Most golfers look for balance in their swing. Hamilton’s Alena Sharp found it in her life and is now reaping the benefits on the LPGA Tour.

Sharp was named Golf Canada’s player of the week on Feb. 18 after tying for sixth at the Women’s Australian Open and tying for 17th at the Victoria Open to open the LPGA Tour’s season. Sharp credits a more measured approach to training and a better work-life balance to help her stay focused after a frustrating 2018 where she battled with depression.

“It’s not all about golf,” said Sharp. “I was practising too much and really wore out. Then not getting the results. This is a humbling game. It can be tough mentally and bring you down. When it’s going well it’s amazing but when it’s not going well, it’s tough.

“So working with my therapist and having a good work-life balance along with a strong finish last season, it helped me feel like I was coming out of the downward spiral from last season.”

 

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The big change for Sharp in the off-season was to never really stop playing golf. In previous years she would take a few weeks off, then ramp up an intense training regime featuring long days of up to six hours of practise and strength training.

This year, Sharp has aimed for quantity of practice, rather than intensity.

“I didn’t put down the clubs, I did light practice,” said Sharp, who conceived of her new training program with coach Brent Saunders last June. “Just a couple of hours of practice a day, nothing crazy. Get in, do you work, get out, and rest. Got in the gym and got stronger and I’m hitting it further.

“Just mentally I’m really fresh. Just good practice habits have translated into the results I had in Australia.”

Now that the LPGA Tour season has begun, Sharp plans to continue putting an emphasis on working every day, rather than ramping up the intensity of her training to prepare for an event and risk burn out or injury.

“I think I might have a little bit more quantity on certain days but I’m not really going to change much,” said Sharp. “What I’ve been doing obviously is working and it’s a long season and there’s a lot of travel.

“I know last year that I was pretty tired in August. I ran around too much, practising five or six hours every day. It really wore me out.”

Alena Sharp of Canada speaks to the media following her final round at the CP Womens Open at the Wascana Country Club on August 26, 2018 in Regina, Canada. (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images)

Sharp has another week off with Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., the only Canadian competing at the HSBC Women’s World Championship in Singapore starting on Thursday.

Instead, Sharp is using the downtime to focus on her next two events, the Bank of Hope Founders Cup in Phoenix (March 21) and the Kia Classic in Carlsbad, Calif., (March 28).

“I just feel like I have a really good recipe for success,” said Sharp. “Really trying to stay away from results-focused thinking this year and being into the process.”

Golf Canada is pleased to announce that Raymonde Michaud of Rivière-du-Loup, Qué., has been named the recipient of Golf Canada’s 2018 Volunteer of the Year Award.

A golf official recognized for her work with youth and leadership with the Optimist movement, Michaud will be acknowledged during the closing dinner of Golf Canada’s 2019 Annual Meeting on Saturday, March 2 at the Marriott Montréal Airport In-Terminal Hotel.

“Volunteers are the driving force behind the success of golf in this country and we are proud to recognize Raymonde Michaud for her leadership and extensive contributions to support the game of golf in her home province of Québec,” said Golf Canada President Leslie Dunning. “Raymonde has given back to the game at the regional and provincial level and it is fitting that her leadership, commitment and contributions are being recognized.”

Each year in Canada, tens of thousands of committed volunteers help to support the game of golf in communities from coast to coast.

Now in its 13^th year, candidates for Golf Canada’s Volunteer of the Year Award are put forth for consideration by the respective provincial golf associations in acknowledgment of significant contributions to the game of golf in their community. 

Raymonde Michaud, Rivière-du-Loup, QC

Raymonde Michaud’s volunteering career started at a very young age, in 1974, as a Scout Leader in Rivière-du-Loup. Through the years, she remained involved with the local scouting movement where she advanced to become an instructor in charge of the leaders’ training from 1979-1984, a director from 1986-1997, and eventually the President of the Maurice Proulx Scout Foundation from 1997-2016.

An avid golfer at the Club de golf de Rivière-du-Loup, Raymonde devoted close to 30 years of her time to the betterment of the sport. She started volunteering as the Junior Representative of her club in the summer of 1989. In 1990-91, she acted as Club Captain of the women’s division before joining the facility’s Board of Directors in 1997 and 1998. After a short hiatus, she came back to the Board from 2003 to 2009.

Looking to share her passion for the game at a large scale, she became a volunteer of the (former) Canadian Ladies Golf Association (CLGA) – Québec Branch. She joined the regional Rules Committee of the Québec City area and was actively involved from 1992 to 1997. A nationally certified rules official, she was appointed to the CLGA provincial Rules Committee from 1998 to 2004.

Through the amalgamation of the CLGA with the Québec Golf Association (QGA) in 2004 and later on with the restructuration that led to the creation of the Québec Golf Federation (Golf Québec) in 2011, she remained an active member of this provincial operational committee until 2016. Raymonde is one of the most experienced regional and provincial rules officials and is still actively involved as an official at Golf Québec championships.

Aside from her continuous involvement with the scouting movement and numerous golf associations, Raymonde became the first female members of the Rivière-du-Loup Optimist Club in 1991. She volunteered with many regional committees and acted as an officer and a Governor of her regional and district branches. Raymonde continues to serve on the Board of Directors of the Canadian Children’s Optimist Foundation.

Raymonde Michaud and Jack Nicklaus (1985)

In 2007, Raymonde was instrumental in  the creation of a new partnership between Golf Québec and the Western District of the Québec Optimist Clubs. The objective was to provide junior golfers of the Optimist Junior Golf Club – St. Laurent Region – with a qualifying opportunity for the prestigious Optimist International Junior Golf Championship held every year in Florida. The very first edition of the Golf Québec Optimist Classic was conducted in 2009 with approximately 40 young participants and the event is now one of the tournaments composing the Junior Provincial Tour. With over 240 junior golfers, boys and girls, from Québec, Eastern Ontario and the Maritimes, it is the most prestigious qualifier held in Canada and 2nd largest in the world for the Optimist International Junior Golf Championship. In 2018, in collaboration with the Optimist Junior Golf Club – St. Laurent Region, Golf Québec proudly qualified twenty (20) young players aged 9 to 18 for the International event held at the PGA National Resort & SPA, in Palm Beach Gardens, from July 17 to August 1, 2018.

Raymonde also contributed to the Golf Québec Optimist Classic as a Rules official in every edition of the provincial qualifier. As well, a few years ago, she was invited to act as a Rules official during the two-week international competition held in Florida.

Congratulations to Raymonde Michaud of Rivière-du-Loup, Qué, on being named Golf Canada’s 2018 Volunteer of the Year!

MILTON, Ont. – A Canadian golf course will host a sectional qualifier for the U.S. Open for the first time in June.

RattleSnake Point Golf Club in Milton, Ont., will host one of 12 qualifiers for the major on June 3.

The 36-hole event in Milton makes geographic sense for the United States Golf Association because of the new date for the RBC Canadian Open, which starts June 6 in nearby Hamilton.

Many PGA Tour and European Tour players not automatically entered in the U.S. Open – June 13-16 in Pebble Beach, Calif. – will tee it up in one of the sectional qualifiers.

England and Japan also will host qualifiers, while the other nine are in the U.S. Ten of the 12 will take place on June 3.

The amount of qualifiers from each site is determined by strength of field.

Golf Canada was thrilled to land the qualifier.

“We are delighted to deepen our partnership with the USGA in debuting a Canadian sectional qualifier for the U.S. Open during the week of the RBC Canadian Open,” Golf Canada CEO Laurence Applebaum said in a statement.

“Connecting our respective national open championships is a meaningful step in continuing to elevate the RBC Canadian Open while also enhancing our relationship as global partners in the game. This is also special for our partners at ClubLink, who are excited to welcome the 36-hole sectional qualifier to RattleSnake Point Golf Club.”

“It would not be a bad idea to require each golfer to pass a written examination on the Rules of Golf…”

Don’t panic. That was just the opinion of J.T. Clark, editor of the Toronto Star.

In 1915.

His comments were reported in Canadian Golfer magazine and the editor concluded the article with these timeless words: “Play up, play up, and play the game. And conscientiously observe the Rules and etiquette.”

Not much has changed since then. If anything, the recent renovation of the Rules of Golf, which went into effect on Jan. 1, has put a laser focus on the Rules and their implementation. (You can review the new Rules here.)

Recent incidents on the professional tours have impacted this greatly. Penalties for having a caddie helping line up a player and a disqualification for Sergio Garcia’s inexcusable behaviour at a European Tour event have garnered widespread and disparate reactions.

That, in my opinion, is not a bad thing. If anything, it’s positive.

Let’s take it for granted that many recreational golfers observe the mere minimum of the Rules and etiquette. That’s fine as long as they don’t impact the enjoyment and safety of their fellow golfers and they are not posting scores for an official handicap. Any score posted for handicap purposes must be played under the Rules of Golf.

Why?

In Clark’s words:  “Players sometimes bring in weird scores, procured in weird ways that would disqualify them 10 times over.”  Plus ca change, plus c’est la même chose, n’est pas?

But at the very least, every golfer, recreational and competitive, should have access to knowing and understanding the Rules.

While I’m not agreeing with Clark’s assertion that every golfer passes a written Rules exam, I think it is incumbent on anyone who is serious about the game to avail them of the opportunity offered by Golf Canada.

That’s my personal opinion, just like I feel every touring and club professional, golf coach at any level and the appropriate instructor at every Professional Golf Management program should be Rules certified.

If that isn’t the case, then ideally there would be a Rules expert (now called “referees” under the new Rules) at every course.

It’s an initiative that at least one provincial association is trying to encourage.

Anne Balser is the Manager of Sport Development and Championships at the Nova Scotia Golf Association. Aside from being an accomplished player (two-time Nova Scotia Amateur champion, 2010 Canadian University/College champion, four-time All-Canadian and twice an All-American while attending the University of Victoria), she learned the importance of the Rules at an early age. She recently obtained her national Rules certification.

“My mom was a golfer and a teacher, so any time my sisters and I went out with her, she took the opportunity to show us not only how the Rules worked, but how they could help us. I learned the Rules are not there to penalize you but that knowing the Rules can actually help you save strokes.”

This year, the NSGA is conducting introductory Rules seminars around the province. The first, at Ken-Wo Country Club, drew more than 70 golfers interested in learning the basics.

“It showed us that there is great interest among golfers to understand not only the new version of the Rules but how the average golfer can benefit from knowing the basic Rules,” said Balser.

In addition to these onsite visits, Balser pointed out that golfers can dig into the Rules while digging out of the snow before the season starts in much of Canada through various online opportunities such as webinars, YouTube videos and other supports.

Alison Murdoch, an honoured member of the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame with an incredible national and international resume, has been Rules-accredited at the national level for more than a decade. Her incentive to do so was obvious.

“As a player, it would be incredibly embarrassing to make a ruling for myself or another player and get it wrong, so I took it upon myself back in 2008 to take the Rules seminar and exam. I’ve never regretted it.”

(Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

She lauds the camaraderie of the Rules teams she is part of at tournaments, using compliments such as “welcoming, supportive, helpful, educational, rewarding, challenging” to encourage others to achieve their Rules certification.

“At my club, where they know I am a certified Rules referee, I am often asked about a ruling. It’s great to be recognized as a resource and I am happy to help. Perhaps the greatest reward is when I make a ruling and someone comes up to me after and thanks me because I saved them from an unfortunate situation because they were unaware of the Rule.”

Not only has the new Rules code become more understandable and user-friendly, but Golf Canada has changed their Rules Education System to three levels from the previous four to make it more accessible.

“Level 1 is an online platform to educate all golfers about the basics of the Rules and explain commonly encountered situations on the course,” says Adam Helmer, Golf Canada’s Director of Rules, Competitions and Amateur Status.

If you love the game, know the Rules.

Click here to register for Level 1.

RIO GRANDE, Puerto Rico – Martin Trainer won the Puerto Rico Open on Sunday for his first PGA Tour title, closing with a 5-under 67 at windy Coco Beach Golf and Country Club for a three-stroke victory over four players.

Making his 11th PGA Tour start, Trainer birdied four of the last 10 holes to finish at 15-under 273.

“It’s obviously incredible,” Trainer said. “I never thought that I would be able to win on the PGA Tour. I managed do it today and that’s just incredible.”

The 27-year-old former University of Southern California won twice last year on the Web.com Tour and finished fourth on the money list to earn a spot on the big tour.

“There comes a certain point where the pressure is like maxed out in your brain and you just do whatever you can to make contact and hit putts forward,” Trainer said. “At the end I had no idea if my putts were going to go like four 4 by or 4 feet short. You just have no feel, the pressure is just overwhelming you.”

Trainer earned $540,000 along with a two-year exemption on the PGA Tour and an exemption to the PGA Championship, but didn’t get an invitation to the Masters in the event played opposite the World Golf Championships’ Mexico Championship.

“I never had the luxury of making a plan, I was just trying to play as many events as I could,” Trainer said. “So now I guess that will be a little different, I’ll be able to pick and choose where I want to go and have a little more flexibility with my schedule. It’s just such a great feeling to be able to have that. I’m just trying to let it sink in.”

Third-round leader Aaron Baddeley shot a 72 to tie for second with Daniel Berger (66), Roger Sloan (67) and Johnson Wagner (69). At No. 72, Berger was the highest ranked player in the field.

“I’m just working on the things that I mentioned earlier, and I’m just happy that I was able to execute some shots out there coming down the stretch,” said Sloan. “And I’m looking forward to next week.  I haven’t played the Honda.  I’m really looking forward to playing there, PGA National.  So, we’re just going to keep on doing what we do.”

CHONBURI, Thailand – Amy Yang won the LPGA Thailand for the third time after holding off Minjee Lee by one stroke on Sunday.

Yang, from South Korea, carded a final-round 65 and a 22-under-par 266 at Siam Country Club’s Pattaya Old Course for her fourth overall LPGA Tour win.

Despite lightning stopping play for 50 minutes and a rain delay later in the round, Yang emerged from a three-way tie with Lee and Carlota Ciganda with a birdie from the fringe of the green on the par-3 16th to regain the lead at 21 under.

“I was honestly very nervous, especially last three holes,” said Yang, who also won the event in 2015 and 2017. “It was (a) tough hole to finish. I was really telling myself just (to) be patient, do (my) best at the time.

“I tried to stay calm and stayed patient out there. I just enjoy coming here. I love the golf course, which is why I always play well here.”

Brooke Henderson (68) of Smiths Falls, Ont., was sixth at 15-under 273.

With Ciganda already signing off at 20 under, Lee, on the 18th, had the chance force a playoff if she made a 14-foot eagle putt. She didn’t, and she had to settle for a birdie to finish with a 66 at 21 under.

“I really fought out there,” said Lee, who was looking for her fifth LPGA Tour win. “Just tried to make as many birdies as I could. Probably didn’t play probably 15 and 16 the way I wanted to, but I think overall, I had a pretty solid performance.”

Ciganda finished at 20 under after having eagled the par-5 first and the par-4 15th. She shot a 63 on Sunday, matching Eun-Hee Ji’s score from Thursday as the lowest of the event.

“I hit lots of greens, (was) hitting great shots, great numbers, and then today, the putting was hot,” Ciganda said.

Yang, who earned $240,000 of the $1.6 million purse, is expected to move from No. 37 to No. 2 in the Race to the CME Globe following the win.

CHONBURI, Thailand – Canada’s Brooke Henderson is three shots behind leader Eun-Hee Ji of South Korea after shooting a 6-under 66 in the opening round of Honda LPGA Thailand on Thursday.

The bogey-free day marked Henderson’s first competitive round since the season-opening Tournament of Champions in Florida ended on Jan. 20. The 21-year-old native of Smiths Falls, Ont., sat out the last two events because of illness.

“You know, I felt look I did a lot of things really well today,” Henderson said. “Maybe just adjust the game plan a little bit going into tomorrow. But I’m just going to rest and hopefully come out tomorrow and get a couple birdies early.”

Henderson is in a four-way tie for fifth. Ji has a two-shot lead on Minjee Lee of Australia, Danielle Kang of the United States and Jenny Shin of South Korea.

Henderson tied for seventh at this tournament last year.

#CPWO champ @BrookeHenderson is 3 back after 18 holes @hondalpgath ?? pic.twitter.com/khc5h4ClTm

— CP Women's Open (@cpwomensopen) February 21, 2019

Ji won her fifth U.S. LPGA Tour title in her previous event last month, the Tournament of Champions.

She picked up right where she left off, in Chonburi.

After an opening birdie and a bogey on the third hole, Ji birdied nine out of the following 14 holes on the Siam Country Club Pattaya’s Old Course.

“I felt really great. I didn’t miss any fairways and missed just two greens,” Ji said. “I have a lot of confidence.

Lee was bogey free as she eagled the 15th and birdied five holes on a humid day.

“I was little bit slow starting out. I finished with three birdies on the last three holes at the front nine, and got a little bit better momentum,” Lee said.

World No. 1 Ariya Jutanugarn, the 2013 runner-up, carded a 4-under 68, mixing an eagle and six birdies with two bogeys and a double bogey.

While researching for a book about his grandfather and great uncle, author Ian Murray came across the prolific golf writings of Robert Stanley Weir.

Weir wrote about golf for 23 years and gained an international reputation in his pursuit of understanding the specific skills needed to become a competent player. Respected by his peers, Weir was recruited as a feature writer and book reviewer for the American “Golf Illustrated” magazine that was launched in 1914.

Weir began writing about the game early in the 20th Century for “Golf Magazine”, the official publication of the United States Golf Association.  His first article in 1902, Pioneer Golf in America, provides the only known description and photos of the course where golf was first organized and played in North America in 1873. The course was located below the slopes of Mount Royal, known as ‘Fletcher’s Field’, in Montreal. It would become the Royal Montreal Golf Club.

Recorder Weir. Golf Magazine, February 1904

Along with writers and players who were at the forefront of the sport, now legends in the game, Weir continued writing for “Golf Illustrated” until his death in 1926 in his 70th year.

“The Canadian Golf Hall of Fame and Museum is happy to bring Weir’s golf writing to life on their website where over 75 articles written by Weir can be read.  “We have no doubt that more of Weir’s writings will resurface with the growing age of digitization,” notes Meggan Gardner, director of heritage services for Golf Canada.  “It was because of such amazing online resources such as our own Canadian Golfer magazine, the USGA Museum and LA84 that golf history has been rewritten with this discovery.”

Robert Stanley Weir was a judge, poet, professor and literary writer. He published two books of poetry and wrote articles for U.S. and Canadian Magazines. He married in 1882 and had 6 children. Renowned as an expert in Municipal law, Weir wrote various Legislative Acts for the Province of Quebec.

The full article along with Weir’s writings can be found here.

I’m the anti J.B. Holmes.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not “anti” J.B. Holmes.

When he won the Genesis Open for his fifth PGA Tour victory, I applauded the resurgence of someone who, by most accounts, is a good guy, a great husband and father who has survived brain surgery. Former Ryder Cupper, long hitter, great ball striker.

Also, alas, human rain delay.

On the other hand, I am the definition of the “dew sweeper.” At my club, Midland Golf and Country Club in Ontario, my group is given the first tee time on Sundays by default, by a unanimous vote by the rest of the members. We play in three hours or less.

“Ready golf” is our mantra but we may take the pace of play concept to extremes, admittedly. Last season, someone in our group couldn’t make it and we had a friend fill in. After completing the first hole, he said he made a par 4.

“Nope,” I said. “In this group, we count practice swings as strokes. You took three, so that’s a seven.”

So, as I said, a touch extreme.

You want to talk about extreme?

In the final round at the Genesis, Holmes’s threesome needed—no, that’s wrong—endured five hours and 28 minutes to complete their 18 holes. Thirteen minutes on the 13^th green alone. Twenty minutes behind the group in front. Professional golfers. Plumb-bobbing putts of less than a foot. (At least Holmes knew how to plumb bob. In my experience, most amateurs might as well close both eyes when they try that.)

At a time when it is widely acknowledged that one of the major challenges facing the game is pace of play, Holmes’s glacial approach deservedly lit up social media. Even his peers criticized him.

Taking my usual contrarian approach, perhaps Holmes should be applauded for elevating this debate.

None of us, except me, is exempt from this finger pointing.

At every level, from recreational golfer to the pro tours, slow play is a pernicious disease afflicting golf.

In 2018, the European Tour’s Shot Clock Masters addressed this by implementing a 40- or 50-second limit depending on the type of shot being played. Just four players received one-shot penalties for exceeding that limit. The reaction from the players was overwhelmingly positive.

“Rule 5.6b (3) lets a Committee set a specific pace of play policy,” says Adam Helmer, Golf Canada’s Director of Rules, Competitions and Amateur Status. “This policy may set a maximum time to complete a round, a hole or series of holes and a stroke, and it may set penalties for not following the Policy. The PGA Tour uses a hybrid of fines and penalties in their policy.

“Golf Canada adopts a group pace of play policy which outlines the allotted time for groups to play specific holes (1-5, 6-9, 10-14, 15-18). Groups are given warnings if they are over the allotted time and 14 minutes behind the group in front. If they miss a second checkpoint, they are liable to a one stroke penalty (and the penalty increases as they miss a third and potential fourth checkpoint). We only use individual pace of play at our qualifiers (Open and amateur events).”

I’m not advocating the kind of speed golf my group plays but if we—well, you all—paid more attention to pace of play, the game would be more enjoyable for everyone.

The new Rules recognize this through efforts like reducing the time allowed looking for a ball from five minutes to three and encouraging ready golf. What is ready golf?

Dispense with the “who’s away” concept. Hit when ready and when it is safe to do so. Prepare for your shot as you approach the ball. Have the appropriate club in hand. Putt out continuously. Mark your score at the next tee. Keep up with the group in front. Do your socializing after the round.

My well-learned lesson came years ago at Scotland’s North Berwick when our threesome, all male golfers of decent ability, let a foursome of lady members, with their bags on pull carts, play through. By the time we finished, they were enjoying a sandwich and a pint, accompanied by well-deserved withering glances in our direction.

I now enjoy directing those same glances at the pokey golfers at my club. Thanks, ladies.

Rule 5.6b advises that “A round of golf is meant to be played at a prompt pace. Each player should recognize that his or her pace of play is likely to affect how long it will take other players to play their rounds, including both those in the player’s own group and those in following groups.” The Rule also outlines pace of play recommendations.

Pace of play. It’s not about playing fast. It’s about playing efficiently and with consideration for others.

MEXICO CITY – The PGA Tour again is taking a close look at changing the size of its cuts, and this time the idea appears to have some legs.

One topic at the first Player Advisory Council meeting last Tuesday at Riviera was to change the 36-hole cut from top 70 and ties to top 65 and ties, which is what the European Tour and the Web.com Tour do.

“There’s some traction for it,” said Jordan Spieth, in his first year on the policy board. “The argument is the MDFs don’t look good and twosomes on the weekend are better for everybody, including the viewership.”

The MDF was the tour’s first crack at avoiding bloated fields for the final round. It stands for “Made the cut, did not finish,” and it was passed unanimously at the end of 2007. Whenever more than 78 players make the cut, a 54-hole cut is in play to narrow the field to top 70 and ties.

This would be another step, though it’s in the early stages.

In the 10 tournaments this season, a cut to the top 65 and ties would have happened just once. At the Safeway Open, 86 players made the 36-hole cut. If the cut had been top 65 and ties, 67 players would have advanced to the weekend, sending home another 19 players on Friday. Of those 19, Tom Hoge had a 69-70 weekend and tied for 17th, which was worth 44 FedEx Cup points.

That’s what concerns Matt Kuchar, who is on the PAC.

“The MDF is a great addition,” Kuchar said. “Guys who have a bad Saturday (and missed the 54-hole cut), they’re not competitive in the tournament anymore. The T-65 … you just have a handful of stories of a guy who would have missed the cut that has won or has a top 5. It happens every now and then.”

The best example was Jose Maria Olazabal, who made the cut on the number at Torrey Pines in 2002 (tie for 69th) and was among 89 players who advanced to the weekend. Olazabal shot 67-65 on the weekend and won by one shot.

“I’m kind of on the fence,” Kuchar said. “It works in Europe. It works in a lot of places.”

Even with a cut to top 65 and ties, there still could be occasions when more than 78 players make the cut, and the 54-hole cut would remain.

Spieth said he hasn’t detected too many players opposed to the idea, except for those who seem to constantly be around the cut line and want every chance. Much like Kuchar, however, he doesn’t have a strong opinion either way.

“I don’t mind how it is now. I don’t mind if it switches,” Spieth said. “But there is some traction.”