AKRON, Ohio – Graeme McDowell and Jordan Spieth were in good spirits Thursday at the Bridgestone Invitational, which was good news for only one of them.

McDowell has been in such a rut that he has fallen out of the top 50 for the first time in five years and hasn’t finished in the top 10 in America since playing this World Golf Championship a year ago. So he happily went along at Firestone South making five birdies in 10 holes on his way to a 4-under 66.

That left him one shot behind Danny Lee, who got his mistakes out of the way early and played a flawless front nine to lead the first round with a 65.

“I like this version of me today,” McDowell said. “It’s been a rough year, no doubt about it. Definitely been some time for reflection and some questions being asked of myself. It’s how you answer the questions and how you come out the other side, really.

“I feel like I’ll know what to do when I get back there, but it’s all about the process of getting there now,” he said. “So days like today will certainly help in that direction. I’ve got to keep doing it.”

Spieth was playing for the first time since he missed the British Open playoff by one shot, ending his bid at the Grand Slam. He expected a little rust. What concerned him was a sloppy start that was missing some of his fire. Walking up the fourth fairway, he said he told his caddie, “I need to get a little bit inspired right now.”

He made a bogey on par-5 second hole, the easiest at Firestone. His shot from the rough on No. 3 clipped some branches, and for a minute Spieth thought it might go in the water and lead to double bogey. It barely made the green and he got par.

“I’m staring at 3 over through three, trying to bounce back on a course that could host a major championship,” Spieth said. “I played these first three holes and it didn’t bother me. And that should normally bother me the way I played them.”

He made birdie on the next hole, a birdie on the final hole and shot 70. So did his playing partner, British Open champion Zach Johnson, in a pairing of the major champions this year. Johnson started birdie-birdie, only to come undone with a double bogey from the trees and rough on No. 9.

Spieth noted that he still hasn’t broken par at Firestone, though this was only his fifth round. And even par wasn’t a bad start.

The South Course featured fast fairways and firm greens, along with lush grass in the rough. Only 21 players in the 77-man field managed to break par. Phil Mickelson wasn’t among them. Spieth walked off the third green relieved that he cleared the water and made par. Mickelson was behind him and not so lucky. He clipped branches and went in the middle of the pond for a triple bogey. He shot 76.

Jim Furyk might get another chance to win a tournament he should have three years ago, when he went wire-to-wire until making a double bogey from the middle of the 18th fairway in the final round and lost by one. Furyk opened with a 66 to join McDowell one shot out of the lead.

Rickie Fowler and Justin Rose were at 67, while the large group at 68 included Henrik Stenson, Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood.

McDowell has three straight rounds of 66 at Firestone, though two of them were last year in softer conditions. This was a tricky test with the extra bounce on fairways and greens, and it was a big step for McDowell. It required getting the ball in play, some good wedge work around the greens and making putts. That’s been his hallmark, and he relief on those parts of the game to carry him in the opening round.

The slump is mainly due to change at home. His first child was born last September, and McDowell has found it harder to leave home. His motivation waned, followed by his game and inevitably some confidence.

He is at No. 159 in the FedEx Cup and in danger of missing the playoffs. But he found one answer even before he got to Firestone.

“Probably the hardest question was, `Do I still want to grind and be out here? Do I still want this?’ It was an easy answer. Yeah, I do want it,” McDowell said. “If this all went away, I’d miss it very badly. So when you answer that question positively, then you’ve got to start kind of answering all the other questions. How do I get myself back to where I need to be? And it starts with technique, and it starts with hard work and motivation and kind of all the things that I’ve done in the past.”

RENO, Nev. – Zack Sucher took the first-round lead in the Barracuda Championship, scoring 18 points Thursday in the PGA Tour’s only modified Stableford event.

Sucher had nine birdies in his bogey-free round at Montreux Golf and Country Club for three-point lead over Patrick Rodgers. Under the modified Stableford format, players receive 8 points for double eagle, 5 for eagle, 2 for birdie, 0 for par, minus-1 for bogey and minus-3 for double bogey or worse.

Sucher has made only four cuts in 16 starts in his first season on the PGA Tour. The 28-year-old former Alabama-Birmingham player won the Web.com Tour’s Midwest Classic last year.

Rodgers had eight birdies and a bogey.

Ricky Barnes was third with 14 points, and David Toms and J.J. Henry followed at 13.

Canada’s Roger Sloan opened with 7 points and is tied for 41st, while compatriot Adam Hadwin had a single point and was tied for 95th.

Not even halfway through your round and you’re hot. Man, are you hot.

Sure, the thermometer is in the upper 20s, but it’s not the summer heat that’s frying you.

It’s the waiting on every shot. Every shot!

“Why is that group in front of us so @%#%-ing slow?!”

Cool down. It just might not be their fault. Or the fault of the groups in front of them.

At this year’s Golf Canada annual meeting, attendees were enlightened about the USGA’s research into pace of play by Director of Strategic Projects Hunki Yun and Technical Director Matthew Pringle. You can view their presentation below.

Enlightened, to say the least, because the data indicate that while pace of play is a shared responsibility, much of the blame for slow play may be laid at the feet of course operators.

Pringle says “one of the biggest misconceptions is that slow play is the fault of the group in front of you. That may be the case at times but it is more likely that the golf course is set up to fail. It can’t flow properly, so you will end up waiting at some point. The operator has to balance flow onto and through the course. There are structural reasons why delays occur.”

Yun cites a hypothetical situation where an easy par-4 is followed by a difficult par-3. Golfers finish the par-4 too fast and a bottleneck occurs on the par-3 tee. If the course operator intentionally slowed play on that par-4, perhaps by lengthening it or growing in more rough, the overall round would be more enjoyable for everyone.

“We have been preaching to operators to look critically at their golf course and setting tee time intervals that are realistic,” Pringle says. “The player experience will be better and there will be an economic benefit, too.”

Much of the USGA data reinforce what Bill Yates, founder of Pace Manager Systems, has been preaching for about 20 years. A couple of years ago, he started working with the USGA in their effort to try to understand the root causes of slow play.

Using his training as a process engineer, Yates looked at a round of golf from the perspective of an efficiency expert. “My previous job was to improve efficiencies in how companies produced their product, whatever that might be. In most cases, 90 per cent of the responsibility was on management to improve how they did business. And make no mistake about it. Golf produces a product: It’s the player’s experience when they are at a course.

“Players are not the biggest reason for slow play on our courses, any more than slow drivers, for example, are the reason that gridlocked freeways are slow.”

In other words, if there are too many cars pouring onto a highway with too few lanes, traffic jams are inevitable. The problem isn’t really slow play; it is that golfers hate to have to wait on every shot. (Yun calls it, “Slow versus flow.”) Stop and go. Hurry up and wait. Bottlenecks.

“By understanding the flow of your course and the cycle times of each hole, you are not only getting the same amount of golfers or maybe more around the course, but they will finish in less time and have a much better experience,” says Yun.

But before you go pointing fingers at the operator of the course you are playing, make sure you have done your part: Playing from the correct tees for your ability, playing ready golf, continuous putting, and so on.

Pace of play is everyone’s responsibility.

To understand more about the USGA’s pace of play initiative, click here.

National Amateur Squad members Austin Connelly – a dual-citizen of Canada and the U.S. – and Blair Hamilton of Burlington, Ont., take some time to share their excitement after sharing Gary Cowan medals (low amateur honours) following their first RBC Canadian Open experience at the Glen Abbey Golf Club in late July.

Team Canada Men’s Head Coach, Derek Ingram, also chimed in on another memorable experience at Canada’s national open:

Click here to learn more about Team Canada.

LONDON, Ont.  – Freedom 55 Financial has announced the signing of rising Canadian golf star and Symetra Tour winner Augusta James to its roster of brand ambassadors.

James joins current Freedom 55 Financial ambassadors Albin Choi, Matt Hill, Mackenzie Hughes, Taylor Pendrith, Adam Svensson, Damian Warner and Jen Cotten on Team Freedom, a group of young Canadian athletes striving to achieve their athletic dreams.

Hailing from Bath, Ont., James was a standout amateur and longtime member of Golf Canada’s national amateur team. The 2012 ACC Freshman of the Year and 2014 Canadian Women’s Amateur champion left North Carolina State University and turned professional in February 2015. James captured her first victory as a professional on the Symetra Tour just five starts into her career. James will look to carry this momentum into other events on this year’s Symetra Tour.

“I have followed Augusta’s career and have seen the unbelievable potential she displays both on and off the golf course,” said Mike Cunneen, Senior Vice-President for Freedom 55 Financial. “Team Freedom is about providing a supportive presence as these athletes pursue their aspirations. It’s an honour to be a part of her journey as she follows her dreams in women’s golf. She will be a great addition to Team Freedom.”

The addition of James to Team Freedom further solidifies Freedom 55 Financial’s support of and commitment to golf in Canada, from grassroots to professional levels. Freedom 55 Financial supports grassroots development initiatives as national sponsor of the Canadian Junior Golf Association’s Clinics for Kids program, for which Team Freedom golfers will serve as ambassadors. The company is also the title sponsor of the Freedom 55 Financial Championship in London, Ont., Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada’s flagship event, which sees five players graduate to the Web.com Tour each season.

“I am honoured to join Team Freedom,” said James. “It is amazing to have a great Canadian company supporting young Canadian athletes, and it is an honour to be a part of such a talented group working to achieve their dreams.”

To follow these young professionals on their journey, use the Twitter hashtag “#TeamFreedom”.

Men’s Development Squad member Étienne Papineau has committed to play golf for West Virginia University beginning in the fall of 2016.

Papineau, the lone remaining member of the Men’s Development Squad yet to commit to a post-secondary school, made the announcement just days following his amateur championship win in his home province of Québec.

The 18-year-old St-Jean-sur-Richelieu native has elected to remain home for another year to improve his English while continuing to solidify his golf game with provincial head coach Fred Colgan before joining the Mountaineers.

West Virginia Unviersity, a Div I school in the Big 12 conference, is re-launching its golf program after a 30-year hiatus from competition. Papineau will look to be a part of the Mountaineer’s core for years to come.

Tiger Woods took a pass on playing an opposite-field event this week in Nevada, meaning his season could end at the PGA Championship.

Or maybe not.

Woods floated the idea of playing the Wyndham Championship the week after the PGA Championship, which is the final regular PGA Tour event for players to get into the top 125 and qualifying for the FedEx Cup playoffs. Woods tied for 18th at the Quicken Loans National last week, though that was only enough for him to move up a whopping 12 spots to No. 185.

“Just win. It’s not real complicated,” Woods said of his playoff prospects “I’m not playing Reno this week or Bridgestone. … By playing well in the PGA, that determines whether or not I’ll play Wyndham, and obviously the rest of the FedEx Cup playoffs.”

Winning the PGA Championship would move him into the top 60, though Woods hasn’t won a major in seven years and hasn’t won any PGA Tour event in two years. Otherwise, his only chance to crack the top 125 would be to finish second alone at Whistling Straits.

At a media day Monday for the Deutsche Bank Championship, which his foundation runs, Woods made it sound as though getting close to the top 125 might be enough for him to consider going to the Wyndham Championship in Greensboro, North Carolina, for the first time.

“A lot of it is dependent on what I do with the PGA and whether or not I have a chance to make the playoffs,” Woods said. “I need to obviously play well at the PGA to get myself to move up in points and then give myself an opportunity to get into the playoffs. Right now, I’m so far off that I need to have a really high finish, and nothing higher than winning my fifth PGA would be nice.”

Woods isn’t alone in his plight.

Luke Donald is No. 127 in the FedEx Cup. He is not playing this week in Reno or at Firestone. Graeme McDowell is at No. 159, though he gets a crack at what amounts to free points this week at Firestone, which has no cut. McDowell is eligible from being on the most recent Ryder Cup team.

After leaving the grounds of Glen Abbey Golf Club last Sunday, it was depressingly apparent I wasn’t going to experience professional golf like that for possibly a long, long time. It was as if my golf-viewing career had peaked.

It all began while I stood on the 17th tee box at Swan-E-Set Golf Resort on a sunny weekday morning when a Twitter message notification sounded on my phone. I don’t get a lot of messages on Twitter so naturally my curiosity resulted in me digging through my bag as my brother hit his tee shot.

It was from @ShawGolf. “This is your last chance. Please advise if this is Chris Heavenor.”

They had sent me a message earlier that week asking if this account belonged to Chris Heavenor; I had decided not to answer assuming it was spam, or at best a mediocre trial offer for a new higher speed internet option.

Hmmmm. Now I’m torn. Fine, I’ll cave. “What’s up?” I reply.

“Did you submit a photo into Shaw’s Winter Tee Time Contest?” the mysterious Shaw Golf messenger writes back.

“I sure did,” I retort, with excitement quickly growing inside.

“Great! You’re the grand prize winner of our Winter Tee Time Contest!”

I immediately start doing the Joey Tribbiani/Drake Ramoray shifty eyes.

Now remember, I’m on the golf course at this time, and I’m actually playing quite well. As this unexpected little dollop of news begins to sink in, my nerves start to collapse as if my last name ends in ‘de Velde’. I restrain from informing my brother, Cam, as he is playing even better and I wouldn’t want to disrupt that. It was more difficult than you could imagine; I was literally ready to burst at the seams.

After matching pars on 17 (mine was much better than Cam’s), my brother was set to tee off on the 18th. I became intensely preoccupied scrolling through my phone reading what the grand prize entails. I couldn’t believe it: Round trip airfare for two to Toronto to watch the RBC Canadian Open, Canada’s National Championship. Holy shnikees! It continues, two nights accommodation downtown Toronto, tickets for both Saturday and Sunday to the tournament in Shaw’s exclusive Skybox on the 18th green, limo service to and from the airport, shuttle service to and from the golf course, and an $800 Puma Golf Prize pack. Say whaaaaaat?

At this time, Cam has just smashed his three-wood down the left-centre of the fairway as he usually does when the big stick isn’t required. As I stood over my ball, my hands began to tremble with the excitement of the recent developments, as well as how entertaining it will be informing my brother of it all. “Don’t hit it left for God’s sakes,” I mutter to myself. Make par on 18 and I’m in with a 79. It would only be my fourth time breaking 80 in my purely amateur golf career. POW!

“Of course…,” I moan as my hands roll over quicker than a Federer cross-court winner. Ball gone. I take a 6 and fire an 81. Thankfully my spirits aren’t too quashed in large thanks to Shaw … and maybe the post-round lager. While Cam and I poured ourselves a healthy pint from the pitcher and briefly began dissecting our rounds, I casually slid over my phone and instructed him to read my message conversation. He surprised me and managed to sound out all the words without any additional assistance.

“NO WAY!” He says looking up from my phone in amazement. “That’s unreal!” he continues, half chuckling under his breath.

“Sooooo who are you gonna take?” He asks cautiously as if there was ever a doubt.

I joke for a moment that I’m going to bring a friend from work, but he sees right through it. I mean, this would be grounds for a pitching wedge to the back of the knee had I been serious. And believe me, that kid can swing a wedge!

While Cam’s busy texting his wife the good news, I check and confirm the dates of the tournament. July 23-27. The dates ring a bell. Did I have plans that week? …CRAP!

My wife and I have a little something called the birth of our third daughter scheduled for July 15th. Errrrr. This could prove difficult. Lucky for me I’m a master at negotiating – or more likely my wife is the greatest.

The Golfing Gods were on my side and our little bundle of joy arrived five days early with no problems. Not that it made life any easier on my wife, but I managed to make my way onto the plane without any major bruising or lacerations. Phew! She’s a keeper.

After landing in Toronto, we were greeted by a transportation service agent who was even holding up a sign with my name on it. Just like in the movies! A brand new Lincoln picked us up and brought us to the first hotel we’d stay for Friday night in Oakville. Cruising in leather luxury. A good start.

Once entering our room, we noticed Shaw was kind enough to lay out our Puma Golf prize packs on the beds in case we wanted to sport any of the gear the next day. Acting like teenage girls in a mall, we excitedly tried on all our clothing and checked ourselves out in the mirror. Completely aware of how ridiculous we were acting, we began making pretend golf swings testing out the clothing. There was just no avoiding it, Puma set us up big time!

The next morning we got geared up and ready to rock and roll to the course. While in the elevator, it stopped on the third floor and in walked Davis Freaking Love III! I didn’t know he missed the cut, but his Ryder Cup luggage compilation suggested it. I avoided the subject and attempted to make some light conversation that a) made it known I was aware of who he was while also playing it cool; and b) avoid being that guy who asks for a picture right away. It only took me ten seconds to fail at both of these. Smooth work, Heavenor.

Once thanking DL3 for the photo, I tracked down Cam to get on the shuttle. Arriving at Glen Abbey was exciting. It was early Saturday morning so not many groups had teed off yet. It didn’t stop Cam and I from catching up with Abbotsford’s Nick Taylor for a couple holes. It was great to finally see him play live.

An early Saturday highlight came on the par 4-8th where Japan’s Ryo Ishikawa missed his approach left. He made a pretty good pitch to about eight feet and went on to drain his par putt. Considering the speed and undulation of the eighth green, it was a great up and down. As Ryo walked passed to the next tee, Cam complemented Ryo on a great par.

“Thanks, man.” Ryo replied as Cam and I grinned at the acknowledgement.

That there, people, is why golf is one of the truly great sports to watch live – player interaction. Could you imagine standing on the goal line beside Roberto Luongo watching him make a save, then complementing it afterwards only to have him reply? Glen Abbey was a real treat in terms of sightlines and fan interaction.

Once we located the Shaw Skybox conveniently placed behind the 18th green, we entered to take a look around. It sat approximately 60-70 people comfortably with 5 rows of seating at the front and five to six high-top tables at the back. Shaw spared no expense. Each seat came with a complimentary blue Shaw golf hat. There was a gourmet chef preparing different meals throughout the day as well as an open bar (which may have been utilized heavily). It was golf-viewing heaven. Just as impressive was the inconspicuous white trailer located directly next to the Shaw Skybox which housed a posh men’s and women’s bathroom. As a casual fan, this little ditty was worth its weight in gold considering the long line ups for the rows of outhouses located in the spectator pavilion. Shaw was not only winning, but running up the score.

After devouring a delicious omelette and maybe a ceasar or two, we made our way back onto the course to pursue Surrey’s Adam Svensson. Impressively, Adam made the cut and was putting together another phenomenal round. He is going to be a great Tour player, mark my words. Svensson went on to post a solid 69 on Saturday putting him in contention for Sunday.

A recent favorite of mine on Tour has been Brooks Koepka. A long hitting young American kid with great hair. Being able to stride down the fairway next to Brooks created such a unique experience. I was loving it. In fact, on a par 4, Brooks pushed his drive right of the fairway into the rough. I made my way to his ball and literally stood four feet away from him while he dialed in a wedge to a front pin. So damn awesome.

When Saturday wrapped up, we caught a shuttle downtown Toronto to the Four Seasons (!) where Shaw was forcing us to stay for the weekend. This was another first for me and let me tell you, if you get the chance to post up at the Four Seasons, you do so. The room was exquisite. I mean, they even had a TV built into the mirror in the bathroom. C’mon!

We had decided on finding a nice joint to have a steak but were immediately diverted when Cam noticed six gentlemen in the hotel lounge enjoying some food. To my surprise, four of the six were in fact Gary McCord, Ian Baker-Finch, Frank Nobilo and Peter Kostis. If you’ve ever watched golf on TV, or at least heard it, you would recognize these iconic voices. I’m not quite old enough to remember, but these four gents were also very fine players back in their day.

We quickly strategized and grabbed the table behind them. Why not, right? Cam was in awe staring at them like there was an invisible Victoria’s Secret fashion show in progress on top of their table. My back was turned, but I’m sure I made it more than noticeable by the amount of times I blatantly craned my neck around to eavesdrop.

I made one or two comments towards Mr. Nobilo, who was directly behind me but nothing was sticking. Our grand hopes were these six would finally cave and invite us to their table. No dice. Maybe we set the bar too high. So I decided to take matters into my own hands. I thought of a stunt that was essentially harmless but at best would resonate with these chaps for a few days. I went up to the bar and ordered six shots for their table. I asked our server to then deliver these shots compliments of us.

When the shots arrived, and the server performed his task in a less than award winning fashion, Mr. Baker-Finch stood up, said thank you and shook my hand. There was a slight buzz at the table as the men wondered what the shots were and why I had bought them. I simply replied “It’s a warm up for the Golf Channel tomorrow.” Less than my best, but I’m glad I formulated a coherent sentence given the more-than-six-less-than-twelve Stella Artois I had consumed thus far.

“Hmmm. Golf Channel warm up? Alright, then.” replied Mr. Kostis. I encouraged everyone to drink up and they did so in moderate synchronization.

“Not bad,” announced Mr. Nobilo.

“Yeah, yeah. Pretty good,” answered Mr. Kostis.

One of the group’s associates, a man I was not familiar with pointed at the sides of his jaws claiming that’s where the shot hit him. “Gets ya right here,” he exclaimed through clenched teeth.

“Ok ok, so what was it?” asked Mr. Baker-Finch.

“I’m surprised you all didn’t recognize it,” I said with a fabricated amount of condescension. “That was one of the best there ever was. Those were Arnold Palmers.”

“WHAT?” exclaimed the unknown friend through a relaxed jaw this time.

“You mean a John Daly,” questioned Mr. Baker-Finch, suggesting it was the alcoholic version of an Arnold Palmer.

“No, gentlemen, those were 100% Arnold Palmers. You’re welcome.” I finished, arms spread wide as if finishing an impressive magic trick.

Laughter erupted amongst the table. Well, at least that’s how I prefer to remember it. Either way there were definitely some chuckles. The boys opened up a little more in our direction after that, but we never did manage to squeeze up to that table.

As the group was packing it in for the night, I had explained to them that Cam was planning to play the Canadian National Mid-Amateur Championships at the end of August in Nova Scotia. Bingo. This managed to get their attention. Instantly we were afforded some level of credibility as opposed to the creepy fanboys five minutes prior. Mr. Kostis and Mr. Baker-Finch were quick to supply some advice and comments on the course as well as competition in general. I think the best part of the evening was when Mr. Kostis wished Cam the best of luck. It sounds simple. It’s said everyday in a magnitude of different circumstances. However, when you break it down, how many people participating in the Canadian National Mid-Amateur Championships can say they’ve been personally well-wished by Peter Kostis himself. I’m guessing the answer is between zero and two. All in all, these four boys were the cream of the crop; pure class wrapped up in a variety of button-down dress shirts. Thanks, fellas. You definitely helped make our trip one of the best we’ve ever experienced.

As we parted ways up to our respective rooms, I decided to use the washroom. While walking past the bar I noticed Canadian Rap artist Drake. I stopped (obviously) and quickly expressed how I was a fan of his and not to change much, he’s doing great and it’s working. He smiled, said thanks and shook my hand. I walked down the stairs towards the washroom just shaking my head. Had Jim Carey been standing next to me at a urinal I wouldn’t have even been surprised. What a fun night.

Waking up Sunday morning would have been a chore had we not been getting onto a shuttle and heading out to repeat the previous day. In fact, it’s been a while since I’ve had that much jump in my step at 7:00am regardless.

Starbucks? Check. Shuttle? Check. Sunday at Glen Abbey for the final round of the RBC Canadian Open? Ohhh, big time check.

We started the morning following Adam Svensson again. This time for seven holes. His ball striking was pure and in great tempo, but his putting was killing him that day. He had about three decent looks for birdie and one for par, all within 10 feet, that never got a sniff of the hole. It was unfortunate he couldn’t get the flat stick going, but he’ll be just fine.

Paired up with Svensson on Sunday was a golfer by the name Brian Harmon. He’s been playing well lately on Tour so I was intrigued as to how he would fare only being a few shots back. What quickly stole my attention was not Harmon’s smooth swing. It also wasn’t his deceptive length off the tee despite being smaller in stature. To put bluntly, from my brief experience watching Harmon, he’s got the mouth of a weekend hacker out there. Numerous times we witnessed Harmon swear loud enough for children in the gallery to hear, but he also slammed his driver down on the tee box twice while kicking his tee to the side. It would have been kind of awkward had Cam and I not been a few pops deep at the time.

Now I know what you’re all thinking. So what? We all do that. True. Most of us casual golfers swear enough during 18 holes to make a truck driver blush. However from my minute experience with professional golf, it’s an entirely different animal. Maintaining emotions on course is a must for any player who wishes to maintain good play or rebound from some poor swings. A great example is Camillo Villegas. On the difficult par 4-6th hole at Glen Abbey, he snap hooked his drive into the trees. So far in fact he nearly went out of bounds into the driving range. Par seemed far out of the question at that point. Yet, I watched Camillo walk down the fairway with his playing partner Brooks Koepka. Both were smiling and laughing as they made their way to their balls. It’s possible I suppose Brooks is the funniest person on Tour, enough to bring a sullen Villegas to a smile, but I wouldn’t put money on it. Villegas remained calm and composed, even after he attempted a hero 5-wood cut shot from the rough under trees that unfortunately ended up in the water. The difference in attitudes was uncanny.

Now it’s very plausible Harmon was just having a bad day. Maybe he slept wrong. Maybe he couldn’t get a room at the Four Seasons. Maybe he didn’t have access to an omelette bar. I don’t know. But what I do know is from what I saw, Brian Harmon doesn’t bring the best attitude to the course and if you have a child with you, make like Beanie in Old School and have them put on their earmuffs.

As the day wore on, we decided to post up in the Skybox for the final nine holes of the tournament. What a great idea that was. The quality of shots hit into 18 were phenomenal. The gallery began to really grow on the side slope of the clubhouse and the atmosphere was buzzing as everyone’s eyes went back and forth between shots hit onto the green and the constantly updated leaderboard.

A great moment while sitting in the Skybox was watching D.A. Points walk off the final green and wave to the crowd. He thanked everyone for their support and for coming out to watch the tournament. That’s a guy right there who gets it. Great stuff.

Canadian David Hearn had been leading most of the final round. It seemed as though he would be able to hold on. There was a buzz around the course the entire day as fans spoke of the 54 year long drought Canada has had in producing a champion at this tournament. T’was not to be. Not only did Bubba Watson turn on the nitro and birdie five of his final six holes, but Australian Jason Day birdied the last three holes, including a phenomenal 22 footer on 18, to edge Watson by one and Hearn by two. It was a very exciting finish. Had Day only made par on 18, Hearn would have had a chance to tie with a birdie or win with an eagle. Either way it was fantastic, and Cam and I witnessed all of it only feet away in the beloved Skybox. Simply amazing.

Day was a true class act accepting his trophy. He went as far as to say he felt like a Canadian this week due to how great the fans were to him all week. He also said it would be an honor to return the following year to defend his title. I’m sure Golf Canada hopes he stays true to that because he is a fantastic player, and a great champion.

The whole weekend is not something Cam or I plan on soon forgetting. What a life.

For Toronto’s Albin Choi, the transition from amateur to the professional ranks has been a bit of a bumpy ride.

But now in his third full season as a pro, the former Northview Heights Secondary student is starting to find his comfort zone; and the results are starting to show on the golf course.

As an amateur, the Toronto golfer was nothing short of spectacular. Besides winning the Canadian Amateur title in 2010, the Ontario Amateur title in 2012, and nine collegiate titles during his three years at North Carolina State University, Choi was also awarded the Gary Cowan trophy as the low amateur at the 2012 RBC Canadian Open.

Having turned professional after his junior year at NC State University, the former Canadian national team member admits that he’s gone through a bit of a learning curve.

“I haven’t been playing that well the past couple of years but the game’s been coming around,” said Choi recently at the RBC Canadian Open.

“It was just a bit of a learning curve when I came out of college and now I’ve been playing professional golf for a couple of years, so I’m getting use to how things work and I think I’m just getting a bit more comfortable out there,” added the 5 foot 11 inch amateur standout.

Someone who shares Choi’s assessment about the challenges involved in transitioning from amateur to pro is Canadian golfing legend, Gary Cowan.

“Once you’re a pro you have to learn how to play again,” said Cowan, who captured the United States amateur title in 1966 and then again in 1971.

“When you’re an amateur, you’re with your collegiate team or you’re with the Golf Canada amateur team and you go where everyone else goes. But when you turn pro you’re on your own and you have to learn to be on your own; and you have to take the time to learn and get familiar with the golf courses that you are playing on,” explained the 76-year-old Canadian golfing icon.

Having first met Choi in 2012, Cowan is confident, that with time, the amateur standout will be able to find similar success on the professional circuit.

“I first met him at the RBC Canadian Open in Hamilton and he’s very nice and quiet. I think he’s very talented; give him a couple more years and he’s going to be a really good player,” Cowan added about Choi.

Someone else who is eager to speak about Choi’s talents and dedication on the golf course is former high school classmate and current teammate on the Golf Canada’s Young Pro Program, Rebecca Lee-Bentham.

“Albin’s consistency really impressed me. He was the best putter I knew as a junior,” recalled the fourth year LPGA pro, who transferred from Bayview Secondary in Richmond Hill to Northview Heights Secondary after completing grade 10.

“He’s dedicated and always very focused when he practiced,” she added about Choi’s commitment.

For his part, Choi says it’s his commitment to improving and learning that has played a key part in his success so far this year.

“It’s always a work in progress but I’m just trying to learn from each tournament and take what I’ve learn into the week after,” he said.

Having learned his fair share of difficult lessons during his first two seasons as a pro as a member of Team Canada’s Young Pro Squad, the Toronto golfer is successfully applying those lessons this year.

Choi started his 2015 season by claiming medalist honours at the Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada Qualifying School, and followed that up with a victory at the Bayview Place Island Savings Open in early June.

“Winning always boosts your confidence. It was a big accomplishment for me early on in the year so I’m just trying to keep it going,” he pointed out.

Despite failing to make the cut recently at Glen Abbey, Choi is confident that he has the all-around game to compete against the PGA TOUR’s best.

“My game is definitely good enough to compete out here; just a couple of small errors here or there that I need to touch up on.  But I feel my game is just as good as these guys,” he said.

“I just have to play more on the big stage and get used to being out there with the best players. I’ve played in four of these RBC Canadian Opens and I learn from each of them; and I just need to get myself into more tournaments like this,” Choi added.

With valuable experience now under his belt and a success first half of 2015 in the books, the 23-year-old golfer takes comfort in the fact that he’s heading in the right direction; and firmly believes in his abilities to meet his long term goals.

“I’ve just got to keep working at it and just keep doing what I’ve been doing,” he said. “And I definitely see myself on the PGA TOUR five years from now – hopefully with a win or two.”

Callaway Golf has officially announced the new Great Big Bertha Driver and Fairway Woods, as well as the Big Bertha Alpha 816 Double Black Diamond Driver and Big Bertha Alpha 816 Fairway Woods for better players.

The Great Big Bertha Driver is touted to be a technological breakthrough – it’s designed with an aerodynamic, multi-material clubhead, a next gen R*MOTO face for high ball speeds, and an adjustable sliding weight for more dispersion control without sacrificing forgiveness. The driver is built to get the most distance for all golfers.

Great Big Bertha Driver ($449.99) and Great Big Bertha Fairway Wood ($249.99) will be available at retail on August 28, and golfers can pre-order them starting August 14 on CallawayGolf.com. The driver will be offered in 9-, 10.5- and 13.5-degree lofts.

The Great Big Bertha Fairway Wood will be offered in a 3-, 5-, 7-Wood, a Heavenwood and a Divine Nine. Both new Great Big Bertha products feature excellent stock shaft offerings with a comprehensive list of aftermarket shafts at no upcharge.

The Big Bertha Alpha 816 Double Black Diamond Driver features a deeper face, next generation R*MOTO face technology for high ball speeds, and two distance chambers. Golfers can put Callaway’s gravity core in the left or right chamber for shot-shaping control, and then set the gravity core up or down to increase ball speeds based on their impact location.

The Alpha 816 Double Black Diamond Driver ($499.99) and Big Bertha Alpha 816 Fairway Woods ($299.99 each) will both be at retail and online on September 18, and will also be available for pre-order starting August 14 on Callawaygolf.com.

The Alpha 816 Double Black Diamond Driver will be offered in 9- and 10.5-degree lofts while the Alpha 816 Fairway Wood will be offered in 14-, 16- and 18-degree lofts. Like the Great Big Bertha clubs, the Alpha 816 Woods feature excellent stock shaft offerings with a comprehensive offering of aftermarket shafts at no upcharge.