TAOYUAN, Taiwan — Jodi Ewart Shadoff shot a 7-under 65 on Thursday to take a two-stroke lead after the first round of the LPGA Taiwan Championship.

Shadoff, seeking her first career victory, made seven birdies in a bogey-free round at the Ta Shee Golf and Country Club to finish ahead Haeji Kang and Nelly Korda (both 67).

“I think changing my irons a month ago has definitely helped with my confidence,” Shadoff said. “I’ve just been lacking feel in my long game the whole year, really, and it’s just affected my confidence somewhat. So it’s nice just to, like, be able to trust what I’m doing and my swing.”

Canadian Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., posted a 2-under-par 70 holds a 10-way tie for 13th place.

In Taiwan ?? for #SwingingSkirts ! Looking forward to a great week. ??

— Brooke Henderson (@BrookeHenderson) October 24, 2018

Korda has four top-10 finishes in Asia and tied for second at the HSBC Women’s World Championship in Singapore in March for her best finish.

“I just love Asia in general,” Korda said. “I love the Asian Swing. It just seems, like, so easy for the players. Everyone is around each other. It’s kind of like we’re a big family. I feel comfortable.”

Kang also was bogey-free, while Korda eagled the par-5 third hole and added four birdies against a lone bogey.

Ally McDonald (68) offset a double bogey with six birdies and was a further stroke back with Moriya Jutanugarn, local favourite Wei Ling Hsu, Jeong Eun Lee and So Yeon Ryu.

The tournament is the third of five being played in South Korea, Japan, China and Taiwan in the LPGA’s annual Asian swing.

SHANGHAI – Patrick Reed had a Ryder Cup he’d like to forget and spent three weeks at home in Texas preparing to finish the year strong.

He was at his best Thursday in the HSBC Champions.

Even in blustery conditions, Reed putted for birdie on every hole at Sheshan International and closed out his bogey-free round with a 25-foot birdie putt for an 8-under 64, giving him a two-shot lead over Tony Finau and Xander Schauffele.

“It felt really good, because if you can go out and shoot rounds like that in these kind of conditions, you know you’re going to have confidence when the wind dies down and there are perfect conditions out there,” Reed said.

Schauffele also managed a bogey-free round in wind strong enough to be a two-club difference at times. He saved par on the final hole at No. 9 from the right rough with an approach that narrowly cleared the water into a patch of fairway short of the green, a pitch-and-run to 10 feet and another solid putt.

Matt Fitzpatrick had five straight birdies to overcome a rough start and post a 67.

Brooks Koepka, in his debut at No. 1 in the world, didn’t deliver much excitement. He had 16 pars, one bogey and one birdie for a 72. He was stunned when his second shot in the par-5 18th spun off the front of the green and into the water, forcing him to scramble for par at the turn instead of an easy birdie or better.

“I felt like I played good enough to shoot 4- or 5-under par,” Koepka said. “It was those momentum-building shots.”

Reed was last seen winning a meaningless singles match at Le Golf National after Europe was well on its way to victory. The last he was heard from was a telephone interview with The New York Times an hour after Europe won, blaming Jordan Spieth for them not playing together in the Ryder Cup and U.S. captain Jim Furyk for leaving Reed on the bench twice during the week.

Reed, the Masters champion, headed home to Houston and after a few days of rest went right back to work.

“From that point, my coach and I have been out there fine-tuning everything,” Reed said. “Just trying to set goals to finish the year off right.”

Reed led a strong American presence atop the leaderboard, nothing new at the World Golf Championships this year. The U.S. is trying to become the first country to have four players win all four World Golf Championships in one year after Phil Mickelson won the Mexico Championship, Bubba Watson won the Match Play and Justin Thomas won the Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone.

Dustin Johnson wouldn’t figure to contribute to that opportunity. Johnson lost a six-shot lead in the final round a year ago at the HSBC Champions, and he was wild as ever in opening with a 74 on Thursday.

He twice had more than 150 yards for his third shot into par 4s, and made double bogey on the 15th hole. He was happy to find his tee shot on the par-5 18th and had to make a 10-foot putt just to salvage bogey. Johnson scratched his way back to 1 over for the round until back-to-back bogeys.

Defending champion Justin Rose, who last year rallied from eight shots behind to win after Johnson closed with a 77, hit a few wild drives of his own but atoned for those with plenty of birdies in his round of 69.

The feature group was anything but that – Johnson, Rory McIlroy and Francesco Molinari combined to shoot 6-over par. Molinari, the British Open champion and Ryder Cup star as the first European to go 5-0 for the week, made three straight bogeys around the turn and had no birdies on his back nine.

Canadian Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, B.C., carded a 2-over-par 74 to sit in a tie for 49th.

McIlroy also was wild at times off the tee, though it really only cost him on the short 16th hole. He punched out the trees by inverting his wedge to play a left-handed shot, but then flubbed his flop shot into a bunker, blasted that over the green and made double bogey. He wound up with a 72.

Reed, playing an hour ahead of the final group, drove onto the front of the 16th green for a two-putt birdie. He started to stretch his lead after making the turn, holing a 12-foot birdie putt on No. 1, two-putting for birdie on the par-5 second and then hitting a wedge to 6 feet for birdie on No. 3.

He had several other good looks at birdie, and as good as his 64 was on Thursday, it was about the worst he could have shot.

“I was hitting the ball really solid,” Reed said. “I was hitting irons where I was looking and I was able to control it, not only directional-wise but also trajectories and what kind of heights I wanted to hit it. I felt like that was key because when it’s windy like that, you have to have full control over it. And I was able to do that.”

It’s a marathon, not a sprint. That was the message on a cool day at Pinehurst Resort for the first of eight rounds at the inaugural LPGA Q-Series presented by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina. Canadian amateur Jaclyn Lee was the only player to go bogey-free on Wednesday at Pinehurst No. 6 with an opening-round 68. Lee is alone at the top of the 102-player field, and holds a two-shot lead over Pajaree Anannarukarn, Laetitia Beck, Jeongeun Lee6 and Klara Spilková.

The 21-year-old Calgary native, who made it to Q-Series all the way from Stage I of the LPGA Qualifying Tournament, lit up Pinehurst No. 6 on Wednesday with a bogey-free 68. There was a small group of supporters standing off the green to meet Lee, and she attributes her solid opening-round play to feeling comfortable at Pinehurst.

“I’m comfortable in this environment, I’m back with my host family from the North & South, which I love,” she said. “It’s good to be back and to have made it all the way here.”

Lee has played in the North & South Women’s Amateur at Pinehurst No. 2 the past three years, and has stayed with the same host family, David and Tonya Brown, who she is also staying with this week. Lee also has her North & South Women’s Amateur caddie, Eric Bennett, on the bag this week.

Catching up with #TeamCanada amateur @JaclynLee57 who has the early lead at LPGA #QSeries after an opening-round 68 (-4) ??? pic.twitter.com/16ILABuEdi

— Golf Canada (@TheGolfCanada) October 24, 2018

“It feels pretty good,” the Ohio State senior said of her opening-round. “It’s nice to start the tournament with a solid round. I have the same goals for the next seven rounds, just to play some solid golf and try to get myself in a good position.”

New this year for the LPGA Q-Series, an amateur competitor earning LPGA status may defer her acceptance of LPGA membership until July 1 the following year allowing her to finish the college golf season if she wishes.

Canadian amateur @JaclynLee57 jumps to the early lead at #QSeries with a bogey-free 68 ???? pic.twitter.com/8TcMGLY6Sd

— CP Women’s Open (@cpwomensopen) October 24, 2018

A lot is on the line these next two weeks as players will compete in a total of eight rounds over two, four-day tournaments with the top-45 finishers and ties receiving LPGA membership in Category 14 on the LPGA Priority List and remaining competitors earning Symetra Tour status.

Spilková, a winner on the Ladies European Tour, is aiming to finish the next two weeks inside the top 45 and was pleased with the way she fought in an opening-round 70.

“For me that’s the most important thing, to be able to let it go and just enjoy and that’s what I did today on the golf course,” Spilková said. “We had so much love, I just tried to hit fairways and greens and then two-putt. That’s how I want to play for all eight rounds. If I play even par, I’m pretty happy with it. If I make a few putts that’s pretty good. I’m not pushing myself too much.”

Quebec City’s Anne-Catherine Tanguay is 23rd after a 1-over 73. Meanwhile, Maude-Aimee Leblanc of Sherbrooke, Que., opened with a 6-over 78 to sit 84th.

TORONTO — Sporting Life Inc. et Golf Town Limited annoncent leur fusion et la création Sporting Life Group Limited («SLG»).

Sporting Life est un magasin de style de vie sport qui offre une expérience de magasinage unique et une sélection exhaustive d’articles et de marques sport et style, tout en mettant l’accent sur un service à la clientèle exceptionnel. Elle compte présentement 11 magasins au Canada en Ontario, en Alberta et au Québec, suite à l’ouverture de son nouveau magasin de 27 500 pieds carrés au Quartier DIX30 la semaine dernière. En 2019, Sporting Life prévoit ouvrir un autre magasin amiral dans le tout nouveau mail «Amazing Brentwood» à Vancouver en Colombie-Britannique.

Golf Town est la destination numéro un pour l’équipement et les vêtements de golf au Canada, avec 47 magasins à travers le pays. Golf Town a connu énormément de succès depuis son acquisition en 2016 par Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited («Fairfax») (TSX: FFH et FFH.U) et certains fonds gérés par Signature Global Asset Management, une division de CI Investment Inc.

Fairfax et ses fondateurs David Russel et Patti Russel étaient les propriétaires de Sporting Life et continueront à s’investir auprès de Sporting Life Group.

Suite à cette fusion, les deux marques conserveront leur identité de marque et continueront d’opérer de façon indépendante, bien qu’elles feront des investissements communs en matière de personnel, de technologies et d’approvisionnement. Ces investissements permettront de favoriser la croissance et les synergies.

«Les ventes de Sporting Life sont à leur sommet lors des mois d’hiver alors que les ventes de Golf Town sont à leur sommet pendant l’été», dit David Russel, PDG et co-fondateur de Sporting Life. «Cette nouvelle entité représente une occasion de croissance naturelle qui permettra aux deux compagnies de profiter d’un rendement robuste tout au long de l’année.»

«Les investissements et les synergies nous permettront de mettre en œuvre un plan d’expansion simplifié. Nous prévoyons ajouter des magasins en Colombie-Britannique, en Alberta et au Québec, tout en nous implantant au Manitoba», ajoute David Russell.

Golf Town continue d’investir dans sa marque et son réseau de magasins avec une nouvelle génération de magasins qui sera lancée en mars 2019 à Richmond en Colombie-Britannique.

«Depuis l’acquisition de Golf Town en 2016, nous avons fait des investissements au Canada en matière de personnel, de technologie et dans nos magasins», dit Chad McKinnon, président de Golf Town. «Cette fusion permettra d’optimiser ces investissements tout en offrant plusieurs occasions de développement pour notre marque et notre personnel, tout en préservant le caractère distinct des deux marques et équipes».

L’équipe de direction de la nouvelle compagnie fusionnée sera:

David Russell – Président-directeur général de SLG
Chad McKinnon – Président de SLG
Patti Russell (Co-fondatrice de Sporting Life) – Vice-présidente exécutive et Chef de la gestion de la marque chez SLG
Frederick Lecoq – Chef du marketing de SLG

Les équipes de direction des deux marques resteront en place.

Team Canada Junior Women’s Coach Matt Wilson was one of nine award winners at the 2018 PGA of Ontario awards ceremony on Friday at the Nottawasaga Inn Resort in Alliston, Ont.

The Newmarket, Ont., native took home Coach of the Year honours for the PGA of Canada – Ontario Zone for his outstanding achievements in coaching this season and throughout his career.

In 2017, Wilson was appointed as Director of Next Generation strategy with Golf Canada to further develop and execute a stronger Team Canada program. Since joining the National Sport Federation, Wilson has helped oversee the national team’s centralized program, which sends athletes to train at Bear Mountain from February through to early June in a focused centre of excellence, surrounded by world-class technical coaching staff and experts.

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Thank you to @pgaofontario and my peers for voting me as the Coach of the Year for 2018 and to the athletes who work with focus and purpose, daily, to grow and achieve.

A post shared by Matt Wilson (@wilsmatt) on Oct 24, 2018 at 3:56am PDT

Wilson was honoured alongside eight fellow PGA of Canada members:

• PADRAIG KELLY ~ Retailer of the Year
• CASEY WARD ~ Candidate for Membership of the Year
• RAYMOND MCCORQUODALE ~ Class A Professional of the Year
• JON BLOMME ~ Junior Leader of the Year
• GARETH RAFLEWSKI ~ Teacher of the Year
• MATTHEW WILSON ~ Coach of the Year
• BRIAN HADLEY ~ Player of the Year
• ADAM TOBIN ~ Club Professional of the Year
• IAN WEBB ~ Executive Professional of the Year

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The LPGA Teaching and Club Professional (T&CP) membership today announced the following members as winners of the 2018 national awards in acknowledgement of their dedication and achievements: Tina Tombs, Arizona Biltmore Golf Club, Phoenix, Arizona, Teacher of the Year; Kelley Brooke, Bethpage Black Golf Course, Farmingdale, New York, Professional of the Year; Christa Teno, Seminole State College of Florida, Stanford, Florida, Coach of the Year; Mackenzie Mack, The First Tee of Tampa Bay, Tampa, Florida, Junior Golf Leader of the Year.

The national award winners were selected by the LPGA T&CP membership’s Executive Committee from the pool of the section award winners voted on by officers of the six regional sections: Central, International, Midwest, Northeast, Southeast and Western.

The LPGA T&CP Coach of the Year Award was established in 1980 and is awarded annually to an LPGA Teaching and Club Professional member who is actively engaged in teaching and/or coaching golf at the collegiate or high school level.

A former LPGA Tour player, Christa Teno (Tecumseh, Ont.) has been the head women’s golf coach at Seminole State since 2007 and has coached the Raiders to one National Championship (in 2015), four runner-up spots and two third-place finishes. She was named Southeast Section Coach of the Year by the LPGA Membership in 2008, 2012 and 2015.

“This is an incredible honour for me, my family, my players and Seminole State College of Florida,” said Teno. “Yes, I love what I do, I’ve worked very hard, but this is also a chance for me to say thank you to everyone who has helped me along the way. Every day I wake up excited to spend time with my team and my co-workers, so being recognized by the LPGA for simply doing what I love makes me blessed beyond belief!”

Teno went to North Texas State University on a golf scholarship from 1981-1985, graduating from there as a playing professional on the Futures Tour (1985-1997) and the LPGA Tour (1988-1991, 1996). She joined the LPGA Teaching Division in 1997 and won the LPGA Teaching National Championship in 1998. Teno was an LPGA National Evaluator from 2003-2013 and worked as an LPGA Teacher at several locations from 1988-2005.

She was the Head Professional and General Manager at Bainbridge Country Club from 1997-2000, and went on to become the head coach at Seminole State in 2007. Teno was inducted into the Windsor Essex County Sports Hall of Fame in 2010, and into the NJCAA Coaches Hall of Fame in 2017.

TORONTO – Sporting Life Inc. and Golf Town Limited  have announced they will merge to become Sporting Life Group Limited (“SLG”).

Sporting Life is a premium sports and lifestyle retailer that provides an assortment of high-end sport and lifestyle brands coupled with a focus on premium customer service. It currently has 11 locations operating in Ontario, Alberta and Quebec, following the recent opening of a 27, 500 square foot store last week. In 2019, it will open another flagship store in the new “Amazing Brentwood” Mall in Vancouver.

Golf Town is the largest retailer for golf apparel and equipment in Canada, with a national footprint of 47 stores. Golf Town has been incredibly successful since its acquisition by Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited (“Fairfax”) (TSX: FFH and FFH.U) and certain funds managed by Signature Global Asset Management, a division of CI Investments Inc., in 2016.

Fairfax, and founders David Russell and Patti Russell, were the owners of Sporting Life and both continue to be invested in Sporting Life Group.

The merger will see the two brands continue to maintain their brand identities and operate separately, but they will jointly invest in key people, technology and supply chain to enhance future profitable growth and synergies.

“Sporting Life experiences its strongest sales in the winter months, while Golf Town experiences its strongest sales in the summer months,” said David Russell, Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder of Sporting Life. “We believe this to be a natural ‘hedge’ allowing both companies strong profitable performance throughout the year.”

“Enhancing our people, technology and supply chain while obtaining synergies will allow for a streamlined, profitable roll out of our expansion plans. We intend to add stores in B.C beyond Brentwood, more in Alberta, Ontario and Quebec, and to enter Manitoba,” added Russell.

Golf Town continues to invest in its brand and network of stores with a next generation store concept launching in March 2019 in Richmond, B.C.

“Since the acquisition of Golf Town in 2016, we have invested in Canada on people, technology and our stores,” said Chad McKinnon, President of Golf Town. “This merger will accelerate that investment and open up new opportunities for our brand and our people, while maintaining the separate identity and teams of both brands.”

PINEHURST, N.C. – Three Canadians are competing at the LPGA’s revamped Qualifying Tournament, which gets underway Oct. 24 at Pinehurst Resort and concludes Nov. 3, where 45 players earning LPGA Tour status for the 2019 season.

What Canadians are competing?

Maude-Aimee LeBlanc of Sherbrooke, Que., Team Canada Young Pro Squad member Anne-Catherine Tanguay of Quebec City and Team Canada National Amateur Squad member Jaclyn Lee of Calgary.

What is Q-Series?

One of the biggest changes coming to the LPGA in 2018 is the revamping of the LPGA Qualifying Tournament, the process whereby players from Canada and and all over the world compete to earn membership onto the LPGA.

Formerly, qualifying was a three-step process, where non-members generally start at Stage I in California. The top 80 and ties advanced from Stage II to Final Stage, where the top 20 earned what is considered “full” LPGA membership, while finishers 21 through 45 earn “partial” or “conditional” LPGA membership.

What’s Staying the Same?

Stage I and Stage II of LPGA Qualifying Tournament remain unchanged. Recent college graduates, those testing the waters early and the influx of players around the world hoping to reach the LPGA will still have to grind through the five-round gauntlet that is Stage I, which some consider the hardest because of the pressure and the 115–degree summer temps in the desert.

What’s Changing?

Instead of Stage II feeding into Final Stage, it feed into the Symetra Tour, for the most part. There will be some exceptions where top finishers at Stage II will qualify for the Q-Series.

Final Stage in Daytona Beach will be replaced by this new concept called the Q-Series, which begins this week. It consists of two weeks of golf, with eight days of tournament play on two separate golf courses at Pinehurst Resort, and scores will be cumulative over the eight rounds of competition.

Who Qualifies for the Q-Series?

The major goal of the Q-Series is to identify the most LPGA-ready talent. In the past, Final Stage was at one golf club, played over five rounds. Someone could have a bad week or catch the flu or experience the yips on the greens. It’s a roll of the dice. One tournament over five rounds doesn’t adequately provide the best glimpse at who should be on the LPGA.

That’s where Q-Series helps identify the top performers. Players that finish No. 101 to 150 on the LPGA money list during the current season will qualify, along with those that finish No. 11 through 30 on the Symetra Tour money list. Players in the top 75 in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings will also qualify for Q-Series.

Additionally, the top five players according to Golfweek’s Collegiate Rankings will also skip Stages I and II and right into the Q-Series.

Finally, the top finishers from Stage II will round out the field.

The field will be 102 players and there will be approximately 45 spots up for grabs for the 2019 season. Click here for scoring.

SHANGHAI – Danielle Kang shot a 3-under 69 on Sunday to win the LPGA Shanghai by two strokes for her second career title.

Kang, who started the final round one stroke off the lead, offset a lone bogey on the par-5 fourth hole with four birdies after the turn to finish at 13-under 275 and hold off a late charge by Lydia Ko, who had the day’s lowest score of 66.

“I hope I win more,” Kang said. “I did the best I can. I’m going to keep working hard and keep giving myself chances and keep putting myself in contention. I’ll win more. I’ll play better.”

Kang becomes the seventh player from the United States to win on the LPGA tour in 2018.

Ko, who had seven birdies and a lone bogey, tied for second at 11 under with a group of seven players that included Brittany Altomare (71), Ariya Jutanugarn (71) and overnight co-leader Sei Young Kim (72).

I played really solid,“ Ko said. I gave myself a lot of opportunities for birdies, and there was a

string there that I felt like I should have made birdies that I didn’t.“

Carlota Ciganda, who also held a share of the lead after the third round, shot a 73 to fall into a tie for ninth with Bronte Law and local favourite Lu Liu.

Paula Creamer carded three birdies against a pair of bogeys for a 71 to finish in sole possession of 12th place.

Brooke Henderson rallied back from a slow start to the tournament with a final-round 70 (-2) to finish in a tie for 26th place.

The tournament is the second of five being played in South Korea, Japan, China and Taiwan in the LPGA’s annual Asian swing.

JEJU ISLAND, Korea, Republic Of – Brooks Koepka is golf’s new No. 1 after winning the CJ Cup at Nine Bridges on Sunday by four strokes.

Koepka, who displaced Dustin Johnson for the world’s top ranking, shot a final-round 8-under 64 for a 21-under total of 267. Koepka, who had never held the top ranking, led by four strokes after three rounds.

“To be No. 1 is something I’ve dreamed of as a kid,” Koepka said. “I don’t think this one is going to sink in.”

Gary Woodland certainly made it interesting. Woodland started the day five strokes behind Koepka, who was only 1-under after nine, but Woodland pulled level after making six birdies in seven holes on the front nine.

The two dueled on the back nine, with Woodland birdieing 15 and 16 to again pull level. But Koepka did the same, and a bogey by Woodland on the par-3 17th gave Koepka the cushion he needed to close out the win despite a birdie on the 18th by Woodland.

The biggest moment came on the 16th. Koepka went from a fairway bunker to just left of the green, about 70 feet away. Koepka hit a chip-and-run that was stopped by the pin and dropped for the birdie.

Koepka finished in style with a 25-foot eagle putt on the 18th for a 29 on the back nine.

“I’m not somebody who’s going to panic if things go the wrong way,” Koepka said of his slow start. “I felt like the one at 15 was quite big with Gary making a charge.”

Canadian Adam Hadwin surged up the leaderboard in Sunday’s finale with an 8-under-par 64. The Abbotsford, B.C., native closed the event with a share of 10th.

Woodland finished second after a 63. Ryan Palmer birdied his last seven holes to shoot a course-record 62 and finish in a tie for third place with Rafa Cabrera Bello (65), four strokes behind Koepka.

Woodland was happy with his final round, but looked back to a few missed birdie chances on Saturday.

“Brooks with the lead.not much fazes him,” Woodland said. “So you knew you had to make a lot of birdies and I made a lot today. I was trying to put as much pressure as I could. But just shows I was too far back to start after not making too many putts yesterday. I gave myself a chance, I was tied for the lead there. Brooks obviously just made some clutch shots down the stretch.”

Palmer said he became more confident with each of his seven straight birdies on the back nine.

“The more I made, the more free I felt in my swing and I was able to hit some close,” Palmer said. “I made some long putts coming down the stretch. Actually on 17, I looked at my scorecard, I was like, ‘oh, that’s six in a row.’ It is kind of back there, but you don’t think about it. What a special day.”

Defending champion Justin Thomas, who could have prevented Koepka from moving to No. 1 with a repeat win, finished at 5-under after a 68 Sunday.

Koepka is the third player this year to reach No. 1 for the first time, joining Justin Rose and Thomas. The last time that happened was in 1997, when Ernie Els, Tom Lehman and Tiger Woods each rose to No. 1.

It was Koepka’s 12th victory worldwide, including four wins on the European Challenge Tour. He now has won in six countries – the U.S., South Korea, Spain, Italy, Turkey and Scotland.

“Everything I’ve done this year it’s been working. So I don’t want to change anything,” Koepka said. “Just keep improving.

“I’m so excited right now, you have no idea. I can’t wait to go play again.”

He’ll get his chance soon. Next week the PGA Tour heads to Shanghai for the final stop on its Asian swing, the World Golf Championships-HSBC Champions.