WINDSOR, Ont. – The Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada officially announced on Friday that the Windsor Championship, a new event taking place at Ambassador Golf Club in Windsor, Ontario, will begin in 2018 as part of a multi-year agreement.

The 156-player event with a $200,000 purse will take place July 2-8 as the fifth event of the 2018 schedule. An organizing committee led by local business leader Marty Komsa has been formed, with Ambassador Director of Golf Operations Adam Wagner taking leadership of event operations. Six organizations – Windsor Family Credit Union, Cypher Systems Group, Sun-Brite Foods Inc., Fahri Holdings Corporation, Ambassador Golf Club and the City of Windsor – have joined as the event’s founding partners.

“We are absolutely thrilled to be launching a new tournament this year in Windsor,” said Mackenzie Tour President Jeff Monday. “Thanks to the support of the event’s Founding Partners, as well as community leaders Marty Komsa and Mayor Drew Dilkens, we’re elated that this event has become a reality this season, and we believe the tournament is well-positioned to make a positive community impact for years to come. Golf fans in the area can expect to see some outstanding competition on the course and I’m confident that the players will thoroughly enjoy the course and community this July.”

The Hospice of Windsor and Essex County, a community-based hospice village which provides compassionate care to improve quality of life, will receive net proceeds from the tournament as the event’s official charity, with a minimum donation of $100,000 set for the first year of the event.

“We are pleased to welcome the Mackenzie Tour to Windsor this July.  Windsor continues to attract a multitude of sporting events and we are excited to include a PGA TOUR Canada event on our resume. The charitable donation component of this event will benefit the Hospice and the Windsor-Essex community for years to come,” said Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens.

Ambassador, a 7033-yard Tom McBroom design, opened in 2005 and has been consistently ranked among the top public courses in Canada by SCORE Golf Magazine. The club previously hosted the Mackenzie Tour’s Freedom 55 Financial Championship in 2011, as well as several other high-level amateur events including the Ontario men’s and women’s amateur championships.

“The opportunity to host some of the world’s top up-and-coming players this July at Ambassador is truly exciting, and we’re confident they will love the course’s outstanding conditions, challenging layout and welcoming amenities. We’re looking forward to working with the Mackenzie Tour and members of the community as we aim to bring a world-class tournament to Windsor this year,” said Wagner.

The full 2018 Mackenzie Tour schedule will be announced in the coming weeks.

Canadian Pacific (CP) and Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation have announced 10-year-old Benjamin Fizzard of Regina as the Saskatchewan child ambassador for the 2018 CP Women’s Open taking place at the Wascana Country Club, in Regina, August 20-26, 2018.

“CP was thrilled with the outcome of last month’s Radiothon in partnership with the Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital, which raised $618,060 to support children who are overcoming heart problems,” said Keith Creel, CP President and CEO. “We look forward to connecting with our Saskatchewan-based CP family, our customers and stakeholders this summer in Regina at the CP Women’s Open, and will proudly continue our fundraising efforts until then.”

Benjamin has triumphed over heart challenges, including sudden cardiac arrest while playing tag at school. The announcement coincides with the official kick-off of the CP Has Heart fundraising campaign that begins today and runs until August 26.

“Even after the unimaginable heart complications that Benjamin has endured, he has made a remarkable comeback and we are so proud to have him represent Saskatchewan kids at the 2018 CP Women’s Open in Regina,” said Brynn Boback-Lane, President and CEO of Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation. “People across Saskatchewan are once again coming together and contributing through the CP Has Heart matching program, allowing Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation to receive DOUBLE the financial support to help kids like Benjamin who experience heart health complications. The generosity of donations speaks loudly that Saskatchewan folks truly do have heart.” Benjamin has triumphed over heart challenges, including sudden cardiac arrest while playing tag at school. The announcement coincides with the official kick-off of the CP Has Heart fundraising campaign that begins today and runs until August 26.

The CP Has Heart campaign will raise funds for a dedicated Pediatric Cardiology space, called the “Frog Pod”, in the new Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital which is set to open next year. With a nature theme running throughout the hospital, the “Frog Pod” will be specifically used to treat pediatric cardiology patients right here in Saskatchewan. With a specialized provincial team of pediatric cardiologists, the “Frog Pod” includes echocardiography exam rooms, a pulmonary function technology lab, an exercise challenge room, a regular exam room and a staff echo cardiology reading room.

CP will be matching donations made here from now through to the end of the CP Women’s Open tournament on August 26, 2018. Through the CP Has Heart campaign, CP will also match funds from community fundraisers up to $95,000 as well as offer a $225,000 match towards major gifts and provide incentive for Saskatchewan residents to join Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation’s monthly giving program, called Sunshine Makers Club.

Please visit pattisonchildrenshasheart.ca, which launches today, for information on the “Frog Pod”, our new ambassador, and to learn more about how to support pediatric cardiology in Saskatchewan.

Golf Canada is pleased to announce that Canadian professional golfer and former Team Canada member Sara-Maude Juneau of Fossambault-sur-le-Lac, Que., has joined the organization in the role of assistant, Development Squad and Next Generation Performance.

Juneau—who played on both the LPGA and Symetra Tours during her career—will work closely with the 10 Development Squad athletes (five girls, five boys) as well as Golf Canada’s National Team coaches and Sport Science consultants to execute on Next Generation initiatives, all of which will lead to building a stronger Team Canada program.

“Sara-Maude brings a unique combination of skill and hands-on experience which we feel is critical to the success of developing our top-level juniors,” said Jeff Thompson, Golf Canada chief sport officer. “She was also a member of the Amateur Squad for two years, adding a valuable new perspective to our coaching staff.”

Juneau will help in leading the new centralized component of the Development Squad based out of Bear Mountain Resort in Victoria, B.C.—Team Canada’s Official Training Centre. The program will send Development Squad athletes to Bear Mountain from February through to early June to be immersed in a centre of excellence. In addition to being billeted and going to school locally, the athletes will be surrounded by world-class technical coaching staff and experts in the areas of mental performance, physiotherapy, biomechanics and nutrition.

“Sara-Maude is very familiar with life on the road as a touring professional, which will pay dividends in helping to guide our young athletes through proper training and competitive scheduling,” said Thompson. “We are also confident that her leadership will contribute to an ideal training environment for our Development Squad.”

The Team Canada graduate boasts 16 top-10 finishes on the Symetra Tour alongside a full season on the LPGA Tour in 2013. Prior to turning professional, Juneau played collegiate golf at the University of Louisville where she was named the 2010 Big East Conference Player of the Year while adding a win at the Quebec Women’s Amateur that same year.

Excited to welcome @smjuneau_3 back to the national team as Assistant, #TeamCanada & Next Generation ???

Read ➡️ https://t.co/qMkVUIl1g3 pic.twitter.com/ifvYFO6uY8

— Golf Canada (@TheGolfCanada) February 13, 2018

The PGA of America announced recently the formation of an international event, the Women’s PGA Cup – a first-of-its-kind team competition for Women PGA members from around the world.

The PGA of Canada is pleased to be taking part in this landmark event.

The inaugural competition will be played October 21-26, 2019 in the United States.

The Women’s PGA Cup will be a 54-hole stroke play event with each team’s lowest three scores being counted after each round. The winning country will be the team with the lowest 54-hole aggregate total.

Each national team will be composed of five players and one captain, who also may be a playing or non-playing captain at the option of the respective country.

The Women’s PGA Cup does not include a purse; rather, each team will vie for bragging rights and the honour of winning the Cup, and bask in the pride that comes with representing one’s country in a distinct and unique international competition.

Those eligible to represent their country in the Women’s PGA Cup must be members in good standing with their respective Professional Golfers Association (PGA). They must also be active in the game, be it as a teacher, coach or working as club professional/assistant. Tour professionals who primarily compete for a living are not eligible to participate.

The five members of the inaugural PGA of Canada team will be determined based on the following:

• Performance of eligible finishers at the 2018 and 2019 DATA PGA Women’s Championship

The following countries are tentatively committed to play in the 2019 Women’s PGA Cup: Australia, Canada, Great Britain & Ireland, Sweden and the United States.

More information about the Women’s PGA Cup will be made available over the coming months.

BOGOTA, Colombia – Last December, Englishman Ben Taylor found himself in Chandler, Arizona, competing at the Web.com Tour Qualifying Tournament, attempting to better his status on Tour for 2018. Despite three top-25 finishes in 2017, the Tour rookie had finished the Regular Season at No. 80 on the money list, narrowly missing a berth into the Web.com Tour Finals and exempt status for the following year. Now, just two months later, the Louisiana State University alum is a first-time winner after carding a closing-round 3-under-par 68 at the Club Colombia Championship, good for a six-stroke victory – the largest in tournament history – over K.H. Lee, Erik Barnes, Jason Gore and fellow LSU Tiger Sam Burns.

“It’s still quite surreal,” Taylor said about the difference two months makes. “To know that I had to shoot 17-under in December to be here this week is certainly a good feeling now that I’ve become the champion. It just goes to show that the hard work does pay off. I’m certainly very thrilled to come out on top this week. It’s a surreal feeling and a dream come true.”

Taylor entered Sunday at Country Club de Bogota four strokes clear of the field, but a bogey on the opening hole ensured the 25-year-old would have to play aggressively to keep the lead as the leaderboard became more and more bunched behind him at 9-under par. Taylor went on par the next two holes before picking up his first birdie of the day on the par-4 fourth. He carded four more birdies on the round to move to 16-under before dropping a stroke on the par-3 15th.

As Taylor approached the fairway on No. 17, the London native and current Orlando, Florida, resident looked at the leaderboard for the first time, only to see he’d opened up a six-stroke lead on the rest of the field with two left to play.

“I made sure not to look at any leaderboards all day,” Taylor laughed, “But when I was coming down No. 17 and realized I was ahead by six, I realized it was pretty difficult to mess it up. That’s when I realized the job was done. It certainly made the three-shot par-5 finish a lot easier.”

The former NCAA Division I and Division II champion finished the week at 15-under 269 for the tournament, just three strokes shy of the tournament-best 266 carded by Patrick Cantlay in 2013. With his opening-round 4-under 67, Taylor also tied Cantlay for the lowest start by a tournament champion. This week also marked the first time Taylor held a 36- and 54-hole lead.

The maiden victory for Taylor came with a $126,000 paycheck, enough to move him to No. 3 on the money list. For Taylor, who played every event of the Regular Season in 2017, the win reorients his goals for the season from simply retaining his Web.com Tour card to making a chase for a spot in The 25 and his first PGA TOUR card. The win also allowed Taylor to live out a dream almost three years in the making.

“The walk up No. 18 was really special. I remember before I even had my card on this Tour or the Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada, I watched the highlights of Steve Marino and Patrick Rodgers from this tournament,” said Taylor, who was a Mackenzie Tour member in 2016.

“I saw how big the crowds were and I thought, ‘Man, that’s quite cool. I’d love to be there and do that one day.’ When I walked up and all the crowd were applauding for me; that was pretty cool.”

Canada’s Roger Sloan, of Merritt, B.C., continued his momentum with a second-straight top-20 finish (after missing the cut in the season’s first two events). The 30-year-old finished the tournament at 6 under par (69-66-71-72) to finish with a share of 16th. On the heels of two strong performances, Sloan finds himself at No. 17 on the money list—in line for one the coveted top-25 spots to earn PGA TOUR cards. As it stands, Sloan is joined by fellow countrymen Adam Svensson (No.2) and Ryan Yip (No. 20).

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Ted Potter Jr. beat three of the biggest names on the PGA Tour at one of the most famous golf courses in America, and then his day got even better.

Walking out to the 18th green for the trophy presentation at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, he stopped to chat with Clint Eastwood.

“It was pretty awesome to meet him out there today,” Potter said. “Big fan of a lot of his movies he’s done, and it was just incredible to meet him, too.”

In some respects, Potter starred in his own show with an ending not many imagined.

He turned pro out of high school and groomed his game on the mini-tours, sometimes earning barely enough money to pay for a week’s worth of food and gas. When he first got onto the Web.com Tour, he missed the cut in all 24 tournaments he played. Two years after he broke through on the PGA Tour by winning the Greenbrier Classic, he broke his right ankle stepping off a curb and sat out for two years.

The injury was so severe he had two surgeries – one to insert two plates and 12 screws, the other to remove all that hardware.

He played in the final group Sunday with Dustin Johnson, coming up on a full year at No. 1 in the world. Potter was No. 246.

Potter overcame a three-putt bogey on the opening hole by not dropping a shot the rest of the way. He closed with a 3-under 69 and left the mistakes to everyone else, a cast of challengers that included Johnson, Phil Mickelson and Jason Day. They all finished second, along with Chez Reavie.

Hollywood stuff, for sure.

“I’m so happy right now to get it done today, especially against the world No. 1, playing with him today,” Potter said. “The win here at Pebble is just unbelievable.”

There is nothing fancy about Potter’s game or how he won for the second time in his career.

He birdied both the par 5s on the front. He chipped in for birdie behind the seventh green, which gave him a two-shot lead. And then he was never out of position the rest of the way, knowing he had the lead and that someone would have to catch him.

Mickelson made a late charge with three birdies in a four-hole stretch through the 17th hole. But trying to make eagle on the 18th for a chance at winning, Lefty came up just right of the green and into a bunker, leading to par and a 67.

It was his best finish since that duel at Royal Troon with Henrik Stenson in the British Open in 2016. Mickelson, who tied for fifth in Phoenix last week, had consecutive top 5s for the first time since the summer of 2013, his last victory.

“I made a few good birdies coming down the stretch there to feel the nerves again,” Mickelson said. “Unfortunately, it’s not enough, but it was a great week, a lot of fun, perfect weather and really had a great time.”

Day also made a late run with two birdies on the 15th and 16th, but then his tee shot on the par-3 17th went to the right and the pin was all the way to the left. He made par, then hit onto the beach with a driver off the deck on the 18th. Day kept it entertaining by playing off the beach, over the sea wall and over the green. He still managed to get up-and-down from a bunker for par and a 70.

Johnson was never really in it after his bogey on No. 8 to fall three shots behind. He kept missing in the wrong spots, and he dropped two more shots when he couldn’t afford to drop any. He closed with a 72.

“A few iron shots cost me a few bogeys,” said Johnson, who played Pebble in 70-72 on the weekend. “Two under in 36 holes is not too good as well as I thought I was playing. I’d like to have put a little more pressure on Ted.”

Potter was the last man standing, remarkable considering it was only two years ago when he couldn’t stand at all.

He slipped off a curb at the Canadian Open in 2014 and broke his ankle. Through the surgeries, he wasn’t sure if he would ever be able to play again, or at least play the way he once did.

“It’s been a struggle,” he said. “You break your ankle and you don’t know what’s going to happen with your swing, with your career. It’s unbelievable right now. … This has been a blast this week.”

Now he has a two-year exemption on the PGA Tour. He gets into the Masters for the second time. He gets into the PGA Championship in August, and he starts next year on Maui for the Sentry Tournament of Champions.

The ultimate underdog? Potter wasn’t sure about that. He had an opportunity and grabbed it.

“It’s golf,” he said. “All you can do is try as hard as you can. Just keeping grinding. I don’t know what to say.”

BOGOTA, Colombia – Former LSU golfer Ben Taylor opened his week at the Web.com Tour’s Club Colombia Championship with a 4-under 67 to sit one shot off the 18-hole lead entering Friday’s second round at host Country Club of Bogota. The 25-year-old, who spent much of the day flirting around the top of the leaderboard, took outright control of the tournament with birdies on Nos. 15, 16 and 17 to post 5-under 66 and 9-under 133 through 36 holes, good for a two-shot lead entering weekend play at the ninth annual event.

Taylor, who originally hails from London, England, was one-over par through three holes in his second round, but rallied early with birdies on Nos. 4 and 8 to turn in one-under 34.

A birdie on the par-5 10^th pushed him to two-under for the day, but it was a par save on the narrow par-4 13^th that kept the round going.

“I hit my tee shot left on 13, and I had to hit a good second shot knowing that I couldn’t go long of the green, and I managed to hit a chip-and-run 180 yards to the middle of the green, and from there two putt to keep the momentum going,” he said.

The clutch save on the back nine gave way to a torrid finish for the Orlando resident, as birdies on 15, 16 and 17 moved him from the role of hunter to that of hunted, thanks to a 9-under 133 tally and a two-shot advantage with 36 holes to play.

“I knew I was close, but I’ve been in this situation a couple of times now having played my rookie year last year, so I learned to stick to the game plan and close out a good finish, which we managed to do,” said Taylor when asked if he was looking at leaderboards.

Taylor, in his second full season on the Web.com Tour, entered the week with one top-25 in three starts this year – a T19 at The Bahamas Great Abaco Classic.

As a rookie in 2017, he recorded three top-25 finishes in 22 starts, including a career-best T7 at the Knoxville Open in August. One of Taylor’s three top-25s came at the Club Colombia Championship, where a final-round 65 propelled him 24 spots up the Sunday leaderboard and into a tie for 21^st.

“I like that it’s challenging, so if you have a couple of bad holes, you know you’re not going to fall down as far as you would on a golf course where it’s a birdie-fest,” Taylor said of the demanding Country Club of Bogota. “I really like the golf course and I’m very excited for the next couple of days.”

Argentina’s Augusto Nunez, Canada’s Roger Sloan and Conner Godsey of the United States are tied for second, two shots back of Taylor at 7-under 135.

Nunez, who was one of four players to share the opening-round lead, birdied three of his first six holes on his way to a 2-under 69.

Beginning his round on the opening nine, Nunez birdied Nos. 2, 3 and 6 to race out to a three-under-par start, immediately seizing the outright lead at eight-under for the week.

“I felt very good today on the golf course, especially on the front nine,” he said. “When I started the back nine, I saw the crowd and I felt some nerves. That’s normal when you have fans following you.”

Friday’s large crowds, which dotted the fairways and stands of the prestigious club located in the heart of downtown Bogota, triggered a few less-than-stellar holes for Nunez, as bogeys on the par-5 10^th and par-4 14^th dropped him down to 6-under par.

A late birdie on the par-4 17^th righted the ship for the Buenos Aires resident, who finished the day with a 2-under 69.

In 61 career starts on PGA TOUR Latinoamerica between 2012 and 2017, Nunez recorded 15 top-10 finishes, including a victory at the 2016 Flor de Cana Open, where his 25-under-par total set the Tour’s all-time scoring record. The $121,173 he earned that season gave way to a second-place finish on the Order of Merit and a Web.com Tour card for the 2017 season.

Nunez made 7 of 20 cuts on the 2017 Web.com Tour, recording a career-best runner-up at the Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship. Nunez missed the cut in Bogota with rounds of 72-82—154, a full 19 shots higher than his 2018 tally at the event’s halfway point.

“I started pretty well this season, but I need to continue working on my game. Like I said yesterday, my goal is get one of the PGA TOUR cards through this Tour,” he said. “Now, in 2018, I have more experience and I already know the courses, so that is so helpful.”

Sloan, who finished solo-fourth at last week’s Panama Championship, was even par through four holes today before playing his final 14 in 5-under par to move into a tie for second.

The former University of Texas-El Paso golfer is making his 94th career Web.com Tour start this week and looking for his first victory since the 2014 Nova Scotia Open.

Of the three players tied for second, Godsey is perhaps the biggest surprise, as the week marks just his sixth career start on the Web.com Tour. The 25-year-old finished T16 at Q-School in December to earn status for the 2018 season and entered the week with made cuts at The Bahamas Great Exuma Classic and the Panama Championship.

He is currently No. 81 on the money list with $3,534 in earnings.

#ShotOfTheDay

Canadian @RogerSloan87's monster birdie putt from 50+ feet away at the #ClubColombiaChampionship! pic.twitter.com/47rwOsb1vc

— Web.com Tour (@WebDotComTour) February 10, 2018

Graham DeLaet, a Canadian Olympian, was one of seven athletes named to Boise State’s first Hall of Fame class in more than a decade.

Prior to climbing into the top 40 of the Official World Golf Rankings, competing in the Olympics and playing on the Presidents Cup and World Cup Teams, Graham DeLaet was setting records at Boise State. He graduated with the top two single-season scoring averages (71.48 in 2003-04 and 71.54 in 2005-06), the three-highest win totals in a single season (four in 2003-04 and three each in 2002-03 and 2005-06), the career records for both top-10 finishes (26) and top-25 finishes (37) and the single-season records for both top-10 finishes (nine) and top-25 finishes (11). The WAC Player of the Year in 2006, he still holds the Broncos’ career wins record (10), and is the only three-time NCAA Regional Championships participant in school history (2003, 2004 and 2006).

The Weyburn, Sask., product will be joined by Abigail Ferguson (women’s track & field), Eleni Kafourou (women’s track & field), Kellen Moore (football), Nate Potter (football), Paul J Schneider (radio play-by-play) and Gabe Wallin (men’s track & field).

The 2018 Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will take place on campus April 13 (Friday), with doors opening at 5 p.m., and the induction ceremony scheduled for 6:30 p.m.

Bios on each of the members of the Class of 2018 can be found here.

Jeff Calderwood, CEO, and Mark Seabrook, founding President, presented with Paul Porter Award

Two of NGCOA Canada’s leaders were recognized at the NGCOA U.S. annual Golf Business Conference Celebration & Awards Dinner in San Antonio, Texas on Thursday. Jeff Calderwood, CEO, and Mark Seabrook, founding President and owner of the Canadian Golf & Country Club, were presented with the Paul Porter Award. This award recognizes a NGCOA member who left an enduring mark on a national or international affiliate through the highest level of commitment, service and leadership.

“It’s an honour to be receiving such high recognition from the NGCOA U.S. for our NGCOA Canada success over all those years,” says Jeff Calderwood, CEO, NGCOA Canada. “From that modest beginning 25 years ago to our leadership position today representing the majority of golf course operators and the business side of Canadian golf, it has been a very rewarding experience. Everyone involved, from all our board members, staff, golf course owners, suppliers, allied associations and related stakeholders deserve so much credit for us fulfilling that original NGCOA Canada vision. Mark and I will proudly accept this Paul Porter Award on their behalf and look forward to many more years of serving the Canadian golf business.”

“Associations are indeed about the programs and services provided to a membership, but it all happens because of people with a heart and head for the mission,” says Jay Karen, Chief Executive Officer of NGCOA. “No duo in golf have been more important and impressive than Mark and Jeff, as evidenced by the success of NGCOA Canada. What they built has served as inspiration for all of us in the North American and European NGCOA family for many years.”

This award comes on the heels of the Association’s 25th Anniversary celebrations where both Jeff and Mark were awarded with NGCOA Canada Lifetime Achievement Awards for their dedication and leadership in growing the Association.