SANTEE, Calif. – Sam Fidone (Lufkin, Texas), suffered no letdown in the final round of the 2018 Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada qualifying tournament at Carlton Oaks Country Club, closing with a 3-under-par 69 to claim medallist honours at the first of five qualifiers for the Tour. He finished with a 72-hole total of 12-under-par 276, two strokes better than Andrew Levitt (Ladera Ranch, Calif.).

As a result of his play, Fidone will be fully exempt on the Mackenzie Tour for the entire 2018 season. He was the only player in a starting field of 132 players to post four consecutive rounds under par with three of those in the 60s.

“It feels really good. As I said, from the beginning of the week when I walked out here I knew I would really like this golf course. Pete Dye is kind of my favourite designer and coming out here with the atmosphere it’s been great,” said Fidone. “I feel very validated on what I’ve been working on in the offseason and I’m ready to get the season going.”

Fidone took full advantage of things on the back nine during the week, finishing 12-under-par on those final nine holes with 13 birdies on his scorecards.

“Having the full year exemption is fantastic. It makes travel plans much easier and you know you won’t have to wait week in and week on the conditional button. I’ve been there before and it’s tough and I feel bad for anyone that’s there,” Fidone added.

Levitt started the day two back of Fidone but could not close the gap as each finished the day with rounds of 3-under-par 69. However, Levitt, as the second-place finisher, earns exempt status through the first eight events until the second re-shuffle.

Earning similar status are the three other players who finished in the top five: Paul Barjon, Ian Holt and Andrej Bevins.

Fidone made two starts on the Mackenzie Tour in 2016, finishing T15 at the Players Cup in Winnipeg and missing the cut at the ATB Financial Classic in Calgary.

Has been a member of the PGA TOUR Latinoamerica Tour the last two years with 15 starts in 2017 and 16 in 2016. He also made three starts in 2015 before being shelved with an injury.

Canadians Brett Kennedy and Andrew Funk earned conditional status by finishing within the 17-40 range.

Click here for full scorung.

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. — The Canadian duo of Samantha Richdale and Brittany Marchand opened the Symetra Tour season on a high note, posting 2-under-par 70s on Friday to sit three strokes off the lead at Florida’s Natural Charity Classic.

Richdale, the 2016 champion at this event, will take to the Country Club of Winter Haven in Saturday’s second round at 9:32 a.m. local time. The Kelowna, B.C., product is paired with Emily Penttilä and Nicole Sakamoto.

LPGA Tour rookie Brittany Marchand of Orangeville, Ont., tees off at 1:39 p.m. in chase of her second Symetra Tour win. The Team Canada Young Pro Squad member captured the 2017 PHC Classic.

The pair are trailing leaders Louise Ridderström (Stocksund, Sweden) and Hyemin Kim (Seoul, Republic of Korea), who are tied at 5 under par.

Fellow Canadians Elizabeth Tong (Thornhill, Ont.) and Augusta James (Bath, Ont.) sit inside the cut line at even par and 2 over, respectively.

Second round action gets underway at 8:15 a.m. with players going off both No. 1 and No. 10 tees. Following the completion of round two, a cut will be made to the low 60 players and ties.

Click here for full scoring.

ORLANDO, Fla. – Henrik Stenson had a hot putter, a much quieter crowd and a one-shot lead in the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

One week after Stenson returned from his winter break and spent two days with Tiger Woods and his raucous crowds, he made birdie on half of the holes at Bay Hill for an 8-under 64, his lowest round ever on the course the King built.

PGA Tour rookies Aaron Wise and Talor Gooch each had 65. Wise missed a 6-foot birdie putt on the final hole.

Woods again brought out big crowds in the unseasonable chill Thursday morning and gave them quite a show. He hit a tee shot that was out-of-bounds by inches. He atoned for that with a 70-foot birdie putt. And he wound up with a 68, his best opening round since he returned this year from a fourth back surgery.

“I feel like I’m not really thinking as much around the golf course,” Woods said. “I can just see and feel it and go.”

WOW!!! ?@TigerWoods from 71 feet …#QuickHits pic.twitter.com/xO7XWJVv9p

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 15, 2018

Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, B.C., was tied for 48th after shooting an even-par 72. Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., was 2-over 74 and tied for 86th.

Each week is a little better for Woods, and Stenson saw the progress last week. The 41-year-old Swede typically takes a month off between the Middle East swing and the Florida swing, and he returned last week to a grouping of Woods and Jordan Spieth. That didn’t bother him as much as his poor putting.

Bay Hill provided a change in both areas.

“It’s great to see him back competing, but it was a little loud out there last week,” Stenson said. “But that comes with the excitement of having him back and seeing him play well, so I thought it was great. … I guess it’s nice to get a little bit of a breather at times, though.”

It really helps to be putting well, especially on pure greens at Bay Hill that already had a yellow hue to them. He spent the weekend at home in Orlando working with Phil Kenyon, his putting coach, and it seemed to help. Stenson took only 20 putts, tying his personal best for fewest putts in a round on the PGA Tour.

He ran off five straight birdies around the turn, and he followed his lone bogey at the par-3 14th with two birdies and a 10-foot par save.

Woods had no complaints, and about the only thing that went wrong – except for the tee shot on No. 3 that went OB – was his prediction before he left Bay Hill. He was happy with anything in the 60s and said, “There won’t be a lot of rounds out there that will be in the 60s. The golf course is playing difficult.”

There were 13 more rounds in the 60s in the afternoon, including Ernie Els and Rory McIlroy at 69.

Only one of them was pleased with it. Els, who has gone more than a year since his last finish in the top 30, dropped only one shot, on the opening hole. McIlroy had five birdies through 10 holes and then hit out-of-bounds on the 18th hole for a double bogey.

Coming off a runner-up finish at the Valspar Championship that raised expectations of a victory being closer than ever, Woods started and finished strong, with one mishap in the middle.

His drive on No. 3, his 12th hole of the round, sailed to the right and went off a cart path and toward the houses. Only when he reached the ball did Woods find it had rolled into the bottom of a mesh fence. It looked like it was in play, except the poles on the waist-high fence were the boundaries, and his ball was inches outside of them.

He went back to the tee, sprayed the next tee shot under a tree and made double bogey.

And then came the big finish – two birdies on the par 5s, including a bold flop shot from a tight lie over a bunker at No. 6, and the 70-foot putt he was hoping would be close. Woods immediately pressed his hand down, asking for the ball to slow down, and then watched it drop for a most unlikely birdie.

“I was trying to lag it down there and just make my par and get out of here,” he said. “It had to crash at the hole – which I’m not complaining – and it went in.”

He closed with a 12-foot putt to save par from the bunker.

Former PGA champion Jimmy Walker, Rickie Fowler and Bryson DeChambeau were at 67.

Walker was on the other side of the golf course finishing up at the same time as Woods. He holed a wedge from 132 yards on the 18th for an eagle, matching his best score at Bay Hill. It was especially gratifying because he wasn’t even planning to play this week.

He had a trip to Augusta National planned with some friends and club members and thought it was this weekend. Instead, it was meant to be Monday and Tuesday. Walker’s wife, Erin, has a horse-jumping show in West Palm Beach. The kids are with their grandparents skiing in Utah.

“I figured I might as well play,” Walker said.

He had two days at Augusta National, didn’t have a practice round at Bay Hill and felt right at home.

“It’s just golf,” he shrugged. “Just hit the shots. I’ve done so many Monday qualifiers earlier in my career where you never see the golf course. Sometimes it helps because you’re not overdoing it.”

PHOENIX – Jessica Korda had 240 yards to the front of the 15th green Thursday morning in the chilly first round of the Founders Cup. She reached for driver – and caddie Colin Cann didn’t stop her.

While she often hits driver off the deck at home in Florida, she hadn’t attempted it in competition.

“It’s just if my caddie has a heart attack or not,” Korda joked.

The lanky American spared her looper’s ticker with a shot to 15 feet.

“I think the crowd enjoyed it more than I did, but I did think it was really cool,” said Korda, making her third start following off-season jaw surgery.

She settled for birdie on the par 5 – her fifth in the first six holes – after the eagle try lipped out.

“I was really upset, because I was like, ‘That would’ve been so cool,”’ Korda said. “What did I do after that? Nothing. I didn’t do anything after that.”

She did make one more birdie at Desert Ridge, but closed with two of her three bogeys in a 3-under 69 that left her two strokes behind leaders Karine Icher and Chella Choi. Ariya Jutanugarn, playing alongside Korda and defending champion Anna Nordqvist, was a shot back with Inbee Park, Lizette Salas, Cydney Clanton, Mariajo Uribe and Hee Young Park.

Maude-Aimee Leblanc of Sherbrooke, Que., was the low Canadian, shooting a 3-under 69 to tie for ninth. Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., and Quebec City’s Anne-Catherine Tanguay were tied for 61st at even-par 72. Hamilton’s Alena Sharp was 3-over 75 to sit 117th.

Canadian @maleblancgolf sits tied for 9th after the first round of the @LPGAfounders ???? pic.twitter.com/WetaElo0fp

— CP Women’s Open (@cpwomensopen) March 16, 2018

Korda won three weeks ago in Thailand in her return from the surgery, which corrected a severe overbite.

“It’s been difficult,” said Korda, the daughter of former tennis champion Petr Korda and sister of fellow tour player Nelly Korda. “I didn’t know when I was going to be able to come back.”

Though she no longer has constant headaches, she’s still sore and fighting a head cold – all more difficult in the cold and wind.

“If you guys are going numb, just think about how my lips are turning blue,” she joked.

Korda has four straight top-10 finishes, tying for third and second in her final two events last year before the surgery and following the victory in Thailand with a tie for 10th in Singapore. She has worked hard to improve her short game, focusing on her chipping.

“I’m not afraid to miss a green,” Korda said. “I used to get so frustrated missing greens because I was like that’s an automatic bogey. I knew how hard I would have to work just to make par. … It was really bad. It was like really, really, really bad. If I was 40 yards out, I would probably want to putt it.”

Nelly Korda helped mother Regina Rajchrtova – also a former professional tennis player – care for Jessica.

“She was drooling, obviously, because she couldn’t feel the bottom half of her face,” Nelly said. “Taking off her clothes was a bit difficult because she didn’t have any centre of gravity, so she would fall over. It was definitely hard to see her at that stage.”

The 19-year-old Nelly had a 72 in the group behind her sister. She tied for second in Singapore, a stroke behind Michelle Wie. The Kordas’ brother, 17-year-old Sebastian, won the Australian Open junior tennis title in January and is the top-ranked junior in the world.

Icher bogeyed Nos. 15 and 18 after playing the first 14 holes in 7 under.

“With the wind picking up, it’s a little bit hard,” Icher said.

The 39-year-old Frenchwoman birdied five of her first eight holes.

“The fairway doesn’t roll at all and big rough,” Icher said. “Last year, we had much more roll off the fairway and no rough. And the wind. The wind and the temperature. Usually in Phoenix we play in the 90s, so it’s a different course. We have to adapt.”

Choi also finished with a bogey.

“It was windy and tough out there, but every player in same condition,” Choi said.

Nordqvist, a Swede who played at Arizona State, closed with a bogey for a 69. Fourth-ranked Sung Hyun Park also had a 69.

Wie opened with a 70 in the afternoon.

“It was a grind,” Wie said. “This course, generally, you feel like you have to shoot 10-under par every day.”

Lydia Ko had five bogeys in a 74.

WOODBRIDGE, Ont.  – adidas Golf, a worldwide leader in golf apparel and footwear, announced today the signing of Brittany Marchand as she is coming off her most successful season as a professional. Marchand’s contract includes her wearing the 3-Stripes’ industry-leading performance apparel, footwear and headwear as she takes her game to the next level.

Since turning pro in 2015, Marchand has had five top-ten finishes on the Symetra Tour and picked up her first victory at the 2017 PHC Classic. The Team Young Pro Squad member enters 2018 with conditional status on the LPGA and will play a mixed schedule between Symetra Tour and LPGA events. Marchand was one of two Canadians to play through the weekend at the 2017 CP Women’s Open and provided much excitement at the Manulife Classic, where she was tied for 9^th heading into Sunday.

#TeamCanada Young Pro Squad member @Britt_Marchand signs with @adidasGolfca ????

Read ➡️ https://t.co/6kh523EXbV pic.twitter.com/hrlj75V0e5

— Golf Canada (@TheGolfCanada) March 14, 2018

“I’m very excited to join team adidas for the upcoming season! I’m proud to be amongst the best players in the world and to wear such an iconic brand. I wore adidas in college at NC State, I know the brand well and I’m thrilled to wear it again. It feels great to have the support of adidas Canada and the global team as I start my career on the LPGA tour!”

“We are very excited to have Brittany join team adidas, and we look forward to supporting her journey as a professional,” said Lesley Hawkins, general manager, adidas Golf. “Brittany joins a marquee roster of adidas Golf LPGA Tour athletes, which includes Paula Creamer, Jessica Korda, and 2017 Major Winner Danielle Kang”.

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia and Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, USA – Presidents Cup and PGA TOUR officials today announced Ernie Els and Tiger Woods as captains of the International and U.S. Teams, respectively, for the 2019 Presidents Cup at The Royal Melbourne Golf Course in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. While both will be first-time captains at the event, the two are the most experienced captains in terms of Presidents Cup competition and were the primary figures in the 2003 event held in South Africa, where Woods and Els competed in a dramatic sudden-death playoff that ultimately ended in a tie and the two teams sharing the Cup.

Els has competed in the Presidents Cup eight times (1996, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013), tied for most by an International Team member. Woods, also an eight-time U.S. Presidents Cup Team member (1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013), holed the winning putt for the United States in 2009, 2011 and 2013 – the only player to clinch the Cup three times. Both Woods and Els served as captain’s assistants for their respective teams in 2017.

“Ernie Els and Tiger Woods have each been part of the fabric of the Presidents Cup as competitors and as ambassadors to the event,” said PGA TOUR Commissioner Jay Monahan. “Ernie carries the flag for international golf as a legendary figure both on and off the golf course, while Tiger has been one of the most transcendent athletes the sport has ever seen. These two have served, and will continue to serve, as a bridge between past team members and captains who laid the foundation for the Presidents Cup and the stars of today who are embracing the hallmarks of the event – golf on a global stage, a love and passion for the game and the impact the Presidents Cup has in emerging markets and through charity.”

In addition to the announcement of the two captains, officials also unveiled minor changes to format requirements and eligibility for the 2019 Presidents Cup. Each player shall play a minimum of one match prior to the final-round singles matches. This is a change from past years where players were required to play twice during the same timeframe. Additionally, the top eight players for the International and U.S. Team standings will officially qualify following the completion of the 2019 TOUR Championship. Captains will later select four captains’ picks (at date to be determined) closer to the December 2019 event.

Els and Woods have combined for 97 PGA TOUR victories, including 20 World Golf Championships events and 18 major championship titles, with 59 additional wins internationally. Following the completion of the 34 matches at the 2003 Presidents Cup in South Africa, the score was tied at 17, which meant a sudden-death playoff between Els and Woods as selected by then-captains Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus. With sunlight fading, both players made pars on the first playoff hole. With Woods in for par on the second playoff hole, Els knocked in his 12-footer to halve.  The two again traded dramatic par putts on the third playoff hole with darkness upon them. It was then decided to end the competition and declare the event a tie.

Ernie Els

Els is tied with Vijay Singh and Adam Scott with eight appearances in the event with an overall record of 20-18-2. He is tied for most all-time match appearances on the International Team in Presidents Cup history (40, Vijay Singh) and has won more matches than any other International Team member (20). The World Golf Hall of Fame member has 19 career PGA TOUR victories to his credit, including four major championships between the U.S. Open (1994, 1997) and The Open Championship (2002, 2012). The former world No. 1 and native South African has also made his mark internationally with 47 total victories spread across the European Tour and South African Tour, representing South Africa five times in the World Cup (1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2001) as well as nine times in the Alfred Dunhill Cup (1992-2000).

Els will be the sixth person to serve as a captain for the International Team (Nick Price – 2017, 2015, 2013; Greg Norman – 2011, 2009; Gary Player – 2007, 2005, 2003; Peter Thomson– 2000, 1998, 1996; David Graham – 1994).

“The Presidents Cup has provided me with many of the best memories of my career,” said Els.  “To be named captain of the team is an incredible honor. There is a fun and talented group of young players emerging from all across the globe for the International Team, and I am eager to accept the responsibility of building a winner when we face the United States at one of my favorite courses and cities in the world at Royal Melbourne. Tiger and I have had some great duels in the past, and I look forward to the challenge of going against my longtime friend yet again in 2019.”

Tiger Woods

Woods has a Presidents Cup record of 24-15-1 since his first appearance on the 1998 U.S. Team, and he is one of five players to go 5-0-0 during a single event (2009). His 24 matches won ranks second all-time to Phil Mickelson’s 26, and his six victories in singles matches is the most in the event’s history.

Woods will be the eighth player to captain the U.S. Team (Steve Stricker – 2017; Jay Haas – 2015; Fred Couples – 2013, 2011, 2009; Jack Nicklaus – 2007, 2005, 2003, 1998; Ken Venturi – 2000; Arnold Palmer – 1996; Hale Irwin – 1994).

“After working as a captain’s assistant for Steve in 2017, I realized that I wanted to captain the 2019 event at Royal Melbourne,” said Woods. “I’m proud to follow in the footsteps of past captains like Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Hale Irwin, Ken Venturi, Fred Couples, Jay Haas and Steve Stricker. The core group of players on the U.S. Team have a lot of talent, enthusiasm and great team camaraderie. They are easy-going and fun to be around off the course, but extremely competitive inside the ropes. I have no doubt that Ernie will have the International Team ready to go in Melbourne, and I cannot think of a more fitting captain to carry the tradition of goodwill through competition than Ernie Els. The Sandbelt courses of Australia are some of my favorite in the world, and I’m looking forward to seeing Royal Melbourne again.”

The 2019 Presidents Cup will be held December 9-15, 2019, when it returns to the prestigious Royal Melbourne Golf Club. The return to Melbourne, Australia, will mark the third time in the biennial event’s 25-year history it has been held at the renowned Sandbelt course, as the event was previously held in Melbourne in 1998 and 2011, also at The Royal Melbourne Golf Club.

Melbourne also holds the distinction as the site of the lone International Team’s victory in 1998, which saw Peter Thomson’s International Team defeat Jack Nicklaus’ U.S. Team, 20.5 to 11.5.  In 2011, Fred Couples led the U.S. Team to a 19-15 win over Greg Norman and the Internationals. The 1998 event was also held in December, a date that traditionally works well with other golf tournaments held in Australia.

The first step on the path towards the PGA TOUR begins this week at Carlton Oaks Country Club in Santee, California, as 132 players compete to earn status on the Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada for 2018.

The Order of Merit winner following the 2018 season will be fully exempt on the 2019 Web.com Tour, while finishers 2-5 earn conditional status and an exemption into the Final Stage of Q-School. Finishers 6-10 also earn an exemption directly into Final Stage, while players in the 11th through 20th spots earn exemptions through Second Stage.

The path has already been utilized by 20 players who have gone on to earn PGA TOUR cards since 2013, highlighted by PGA TOUR winners Nick Taylor, Tony Finau and Mackenzie Hughes. 166 total alumni have earned Web.com Tour status, including 72 competing there for the 2018 season.

Mackenzie Tour alums to have earned their cards in California include PGA TOUR players Tony Finau, Brandon Harkins and Sam Ryder, as well as The Five members Greg Eason and Taylor Pendrith and tournament winners Daniel Miernicki and Rico Hoey.

CANADIANS IN THE FIELD (6):

Eric Hawerchuk (Barrie, Ont.)
Andrew Ledger (Toronto, Ont.)
Sean Bozuk (Burlington, Ont.)
John Mlikotic (Kelowna, B.C.)
Andrew Funk (Edmonton, Alta.)
Darren Day (Victoria, B.C.)

PALM HARBOR, Fla. – A long victory drought on the PGA TOUR finally ended Sunday, just not the one a raucous crowd was expecting.

Paul Casey closed with a 6-under 65 and won the Valspar Championship, but only after watching from the locker room as Tiger Woods came up one putt short of forcing a playoff. It was the closest Woods has come to winning in nearly five years.

Casey, who started the final round five shots behind, ran off three straight birdies early on the back nine at Innisbrook to take the lead, and he closed with four par saves to post at 10-under 274.

No one caught him, giving him his second PGA Tour title and his first since the Houston Open in 2009.

Patrick Reed was tied for the lead and appeared headed for a playoff at worst until his approach to the 18th came back down the slope, and his 45-foot birdie putt was so weak that it rolled all the way back to his feet . He three-putted for bogey and a 68.

Woods and his massive following went dormant after an opening birdie to briefly share the lead. He went 15 holes without a birdie until he brought Innisbrook to life with a birdie putt from just inside 45 feet that died into the cup at the par-3 17th, leaving him one shot behind with one hole to play.

Woods played conservatively with an iron off the 442-yard, uphill closing hole on the Copperhead course. From 185 yards, his approach came up some 40 feet short, and his birdie putt to force a playoff was 2 feet short.

He closed with a 70 – the first time since The Barclays in 2013 that he posted all four rounds under par on the PGA TOUR – and tied for second. That was his best finish since he tied for second at that Barclays tournament, right about the time his back started to give out.

Casey had gone 132 starts on the PGA Tour since winning in Houston, though he had won five times worldwide, including the European Tour’s flagship event at the BMW PGA Championship. He had seven top 5s in the FedEx Cup playoffs over the last three years.

Someone always played better – until Sunday.

Corey Conners, the Canadian rookie who started the final round with a one-shot lead, fell back quickly after opening with a bogey on the easiest hole at Innisbrook. He shot 77 and tied for 16th.

Thanks for the thrilling run, @coreconn – ?? is proud of you!

Until the next time! ? pic.twitter.com/fWJtzGTZ1H

— Golf Canada (@TheGolfCanada) March 11, 2018

Defending champion Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, B.C., closed with a strong 3-under-par 68 to finish tied for 12th at 4 under.

Woods looked closer than ever to winning in his remarkable return from fusion surgery on his lower back last April. Each week has been a little better. He has been a factor on Sunday the last two tournaments, and a gallery that stood 10-deep around just about every green could sense it.

He just couldn’t deliver after a two-putt birdie on the par-5 opening hole.

“I didn’t feel that sharp with my iron game,” Woods said. “I played conservatively into the green because I wasn’t as sharp as yesterday. It was one of those days I kept getting half-clubs.”

He missed birdie chances on both par 5s on the back nine, pulling a wedge into the rough at No. 11 and three-putting from 80 feet on No. 14. He missed a couple of putts in the 15-foot range. And right when it looked as though he was out of chances, he ran into the 45-foot birdie putt to keep everyone guessing.

Next up for Woods is the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill next week, which he hasn’t played since winning five years ago. He is an eight-time winner at Bay Hill, and the euphoria over his return is sure to reach even higher decibels.

“I keep getting a little bit better,” Woods said. “I had a good shot at winning this golf tournament. A couple putts here and there, it could have been a different story.”

Reed will look back on one putt.

He opened with a 60-foot eagle putt that slammed into the pin on No. 1 and was never far from the lead, tying Casey with a bold fairway metal onto the fringe at the 14th that set up birdie. He was in the middle of the fairway on the 18th. He twirled his club when the ball was in the air.

And then it all went wrong.

The putt up the hill never had a chance, and when it started rolling back at his feet, Reed beckoned it with his right hand. He used a wedge on the fourth shot, knowing he had to hole it for par to force a playoff.

That left Casey the winner, finally.

The 40-year-old from England had reason to believe his hopes ended on Saturday when he hit into the water on the 16th and made double bogey, falling five shots behind. He answered Sunday with all eyes on someone else – Woods – by going out in 33, and then getting rewarded for aggressive play. He got up-and-down from a bunker short of the green at No. 11 for birdie, stuffed his approach to a foot on No. 12 and then holed a 20-foot birdie from just off the green at No. 13.

Justin Rose, among six players who had a share of the lead at some point in the final round, had back-to-back bogeys on the back nine and never atoned for his mistakes. He closed with a 72 and finished three shots behind.

It is with great sadness that the Canadian golf community mourns the loss of revered PGA of Canada professional Jerry Anderson of Cambridge, Ont. who passed away suddenly on March 9, 2018 at the age of 62.

He is survived by his wife Barbara and children Chrysse and Luke along with countless friends across the Canadian and International golf community. 

Statement from Golf Canada CEO Laurence Applebaum:

“On behalf of the entire golf community including the golfers, associations and fellow competitors whose lives he touched, we are saddened by the passing of Jerry Anderson. Jerry’s accomplishments on the golf course along with his determination to chase his dream all around the globe define the drive of a champion. As we join family and friends in mourning his sudden passing, his outstanding legacy deserves to be celebrated.”

Statement from Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada President Jeff Monday:

“The entire Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada community was devastated to learn about the passing of Canadian golf legend Jerry Anderson this weekend. Our thoughts and condolences go out to his wife Barbara and the rest of the family at this time.”

Born September 22, 1955 in Montreal, Que, Anderson took up the game in 1968 as a caddie at the Whitlock Golf and Country Club near Montreal. He attended the University of Texas (1975-78) and had a strong amateur career before turning professional.

By 1978, he had had earned his Canadian Tour (now Mackenzie Tour-PGA Tour Canada) card and would go on to win nine times on the Canadian development tour including the Ontario Open (1979), Players Cup (1979), Saskatchewan Open (1979-80), Quebec Open (1982-83) and Canadian Tour Players Championship (1988). Anderson topped the Canadian Tour Order of Merit on three occasions—1980, 1982 and 1989.

He also won the PGA of Canada Championship in 1987 after finishing runner-up in 1985.

Anderson played on the European Tour through most of the 1980’s, travelling the world with his wife. He became the first Canadian to win on the European Tour when he shot 27-under par (261) to win the 1984 Ebel European Masters – Swiss Open by five strokes. His 72-hole score was a record on the European Tour until Ernie Els shot 29-under at the 2003 Johnnie Walker Classic. In 1984, he finished ninth on the European Tour Order of Merit.

In additional to playing golf in Europe, through Asia, Africa and South America, Anderson also spent two seasons on golf’s biggest stage, the PGA TOUR in 1990 and 1992. Over a total of 66 events played, he made the cut 18 times with three top-25 finishes.

He played in the (RBC) Canadian Open 12 times between 1977 and 1992 with three cuts made. His best finish was T15 in 1982.

Among his many accomplishments, Anderson represented Canada at the Alfred Dunhill Cup in 1985 (with Dave Barr and Dan Halldorson) and at the World Cup in 1983 and 1987 (with Dave Barr), .

In 1991, Anderson won the Ben Hogan Texarkana Open (currently the Web.com Tour).

In 2000, he was reinstated as a Class A member of the PGA of Canada and worked at several clubs including Cambridge Golf Club and Ingersoll Golf and Country Club.

Most recently, Anderson worked as a PGA of Canada Class A Teaching Professional at Credit Valley Golf & Country Club in Mississauga, Ont.

He was inducted in the Ontario Golf Hall of Fame in 2002 and the PGA of Canada Hall of Fame in 2016.

Jerry Anderson’s competitive accomplishments across the provincial, national and international golf landscape included:

• Attended the University of Texas from 1975-78
• #1 Ranked Amateur golfer in Ontario in 1976
• Ontario Open Champion (1979)
• Players Cup Champion (1979)
• Saskatchewan Open Champion (1979-80)
• Quebec Open Champion (1982-83)
• PGA of Canada Champion (1987); Runner-Up (1985)
• Canadian Tour Players Champion (1988)
• Windsor Charity Championship winner (1989)
• Tournament Players Championship winner (1989)
• Three-time Canadian Tour Order of Merit winner (1980, 1982, 1989)
• Member of Canada’s World Cup Team in 1983 and 1987
• Member of Canada’s Dunhill Cup Team in 1985
• European Masters Swiss Open Champion (1984)
• German Open, Runner-Up (1984)
• Canadian Open, Low-Canadian (1992)
• Texarkana Open Champion (1991)

PALM HARBOR, Fla. – Canadian PGA TOUR rookie Corey Conners retained the solo lead he held after each of the first two rounds, shooting a 3-under 68 to hold a one-shot lead over Justin Rose, Brandt Snedeker and Tiger Woods.

Conners, who ran off birdies in the early stretches of both sides at Innisbrook, saved par from the bunker on the 17th and kept his cool when his ball moved slightly on the 18th green to finish off a par for a 3-under 68.

Now comes the hard part.

He had a one-shot lead over Woods, Brandt Snedeker and Justin Rose as he goes after his first PGA TOUR victory before a crowd rarely seen this side of a major. Thousands bordered on a delirium for just about every shot Woods hit, especially when he chipped in for birdie behind the ninth green, holed a 20-foot birdie putt at No. 10 and gave himself birdie chances inside 8 feet on the next two holes.

Woods missed them both to slow his momentum. He dropped only one shot and finished with four straight pars in his round of 67. It was his fifth straight round at par or better, his longest stretch in the same season since September 2013.

This marks the first time Conners has held the 54-hole lead/co-lead in 21 career starts on the PGA TOUR. Before this week, Conners’ best position after any round on the PGA TOUR was T21 after the first round of The Honda Classic two weeks ago (T59).

A win from Conners following fellow Canadian Adam Hadwin’s victory at the 2017 Valspar Championship would mark the first time in PGA TOUR history that two different Canadians won the same event in back-to-back seasons (Mike Weir won the Genesis Open in 2003 and 2004).

Another birdie moves @coreconn to -10 ???? pic.twitter.com/9RnB9pQQu6

— Golf Canada (@TheGolfCanada) March 10, 2018

Conners, who came into the week as third alternate, received his spot in the field when Kyle Stanley withdrew. He learned of his spot in the field after shooting a 71 in the Monday Qualifier, which would not have been enough to play his way in.

Tiger Woods was right in front of him Saturday, and Conners could hear the roars all afternoon.

“Loud. Very, very loud,” Woods said about the gallery. “I played myself right there in contention. It will be a fun Sunday.”

Conners, in only his 17th start on the PGA Tour as a pro, was at 9-under 204.

Canadian @coreyconners carries a 1-stroke advantage into tomorrow’s final round at the @valsparchamp ????? • • ? (Getty Images) • #golf #golflife #golfr #golfcanada #golfswing

A post shared by Golf Canada (@thegolfcanada) on Mar 10, 2018 at 3:05pm PST

He finished with a two-putt par from 20 feet and one nervous moment. As he was taking a few practice strokes for his 3-foot par putt, the ball moved ever so slightly without him touching it with his putter. He marked it and called over an official to confirm there is no longer a penalty for a ball moving even after a player has addressed if it was clear he didn’t cause the ball to move.

He will be paired in the final group with Rose, who holed a wedge for eagle from 120 yards on the par-5 11th and followed with two more birdies for a 66.

Snedeker, coming off a sternum injury that knocked him out of golf for the second half of last year, was equally impressive as the guy in his group everyone came to see. He twice matched birdies with Woods with 12-foot putts, and after falling two shots behind and the crowd getting louder by the hole for Woods, Snedeker battled back with a pair of birdies for a 67.

He will play with Woods again in the final round.

Woods has never been so close to winning since his last victory in the Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone in 2013. It has been a remarkable return from his fourth back surgery, especially since he wasn’t cleared to start hitting balls until five months ago.

In his sights are a shot at his 80th career victory on the PGA TOUR and more momentum and madness as the Masters approaches.

In 10 starts this season, Conners has just one missed cut (AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am). Conners made his way to the PGA TOUR this season by virtue of a 41st-place finish.