LETHBRIDGE, Alta. — Daniel Pow and Michael Gligic are the low Canadians, tied for sixth heading into Sunday’s final round at the Lethbridge Paradise Canyon Open.

The round of the day, and perhaps the tournament considering the conditions, belonged to Canadian Daniel Pow. The Monday qualifier rattled off five birdies in a row to polish off his round of 63, propelling him 53 spots up the leaderboard into a tie for 6th with fellow Canadian Gligic.

Gligic, who fired an impressive ten birdies during the second round of the event, went into the day second. After moving his way up the leaderboard early with birdies on the 2^nd and 4^th hole, the 28-year-old made a double bogey on the 8^th before shooting even par on the back nine to put himself in a tie for 6^th going into Sunday.

While it looked like it could be a one-man show come Sunday, Paradise Canyon Golf Club showed its teeth on Saturday at the Lethbridge Paradise Canyon Open. Cold and rainy conditions kept second-round leader Zach Wright at bay, allowing Chris Williams to overtake Wright with a remarkable 65.

“The weather was always a challenge, we knew it was going to be going into the day because the forecast called for high winds and some rain,” said Williams. “I just rolled with the punches and hit some good shots when I needed to, made some big putts and it turned out to be a good day.”

Williams, the number-one ranked amateur golfer in the world in 2013, seems to have re-found his form in 2018. Saturday’s 6-under score is his 9^th round under 70 this season on the Mackenzie Tour.

Williams put himself in position to jump up the leaderboard after matching the Paradise Canyon Golf Club course record on Friday with a bogey-free 61.

The 27-year-old spread his birdies sporadically in the third round, making his first on the 3^rd hole before two straight on 7 and 8 had him at 3-under going into the back nine.

On the back, Williams birdied 13, 15 and 18 to sign his second consecutive bogey-free card.

“I knew it wasn’t playing super easy and I knew guys weren’t going super low,” said Williams. “I saw a leaderboard at 13 or 14 that had me at the top, so I had an idea, but I didn’t really know exactly what was happening behind me. Leaderboard watching isn’t something I usually do but walking up 18 and seeing my name at the top was nice.”

Going into the final round with a 3-stroke lead, Williams doesn’t expect to change how he plays heading into Sunday.

“Tomorrow is just another day,” said Williams. “That’s just how golf is. Each day, it’s a new day, and you never know what can happen and you have to prepare for everything.”

Meanwhile, second round leader Zach Wright struggled on Saturday, surrendering his lead after bogeys on the 12^th and 14^th holes.

The major blunder of the week for Wright came at an inopportune time, hitting his ball in the water on the par-3 17^th, where he would make double bogey. Wright isn’t out of the competition by any accounts. Thanks to the lead he built over the first two rounds, Wright finds himself tied with T.T. Crouch at 17-under.

LETHBRIDGE, Alta. — If it wasn’t a perfect day for scoring, it was about as close as you’ll ever see, as the first round of the inaugural Lethbridge Paradise Canyon Open saw the lowest scores of the season at Paradise Canyon Golf Resort.

The three at the top of the leaderboard, Paul McConnell, Cody Blick and Zach Wright, currently sit 15^th, 6^th and 1^st respectively on “The Five,” the season-long chase towards the top five spots on the Order of Merit and the Web.com Tour status that accompanies it.

Paul McConnell was the lone golfer of the three to head out in the morning wave, taking advantage of a rare windless morning at Paradise Canyon.

The Garland, Texas native, who at one point on the B.C. Golf Swing managed 74 consecutive holes without a bogey, began his round with a birdie on the 1st. Two more on the front, supplemented by an eagle on 8, set the stage for a five-birdie back nine to close in 30 and fire his lowest score of the year.

McConnell’s eagle chip on 18 was especially well executed. Playing the shot 25 feet left of the hole, the 27-year-old watched as the ball funneled down a slope and narrowly missed entering for an eagle, which would have set the new course record.

“I thought I popped it a little bit, hit it a little too hard, because it didn’t have any spin coming off,” said McConnell. “But I hit it where I wanted to. I thought it would be six feet past, but it ended up just being a foot.”

Blick’s ascent up the leaderboard can be attributed to a rare deuce on the par-4 16^th hole, Blick’s 7^th hole of the day.

“I couldn’t see it go in. I took a drop off the cart path and got a really bad lie. It was downwind to a front flag and I hammered a 9-iron,” recalled the San Jose State University alum. “Lee (Hodges), who I was playing with, said ‘I think that went in!’ I couldn’t see, but we went up and there was nothing around the hole, so it was a cool little moment.”

The eagle kickstarted Blick’s round as he made the turn with five consecutive birdies to start his back nine. After making his second eagle of the day on the par-5 8^th, Blick’s 8-foot course record attempt on the last hole slipped by as he is forced to settle for a share of the lead going into Friday.

With 2^nd, 6^th, and 2^nd place finishes through the first three tournaments of the year, it’s safe to say that Zach Wright has found his zone.

The Phoenix, Arizona native played a clean game of golf, two-putting both par-5s on the front for birdies and adding two more on the side to begin with a 32. Wright made eagle on the par-5 13^th, a hole he hit only a sand wedge into, and added three more circles on the side to sign for 62.

“I’ve been playing well this season,” said Wright. “I have enough confidence that I feel like I can just keep using that and building off it.”

With tee times flipping on Friday, Blick and Wright tee off in the morning wave while McConnell takes to the course later in the day.

Michael Gligic was the low Canadian in the field after the first day of action, making eagle on his 9^th hole and adding birdies on four of his final six to shoot a 65 and finish the day in a tie for 9^th.

CROMWELL, Conn. – Jordan Spieth has no idea what it is like to play from behind at the Travelers Championship.

The defending champion led after every round last year in his first visit to TPC River Highlands, and a shot a 7-under 63 on Thursday to match Zach Johnson for the first-round lead.

Spieth had six birdies and an eagle out the bunker on par-5 sixth hole _ a shot reminiscent of the greenside bunker shot that gave him a victory last year over Daniel Berger in a playoff.

“They’ve got some sort of magnetic sand for me,” Spieth joked. “But it was actually a pretty tough shot there, almost a little downslope and I had to hit close to the ball, which you just have to commit to it. I just hit the shot that was necessary. I probably could have gone 4-5 feet bye, but I couldn’t hit it any better than I did and I was obviously fortunate for it to hit the pin and go in.”

Johnson went out in the morning and led for most of the day. He had eight birdies, including six straight on the back nine, one off than the course record.

“Six in a row is a treat,” said Johnson, who finished tied for 12th last week in the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills. “I had a lot of loft in my hand, lot of wedges in my hand. So that’s kind of how you’ve got to think about it is you have a lot of opportunity on the back side if you get the ball on the fairway. There are some holes you can get at.”

Rory McIlroy missed a 13-foot putt for par on the final hole that would have given him a share of the lead and finished in a three-way tie for third place with Brian Harmon and Peter Malnati.

McIlroy, who like Spieth missed the cut in the U.S. Open, said he’s been working on his swing since Saturday. He saw the practice pay off, hitting 17 greens with seven birdies during his round of 64.

“Sometimes when you take your focus away from the result and away from what you’re actually scoring like and focus just on what you’re trying to do within your golf swing, you sort of have days like this,” he said.

A lot of golfers took advantage of the soft greens and favourable wind conditions Thursday. Twenty-two of them shot a 66 or better.

Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., fired a 3-under 67 to tie for 23rd. Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, B.C., shot a 2-under 68 for 37th, Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., was even-par 70 to enter a tie for 77th, Ben Silverman of Thornhill, Ont., was 1-over 71 to tie for 99th and Nick Taylor, also from Abbotsford, was 2-over 72 to sit at 114th.

Brooks Koepka followed his second straight U.S. Open victory with a 68. Koepka, who started on the 10th tee, shot a 31 on his first nine, but bogeyed four of his final six holes.

“I’m still kind of going on adrenaline right now,” he said. “But I’ll be honest, I’m dead right now. I think it showed kind of coming in.”

The Travelers was selected by the PGA last year as its “Tournament of the Year” and the “Players Choice.” That has helped attract a 156-player field that includes five of the world’s top 10 ranked golfers and all four reigning major championship winners.

PGA Championship winner Justin Thomas was in a group of 14 players at 66. He made an eagle on sixth hole out of the same bunker as Spieth. His caddie tried to hand him a putter after the shot and Thomas shook him off.

“I don’t know why he did that,” Thomas said. “I think out of instinct went to give me the putter and I told him I didn’t need that, so put it back in the bag.”

Masters champion Patrick Reed had a tougher day, making four bogeys in a 72.

Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., shot a 67 to settle in a tie for 23rd, one point ahead of Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, BC tied for 37th. Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., sits tied for 77th at even-par 70, while Ben Silverman of Thornhill, Ont., tied for 99th at 1 over and Nick Taylor of Abbotsford tied for 114th at 2 over.

ABERDEEN, Scotland — It was the end of the road for Peterborough’s Sam Meek after a great run at the 123rd British Amateur Championship at Royal Aberdeen Golf Club.

The nineteen-year-old was cut on the third day of the tournament after the 17th hole in his match play round against Mexico’s Raul Perada.

Meek started strong on opening day, tying for second in the first round of stroke play on Monday. He was the sole Canadian to advance to the match play stage after earning solo-third in the final stroke play round on Tuesday.

Fellow Canada Hugo Bernard finished T7 on Monday but failed to crack the top 64 advancing to the match play round.

Wilco Nienaber, who won the Stroke Play Qualifier heading into match play, eased his way into the third round of The 123rd Amateur Championship with a comfortable 5&4 victory over Niclas Weiland at Royal Aberdeen today.

The 18-year-old South African continued the dominating form which saw him lead both rounds of stroke play qualifying to progress to the last 32. His countryman Matt Saulez recorded the championship’s first hole in one at the 11th during his match with Benjamin Jones but it failed to inspire him to victory as he went down by 2 holes to the Englishman.

“It’s satisfying, you can easily fall out in the first round so it’s a good start,” said Nienaber.

“We had different weather and different wind today so it was tough on the front nine playing into the wind and I think I played nicely. It’s tough so I’m really happy to get the win and go through to tomorrow.”

When the tournament ends on Saturday, the champion will earn a spot in the 147th British Open next month in addition to the 2019 U.S. Open and 2019 Masters Tournament.

Hailed as a hero to some and as golf royalty to others, Peter Thomson, a five-time winner of the British Open and the only player in the 20th century to win the tournament for three straight years, died Wednesday. He was 88.

Thomson had been suffering from Parkinson’s disease for more than four years and died at his Melbourne home surrounded by family members, Golf Australia said.

The first Australian to win the British Open, Thomson went on to secure the title five times between 1954 and 1965, a record equaled only by American Tom Watson.

The Australian’s wins came in 1954, ’55, ’56, again in 1958 and lastly in 1965 against a field that included Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus.

Only Harry Vardon, with six titles between 1896 and 1914, won more.

Thomson also tied for fourth at the 1956 U.S. Open and placed fifth in the 1957 Masters. He never played the PGA Championship.

In 1998, he captained the International side to its only win over the United States at the Presidents Cup at Royal Melbourne.

Asked by The Associated Press in 2011 how he’d like to be remembered, Thomson replied: “A guy who always said what he thought.”

Veteran Australian golfer Karrie Webb was among the first to tweet her condolences, saying she was “saddened to hear of the passing of our Aussie legend and true gentleman of the game …. so honoured to have been able to call Peter my friend. RIP Peter.”

Former PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem said Thomson was “a champion in every sense of the word, both on the course and in life.”

“Many know him as a five-time champion golfer of the year or as a three-time captain of the Presidents Cup International team.” Finchem added. “But he was also a great friend, father, grandfather and husband. He was golfing royalty, and our sport is a better one because of his presence.”

Former golfer and now broadcaster Ian Baker-Finch, the 1991 British Open champion, called Thomson his “hero” _ “Peter – my friend and mentor R.I.P. Australian golf thanks you for your iconic presence and valuable guidance over the years.”

From Britain, R&A chief executive Martin Slumbers praised Thomson’s plans for the game’s future.

“Peter gave me a number of very interesting and valuable thoughts on the game, how it has developed and where it is going, which demonstrated his genuine interest and love of golf,” Slumbers said. “He was one of the most decorated and celebrated champion golfers in the history of The Open.”

Born in the Melbourne inner-city suburb of Brunswick on Aug. 23, 1929, Thomson was a promising cricketer. He scored an unbeaten 150 runs for the Carlton club against a men’s side as a 15-year-old.

But golf became his passion, and he turned professional in 1947.

He won the national championships of 10 countries, including the New Zealand Open nine times and Australian Open three times. He first played on the PGA Tour in the U.S. in 1953 and 1954, finishing 44th and 25th on the money list, respectively. He won the Texas International in 1956.

Thomson won nine times on the Senior PGA tour in the U.S. in 1985, topping the money list. His last tournament victory came at the 1988 British PGA Seniors Championship, the same year he was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.

Overall, he won 26 European Tour events, 34 times on the Australasian PGA tour and 11 on the seniors tour in the U.S, as well as once in Japan.

In later years, Thomson wrote articles for many publications and daily newspapers, was club professional at Royal Melbourne and designed more than 100 golf courses. In the 2011 Presidents Cup program, Thomson provided an insightful hole-by-hole analysis of the composite course at Royal Melbourne.

Thomson was always reluctant to compare his wins with anyone else’s.

“All records are qualified in that they were made at a certain time in history,” Thomson told golf historian and author Brendan Moloney for a story on his 80th birthday.

“The circumstances change so much, and so do the players’ attitudes. In golf, only in the last 30 years or so has there been a professional attitude to playing for money. The professionals in the USA and Britain and anywhere else all had club jobs as a backstop to their income.

“When they did play and make records, you have to understand that they were taking time off from the pro shop,” he said. “So the records that were set were pretty remarkable.”

Thomson always had stories to tell, and told them well. With a full head of hair and a lineless face that belied his age, the Australian wasn’t afraid to let everyone know his feelings on any subject.

That was true as far back as 1966. As president of the Australian PGA, Thomson was indignant that Arnold Palmer’s prize for winning the Australian Open was only $1,600, out of a total purse of $6,000, one of the smallest in golf.

“Golf Stars Play for Peanuts,” blared the headline of a story he wrote. “Never before has such a field of top golfers played for what $6,000 is worth today. Canada offers 19 times that. I know 19 other countries who give more.”

But he was always happy on the golf course.

“I’ve had a very joyful life, playing a game that I loved to play for the sheer pleasure of it,” Thomson said. “I don’t think I did a real day’s work in the whole of my life.”

Thomson served as president of the Australian PGA for 32 years and worked behind the scenes for the Odyssey House drug rehabilitation organization where he was chairman for five years.

In 1979, he was made a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for his service to golf, and in 2001 became an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for his contributions as a player and administrator and for community service.

Thomson is survived by his wife Mary, son Andrew and daughters Deirdre Baker, Pan Prendergast and Fiona Stanway, their spouses, 11 grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

ABERDEEN, Scotland — Sam Meek was the only Canadian to qualify for the match play stage of The 123^rd Amateur Championship at Royal Aberdeen and Murcar Links on Tuesday.

The Peterborough, Ont., native had a solid day of play and was in contention to finish as leading qualifier after back to back birdies on holes 15 and 16 put him at six under heading to the final hole. The eighteenth hole had other plans for him, however, when an attempt to drive the green at the 369-yard par four ended with Meek shooting a triple bogey that put him in third place position at 3 under par

“I’m still pleased with the two days and I had to give it a try. It feels good,” said the 19-year-old. “The tournament starts over again so I have to try to progress through the matches and see where I end up. It was good to play well and I putted really well. I just want to keep feeding the momentum and go out there and do some damage.”

Wilco Nienaber led the way in qualifying for the match play stage. On the historic championship’s first visit to the renowned North East links courses, Nienaber became the first South African to lead the qualifying stage since it was introduced in 1983.

“When I heard I was going to play The Amateur Championship this year I was really excited. To finish at the top after the qualifying is great,” said Nienaber. “I made good decisions from the tee, stuck to my game plan and hit the greens. The match play stage is a different game but winning this or finishing at the top makes me feel like I can beat the other guys, which is really nice. So we will see what happens this week.”

The cut for the championship fell on six-over-par with 77 players qualifying. Team Canada’s Hugo Bernard fell short by only one stroke at 7 over par.

The reward for the winner of The Amateur Championship is a place in The 147th Open at Carnoustie in July and the 2019 US Open at Pebble Beach. Traditionally, the Amateur Champion is also invited to compete in the Masters Tournament.

The match play stage gets underway at Royal Aberdeen Wednesday. Each match will consist of one round of 18 holes except the Final which will be over 36 holes.

For more information, including scoring, click here.

ABERDEEN, Scotland —  Peterborough, Ont. talent Sam Meek shares second place after the first round of stroke play qualifying in The 123^rd Amateur Championship at Royal Aberdeen and Murcar Links on Monday.

The 2016 Canadian Junior Boys Champion finished two strokes behind the lead at 2 under par, tied with  Australia’s David Micheluzzi. The highlight of his round at the Royal Aberdeen was a magnificent albatross two on the 487-yard par five sixth.

“I had no idea it went in,” said the 19-year-old. “It was totally blind. I had 240 yards so I just hit 5 iron up there. It looked good but I really had no idea until the people up there started jumping so I figured it was in the hole. That was a pretty good feeling – I’ve never made one of those before. I just need a hole in one and then I can say I’ve got this!”

We ? you, @meeker_6 ????

— Golf Canada (@TheGolfCanada) June 19, 2018

Team Canada’s Hugo Bernard finished the first round of stroke play qualifying in a tie for seventh after firing a 70 at the Murcar Links course.

South Africa’s Wilco Nienaber leads the way after Monday’s round. The 18-year-old from Bloemfontein got off to a fine start at the par 70 Murcar with birdie threes at his opening two holes. Nienaber, who lost out in a play-off to England’s Nick Poppleton in the Brabazon Trophy earlier this month, notched up three birdies in five holes from the 4th but bogeyed the par three 5th. He bounced back from a dropped shot at the 10th with a birdie at the 14th on his way to a four-under-par 66.

The 288-strong field will play the second stroke play qualifying round on Tuesday with the leading 64 and ties qualifying for the match play stage.

For more information, including live scoring, click here.

BLAINVILLE, Que. — An eventful day that involved threats of thunderstorms and a three-hour rain delay ended with a six-way tie at the final RBC Canadian Open Regional Qualifier of 2018 at Le Blainvillier on Monday.

Five golfers from Quebec — Vincette Blanchette of Boucherville, Sonny Michaud of Neuville, Yanik Laforest of Mirabel, Tim Alarie of Saint-Jérôme and Keven Fortin-Simard of Chicoutimi — won the event alongside Jake Scott of Strongsville, Ohio after carding a 1 under par to earn spots at the Final Qualifying event taking place at Heron Point Golf Links in Ancaster, Ont., on July 23.

Sixty-nine golfers completed all18 holes at the Quebec qualifier. In addition to the six leaders, eight players are also moving on to the Final Qualifier at Heron Point. Toronto’s Russell Budd finished one stroke behind the leaders at even-par 72 while Oshawa, Ont., native Derek Gillespie came in eighth with a 1-over-par 73. Six golfers round out the 14 heading to the Final Qualifier tied for 9th at 2 over — Team Canada alumnus Raoul Menard (Ange-Gardien, Que), last year’s second place finisher and amateur Griffin Jones (Manotick, Ont.), amateur David Iaderosa (Ottawa, Ont.), David Morland (Palm Coast, Fla.), Dom Lalonde (Châteauguay, Que.) and Éric Laporte (St-Liguori, Que.).

The Quebec Regional Qualifier was the third and final Regional Qualifying event. Provided that there are 100 or more players in the field, the low qualifier receives an exemption directly into the 2018 RBC Canadian Open at Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville, Ont.

Otherwise, the top 15 percent of finishers at each qualifier become eligible to compete at the final qualifying event.

A minimum of four players from the 18-hole stroke play Final Qualifier at Heron Point will gain entry into the RBC Canadian Open field.

Additional information and the full leaderboard can be found here.

The following golfers advanced to the Final Qualifier from the Quebec Regional event:

1. Vincent Blanchette, Boucherville, QC, *38-33-71 -1
2. Sonny Michaud, Neuville, QC, *35-36-71 -1
3. Jake Scott, Strongsville, OH, *36-35-71 -1
4. Yanik Laforest, Mirabel, QC, *34-37-71 -1
5. Tim Alarie, St-Jérôme, QC, *38-33-71 -1
6. Keven Fortin-Simard, Chicoutimi, QC, *37-34-71 -1
7. Russell Budd, Toronto, ON, *37-35-72 E
8. Derek Gillespie, Oshawa, ON, *39-34-73 +1
9. Raoul Menard, Ange-Gardien, QC, *36-38-74 +2
10. Griffin Jones (a), Manotick, ON, *37-37-74 +2
11. David Iaderosa (a), Ottawa, ON, *36-38-74 +2
12. David Morland, Palm Coast, FL, *36-38-74 +2
13. Dom Lalonde, Châteauguay, QC, *37-37-74 +2
14. Éric Laporte, St-Liguori, QC, *37-37-74 +2

PORTAGE LA PRAIRIE, Man.— Wesley Hoydalo and Sydney Scraba shot 2 under and 13 over, respectively, to emerge victorious at the Future Links, driven by Acura Prairie Championship at Portage Golf Club on Sunday.

The junior boys, who failed to score in the red after two tough rounds, brought their A-game to the final day.

With three sets of consecutive birdies across his final 18 holes, Wesley Hoydalo, who started the day sharing the lead with Saskatoon’s Bradley Moser, fought hard to emerge victorious in the junior boys division. The Selkirk, Man., talent was the only player to finish under par at the tournament at 2-under-par 208.

“I started off great at 4 under through seven. I missed a few putts early but I got to 14 and went birdie-birdie and birdied 17, which was probably a highlight,” said Hoydalo. “Last year, I just missed it by a shot, so it feels really great to win.”

Next up for the 18-year-old is the Elmhurst Invitational, where he will compete for an exemption into the Canadian Amateur Championship.

Calgary’s Jakob Chicoyne put on a spectacular show, fighting hard during the final day to tie with Hoydalo for a tournament low (66) and earn a piece of second alongside Bradley Moser of Saskatoon, Sask., at 1-over-par 211.

Gerry Mei of North York, Ont., Sylvain Ruest of Winnipeg, Man., and Jacob Armstrong of Winnipeg, Man., all shot 10-over-par 220 to tie for fourth and earn exemptions into the 2018 Canadian Junior Boys Championship on July 30-Aug. 2 at Medicine Hat Golf & Country Club in Medicine Hat, Alta.

The course proved to be challenging for the junior girls during the final round of the tournament but Sydney Scraba managed to hold on to her lead, carding a 7-over to secure a four-stroke victory in the junior girls division at 13-over-par 229.

The 17-year-old started the tournament tied for fourth but moved up the leaderboard on Saturday after being the only junior golfer at the tournament to score under par after two rounds.

“I finished the way I wanted to on Father’s Day with my dad, so it’s a really good moment for him and I to spend together,” said the Calgary, Alta., native. “I’m so grateful that I got to play really well and see how good I can become when I go to college in August. I’m quite excited for what’s going to come to me.”

Michelle Liu of Vancouver, B.C., ended the tournament in second at 17-over-par 233 while Bobbi Uhl claimed third at 19-over-par 235.

Rounding out the top-six earning exemptions into the 2018 Canadian Junior Girls Championship on July 31-Aug. 3 at Beach Grove Golf Club in Tsawwassen, B.C. are Vanessa Zhang (Vancouver, B.C.), Jillian Friyia (London, Ont.) and Sandee Park (West Vancouver, B.C.).

KELOWNA, B.C. — Jared du Toit entered the third round with a two-shot lead but fell down the leaderboard with a 1-under 70 Saturday. A triple bogey on the par-4, 11th hole was the result of a pulled 8-iron into a bush. The Calgary native fought back, however, with three birdies on his closing four holes. He’s tied for second, three back. Adam Cornelson is the last Canadian to win on this Tour. He earned his victory at the 2016 Bayview Place DCBank Open presented by Times Colonist.

“I would love to be the next Canadian to win out here,” said the 23-year-old member of Team Canada’s Young Pro Squad. “If it comes tomorrow, then great. If it doesn’t, I won’t hang my head on the effort, but I’m going to try to win tomorrow.”

Five other Canadians made the cut going into the final round. Richmond Hill’s Taylor Pendrith sits T9 at 10-under-par 203 and is joined by David Rose (-9), James Seymour (-6), Ryan Williams (-3) and Stuart Macdonald (-1).

Highlighted by a hole-in-one on the par-3 third hole, George Cunningham shot a 9-under 62 to take the outright, third-round lead at the GolfBC Championship. Six players are tied for second and trail by three shots entering the final round.

With his father, Tracy, on the bag, the 22-year-old Cunningham got off to a hot start. He recorded a birdie-birdie-ace stretch in his first three holes to climb the leaderboard. His sixth-career hole-in-one came on the 175-yard par-3.

“My dad and I were joking saying, ‘Well that wasn’t the start we were looking for today,’” said Cunningham with a laugh. “Through three holes, I had a total of a foot-and-a-half of putts. I was feeling confident.”

After shooting a 5-under 31 on the front nine, Cunningham combined five additional birdies with a lone bogey on the back, to card the lowest round of his career. He credited his caddie for the successful day.

“He’s caddied for me a lot in the past,” said Cunningham. “He’s caddied for me in the last two events, as well. He knows how I read my putts, how I putt, so he’s able to look at it from a different angle. It helps a lot having him on the bag.”

Competing in his rookie season on the Mackenzie Tour- PGA Tour Canada, Cunningham finished third at this season’s Q-School USA West No. 2, in Phoenix, competing as an amateur. Shortly after graduating in May, the University of Arizona product turned pro and missed the cut in the first two tournaments of the season—in Vancouver and Victoria.

Among the six players tied for second at 12-under 201 are 18-hole co-leaders Zach Wright and Mark Anguiano. Wright carded a 3-under 68, with a disappointing three-putt bogey on the last. Anguiano shot a 2-under 69 that included six birdies and four bogeys.

Also tied for second, Russell Surber climbed 24-spots with his third-round, 7-under 64. Playing in his ninth season on the Mackenzie Tour, the 38-year-old had two consecutive missed cuts in the first two events of 2018.