AUGUSTA, Ga. — Nothing ever comes easily for Dustin Johnson in the majors, except for when he slipped his arms through that Masters green jacket Sunday.

Johnson overcame a jittery start that conjured memories of past majors he failed to finish off. He turned that into a command performance, making sure this one-of-a-kind Masters with no fans also had no drama.

Not even close.

Johnson tapped in for par on the 18th for a 4-under 68 to finish at 20-under 268, breaking by two shots the record set by Tiger Woods in 1997 and matched by Jordan Spieth in 2015.

His five-shot victory was the largest at the Masters since Woods won by 12 in 1997. All that was missing were the roars from a crowd for any of his pivotal putts early and his birdie putts on the back nine that put it away.

“It still feels like a dream,” Johnson said. “As a kid, you’re dreaming about winning the Masters, having Tiger put the green jacket on you. I’m here and what a great feeling it is. I couldn’t be more excited.”

The Masters, postponed from April because of the COVID-19 pandemic, was forced to do without patrons for the first time. Johnson still received a warm reception coming up the 18th from club members and their wives, his partner, Paulina Gretzky, and a few champions.

Green suits you well, DJ. Congrats ?#TeamRBC pic.twitter.com/4qcQ7AHW8x

— RBC Canadian Open (@RBCCanadianOpen) November 15, 2020

Two-time champion Bubba Watson was there to congratulate him.

“I always dreamed of having one of those,” Johnson said as he went to sign his card. “Now I got one.”

Johnson’s four-shot lead was reduced to one after five holes, and then he quickly restored control. Cameron Smith and Sungjae Im each shot 69 and were the only ones who really had a chance.

Smith got quite the consolation. He became the first player in Masters history to post all four rounds in the 60s, and all it got him was a silver medal. Johnson became the 12th Masters champion to never trail after any round, and his closing 68 broke another record held by Woods — it was his 11th consecutive sub-par round at Augusta National.

Canadian Corey Conners shot a 3-under 69 following through on a streak of solid gameplay that began with the Listowel, Ont., native posting a 65—the lowest score of the second round. An overall score of 9-under 279 earned him a tie for 10th place, securing a Masters appearance in 2021 for the fourth time in his career. The first appearance took place in 2015 as a member of Team Canada’s National Amateur Squad when he qualified via the U.S. Amateur and finished as the lowest scoring amateur on the course.

Nick Taylor (Abbotsford, B.C.,) finished off his first Masters appearance in a tie for 29th, after a round of 72 and a final score of 3-under 285. 2003 Masters champion Mike Weir (Brights Grove, Ont.,) shot a 76 during his fourth round and closed the tournament at 2 over, finishing tied for 51st.

“Squeaked in the cut;  leaving Friday night I thought it was more likely to miss than actually make it, so I was really happy to make the cut,” said Taylor. “I knew my game was kind of trending in the right direction, and it was great to play with Weirsy yesterday and not only play with him in a practice round but the tournament. It was pretty special, and I played well. All in all, it was a really good week.”

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Golf Canada (@thegolfcanada)

No one had a better finish than defending champion Tiger Woods, but only after the five-time Masters champion posted the highest score of his career — three balls in Rae’s Creek for a 10 on the par-3 12th hole. He finished with five birdies over the last six holes to salvage a 76.

The betting favourite and biggest basher in golf, Bryson DeChambeau, couldn’t even beat 63-year-old Bernhard Langer, who shot 71 and wound up one shot ahead of the U.S. Open champion.

These were only sideshows on a quiet Sunday at Augusta National.

Johnson, the first No. 1 player in the world to win the Masters since Woods in 2002, was the main event. He won for the 25th time worldwide and his second major — he won the U.S. Open from four shots behind at Oakmont in 2016 — comes with some big perks. He can return for the rest of his life and will host the Masters Club dinner next April for champions.

But even a record score, and the widest margin of victory since 1997, didn’t mean it was easy. This is Johnson, after all, who for all his talent has dealt with more than his share of misfortune, not all his own doing.

He was the 16th player to take at least a four-shot lead into the final round of the Masters, and only four had failed to win, most recently Rory McIlroy in 2011.

That lead was down to one shot after five holes.

From short of the bunker on the par-5 second, Johnson muffed his flop into the bunker and had to scramble for par at the easiest hole on the course Sunday. After he settled himself with a birdie on No. 3, he came up short of the green and took three putts for bogey, then found a fairway bunker off the fifth tee, had to lay up and made another bogey.

Im started with two birdies in three holes, and saved par with a fabulous flop over a bunker behind the fifth green. Suddenly, he was one shot behind. Ahead of them was Smith, suddenly two shots behind.

Just when it looked as though Johnson might he headed to a meltdown, it all changed on one hole.

Johnson’s tee shot to a pin on the top-right shelf at the par-3 sixth settled 6 feet away for birdie. Im chipped from just behind the green to 3 feet and missed the par putt. Johnson’s lead was back to three.

Then, with Johnson blocked by pine branches and having to punch low into a front bunker at No. 7, Im from the fairway sailed the green into a bunker, blasted out through the green and made bogey.

Smith was still within two shots when they made the turn, and the wind was stronger that it had been all week, but the Aussie could manage only one birdie, and by then it was too late.

Nothing is sweeter than that walk up the steep hill to the 18th green with a five-shot lead and a green jacket waiting. Except in this case, there was no one to cheer, hardly anyone to watch.

There were no roars this week. White and pink blooms of azaleas and dogwoods were replaced by gold and brown hues of Augusta in autumn. It really was a Masters unlike any other, except there was no mistaking that green jacket.

It’s a good fit for Johnson.

AUGUSTA, Ga. — Even without spectators in November, the Masters promised to deliver more drama with 10 players separated by a single shot going into a weekend filled with possibilities.

And then Dustin Johnson turned it into a one-man show.

The No. 1 player in the world looked every bit the part Saturday, racing away from a five-way share of the lead with an explosive start — 4 under through four holes — and never letting his foot off the gas until he had a 7-under 65 and matched the 54-hole Masters record.

More importantly, Johnson had a four-shot lead.

Sunday will be the third time Johnson takes a lead into the final round of a major, along with two other majors where he was tied for the lead. His only major was the 2016 U.S. Open when he came from behind. Most recently, he had a one-shot lead at Harding Park in the PGA Championship this summer, closed with a 68 and lost to a 64 by Collin Morikawa.

This effort was master class. Johnson used putter from above a slope to the right of the 18th green to 5 feet and holed that for a par to cap off another bogey-free round and reach 16-under 200. That ties the record set by Jordan Spieth in 2015, when he went on to a four-shot victory over Justin Rose and Phil Mickelson.

Not all the players chasing Johnson are as familiar. Two of them are Masters rookies.

Sungjae Im, the supreme ball-striker from South Korea who won his first PGA Tour title two weeks before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down golf in the spring, birdied the last hole for 68. Abraham Ancer of Mexico saved par on the 18th for a 69. They were at 12-under 204, along with Cameron Smith of Australia.

Smith opened with 12 pars before running off three straight birdies and scrambling his way home to a 69.

Corey Conners maintained his status as the lowest scoring Canadian at the Masters, and managed to stay in the top 20 — he jumped two spots to T15. The Listowel, Ont., player posted a 71 today, putting him at 6 under going into the final round.

Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, BC., shot a 69 in the third round, tying for 29th at 3 under. Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., follows at 2 under, tied for 36th after a round of 71. Adam Hadwin, another Abbotsford player, missed the even cut by one shot after round two.

Justin Thomas and Jon Rahm had their chances only to make untimely mistakes. Rahm nearly topped is second shot on the par-5 eighth and hit his next one off a tree and into the bushes on his way to a double bogey. Thomas sailed his second shot over the 15th green and into the water, making bogey on a par 5 where he was hoping to make up ground.

Both bogeyed the 18th hole. Thomas shot 71, Rahm had a 72.

Asked to describe his day, Rahm didn’t mince words.

“Seriously? How would I describe? Pretty awful,” he said.

Starting times for the final round have been moved up to finish by 3 p.m. so CBS can honour its NFL contract, and it will be threesomes off both tees. And just like all week, and all year, there will be no roars to add to the pressure.

Defending champion Tiger Woods will stick around Sunday to present the green jacket, and he’ll have to leave his at Augusta National until he returns.

Woods was 4 under through 10 holes to start the Masters, and he picked up only one more shot over the next 44 holes. He finished off a 71 in the second round, had a 72 in the third round and was 11 shots behind.

It likely didn’t help the 44-year-old Woods to go 26 holes on soft turf of a hilly course,

“It’s just part of the deal,” he said. “If you have long days like this, I’m going to get a little bit sore, which I definitely am.”

U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau was more dizzy than sore. He felt so odd on Thursday night that he had another COVID-19 test to be sure — it came back negative — and the betting favourite of this Masters was in the middle of the pack.

The scoring has been low all week. The 36-hole cut Saturday morning was at even-par 144, the lowest in Masters history, another update to the club’s record book.

Still in front of Johnson is a chance to set the 72-hole record. All he cares about is a green jacket, and given his past experience, he knows better than to look ahead.

“I feel like I’m swing well and I’ve got a lot of confidence in what I’m doing. Everything is going well,” he said. “There’s a lot of really good players right around me. I’m going to have play aggressive when I can and play smart when I can’t.”

He was aggressive at the start. First, he drilled a 5-iron he nearly holed for an albatross on the par-5 second, leaving him a tap-in eagle. He followed that with a lofted pitch to 5 feet for birdie on No. 3, and a 40-foot birdie putt up the slope on the par-3 fourth hole as the lead began to grow.

Thomas was within two shots until he made mistakes and Johnson kept going. Johnson had two-putt birdies on the par 5s on the back nine, and he hasn’t made a bogey since the sixth hole of his second roun

AUGUSTA, Ga. — A long day in the small window of daylight that comes with a Masters in November didn’t settle anything except that Dustin Johnson is playing like the No. 1 player and Justin Thomas has finally figured out Augusta National.

They were among four players atop the leaderboard Friday when the second round was halted by darkness, a product of the most unusual Masters ever trying to catch up from a three-hour weather delay at the start.

Among those still on the course was Tiger Woods, stuck in neutral on a day when the greens picked up a little more speed and the autumn leaves shook slightly with some wind. Bryson DeChambeau was struggling to make the cut after a lost ball that led to a triple bogey.

What two days have shown is that Masters experience only goes so far on a soft course with rye grass that isn’t grown in quite the way it usually is in April.

Abraham Ancer, one of 26 newcomers to the Masters, ran off six birdies in his round of 5-under 67 that allowed him to join Johnson (70) and Thomas (69) as part of the clubhouse lead at 9-under 135. Also tied was Cameron Smith of Australia, who played his last four holes with an eagle and three straight birdies for a 68.

Another Masters rookie, Sungjae Im (70), was in the group another shot behind that included Patrick Cantlay (66), who contended for the green jacket last year.

“You have to really throw all the past knowledge out the window this week, as weird as it is,” Thomas said. “A lot of the history and things that you know about the golf course, it can sometimes hurt you this week because of what you’re used to. But at the end of the day, it is a lot softer and a lot more scorable.”

He served up one example from Friday morning when he was among 44 players who had to finish his opening round. Thomas was well left of the 15th green in two with the pin to the right, leaving a pitch that typically is nearly impossible to hit close. He hit a hard, low pitch that hit the brakes at the hole and spun gently to tap-in range for birdie.

“I had to trust that I just had to gas it and hit it pretty hard and it was going to spin,” Thomas said. “Balls are making pitch marks with chip shots and pitch shots.”

Johnson was among three players to finish one shot behind Woods at the last Masters, and he appeared to be hitting his stride with four birdies on the back nine to cap off a 65 in the morning. That gave him a share of the 18-hole lead with Dylan Frittelli and Paul Casey.

Johnson quickly became the first player this week to reach 10 under with three birdies around Amen Corner. But then he had some mud on his ball — that’s not unusual this week — that sent his ball to an impossible shelf on the 14th green, leading to a three-putt bogey.

Next, his 3-iron caught a small gust on the par-5 15th, and that was enough to hit the front of the green and roll back into the water. That led to bogey.

Momentum gone? Johnson shrugged. But he followed with 11 straight pars — shots in the bunker cost him good birdie chances on the par 5s on the front nine — until stuffing his last approach to 6 feet for birdie on No. 9.

After a wet start, the forecast was shaping up for a nice weekend, and there was a buzz at Augusta National on Friday. It wasn’t from the crowd — no patrons were allowed this year — but from the motors of the sub-air system.

“I think it can firm up a little bit, but it’s going to be tough for it to get firm,” Johnson said. “I think it’s going to be soft enough to where you’re going to have to attack the golf course and play aggressive and keep swinging like I am. I like where I’m at. I like my position.”

Of those still on the course, Hideki Matsuyama was at 8 under with three holes to play, while Jon Rahm birdied the par-3 12th hole to reach 8 under when play was suspended.

Woods left the course on Thursday with only three players ahead of him. He was tied for 10th when the first round ended, and he was tied for 22nd when he left Friday night with two birdies on the par 5s and bogeys on the third and seventh, the latter from a tee shot close enough to the Georgia pines that his only shot was to hit a runner into the front bunker.

DeChambeau, the betting favourite coming into the week because of his enormous bulk and power off the tee, took a big swing on No. 3 and never found the ball. With the altitude on his shots, it could have buried under the soft turf. Either way, he went back to the tee and drove in about the same spot, made a mess of his flop shot and took a triple bogey.

He followed with two more bogeys but was in good position for a birdie to get back to even par for the tournament.

Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., is the highest scoring Canadian at the Masters so far, currently sitting at 3 under. Conners played a solid 16 holes before the sunset cut-off, shooting up 43 spots to a tie for 27th. Nick Taylor (Abbotsford, BC.) shot to par during the second round for a current position of T50 — the Masters first-timer was the sole Canadian player to complete his round on Friday.

2003 Masters champion Mike Weir sits at 2 over, but was only able to finish his first nine holes before play was halted. Abbotsford’s Adam Hadwin played through 13 holes and ended the day at par. The second round is not yet over for three out of four Canadian players at the Masters, who will return to the course on Saturday morning at 7:30 a.m. ET to finish their games.

The cut is top 50 and ties, and among those who will be sticking around are young and old — 23-year-old U.S. Amateur runner-up John Augenstein and 63-year-old Bernhard Langer. The two-time Masters champion shot 68 in the morning on a long, soft course. He followed with a 73 and will be the oldest player to make the cut at Augusta National.

“It actually makes me feel older when I play with these young guys and I see how far they hit it and how short I hit it,” Langer said. “I like this golf course. I think I know how to get around it, even though I hit very long clubs. But it’s certainly not easy.”

It was plenty hard for Rory McIlroy, who opened with a 75 and was in danger of the weekend off until he rallied with a 66 to at least get back in the mix in his pursuit of the final leg of the career Grand Slam.

AUGUSTA, Ga. — No spectators, no roars.

Paul Casey still had no problem finding enough energy from the sheer mystique of the Masters on Thursday in an opening round that was delayed seven months by a pandemic and then nearly three hours by thunderstorms.

It carried him to a 7-under 65, matching his lowest score at Augusta National and giving him a two-shot lead among those fortunate enough to get in 18 holes before it was too dark to continue.

“So many people like myself are just excited to play this,” Casey said. “This is a treat. It always has been and always will be a real treat.”

The autumn Masters brought a different course, for sure, some of that courtesy of the weather.

The downpour that began about 30 minutes after Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player hit their ceremonial tee shots, coupled with a November tournament with some Bermuda grass that still hasn’t gone dormant, left Augusta National soft and vulnerable to low scores and far less punishment.

Defending champion Tiger Woods even got into the act. A notorious slow starter despite his five green jackets, he played his first bogey-free round at any major in 11 years and matched his low start at the Masters with a 68.

“I put a lot of it together today,” Woods said, his only regret not making a few more putts. He finished with eight pars.

The biggest crowd — about 100 people in this case — was two groups ahead of Woods watching Bryson DeChambeau smash shots into trees and one shot into the azaleas bushes behind the 13th green. He was lucky to find it because his provisional shot went into the creek. He still made double bogey, though he managed to scratch out a 70.

So much action, typical of the Masters, and so little volume.

And it was worth the wait caused by COVID-19.

“I was vocal earlier in the year about not enjoying golf in a pandemic,” Casey said. “I didn’t know how the fan-less experience would be and so far, I’ve not enjoyed it. I’ve had nothing, or very little, to draw on from being out playing tournament golf. The Masters, though, this week it still has a buzz to it. There’s an energy and a little bit of vibe.

“Yes, it’s clearly a lot less than what we’re used to. But there’s something about this place. I felt excited to be here.”

The excitement for Casey began on the fearsome 10th hole when he hit his approach to a front pin about 5 feet away for birdie. He had eagle chances on both par 5s on the back nine and settled for birdies. He took on a left pin at the par-5 second with a 6-iron and watched the ball plop 6 feet away for eagle.

“You can’t hit that shot in April,” he said. “It pitched and stopped instantly, and that shot in April would have one-hopped over into the patrons.”

There was a lot to be excited about on several scorecards.

Webb Simpson played a tidy round, making eagle on No. 2 after the turn and finishing with seven pars for a 67. He was joined by Xander Schauffele, a runner-up to Woods last year, who had seven birdies in his round of 67.

“You’re going at pins that you wouldn’t really feel that comfortable with,” Schauffele said. “There’s so many spots where your ball will stay. It was just really strange.”

Lee Westwood wasn’t sure he would ever make it back to the Masters, earning a ticket back with his tie for fourth in the British Open last summer. The best player without a major showed he still has some life at age 47. He shot 31 on the front and limited the damage on the back for a 68, joining the group that included Woods, former Masters champion Patrick Reed, Hideki Matsuyama and Louis Oosthuizen.

Dustin Johnson, the world’s No. 1 player, was among those who played in the afternoon and had to return Friday morning to finish. He opened with an eagle on No. 2 and was 3 under at the turn. Justin Thomas started with three straight birdies and was at 5 under through 10 holes.

Rory McIlroy also played in the afternoon, made bogey on his first hole and was struggling to make birdies. He was even par at the turn, which felt worse on a day like this.

Canadian Mike Weir had a solid day, finishing his first round at 1-under 71. The 2003 Masters champion from Brights Grove, Ont., was the best scoring Canadian out of those who were able to finish their round. Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., and Abbotsford’s Adam Hadwin both shot a 2-over 74.

Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, B.C, also ended the day at 1 under. A later tee time and a morning delay due to weather meant that he only got through hole 13 — play was halted due to darkness at 5:30 p.m. ET. Taylor will return to the course Friday morning to complete his first round.

The delay was the last thing the Masters needed with limited daylight hours leading to the two-tee start. Every minute counts, and it was doubtful 36 holes could be completed by Friday.

The loudest cheer — applause, certainly not a roar — came for Nicklaus and Player hitting tee shots so early that they couldn’t see where they landed. Five groups got through one hole before the siren sounded to stop play for 2 hours, 45 minutes. And then players began to light up the course as the clouds moved to the east and those famous shadows from Georgia pines stretched across the fairways.

It looked just the Masters, minus the spring blooms, even if it didn’t sound like one.

AUGUSTA, Ga. – Phil Mickelson was either speaking from experience or ignoring a big part of his history.

The topic was Rory McIlroy and his quest for the career Grand Slam, the most exclusive club in golf. McIlroy only needs to win the Masters to make it a clean sweep of the majors.

Mickelson is not part of that club, either, lacking only the U.S. Open but not effort. He holds the record with his six runner-up finishes. And so he was asked Tuesday if he had any advice for McIlroy as he embarked on his sixth attempt to complete the Grand Slam at Augusta National.

“First of all, there’s not much advice I can give him,” Mickelson said. “The guy is as complete a player as there comes.”

Lefty liked what he saw Tuesday. They played a nine-hole match Tuesday, the San Diego squad of Mickelson and Xander Schauffele losing to McIlroy and Dustin Johnson.

“He’s playing beautifully,” Mickelson said. “I would be shocked if he wasn’t in contention with a great chance on Sunday, whether it’s this year, whether it’s a few months from now, whether it’s a few years. I remember when I was trying to win a major – any major – and I struggled for many years. But I always believed it would happen.”

It did in 2004 at age 33 at the Masters. And then Mickelson won a major each of the next two years, followed by another Masters, and then a mild surprise at Muirfield with one of the greatest closing rounds to win the British Open.

But still no U.S. Open.

“He has so many majors already and such a strong game that winning a Masters will happen,” Mickelson continued. “And when it does, I think he’s going to win a few.”

If only it were that simple.

Greg Norman surely felt he would win the Masters and perhaps a few more when he threw away his first good chance in 1986 with a bogey on the final hole. The Shark never won a green jacket. Neither did Ken Venturi, Tom Kite, Johnny Miller, Tom Weiskopf, Ernie Els, David Duval. It’s a long list.

McIlroy can appreciate Mickelson’s belief as it relates to the Masters. But this is about more than the Masters. It’s the final link to the career Grand Slam, achieved only by Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods.

“Nothing is given in this game,” McIlroy said.

Mickelson didn’t seriously contend on the final day of any major until the 1999 U.S. Open. And those six silver medals came before he got the third leg of the Grand Slam. He won the British Open when he was 43.

McIlroy is 31. He captured the third leg at British Open when he was 25, his entire career ahead of him. And it still is. There is no reason to believe he can’t be fitted for a green jacket in November or April, or even a few years down the line.

Sarazen is the only player to complete the Grand Slam at the Masters, in 1935, and that requires an asterisk because the Squire didn’t even know what he had achieved. The modern Grand Slam wasn’t part of the conversation until Arnold Palmer started it in 1960.

What adds to the burden of completing it at Augusta National are memories – scar tissue, in most cases – from returning to the same course to face the same demons.

McIlroy had a four-shot lead going into the final round in 2011 and coughed it up with an 80. That was before he had won a major. His next real chance was two years ago, when a birdie on the final hole of the third round left him three shots behind but in the final group with Patrick Reed.

All eyes were on McIlroy. All cheers were for McIlroy. He shot 74 and finished six back.

“I’ve always felt like I had the game to do well around here,” McIlroy said. “It’s just a matter of getting out of my own way and letting it happen. But as I said, you have to go out and earn it. You can’t just rely on people saying that you’re going to win one. Greg Norman never did. Ernie Els never did. There are a lot of great people that have played this game that have never won a green jacket.

“It’s not a foregone conclusion, and I know that.”

Even so, there was a quiet confidence about McIlroy, fitting for what will be a quiet course. He fixed a few flaws, which has given him more freedom and trust in his full swing. He likes not being a hot topic of conversation at the Masters.

One reason his bid for the Grand Slam is getting so little attention is because there’s so much more to talk about – the Masters in November, devoid of spectators and roars. And his recent form doesn’t help.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down golf for three months, McIlroy had a chance to win every week – seven straight tournaments finishing no worse than fifth. Since the return, he has not contended in any of the 12 events he has played.

He has suffered from the lack of energy from not having spectators, though it’s been the same for other stars. It’s time to move on, and McIlroy realizes the adjustment period should be over by now.

Especially now.

WAYNE, Penn. – Golf Genius Software, the leading worldwide provider of tournament management solutions, announced today that Golf Canada and Canada’s Provincial Golf Associations will begin using Golf Genius Tournament Management to manage their golf competitions beginning in 2021.

Golf Genius will provide Golf Canada-branded versions of its TM Club, TM Club Premium and TM Association cloud-based services to the Canadian golf market. Golf Canada and the Provincial Golf Associations will join a number of other national golf associations and tours in using the TM Association solution, which is purpose-built to meet the specialized needs of national and regional golf associations.

Golf clubs and other golf facilities across Canada will also be able to utilize the Golf Canada versions of the TM Club at preferred rates and TM Club Premium services. Golf Genius will provide single sign-on support to club administrators through the Golf Canada Score Centre and will integrate with the World Handicap System (WHS) services provided through the Golf Canada Score Centre. Golf Genius will also provide French language versions of its TM services as part of its agreement with Golf Canada.

Mike Zisman, Co-CEO of Golf Genius Software, commented: “We have committed substantial resources to build a significant presence in the Canadian market, including our recent acquisition of two respected Canadian software providers. Our new relationship with Golf Canada will not only enable us to serve the tournament management needs of Golf Canada and the Provincial Associations, it will also help us more rapidly expand our customer base in the club and facility market. We are honored to have been selected by Golf Canada for this critical relationship.”

Adam Helmer, Senior Director of Golf Services at Golf Canada, added, “We conducted a rigorous process to select a tournament management solution which included an RFP last year and the evaluation of several prospective vendors. Golf Genius presented the most robust product, and most importantly, can meet the needs of Golf Canada, our Provincial Golf Associations and over 1,400 of our member golf facilities in Canada with one integrated solution.”

In 2020, Golf Genius has also announced national association agreements with England Golf, the Singapore Golf Association and Golf NSW serving New South Wales in Australia.

AUGUSTA, Ga. – In a year marked by racial injustice, Augusta National announced Monday it would honour Lee Elder with two scholarships in his name at Paine College and an honorary tee shot next year for the first Black player in the Masters.

“It’s mind-boggling every time I think about it,” said Elder, who made his barrier-breaking debut in 1975.

It was about time, according to Masters Chairman Fred Ridley, who said racial injustice and equality have been at the forefront of the nation this year.

“Our question was not so much what we can say but what we can do,” Ridley said.

The Masters for some two decades has provided scholarship money for Paine College, a private, historically Black college in Augusta. The Lee Elder Scholarship will be endowed for one man and one woman on the golf team. The fact Paine doesn’t have a women’s golf program was not a problem. Ridley said Augusta National would pay to start one.

Elder already was looking ahead to next April when he returns to the first tee, this time with a shot that doesn’t count toward a score but is more meaningful to him than when he first played the tournament.

“That is one thing that’s going to be significant to me, because 1975 was just an ordinary shot playing a golf tournament, even though it was the Masters,” Elder said. “It’s not as significant as this shot will be come April 8, 2021. Because my heart and soul will be into this shot.”

(New York, N.Y.: Lee Elder (L) and Arnold Palmer share a laugh.

The criteria have changed over the years at the Masters, and when the club began issuing invitations to PGA Tour winners, Elder qualified by winning the 1974 Pensacola Open. That made him eligible for the 1975 Masters. He missed the cut, though Ridley said the moment was historic because of the message it sent that “I belong.”

Next April, he will join Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player as the honorary starters. Ridley referred to it as a “special moment in time,” suggesting it will be a one-time appearance as honorary starter.

Elder ended his career with four PGA Tour victories. He played five more times in the Masters, with his best finish a tie for 17th in 1979.

“To know that I would be hitting a shot off the first tee alongside the great Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player, you have to think about where you’re at and what you’ve accomplished and why you’re there,” Elder said. “A young man from the ghetto of Dallas, Texas, man, you’ve achieved world fame. The whole world will be watching and looking.

“For the chairman to present me with that opportunity is something I’ll never forget. Never forget.”

The connection to Paine College goes beyond it being an HBCU.

Elder arrived in Augusta more than 45 years ago to much fanfare as the first Black competitor in a tournament that for four decades only included Blacks as caddies or in catering.

Finding a place to eat dinner was difficult – Elder said that was more because he had some 15 people with him than “being segregated against.” Julius Scott, in his first year as president of Paine College, handled the catering for Elder all week.

From that week, Elder began a relationship with the college.

“Look at old yearbooks and you’ll see pictures of him with the golf team,” said Cheryl Evans Jones, the president of Paine College. “He’s made a a lot of contributions to the sport.”

?Contest ALERT! ?

Tell us which Canadian will have the best finish at #TheMasters and be entered to win a $500 golf shopping spree at your local pro shop or favourite golf retailer.

➡️ https://t.co/vzqdQca2lh pic.twitter.com/esGIzflfCN

— Golf Canada (@GolfCanada) October 30, 2020

Ridley said he did not know how much it would cost to start a women’s golf program and that was irrelevant. He said Augusta National would pay for everything.

“The times I have visited, a lot of the ladies came out to watch the men play,” Elder said. “I heard quite a number of times, `Gee, I wish we had a team so we could play.’ By Augusta National making that decision, it’s now going to give them a chance to fulfil that dream of being able to come to college, get a four-year scholarship plus compete on the golf team.”

PHOENIX — Kevin Sutherland and Paul Broadhurst traded missed birdie putts as the sun raced toward the horizon, each time agreeing to keep playing despite the decreasing visibility.

After six playoff holes, it was just too dark to see the ball anymore.

Now the PGA Tour Champions season will last at least another day.

The final round of the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship will be played on Monday after Sutherland and Broadhurst kept making pars as darkness fell.

“As quick as I’ve ever played six holes,” Broadhurst said. “I didn’t dream we’d get six holes in. I thought a couple holes (about stopping).”

Broadhurst played a superb final round on Sunday, erasing a six-shot deficit with a bogey-free 63 in the season finale for the over-50 tour, which won’t crown a champion until next year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Sutherland stumbled through the early part of the round to lose an overnight five-shot lead over Wes Short Jr., but closed with a birdie on the par-5 18th hole to shoot a 2-under 69.

Broadhurst and Sutherland finished at 15-under 198.

After all those birdies, neither could get anything to fall in the playoff.

The darker it got, the quicker Sutherland and Broadhurst seemed to play as they tried to avoid the tournament getting pushed into Monday. They even rode in carts to their second shots to speed up the process.

They finally agreed to call it when Broadhurst missed an 8-foot birdie putt on No. 18 and Sutherland dropped in a 4-footer for par.

The darkness had won.

“We played them really fast,” Sutherland said. “Just seemed like we couldn’t make a putt. We had some opportunities for birdie, but neither one of us could find a way to make one.”

Plenty happened before the sun went down.

Sutherland, who once shot 59 on the PGA Tour Champions, opened with a 6-under 65 in benign conditions on Friday. He was even better when the wind picked up Saturday, shooting a 64 as scores around him soared.

On a chilly Sunday, Sutherland couldn’t take advantage of good scoring conditions early, allowing the field to pull closer. He opened with five straight pars and a bogey on the 460-yard par-4 sixth dropped him to 12 under.

Broadhurst took a unique approach to putting, looking at the hole rather than the ball while making his stroke.

It certainly worked early as he holed one putt after another.

Playing in the group ahead of Sutherland, Broadhurst had five birdies in the first eight holes to tie for the lead. A long birdie at the par-3 eighth hole moved him into a tie with Sutherland, but a pulled short birdie putt on No. 9 cost him a shot at the outright lead.

“I played great today,” Broadhurst said. “I started off really well. I played the front nine well all week.”

Sutherland made his first birdie by dropping in a 4-foot putt on the long par-4 10th to take the lead back.

Broadhurst made a short birdie putt at par-3 13th to tie it again, then made another birdie on No. 16 for the lead.

Sutherland poured in a birdie putt from a similar length right behind him, tying it at 15 under.

Broadhurst wasn’t done.

He hit his tee shot on No. 17 into the left the rough, but punched a shot under tree limbs to about 12 feet. Broadhurst pumped his first as the ball came to rest and he made the birdie putt to go back up a shot.

Sutherland wasn’t done, either.

He had to lay up from a fairway bunker on No. 18 and looked away in disgust as his third shot fell short left. He made the putt, though, and had an excited reaction of his own after forcing the playoff.

“Obviously, the long putt on 18 to get into the playoff was pretty much the highlight of my day,” Sutherland said.

Then the missed putts and darkness came, and now the finish won’t come until Monday.

Stephen Ames of Calgary, Alta., was the top Canadian of the weekend, shooting 3-under 210 and tying for 28th. Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., was one point behind Ames, finishing in a tie for 36th.

HOUSTON — Carlos Ortiz held off Dustin Johnson and Hideki Matsuyama by closing with a 5-under 65 to win the Houston Open on Sunday, becoming the first Mexican to win on the PGA Tour in 42 years.

He earned every bit of it, caught in a tight battle on the back nine with the world’s No. 1 player and Japan’s biggest star. Ortiz delivered the winner with a 6-iron to 8 feet on the par-5 16th. He had to settle for a two-putt birdie, and it held up when Johnson and Matsuyama narrowly missed birdie chances coming in.

Ortiz finished in style. Needing two putts to win, the 29-year-old holed a 20-foot birdie putt for a two-shot victory.

Mackenzie Hughes was the top Canadian, finishing six shots off the lead in a tie for seventh place.

Ortiz held back tears as he waited for his playing partners to putt. The victory sends him to the Masters next April. He was there a year ago to watch his brother, Alvaro, who qualified by winning the Latin American Amateur.

“It feels awesome,” said Ortiz, who grew up in Guadalajara and played at North Texas with Sebastian Munoz of Colombia, the most recent Latin American winner on tour. “This is like my second home. There was a bunch of people cheering for me, Latinos and Texans. I’m thankful for all of them.”

It was the loudest cheer for a winner since March. The Houston Open was the first domestic PGA Tour event that allowed spectators, with 2,000 tickets sold daily. They were treated to a good show.

The last Mexican-born player to win was Victor Regelado, who captured the Quad Cities Open in 1978.

Johnson was making his first start since the U.S. Open after a positive coronavirus test knocked him out of the CJ Cup at Shadow Creek and the Zozo Championship at Sherwood.

After opening with a 72, Johnson rallied with two rounds of 66 and a closing 65. His one regret would be the 16th hole. Tied for the lead, Johnson fanned a 7-iron for his second shot on the par 5, leaving a tough chip to 18 feet and a birdie putt that grazed the left edge of the cup.

Johnson had another birdie putt catch the lip on the next hole.

Matsuyama briefly tied for the lead with birdies on the 16th and 17th, making a 15-footer on the 17th just moments before Ortiz made his birdie on the 16th.

Ortiz finished at 13-under 267.

Sam Burns, the 54-hole leader, had a 72 and Jason Day closed with a 71. Neither was a factor for much of the day. This was about Ortiz holding off two players with plenty of experience winning and tasting it for the first time.

Mackenzie Hughes, from Dundas, Ont., was the top Canadian in the tournament, leapfrogging Conners and scoring a 63 — the lowest final-round score of his PGA Tour career. His previous low was a 65 at the 2018 John Deere Classic. Hughes ended the Houston Open tied for seventh place.

“It really felt like a relatively stress-free 63, which you can almost never say,” Hughes said. “It’s pretty rare to say that. Yeah (I) left a few putts out there that would have been really nice to make. Just really thrilled with the round.”

Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., (68) finished in a tie for 24th at 3-under 277.

PHOENIX — Kevin Sutherland hit a sand wedge to inches on the par-5 18th for one last birdie on a windy Saturday afternoon in the desert at the Charles Schwab Cup Championship.

Sutherland shot a 7-under 64 to take a five-stroke lead into the final round at Phoenix Country Club. He had a 13-under 129 total.

“Yeah, it played hard, I just hit a lot of shots really close to the hole, hit it solid,” Sutherland said. “What was important for me today was I holed out of the bunker on 6. At that point I felt I couldn’t find a rhythm. After that, I I hit just about every shot right on the button and made a few putts and got a couple really close and just kind of snowballed.”

The tournament is the final official event of the year, but not the season as in the past. Because of the coronavirus pandemic and subsequent loss of tournaments, the 2020 and 2021 seasons have been combined with the Schwab Cup winner to be determined in a year.

The 56-year-old California player won the 2017 event — as well as the season points title — at tree-lined Phoenix Country Club for the first of his three PGA Tour Champions victories.

“This place has been so good to me,” Sutherland said. “It’s hard to believe that was three years ago that I won here and I won the Schwab Cup. This place has great memories for me.”

Sutherland had eight birdies and a bogey, playing the back nine in 5-under 30 in the high wind.

“My ball was wobbling on the tee on 16, it was kind of disconcerting,” Sutherland said. “It was a little disconcerting watching the ball kind of wobble a little bit as you’re getting ready to hit it. When it’s windy like this, you’ve just got to go.”

Wes Short Jr. was second after a 66.

“It was tough conditions I thought for the way the wind was blowing,” Short said. “I just didn’t hit it in play enough off the tee to really attack. It was just like defence-mode all day.”

Tom Lehman (67) and Paul Broadhurst (68) were 7 under, and Jim Furyk (68) was 6 under with Corey Pavin (67) and Woody Austin (69)

Canada’s Mike Weir also ended the round with a score of 69, placing him in a tie for fifth place going into the final round. Fellow Canadian Stephen Ames shot a 72 and ended the round at T19.

“The way this course is, someone’s going to shoot a good round,” Sutherland said. “I might have to shoot something at least 3 or 4 under par tomorrow to win. It doesn’t change my mindset at all. ”

First-round leaders Paul Goydos and Brandt Jobe dropped back after their opening 64s. Jobe was 5 under after a 73, and Goydos had a 75 to fall to 3 under.