TORONTO – The Golf Journalists Association of Canada (GJAC) is proud to announce the golf story of the year, as well as the various Player of the Year awards for the 2021 season.

“GJAC is pleased to recognize Canadian professional and amateur golfers again this year with our year end player and Canadian golf story of the year awards,” said Rick Young, President of the Golf Journalists Association of Canada. “While the game posted record participation numbers it also faced another season of unique challenges due to the pandemic. That included a second straight year of cancellations to the RBC Canadian Open and CP Women’s Open, rising operational costs and supply chain issues.”

Without further ado; here is the story of the year and Players of the Year for the 2021 season.

2021 Golf Story of the Year

Covid-19 affects golf both positively and negatively. Both the men’s and women’s Canadian Opens cancelled for the second year in a row but golf courses report record number of rounds played.†

Male Professional of the Year – Corey Conners

• Currently ranked #37 in the world.
• Finished T8 at The Masters.
• Collected 13 top-20 PGA TOUR finishes
• Qualified for the TOUR Championship based on Fedex Cup standing

Female Professional of the Year – Brooke Henderson

• Won her 10th career LPGA Tour event at the Hugel-Air Premia LA Open
• Was the runner-up at the ShopRite LPGA Classic
• Finished the season with 12 top-20 finishes.

Male Amateur of the Year – Noah Steele

• *Turned Pro in November
• 2nd at the Azalea Invitational
• Won the Osprey Valley Open as an amateur and came 2nd at the Brudenell River Classic (both Mackenzie Tour Events)
• WAGR before turned pro: 188, WAGR at start of 2021: 129

Female Amateur of the Year – Monet Chun

• *Currently Sophomore at Michigan
• 5 top-15 finishes in her NCAA debut season, including T2 at the Columbus Regional
• Named Big Ten Freshman of the year
• Finished T2 at the Porter Cup and 2nd at the Ontario Women’s Amateur, which included a course record of 64 in the final round
• Current WAGR: 187, WAGR at Start of 2021: 736

Golfers aiming to earn a coveted place in The 150^th Open at St Andrews will have opportunities at 16 professional events in 11 countries that make up The Open Qualifying Series in 2022.

Three players have already booked their places through the Joburg Open, the first event in the Series which was played in South Africa last month. The SMBC Singapore Open will be the next chance for golfers to qualify for the milestone championship at the home of golf when it is played at Sentosa from 20-23 January.

A minimum of 46 places in The Open are available through the Series, which provides golfers with opportunities to qualify at events around the world on the PGA TOUR, DP World Tour, PGA Tour of Australasia, Asian Tour, Korean Tour, Japan Golf Tour and Sunshine Tour.

Johnnie Cole-Hamilton, Executive Director – Championships at The R&A, said, “We have worked closely with our colleagues at the leading professional tours to agree an exciting schedule of events through which golfers can qualify for The 150^th Open at St Andrews. There is a real desire among players to be part of this historic occasion at the home of golf and this will undoubtedly spur them on to secure a sought-after place in the Championship next year.”

For the first time, the New Zealand Open on the PGA Tour of Australasia will feature as part of the Series when it is played at Millbrook in Queenstown from 31 March-3 April. Three qualifying places will be offered at New Zealand’s national championship.

On the PGA TOUR, the Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard and John Deere Classic will each have three qualifying places. Two places will be available at the RBC Canadian Open, while the last qualifying place in The 150^th Open will be confirmed at the Barbasol Championship on the eve of the Championship.

The Genesis Scottish Open, which is co-sanctioned by the PGA TOUR and DP World Tour for the first time, will carry three qualifying berths. Three places at both the Irish Open and Dutch Open on the DP World Tour will be available.

Four places will be on offer at the Mizuno Open in Japan and two places at the KOLON Korea Open.

Regional Qualifying events will take place at venues throughout Great Britain and Ireland on 20 June.  A minimum of 12 places will then be available at Final Qualifying events taking place at Fairmont St Andrews, Hollinwell, Prince’s and St Annes Old Links on 28 June.

The R&A has also published the list of exemptions that will be used to confirm the field for The 150^th Open at St Andrews. Please visit TheOpen.com for more information.  

After eight gruelling rounds, the 2021 LPGA Tour Qualifying Series has come to an end. In all, 46 players, including Canadian Maddie Szeryk, finished at -4 or better to secure Tour status for 2022.

Szeryk shot a personal-best 4-under 68 in the final round of the Q-Series with crucial birdies on her final two holes to finish T35. The 25-year old – who has played on the Symetra Tour since 2019 – competed in 18 events during the 2021 season with a best finish of T22 at the Copper Rock Championship in April.

Szeryk will join fellow Canadians Brooke Henderson and Maude–Aimée Leblanc on the LPGA Tour circuit next season, which will include the 2022 CP Women’s Open, August 22-28 at Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club.

Two other Canadians who advanced to the final four Q-Series rounds, missed out on the top-45 and ties cut line. Selena Costabile of Thornhill, Ont. finished T68, and Hamilton native Alena Sharp finished T69. Both women will receive Symetra Tour playing status for the 2022 season.

Over the course of the two-week tournament, 110 LPGA Tour hopefuls competed in two 72-hole stroke play events with the low 70 players and ties cut after week one. Scores then carried over into week two held at Highland Oaks Golf Course in Dothan, Ala. from Dec. 9-12.

After the conclusion of all eight rounds of the Q-Series, players who finished inside the top 45 and ties received LPGA Tour membership and playing status for the 2022 season. Players finishing outside the top-20 and ties also received 2022 Symetra Tour playing status.

For complete results and full leaderboard click here.

The golf industry in North America is growing in new and exciting ways. Lightspeed Commerce Inc. (NYSE: LSPD) (TSX: LSPD), the one-stop commerce platform for merchants around the world to simplify, scale and create exceptional customer experiences, today announced a multi-year agreement with Golf Canada, the National Sport Federation representing more than 271,000 golfers and 1,400 member clubs across the country, allowing both participating golf courses and golfers to share certified Golf Canada handicap data across both platforms.

Lightspeed Golf empowers courses to manage an entire facility from a single platform, synthesizing systems for daily operations, tee sheets, on-site hospitality and retail, and online booking. The integration of Lightspeed Golf’s commerce platform with the Golf Canada Score Centre will provide a solution for more Canadian golfers to maintain an Official Handicap Index, leveling the playing field for participants across Canada.

“We are both excited and honoured to be partnering with such a revered Canadian organization,” said Lightspeed Golf GM David Hope. “This platform integration will streamline operations for golfers and course operators alike, enabling improved handicap integrity and reporting. We look forward to working with Golf Canada to grow the game through educational content and putting intuitive technology in the hands of both golfers and golf course operators.”

The platform integration will help more golfers track their scoring history and demonstrated ability on the golf course, allowing both golfers and course operators to see handicap data when booking tee times and navigating tee sheets.

“Golf Canada is extremely pleased to be aligning our Score Centre with Lightspeed Golf,” said Golf Canada Director of Membership Ryan Logan. “This platform integration will open up new opportunities to grow our membership-base across Canada and will further support our member clubs in providing a more streamlined and enhanced golfing experience.”

Golf in Canada continues to show growth and resilience through the past two seasons impacted by the pandemic. In 2021, a record 9.3M scores were posted to the Golf Canada Score Centre, a 19% increase from 2020 and 27.5% increase over 2019, and Lightspeed Golf customers reported a 23% increase in rounds played from 2019 to 2020. Lightspeed Golf customers are growing and modernizing their businesses, attracting younger patrons and more diverse golfers, and re-thinking their business models to diversify their revenue streams.

“Golf is booming right now, but even before that our rounds were continuously up every single year over the past five years,” said Lightspeed Golf customer Jenifer Wright, GM of Westwood Plateau Golf. “We’re making changes to get new people into golf and we’ve been really impressed with every integration Lightspeed has come out with. We can’t wait to see how this platform integration with Golf Canada will benefit our course and players.”

(St. Andrews, Scotland) – New research figures revealed by The R&A and Sports Marketing Surveys (SMS) show golf has enjoyed a significant increase in popularity worldwide since 2016 with over five-and-a-half million additional golfers taking up the sport.

The measure includes club members and non-member independent golfers playing nine or 18 holes and users of driving ranges in markets where course availability is limited.

The new figure reflects a positive trend in golf in which participation levels are now rising worldwide after a period of decline. This was recently highlighted in the 2021 European Golf Participation Report, which highlighted that over 10.6 million golfers now enjoy playing full-length courses on the continent – a healthy increase from the 7.9 million last monitored in 2016.

Phil Anderton, Chief Development Officer at The R&A, said, “Golf is enjoying a real boom in popularity at the moment and we are seeing substantial increases in participation in many parts of the world, particularly in the last two years when the sport could be played safely outdoors during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“The new figures are very encouraging but we need to work together as a sport to make the most of this opportunity by retaining those people who have returned to golf or tried it for the first time. We can achieve this by offering a variety of attractive and flexible options that encourage golfers to play more regularly and enjoy its many health and wellbeing benefits with family and friends.”

SMS collected participation data reported by national federations in different regions around the world, using nationally representative studies and expert estimates to calculate the global number of total golfers.

Regions experiencing the largest rises include Asia (20.9 million to 23.3 million); Europe (7.9 million to 10.6 million – driven largely by Great Britain and Ireland 3.6 million to 5.7 million); and North America (29.9 million to 30.6 million).

The research figures indicate the growth trend began before Covid-19 and then accelerated during the pandemic as the popularity of golf grew due to golfers being able to socially distance in a safe outdoor setting and stay active to boost their physical and mental health.

In Great Britain, the number of adults playing a nine or 18-hole course began to gradually increase before the onset of Covid-19, rising from 2.5 million in 2017 to 2.8 million in 2018, then to 3 million in 2019, before surging to 5.2 million in 2020.

Following the easing of lockdown restrictions, The R&A sought to carry out additional research into this rise in demand and how different types of golfers were engaging with the sport.

The Post Covid Opportunity Research, along with findings from Bayfirth Research, details experiences of golfers during the pandemic, motivations for playing and long-term plans for the future. Among new golfers, 98% of those interviewed identified they are enjoying playing golf and 95% see themselves playing golf for many years to come.

The research also outlined recommendations clubs can take to retain new players, including feeling welcome and valued; a friendly culture and relaxed atmosphere; participation options based on ability and experience; good customer service; having an efficient booking system; the quality and maintenance of the course; and, importantly, playing in an encouraging environment.

The R&A also launched a Covid-19 Support Fund to help golf deal with the impact of the pandemic, with the £7 million funding package largely aimed at national federations and other affiliated bodies in Great Britain and Ireland.

Further support for national federations is set to come in 2022. The R&A is creating a series of new assets to help market and promote the sport so that more people are encouraged to take up golf and existing golfers are retained.

This time of year, we are inundated with “gift guides for the golfer in your life.” I’m here to tell you I am that golfer and I don’t want most of that stuff.

Why the greatest game has the cheesiest accessories is beyond me. You’ve seen them: Caddyshack gopher head covers, ugly sweaters and those visors with the fake hair sprouting out the top. Note to my family: Buy me one of those and the next time you see one while walking through the local thrift store and remark, “Hey, that’s just like the one we got Uncle John for Christmas,” rest assured it is the same one.

So here’s the real stuff the golfer in your life (and likely you) want for Christmas.

A book you can’t put down

It’s been said that “the smaller the ball, the more is written about it” and, despite the fact I’ve never seen much literature about marbles, I believe that to be true. There are so many great books about every conceivable facet of golf. I particularly enjoy reading about the people, especially if they are Canadian. Gary Cowan’s new autobiography (written with David McPherson) From Rockway to Augusta chronicles his outstanding career. Cowan, an honoured member of the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame, remains the only man to win the U.S. Amateur twice at stroke play. Hard- and soft-cover versions are available for order here.

A Golf Canada membership

If the recipient doesn’t belong to a Golf Canada member club which includes a Golf Canada membership as part of their benefits, get them one. Priced around $50, it’s a bargain, providing an official handicap index among a plethora of other benefits including access to the full-feature Golf Canada app and incident protection coverage against lost, damaged, or stolen equipment. Learn all about it here. 

A club-fitting session

Here’s a vital tip. DO NOT buy golf clubs for the object of your affection. Few things are more personal than a golfer’s choice of tools. Getting fitted for clubs (and balls) is essential. A gift certificate for your local pro shop may seem a touch antiseptic but, trust me, it will be deeply appreciated. While an in-person fitting is preferable, most equipment companies offer sophisticated online fitting apps.

Tickets to Canada’s National Opens

Canada’s national open championships (CP Women’s Open and RBC Canadian Open) make their highly anticipated return after a two-year break. Consider the full experience of world-class golf with tickets for you and yours.

Gift cards to your local pro shop

On the topic of gift certificates, how about patronizing your local courses this holiday season? Most offer gift cards for everything from merchandise, food and beverage, lessons and even a contribution toward annual dues.

Practice and tracking progress

Unless you live in balmy British Columbia, your practice is pretty well restricted to indoors. If you are committed to game improvement in the offseason, consider purchasing a launch monitor or visiting an indoor facility with access. Putting mats like the Wellputt are under 200 bucks and we all know how many strokes poor putting costs us.

This is my opinion only but mid- to high-handicappers don’t need an expensive rangefinder. The free Golf Canada mobile app offers GPS data alongside detailed hole-by-hole scoring.

A new push cart

The recent boom in golf participation has revealed that many golfers prefer to walk and use a push cart which is proven to be easier on the body (and better for your score) than carrying your clubs. Non-motorized carts like Bag Boy’s Nitron have all sorts of options. But if you want to splurge, go for something in the Motocaddy line of electric trolleys.

A donation to golf’s future

Give a donation to the First Tee – Canada. Your gift in any amount will help prepare kids for their future in golf and beyond. Give back to the game that’s given us all so much.

A final caveat: Supply-chain issues being what they are, you should order your golf gifts as soon as possible.

The 2021 edition of 12 Days of Golf in support of First Tee – Ontario will run until December 13^th.

This online auction, in support of growth of the First Tee’s Ontario chapter in 2022, will see funds helping to expand program locations, coach training, and equipment.  

We believe all kids deserve to be excited to grow, feel safe to fail, and be better equipped for whatever comes at them next. Using golf to teach life lessons and leadership skills, First Tee helps youth develop their swing, but more importantly, their inner strength; self confidence, and resilience to become good golfers and even better people.

Last year’s auction raised over $17,000 and we are hoping to surpass this total for 2021.

The auction features a mix of high-profile special items, one-of-a-kind experiences, and foursome certificates to clubs around Ontario. Click the link below to check out the auction and support this worthy cause.

12 Days of Golf in support of First Tee – Ontario AUCTION

The 48th playing of Canada’s National Women’s Open Championship is set for August 22-28, 2022 in Ottawa.  

Golf Canada, in partnership with title sponsor Canadian Pacific (CP), is pleased to announce that tickets for the 2022 CP Women’s Open are now available.  

The 2022 edition of the CP Women’s Open will be held August 22-28, marking the championship’s fifth visit to the nation’s capital, as well as the fourth playing at Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club, which previously hosted in 1994, 2008 and 2017.  

As the only Canadian stop across 34 official LPGA Tour events, the week-long tournament will draw the world’s best players including 10-time LPGA Tour winner and CP Ambassador Brooke Henderson. Born and raised in nearby Smiths Falls, Ont. Henderson will be backed by the hometown crowd as an honorary member of Ottawa Hunt. 

Title sponsor Canadian Pacific will once again be making a charitable donation to the host community through its CP Has Heart campaign. In the first six years of CP’s title sponsorship of the event, more than $10.7 million has been raised in support of children’s heart health across Canada. 

The week-long national championship features something for everyone including the ultimate food experience at the Recipe Unlimited Fare Way, premium partner activations, photo-ops, and more!  

First conducted in 1973, Canada’s National Women’s Open Championship has allowed the brightest stars of the LPGA Tour to shine on Canadian soil and has inspired the nation’s next generation of female golfers. 

Purchase 2022 CP Women’s Open tickets

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Join us to witness world-class LPGA Tour golf, activities for all ages, local food and patio experiences and more. Get your tickets today and be a part of one of Golf Canada’s signature events.  

* Youth 13-17 years of age receive a 15% discount, while juniors aged 12-and-under gain FREE grounds admission all week long. Some conditions apply. Cannot be combined with additional offers. 

Golf’s governing bodies have made available a Model Local Rule (MLR) to further limit the use of Green-Reading Materials. 

MLR G-11 enables a committee to limit players to using only the yardage book that it has approved for use in the competition. 

This local rule is intended only for the highest levels of competitive golf and, even then, only for competitions where it is realistic for the committee to undertake an approval process for yardage books. It will be available starting January 1, 2022.

The local rule gives a committee the ability to establish an officially approved yardage book for a competition so that the diagrams of putting greens show only minimal detail (such as significant slopes, tiers or false edges that indicate sections of greens). In addition, the local rule limits the handwritten notes that players and caddies are allowed to add to the approved yardage book. 

The purpose behind the local rule is to ensure that players and caddies use only their eyes and feel to help them read the line of play on the putting green. 

The USGA and The R&A developed MLR G-11 in response to feedback from several professional tours.

The MLR, along with question-and-answer guidance, can be found here.

As the local rule should only be adopted at the highest levels of competitive golf, all other golfers will continue to be able to use green-reading tools so long as they meet the requirements established in 2019.

For more information on the current rule, click here.

When you hear someone say “golf saved my life,” you pay attention.

From the age of 9 until he turned 14, Sam Gerry had a passion for the game. Suddenly, severe depression hit, to the point where he considered suicide. Then he was fortunate enough to be invited on a surprise trip with his grandfather to the Masters. The experience caused a gradual reawakening of his love for the game and, far more importantly, life.

“I could escape to the golf course and the only thing I was focused on was the game. Because I played regularly, it definitely built up to create a longer-term effect on my recovery. That combination of the game itself and spending time with my friends or my dad or my grandfather—that really helps me get through it. You really could say golf saved my life and that’s not an exaggeration.”

Sam’s story is one of many. There is even a book titled How Golf Saved My Life and, although it deals mainly with golfers with physical disabilities, it demonstrates how the game has indisputable benefits for our overall wellbeing.

Mental health benefits of playing golf

Jenny Roe is an environmental psychologist at the University of Virginia who explores how our interactions with the world shape our health, wellbeing and behaviours. She has been involved in several studies looking at the mental health benefits associated with playing golf.

She elaborated in a study by the R&A on this topic in 2020: “Contact with nature slows down our stress response and induces calm. There is evidence to show this is happening in our biological system. It is promoting stress resilience, it is improving our mood, it is decreasing our risk of depression and increasing our social wellbeing, particularly on a golf course where you are interacting with other members of that community. So there are a host of mental and social wellbeing benefits.”

Never was this more important than now, when the world is trying to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic and its crushing impact on physical and mental health.

The impact of COVID-19 on mental health

A more recent R&A study, “Post COVID Opportunity,” found that 36 per cent of respondents said they experienced some negative impact on their mental health as a result of the pandemic. Of these, 83 per cent identified that playing golf had a positive impact on their mental health. Thirty-one per cent said they had increased feelings of loneliness and isolation as a result of the pandemic. Of these, 79 per cent said playing golf had a positive impact.

Those feelings are not limited to any one demographic.

In May, during Mental Health Week, a survey by the Canadian Mental Health Association and the University of British Columbia found that 77 per cent of adult respondents reported feeling negative emotions as a result of the pandemic.

In a letter to Ontario Premier Doug Ford, during the province’s lockdown of outdoor activities, the Canadian Pediatric Association said: “We cannot overstate the extent of the mental health crisis facing our children and youth. Seventy per cent of Ontario school-aged children reported deterioration in their mental health. Social isolation is by far the biggest predictor of poor mental health for children.”

Is playing golf a panacea for all that ails us, mentally and physically? Of course not but there are undeniable benefits.

Dr. Adrienne Leslie-Toogood is a psychologist who has worked with many athletes, including the Team Canada men’s golf squad. She is also the chair of the Canadian Sport Psychology Association.

“The pandemic turned our lives upside-down. We lost a lot: a sense of control, of normalcy, routine, contact with family and friends, work colleagues. Golf gives us some of that back. We are in control for a change. We get away from the bad news, social media. We get outside, we reconnect with others in a social setting, in nature.

“Another wonderful thing is that golf is a perfect setting for players of any age to golf together, whether that’s mom and dad and the kids and maybe even grandma and grandpa or with someone you meet for the first time on the first tee. It is a game that brings us all together and that is vital for good mental health.”

People need golf now more than ever

In a Toronto Sun column titled “People need golf now more than ever,” golf writer Jon McCarthy talks about sneaking in a quick round before Ford shut things down once again in late April.

“One of the beauties of golf is that it’s full of breezy conversation. There’s lots to talk about but rarely is a serious topic broached. I’ll come home from a round with friends and my wife will ask what we talked about. The honest answer is, well, nothing. And it’s wonderful.

“To partake in this, a golfer doesn’t have to belong to a club or have a regular foursome. Once you get to a course, there will be people to talk to, people to share the day with, even if you show up alone. The golf course is a place where strangers can become friends for a day.

“Now more than ever, people need that.”