pretty evident nobody was making any birdies in the morning – lots and lots of bogeys and ‘others,”’ Woods said. “My game plan was not to make any ‘others,’ and I made three of them. So didn’t do very well there.”
It was quite a contrast from last year at Erin Hills in Wisconsin, which set a record for the first round by yielding 44 rounds under par.
Piercy, the last man in the 156-man field as an alternate from qualifying, was so disgusted with his game in his final practice round that he walked off the course. He dropped only two shots, both on par 3s, and was the first to post a 69. Poulter also played in the morning, while Johnson and Henley played in the afternoon as the wind reached its full strength.
Henley was the only player to reach 3 under at any point, and he promptly gave that back with a double bogey on No. 10.
Jason Dufner opened with a 70, and even those at 1-over 71 felt as though they put in a hard day’s work, a group that included Justin Rose and Henrik Stenson.
“It’s a different kind of enjoyment, right?” Rose said. “I enjoy the battle. I enjoy the fight. I enjoy the grind, really. When you get a bit cut up and bruised, it can change pretty quick.”
Johnson is coming off a six-shot victory last week in the St. Jude Classic, and while no one has ever won the U.S. Open coming off a PGA Tour victory the week before, he played as though nothing had changed. He holed medium-length putts for birdies, a few nervy, short putts for par and picked up a bonus when his shot from a front bunker on the par-4 eighth rattled and rolled into the cup.
Not even Johnson was immune from mistakes, however, dropping shots on the 12th and 14th holes.
It didn’t take long to figure out what kind of test this was going to be, with the 15 flags atop the grandstand next to the 18th green already flapping as the first group teed off, and they were crackling by the afternoon.
Phil Mickelson, needing the U.S. Open to complete the Grand Slam, played in the feature grouping with Spieth and McIlroy. They finished a combined 25-over par, with Mickelson taking honours at 77. It was his highest opening round in his 27 U.S. Opens. Mickelson refused a request to speak to the media about his round.
So did McIlroy, who had a pair of double bogeys in his third round of 80 or more in a major.
Woods quickly joined them.
From the middle of the first fairway, he went long over the green. He chipped once and it came back to his feet. He tried it again with the same result, and then rapped his putter up the hill by the hole and missed the putt. He held it together until a four-putt on No. 13, the last three of those putts from 6 feet.
“Shoot something in the 60s tomorrow, and I’ll be just fine,” Woods said. “I just think today was the toughest day we’ll have all week. But then again, I think they’re going to let these greens firm out a little bit. They’ll start to pick up a little bit of speed, and it will be a good U.S. Open again.”
That already appears to be the case.
The U.S. Open has gone to new courses two of the last three years, and Jack Nicklaus is among those who feared it had lost its identity. Even with wider fairways, Shinnecock Hills resembled a U.S. Open course from past years, and it played like one.
Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., was the top Canadian golfer Thursday with a round of 76. Canadians Adam Hadwin of Moose Jaw, Sask., and Garrett Rank, an NHL referee, tied for 148th place after rounds of 83.
Amateur Jaclyn Lee comes out of first round of Meijer LPGA Classic T10
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Amateur, and Team Canada member, Jaclyn Lee, from Calgary Alta., is T10 after firing a 4-under 68 on Thursday in the Meijer LPGA Classic.
Maude-Aimée Leblanc from Sherbrooke (70) was one stroke less than Alena Sharp from Hamilton, Ont. Anne-Catherine Tanguay of Quebec City and Brittany Marchand of Orangeville, Ont., all recorded 73.
After the first round, defending champion Brooke Henderson is T25 at 3-under par.
Kelly Shon played her last six holes in 6 under for an 8-under 64 and a share of the lead with So Yeon Ryu.
Shon had a 7-under 29 on her final nine, the front nine at Blythefield Country Club. The former Princeton star played the five par-5 holes in 5 under with an eagle on No. 8.
“Honestly, going into the round, I was thinking maybe the front nine was kind of going to be the tougher nine,” Shon said. “So I just was pacing myself, trying to stay in the moment and hit every shot the best as I could. I don’t know, the back side, my putter started getting hot.”
Born in South Korea, the 26-year-old American is winless in four seasons on the LPGA Tour. She began the final-nine run with a birdie on the par-5 first, birdied the par-3 fourth, par-5 fifth and par-7 seventh, eagled No. 8 and closed with a birdie on the par-4 ninth.
“I haven’t liked this golf course, but to be honest, it’s playing a little bit different than it has in the past,” Shon said. “A couple of the tee boxes have changed and the course itself. The weather’s just perfect, which is also something we’re not used to all the time so far this year.”
The sixth-ranked Ryu birdied four of the par 5s in a bogey-free round.
“It’s more about the putting instead of score,” Ryu said. “Obviously, when you’re putting really well you have a chance for a really low round, but I just really wanted to have like confidence on the putting green. Like I don’t think I have enough confidence on the putting green, that’s why I always struggle. So from now on, hopefully, I can get fully confident when I’m putting.”
She winless this season after taking the major ANA Inspiration and Walmart NW Arkansas Championship last year. She also won the 2011 U.S. Women’s Open.
“Like to be honest, if I talk about this season, I’m not really fully satisfied with it,” Ryu said. “Hopefully, this week I’m going to start playing really well and hopefully I can win this tournament.”
Anna Nordqvist, Su Oh and Celine Herbin shot 66.
“I’ve had a really rough start to the year,” Nordqvist said. “Haven’t really felt like myself, but just trying to make a few changes the last couple weeks and get on a better bit of a roll. I know good golf is ahead of me, but it’s definitely been frustrating.”
Sophia Popov, Caroline Masson and Lee-Anne Pace shot 67, and Lexi Thompson, the 2015 winner, had a 68.
“The weather couldn’t have been any better for us out here,” Thompson said. “The course is in great shape. The last few days it’s actually been pretty windy out here, but today there was like nothing.”
Ariya Jutanugarn, making her first start since winning the U.S. Women’s Open, matched defending champion Brooke Henderson, Michelle Wie and Lydia Ko at 69. Annie Park, the ShopRite LPGA Classic winner last week in New Jersey, had a 76.
Team Canada’s Jared du Toit sits T6 at GolfBC Championship
Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada— Among the 21 Canadians in the field, Jared du Toit from Kimberley, B.C.,
fired the lowest opening round, with a bogey-free, 6-under 65 and sits tied for sixth on Thursday after the opening round of the GolfBC Championship.
“It was the weirdest thing. I was playing a practice round and wasn’t playing great, and I was like, ‘Man, I don’t know how I shot 61 here, it’s kind of tough.’ But it is definitely good to have that 61 in the back of my mind.” said du Toit.
Mark Anguiano, Grady Brame, Jr. and Zach Wright carded matching rounds of 9-under 62 and are tied for the lead. They hold a two-shot lead heading into the second round.
Playing in the first group of the morning wave, Anguiano set the tone early with a bogey-free, 9- under 62. He carded nine birdies during his play at Gallagher’s Canyon Golf and Country Club, a round which included four consecutive birdies on Nos. 2-5. Anguiano came one shot shy of tying the tournament record, set last year by Canadian Jared du Toit in the third round.
Anguiano, who was fighting a left-knee injury last week at the Bayview Place DCBank Open presented by Times Colonist, almost withdrew before the final round in Victoria due to the pain. He went on to tie for 23rd in the event.
“I didn’t even warm up in the last round, and I was thinking of not even playing on the last day,”said Anguiano. “It was hurting that bad, but physically I feel better. It’s about 80 percent thisweek. I took good care of it.”
Joining Anguiano atop the leaderboard is Louisiana native Brame. He combined seven birdies with an eagle for a matching, bogey-free 9-under 62. His eagle on the par-5 ninth hole was the result of a stellar second shot from 205 yards. Using his 6-iron, the ball landed on the fringe and narrowly missed the hole, ending up 10 feet past the pin. He made the putt for eagle and closed the round with five additional birdies. Brame followed a tie-for-fourth finish at this year’s Q- School USA East No. 2 with two consecutive missed cuts in the first two events of this season.
Wright played his last four holes six-under par with an eagle-birdie-birdie-eagle finish. The 9- under 62 from the Louisiana State University alum consisted of two eagles, seven birdies and two bogeys. The 24-year-old started the season with a runner-up finish at the Freedom 55 Financial Open and entered this week No. 3 in the Order of Merit.
Golf in Schools totals 70 adoptions during Adopt a School Week
Golf Canada is proud to celebrate the 70 adoptions that occurred during Adopt a School Week thanks to the efforts of golf enthusiasts and industry partners across the country.
In total, the figure translates to an additional 8,400 elementary, intermediate and high school students being introduced to the sport through the Future Links, driven by Acura Golf in Schools program.
The coast-to-coast campaign was elevated by support from Canadian industry partners—the Provincial Associations, PGA of Canada and the National Golf Course Owners Association (NGCOA).
A matching program for the first 30 adoptions was made possible by the Canadian Seniors Golf Association (CSGA), who continue to be a leader in supporting Adopt a School Week. In the campaign’s three years of running, the CSGA has helped to adopt over 78 schools in Canadian communities from coast-to-coast.
Golf Town, the official retailer of Future Links, driven by Acura, will continue to collect funds until June 30 as part of a fundraising initiative at retail locations across the country.
Since the program’s inception in 2009, adoptions have accounted for close to 50% of over 3,500 registered schools delivering the curriculum. For Jeff Thompson, Golf Canada’s chief sport officer, that number presents a great opportunity to build community relationships.
“With Golf in Schools adoptions, our hope is to help establish a connection between facilities and schools in respective communities across Canada,” said Thompson. “Establishing that link can enhance the school’s delivery of the program, while also contributing towards future membership numbers at the corresponding facility.”