PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Paul Broadhurst birdied the par-5 18th at Pebble Beach on Sunday to win the PGA Tour Champions’ Nature Valley First Tee Open.

The Senior British Open winner at Carnoustie in July for his first victory on the 50-and-over tour, Broadhurst made a 6-foot birdie putt on 18 after running his first attempt past the hole.

The 51-year-old Englishman finished with a 4-under 68 for a one-stroke victory over Bernhard Langer and playing partner Kevin Sutherland. Langer birdied the last for a 66, and Sutherland birdied the final two holes for a 70.

Joe Durant bogeyed the 18th – lipping out a 3-footer – for a 67 to finish fourth at 9 under.

Broadhurst finished at 11-under 204 for two rounds at Pebble Beach and one at Poppy Hills. He won six times on the European Tour and played in the 1991 Ryder Cup.

Canada’s Stephen Ames tied for 10th at 5-under.

The seniors played alongside boys and girls from The First Tee programs throughout the country.

London, Ont. – Dan McCarthy of Syracuse, New York, wrapped up Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada Player of the Year honours on Sunday, finishing with $157,843 in earnings on the season to top the Order of Merit and lead five players who earned status on the Web.com Tour for 2017.

McCarthy, 31, who produced a unprecedented season of four wins and the all-time record for single-season earnings, will be fully exempt on the 2017 Web.com Tour after finishing $73,768 ahead of No. 2 Brock Mackenzie of Yakima, Washington. Joining McCarthy and Mackenzie in The Five were No. 3 Taylor Moore of Richmond Hill, Ontario, No. 4 Aaron Wise of Lake Elsinore, California and No. 5 Adam Cornelson of Langley, B.C.

The Five will graduate to the Web.com Tour in 2017 and look to follow in the footsteps of at least nine PGA TOUR-era Mackenzie Tour alumni who will have PGA TOUR status for the 2016-17 season, including 2013-15 Order of Merit winners Mackenzie Hughes, Joel Dahmen and J.J. Spaun.

“Dan’s exceptional play this year has set the standard for excellence on the Mackenzie Tour. What he has done this season in winning four times and setting the new mark is without precedent, and we can’t wait to follow his success as he reaches the next level. We wish The Five the very best of luck as they make the next step on their journey and follow in the footsteps of so many players, including the last three Order of Merit winners, who have gone from the Mackenzie Tour to the PGA TOUR,” said Mackenzie Tour President Jeff Monday.

McCarthy, a Le Moyne College (Syracuse, New York) graduate set the new record for single-season earnings on the Mackenzie Tour, recording wins at the Freedom 55 Financial Open, GolfBC Championship, Players Cup and Cape Breton Open, becoming the first player to win four times in a season in Mackenzie Tour history. McCarthy also set the records for largest margin of victory (seven strokes) and low 72-hole score (259) at the Players Cup and GolfBC Championship.

“This was an unforgettable year for me, and I’m so proud to have earned that fully exempt status on the Web.com Tour next year,” said McCarthy. “The level of competition out here is so good, and my goal at the start of the year was to be in that top five. To see all the hard work I’ve put in over the years come to fruition and finish No. 1 is an incredible feeling.”

The Mackenzie Tour also announced that its 12 tournaments combined to raise more than $1 million for charity, increasing charitable contributions from $567,500 in 2015

“A primary goal of every Mackenzie Tour tournament, along with every event under the PGA TOUR umbrella, is to make a positive impact in the community. Each year, we have pushed to make a larger impact in every community where we play, and I want to thank all of our tournaments along with every player, fan, volunteer and anyone else who helped make a positive difference in peoples’ lives through the Mackenzie Tour this year,” said Monday.

“We are so pleased with the success of the 2016 Mackenzie Tour – PGA Tour Canada and congratulate all of the golfers on their incredible season,” said Barry McInerney, President and Chief Executive Officer of Mackenzie Investments. “At Mackenzie Investments, we believe in striving to bring our best to everything we do and the winners of the Mackenzie Tour exemplify that same confidence and tenacious attitude. Now that we have completed our second season as the umbrella sponsor, we continue to be impressed by the partnership, players and most importantly, the charitable aspect which helps so many communities across Canada.”

Players 6-10 earn spots into Final Stage
In addition to The Five earning status on the Web.com Tour, players finishing 6-10 on the Order of Merit earned an exemption into the final stage of Web.com Tour Q-School, led by No. 6 Paul Barjon of New Caledonia, who won the Freedom 55 Financial Championship to move to No. 6, along with No. 7 Austin Connelly of Church Point, Nova Scotia, No. 8 Max Rottluff of Dusseldorf, Germany, No. 9 Michael Schoolcraft of Denver, Colorado and No. 10 Michael Gligic of Burlington, Ontario.

Players finishing 11-20 earned an exemption into the second stage of Web.com Tour Q-School.

EVIAN-LES-BAINS, France – In Gee Chun clinched the Evian Championship in record-breaking style on Sunday, winning by four shots to secure her second major with the lowest ever 72-hole score in a major.

The 22-year-old South Korean sank a difficult 10-feet putt to finish on 21 under, breaking the record for men and women of 20 co-held by Henrik Stenson and Jason Day. She bettered the women’s record by two.

She led from start to finish, although she did share the first-round lead with Sung Hyun Park – who finished tied for second with So Yeon Ryu in a dominant tournament for South Koreans.

Chun finished the day with a 2-under 69, the most modest of her four rounds. Not that it took anything away from her achievement.

“I just cannot believe I won the Evian Championship and made 21 under par,” Chun said as she clutched the trophy, her voice breaking with emotion. “I’m not dreaming right?”

Chun missed the cut here at Evian Resort last year and tied for 65th in 2014.

In four days of intensely accurate driving and clinical putting, she was near-faultless. Her only significant blemish was a double bogey on the ninth hole in the third round – and even then she limited the damage having opted for a two-stroke penalty.

There was one bogey on Sunday, on the 14th, but she made a birdie on the next to move back to 21 under and almost added another birdie on the 16th, with her attempt stopping just short.

Chun, who won the U.S. Women’s Open last year, is only the second player in LPGA history to have her first two LPGA wins come at majors. The other was countrywoman Se Ri Pak in 1998.

It looked like she might miss out on a new major record when she sent her tee shot into the left rough on the 18th. She chose the safe option and used a wedge to chop her way onto the fairway, about 95 yards from the pin.

Then, she glided her ball over the water to give herself a decent shot at history.

After making her record-breaking putt, she raised both arms in the air and smiled.

She did not see what was coming next, however, as defending champion Lydia Ko poured Champagne over her.

Shanshan Feng, China’s only major winner, was six shots back in fourth place, with South Korean Sei Young Kim posting an impressive 65 to move up to fifth ahead of countrywoman I.K. Kim.

American Angela Stanford was 11 shots behind Chun in seventh spot.

It was a tournament to forget for Ko.

Chasing her third major, the 19-year-old New Zealander finished in a tie for 43rd at 2 over.

She did enough, however, to win the third edition of the Rolex Annika Major Award – rewarding the player with the best combined record at all five majors and named after 10-time major winner Annika Sorenstam.

Ko won the ANA Inspiration in April, where Chun was tied for second.

That tournament was Chun’s first start after a month out with a back injury caused in bizarre circumstances. She was struck by a hard-case suitcase that rival South Korean player Ha Na Jang’s father dropped down an escalator at the Singapore airport.

Chun, who has nine wins on the Korean LPGA, started as the rain poured hard in the morning.

The rain eased off around lunchtime, and the crowd finally came out in droves to see history being made.

Canada’s Brooke Henderson carded a final-round 70 to tie for 9th at 7-under.

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – Kevin Sutherland birdied four his last six holes at Pebble Beach for a 4-under 68 and the second-round lead Saturday in the PGA Tour Champions’ Nature Valley First Tee Open.

The 52-year-old Sutherland had an 8-under 135 total for a one-stroke lead over Paul Broadhurst, the Englishman who won the Senior British Open at Carnoustie in July.

From Sacramento, Sutherland is winless on the 50-and-over tour after winning once on the PGA Tour. In 2014, he set the senior tour record with a 13-under 59 in the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open.

“This is always a special place to me,” Sutherland said. “Being a northern California guy, Pebble is the mecca of golf for northern California golfers. The whole Carmel/Monterey area is always a special place, so to win any tournament here is quite an accomplishment and will definitely feel great.”

Broadhurst followed his opening 66 with a 70 at Poppy Hills.

“Really enjoy the course,” Broadhurst said. “Played it on Wednesday with Bernhard Langer in practice and really, really enjoy the course. Played a lot harder today. It was pretty calm on Wednesday. Today, it’s quite a bit of wind out there, so makes it tricky.”

Some players were unable to finish before dark. France’s Jean Van de Velde was the top player still on the course at 3 under with two holes left.

Playing in the morning, Sutherland began his run on the par-4 fourth and also birdied the par-5 sixth, par-3 seventh and par-4 ninth. He played his opening nine in even par with two birdies and two bogeys.

“If you can get Pebble early, it’s always great,” Sutherland said. “Even on a good day it’s always nice to get Pebble early because the greens are a little softer and a little bit fresher as far as not as many spike marks and stuff. Anytime, you can get out there early at Pebble it’s great.

The professionals are playing alongside boys and girls from The First Tee programs throughout the country. Sutherland is teaming with Jonathan Tanihana, also from Sacramento.

“I enjoyed playing with Jonathan tremendously,” Sutherland said. “He’s a fine young man and he’s got a tremendous golf game. And today we made a bunch much birdies.”

Woody Austin and Greg Kraft were tied for third at 5 under. Austin had a 69 at Poppy Hills, and Kraft shot 68 at Pebble Beach.

Langer was 4 under after a 69 at Pebble Beach. The 59-year-old German star leads the tour with four victories this season.

Vijay Singh was even par after a 68 at Poppy Hills.

John Daly was 5 over after his second 74, this one at Poppy Hills.

Judith Kyrinis, of Canada, already owns a triple crown of national championships this year. She is going for the grand slam at the 2016 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur.

The winner of the 2016 Canadian Women’s Mid-Amateur, Mid-Master and Senior championships, as well as the runner-up in the 2014 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur, Kyrinis, 52, shot even-par 74 on Saturday, which gave her a two-shot lead after the first round of stroke-play qualifying at the 6,049-yard Wellesley (Mass.) Country Club.

Marilyn Hardy, 54, of Houston shot 76 and five players, including Laura Coble, 52, of Augusta, Ga.; Lynn Cowan, 53, of Rocklin, Calif.; and Lisa McGill, 57, of Philadelphia, are three strokes behind Kyrinis.

“I left a couple right on the lip today,” said Kyrinis, who made three birdies but had additional opportunities, including on her final hole of the day, the par-5 ninth, where she missed a 7-footer for birdie. “But it’s good to get it close to the hole around some of these pins.”

Featuring sloped greens, several of which sit well above the fairway, Wellesley requires precise approach shots, which were difficult to control in the wind.

“It’s playing tough,” said Coble, who lost to Kyrinis in the Round of 32 of last year’s championship. “It’s fair, but the winds are kind of tricky and the greens are pretty sporty. You just have to place your ball in the right area to not have to play defensively.”

One of 13 national championships conducted annually by the United States Golf Association, 10 of which are strictly for amateurs, the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur Championship consists of 36 holes stroke play followed by six rounds of match play, with the 18-hole championship match scheduled to take place on Thursday, Sept. 22.

The championship match falls on the first day of autumn, and Kyrinis would like to welcome the new season with a continuation of her extremely successful summer. The nurse from Thornhill, Ontario, won her second consecutive Senior Women’s North & South Amateur at Pinehurst (N.C.) Country Club in mid-August. Less than two weeks later, she won her three of her country’s national championships, which were held concurrently at Wolf Creek Golf Resort in Alberta.

“Those were significant wins,” said Kyrinis. “So I was coming here with a lot of confidence.”

Those victories took place in stroke-play events. But as her Round-of-64 loss to Susan Wooster – despite besting her in stroke-play qualifying by six strokes – in last week’s U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur at The Kahkwa Club demonstrated, a match-play championship requires a different path to victory.

While earning medalist honors is notable, it is rarely a prerequisite for victory. The last stroke-play medalist to win this championship was Carol Semple Thompson, in 2002. For the field, the goal on Sunday is to find a way into the top 64 and a spot in the match-play bracket.

“What’s the saying – ‘You don’t have to play great, you just have to play well enough,” said Sue Cohn, 53, of Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., the runner-up in 2013. “You just have to be patient.”

Cohn weathered a start in which she made bogeys on four of her first eight holes, rebounding to make birdies on the 10th and 12th holes to shoot 3-over 77.

Other notable competitors who placed themselves in position to advance to match play include two-time champion Ellen Port, 54, of St. Louis, who shot 4-over 78; defending champion Karen Garcia, 53, of Cool, Calif., who shot 79; and 2010 champion Mina Hardin, 56, of Mexico, who shot 80.

Hometown favorite Pam Kuong, 55, of Wellesley Hills, Mass., attracted the largest crowds during her round of 10-over 84. No doubt, they will return on Sunday to cheer on last year’s finalist as Kuong continues her attempt to qualify for match play in the second round of stroke play, which is scheduled to begin at 7:30 a.m. EDT.

GARDEN CITY, Kan. – LPGA Tour player Christine Song won the Garden City Charity Classic on Saturday for her fifth career Symetra Tour title.

The 25-year-old Song, from Fullerton, California, closed with a 3-under 69 at Buffalo Dunes for a two-stroke victory over Thailand’s Wichanee Meechai.

Song earned $15,000 to jump to 103rd to 37th on the money list with $20,524 in four events. The top 10 after the final three events will earn LPGA Tour cards. Song has made 61 LPGA Tour starts, 16 this season.

Meechai shot a 68. Canada’s Jessica Wallace was third at 10 under after a 70.

Christine Song (Symetra Tour)

London, Ont. – In round three of the Freedom 55 Financial Championship at Highland Country Club, France’s Paul Barjon played his outgoing nine in 5-under 29, with additional birdies at Nos. 10, 15, 17 and en route to a bogey-free, 9-under 61.

At 20-under 190, Barjon will take a three-stroke lead over 18- and 36-hole leader Aaron Wise into Sunday’s final round of the 2016 Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada. Barjon began round three trailing Wise by four strokes.
Barjon’s 190 total marks the lowest 54-hole score in Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada history, a record previously held by Dan McCarthy, who posted 193 twice this season.

“I didn’t know what to expect with this weather, if we were going to play or not,” Barjon said. “I was thinking ‘let’s do the same thing as the first two days.’ My goal was to put myself into contention for the last day. My coach always told me, you can’t win a tournament on the first two days but you can lose it. So far, I haven’t lost it and I gave myself a good opportunity.”

Wise, who led after 18 and 36 holes, followed opening rounds of 62-63 with a 2-under 68 Saturday. Not only was the former University of Oregon Duck battling wind and rain with the rest of the field, but he was also having to contend with a hard-charging Paul Barjon in the same group.

“With the conditions we had, I thought 4- or 5-under was a really good round. For him to go out and shoot 9-under 61 is just incredible,” Wise said. “He deserves the lead and I’ll be chasing him tomorrow. I thought 2-under was a great score, and what Paul did today, that was awesome.”

Despite finishes of T8 and T11 in his last two starts before this week at the Cape Breton Open and Niagara Championship, respectively, the reigning NCAA champion and Order of Merit No. 5 played his four weekend rounds before this week in a combined 1-under-par. In 29 rounds this year now, his only over-par score, a 1-over 72, came in the final round last week at the Cherry Hill Club.

Wise, who captured his first professional win earlier this season at the Syncrude Oil Country Championship presented by AECON, is in solid position to move up from No. 5 among The Five. He can move as high as No. 2 on the Order of Merit with a win, provided Brock Mackenzie finishes outside of a three-way tie for fourth. Through 54 holes, Mackenzie is T4 at 12-under 198.

Seven shots behind Barjon at 13-under 197 is American Tain Lee. Lee played the five-hole stretch of Nos. 8-12 in five-under-par (birdie-par-birdie-birdie-eagle) en route to a 6-under 64, his career-best. Lee is currently 29th on the Order of Merit.

“I’m very pleased with how I played today,” said Lee. “It started pouring on 13, and those last few holes, I was even par through that stretch with a birdie on 18. I was very pleased with that and how I held up bringing it into the house at 6-under.”

EVIAN-LES-BAINS, France – South Korean golfer In Gee Chun knows she’s in sight of her second major – and a record – after extending her lead to four shots after the third round of the Evian Championship on Saturday.

Chun carded a 6-under 65 in the rain to go to 19-under overall at Evian Resort.

“My game plan for tomorrow is not to think about winning,” Chun said. “Because it puts too much pressure on me.”

Her countrywoman Sung Hyun Park (67) was at 15 under, and Feng Shanshan (69), China’s only major winner, two shots further back. Brooke Henderson (67) of Smiths Falls, Ont., was tied for 10th at 6-under par, 13 shots back of the lead.

Maude-Aimee Leblanc (76) of Sherbrooke, Que., was tied for 68th, at 7 over.

Chun, the 2015 U.S. Women’s Open champion, had six birdies and an eagle in a round blemished only by a double bogey on the ninth hole.

After slicing from the fairway into the woods, the ball buried under foliage on an incline. Discussing what to do with her caddie for several minutes, Chun decided against a drop shot and declared it unplayable, going back to where she took the shot from and incurring a two-stroke penalty.

But it takes more than that to ruffle Chun.

“I just want to enjoy everything,” she said.

Her eagle on the 15th was a 35-yard chip from the back of the green that rolled up and across the green with perfect weighting, prompting her to raise her arm triumphantly. Fans wrapped in warm clothing and raincoats cheered.

Chun was smiling again after the next hole, another birdie, moved her to 19 under. The last two holes were mere pars.

Sunday could be a record-breaking day for Chun, who remains on course for the lowest ever 72-hole score in a major.

Henrik Stenson and Jason Day own the major record for men and women at 20 under, while the women’s record of 19 under is shared by four players.

With Chun struggling on nine and then missing a birdie chance on 10, Park birdied those two to move one shot behind her.

It was only brief hope, because Chun was all smiles again when she restored her overnight two-shot advantage with a birdie on 11.

Feng, who started slowly with four pars and a bogey on five, got her game together too late, drifting six shots behind after making 69.

South Korean So Yeon Ryu, who has been remarkably consistent with only one bogey in three rounds – on her 10th hole on Saturday – was seven shots behind Chun in fourth place.

A good day for South Koreans was made even better with I.K. Kim making 64, including eight birdies and a bogey, to rise to fifth.

“I hit probably better yesterday to be honest, but today on the par-5s I was able to reach on the back nine,” Kim said. “So I was able to birdie on those.”

Overall, she was nine strokes behind Chun, while American veteran Angela Stanford was 10 adrift in sixth place.

Defending champion Lydia Ko of New Zealand had a terrible day, making six bogeys in a 4-over 75, and was 19 shots behind Chun in a tie for 36th.

More rain was forecast for Sunday’s final round, and tee times were moved forward by a couple of hours.

ORILLIA— Golf Ontario and Golf Barrie unveiled a new concept on September 11 with the first Golf Jam, hosted by Hawk Ridge Golf & Country Club in Orillia. The day, geared at junior golfers under 14 years of age, was a huge success as 64 players comprised 16 teams to take part in the day’s events.

“Golf Jam is a program that we’ve partner with the Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport to create and provide to kids across the province. It aims to engage local golf clubs and promote fun family, friends and fitness all in a team environment,” said Mike Kelly, Golf Ontario Executive Director.

The day broke down into two components: a CN Future Links Skills Challenge and a nine-hole alternate shot team golf competition. Half of the teams took to the course, while the other half competed in the skills challenge, before swapping after lunch.

“I believe we continue to create and inspire new ways for kids and families to get into golf but this just blew my mind,” added Kelly. “Based on the reaction from coaches, kids and parents, I see this as a home run! I see it going to different communities across Ontario in future years because it is a great way to bring the province together.”

Kelly’s optimism was echoed by coaches and parents who attended the day. “Golf Jam is a great introduction for players who have participated in our camps, clinics and leagues to be involved in potentially their first tournament,” said Ryan Star, Coach at Geared to Golf. “There are a lot of players who haven’t crossed paths with one another so we hope that there are a lot of new friendships by the end of the day.”

“The day has been fantastic!” Remarked Kevin Potter, a parent attending the event. “What Golf Ontario is doing for the kids is awesome! It is great to see the team sprit and everyone has a smile on their face today! The team competition was a lot of fun. It was well put together and we had a great time playing the alternate-shot format.”

Those sentiments also trickled down to the young golfers themselves who not only enjoyed the golf and skills challenge, but also the fun and games that made up the rest of the day.

“Today has been great especially since we just started school and have been really busy,” said Abigail Dove, 11-years-old from Brooklin. “To have all of these fun things to do like golf with friends, bouncy castles, and play games has been great to enjoy!”

“My favorite part of the day was golfing on the course. I played awesome and so did the rest of my team. Golf Jam has been good and lots of fun. I like it!” Added Aiden Hodgkinson, 8-years-old from Brooklin.

While the emphasis on the day was squarely around fun the teams did want bragging rights as the inaugural Golf Jam champs. When all of the scores were tallied there was a three-way tie between Whistle Bear GC (Peyton Costabile, Andreas Diogenous, Owen Lipskie and Aiden Shan), Barrie CC (David Simon, Andrew Laurin, Olivia Stoggart and Matthew Simon), and TTGA (Alissa Xu, Sopia Xu, Arthur Wang and Joline Truong) who all finished with a score of 21 Stableford points to share the gold medal.

London, Ont. – Lake Elsinore, California’s Aaron Wise shot an 8-under 62 on Thursday at Highland Country Club to take the first round lead at the Freedom 55 Financial Championship, the final event of the 2016 Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada season.

The reigining NCAA champion and current Order of Merit No. 5 carded eight birdies, an eagle and two bogeys on the day to lead by one over French Polynesia’s Vaita Guillaume and France’s Paul Barjon after day one at the season-ending event, following which the top five players on the Order of Merit will earn status on the Web.com Tour.

“It was a good day. I made two bogeys en route to that 62, so I had the putter rolling, which I’ve been struggling with the last couple of weeks. It was nice to see some drop early on, and I got it hot when I made the turn,” said Wise.

After a 2-under front nine, the 20-year old caught fire, going birdie-birdie-eagle-birdie on holes 10-13 before recording two more birdies on the way in to reach 8-under.

“It was just really solid. I got off to a bad start with my irons, and I wasn’t giving myself many chances on the front nine. When I made the turn, I started hitting them in the middle and I knew could start doing something because I was rolling the putter well,” said the former University of Oregon star, who captured the NCAA individual title earlier this year while leading the Ducks to their first ever national championship.

At No. 5 entering the week, Wise holds the coveted fifth spot on the Order of Merit. Though Order of Merit leader Dan McCarthy has already secured the top spot on the season-long money list, Wise can move as high as No. 2 ahead of Brock Mackenzie with a win thanks to the increased $200,000 purse for the season-ending event, a target the rookie pro said was on his mind entering the week.

“It’s very volatile with the raised money at this week’s event, and I know can I jump to two if I play well and Brock doesn’t. That’s what I’m looking at, and I’m just trying to focus on playing the best golf I can and let it shake out at the end,” said Wise.

Two shots behind Wise in a tie for fourth were Los Angeles, California’s Jonathan Garrick and Dusseldorf, Germany’s Max Rottluff, who holds the No. 7 spot on the Order of Merit starting the week.