DAYTONA BEACH, Fla.  – Seven Canadians are among 166 hopefuls vying for status on the LPGA Tour in the final stage of qualifying on the Jones and Hills courses of LPGA International from Nov. 28 – Dec. 3

Leading the Canadian contingent is Canadian golf Hall-of-Famer Lorie Kane of Charlottetown, P.E.I. The four-time LPGA champion is joined by fellow Canadians Maude-Aimée LeBlanc (Sherbrooke, Que), Jennifer Ha (Calgary), Elizabeth Tong (Thornhill, Ont.), Samantha Richdale (Kelowna, B.C.), Brittany Marchand (Orangeville, Ont.) and Augusta James (Bath, Ont.).

All participants will compete in 90 holes of stroke play for one of 20 full-time LPGA cards available. Those who finish in places 21-45 (plus ties) will earn conditional status.

Click here for scoring.

Global Golf Post (GGP) publication named their selections to the fifth annual All-Amateur teams. GGP named 195 players in total from 25 countries, based primarily on the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR).

Among those selected were nine Canadian standouts:

Also making the list were Jennifer Kupcho (Westminster, Colo.), Sue Wooster (Australia) and Gene Elliot (West Des Moines, Iowa) — winners of the Canadian Women’s Amateur, Women’s Senior, and Men’s Senior championships, respectively.

Click here for the full listing.

Canadians Danny King of Aurora, Ont. and Jim Rutledge of Victoria, B.C., are among the 78 players looking to secure status this week at the final stage of PGA Tour Champions Qualifying in Scottsdale.

Final qualifying runs November 28-December 1 and is conducted over 72 holes, with no cut.

The top five players receive full exempt status, while the next seven are conditionally exempt. Conditionally exempt players are accepted in tournaments on a space-available basis.

Tee times and scoring are available here.

Ben Silverman has put in the work to climb nearly 1,000 spots in the Official World Golf Ranking since the end of 2016.

Now he’s ready for a break.

Silverman, from Thornhill, Ont., went through a whirlwind year both on the course and off in 2017. He and his wife Morgan welcomed a son – Jack Palmer Silverman – in July, and he won the first tournament he played in after becoming a father.

The 30-year-old’s victory at the Price Cutter Charity Championship propelled him into the top 25 on the Web.com Tour money list, earning him PGA Tour status for 2017-18.

In the five events of the PGA Tour’s Fall Series, he made the cut in four of them and notched two top-10 finishes, including last week at The RSM Classic in St. Simons Island, Ga.

Silverman admitted he couldn’t even remember where the PGA Tour played last week because of how much mental energy he had used up this past year.

“I was basically forcing myself each day to put every ounce of mental strength into it because after Sunday I knew I could just crash and let go. I was feeling completely exhausted,” he said.

Thanks to his recent results, he has moved up to sixth on the ranking of graduates from the Web.com Tour this year (from 49th), meaning there is a chance for him to get into even more tournaments next year.

He’ll play the first six events of the 2018 portion of the PGA Tour schedule with hopes of winning early and have the opportunity to take time off.

“A lot of hard work is starting to pay off,” he said. “I put together some good finishes and earned my way up to the PGA Tour the hard way.”

Silverman said his next big goal is to represent Canada at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

To do it, he’ll have to jump approximately another 100 spots in the World Golf Ranking to either match or pass Adam Hadwin, currently Canada’s highest-ranked male golfer at No. 55.

“It’s a long-term goal but there are a lot of little things to do in order to get there, like become a top-two player in Canada,” Silverman said. “Hopefully I can win one or two tournaments before 2019. Those things are in my head as a way to get to my ultimate goal.”

Silverman’s path to the PGA Tour was non-traditional, as he didn’t play golf seriously until he was 16. He was a high-level hockey player before, and he didn’t play on Golf Canada’s National Team like PGA Tour winners Mac Hughes and Hadwin.

But he knew what he wanted to do with his life, and said he put in lots of hard work to get where he is today.

“I didn’t have a Plan B,” he said.

Although Silverman called his ride to the PGA Tour “improbable,” Golf Canada CEO Laurence Applebaum told The Canadian Press watching Silverman’s progress has been inspiring.

“His journey to the PGA Tour exemplifies resilience and dedication and he should be extremely proud to have earned his place alongside the world’s best golfers,” Applebaum said. “It has been exciting to see that strong play carry over to his first few PGA Tour starts and no doubt Ben has positioned himself for success going forward.”

Up next for Silverman will be captaining the Mackenzie Tour-PGA Tour Canada team at the beginning of December at the second annual Aruba Cup competition – which pits the top 10 golfers from the Mackenzie Tour against the top 10 golfers from PGA Tour Latinoamerica – before hanging up the clubs for the holiday season.

His first tournament back in action on the PGA Tour will be the Sony Open in Hawaii, Jan. 11-14.

NAPLES, Fla., – Sung Hyun Park and So Yeon Ryu, the 2017 and 2014 CP Women’s Open champions, have became the first LPGA golfers in history to share the Rolex Player
of the Year Award at the conclusion of Sunday’s CME Group Tour Championship.

Entering this week’s 2017 LPGA season finale, Ryu held a three-point lead over Shanshan Feng and a five-point lead over Park in what had been a tightly contested race all season. Ryu’s T30 finish combined with Park’s T6 result on Sunday at the CME Group Tour Championship put the duo even atop the standings at 162 points.

Park is the first player to win the Rolex Rookie of the Year and Rolex Player of the Year awards in the same year since Nancy Lopez achieved the feat in 1978.

“It’s a great, great honor to be walking the same path as a great player as Nancy Lopez,” Park said. “After accepting this award, I will continue to try hard and work hard at my game.”

It can be argued that Park has completed the most successful rookie year in LPGA history. She clinched the 2017 Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year Award in October, spearheaded by her first LPGA, and major championship, victory at the U.S. Women’s Open in July followed by her win at the CP Women’s Open six weeks later. All told, she carded 11 top-6 finishes in 23 events and ends the year as the second ranked player in the world.

Arriving to the LPGA from the KLPGA Tour, where Park won seven times in 2016 and had climbed to No. 10 in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings by year’s end, Park’s rise in women’s golf was the worst kept secret from afar. After top- six finishes at three LPGA major championships in 2016 (T2 at The Evian Championship, T3 at the U.S. Women’s Open, T6 at the ANA Inspiration), none of her newfound LPGA peers held Park to the standard expectation of an ordinary rookie.

Park was also in contention for the CME Group Tour Championship and Race to the CME Globe titles and the Vare Trophy as she led this weekend’s tournament by three shots after 36 holes, and briefly led on the front nine on Sunday. Her bogey-free, final round 3-under par 69 enabled her to stay on the first page of the leaderboard and clinch the prestigious honor.

“I didn’t quite expect to receive the award,” Park said. “David (Jones), my caddie, told me that there is a chance I could accept the (Rolex) Player the Year Award. When it was decided and I did find out … I was very happy.”

Ryu, the 2012 Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year recipient, enjoyed a year that included her second major championship, at the ANA Inspiration in March, her fifth LPGA triumph at the Walmart NW Championship Presented by P&G in June, two runner-ups and a pair of third-place finishes. A gritty Ryu endured through a shoulder injury and built up enough of a tolerance for pain to shoot 4-under on the final 36 holes this weekend.

The Rolex Co-Players of the Year finished the year first and second in the LPGA Money Title rankings. Park won her first career LPGA Money Title, amassing $2,335,883, while Ryu earned $1,981,593. Canada’s Brooke Henderson ranked 6th with $1,504,869 in earnings.

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. _ Austin Cook was chased by proven PGA Tour winners all day at the RSM Classic.

Now the Arkansas player is one of them.

The PGA Tour rookie held off veterans Brian Gay, Chris Kirk, Kevin Kisner and Brian Harman on Sunday at the chilly, windy Sea Island Club’s Seaside Course.

Cook closed with a 3-under 67 for a four-stroke victory over J.J. Spaun. The victory in the final PGA Tour event of the calendar year gave Cook a spot in the Masters next year.

“It was definitely exciting … real brutal with the wind,” Cook said. “I got off to a slow start but I was able to keep my head level and know there was a lot of golf to be played. With the wind and those conditions, a lot could happen.”

Cook birdied three of his last four holes after the three-shot lead he began the day with slipped to one over Spaun. Cook made a 14-foot birdie putt at No. 18 to finish at 21-under 261.

Spaun shot a 66.

Gay, the oldest contender of the week at 45, eagled the par-4 18th hole from 161 yards with a 9-iron to break out of a five-way tie for third and finish at 16 under. He shot 68.

Kirk (71) and Kisner (68), past winners of the tournament, St. Simons Island resident Brian Harman (65) and Andrew Landry (67) tied for fourth at 14 under.

Cook, the 26-year-old from Little Rock, earned $1,116,000 and improved to third on the FedEx Cup points list.

It’s the second year in a row that a rookie won the RSM Classic. Mac Hughes of Dundas, Ont., survived a five-way playoff to capture the title last year in a Monday finish, but missed this year’s cut.

Ben Silverman (66) of Thornhill, Ont., was the low Canadian, jumping up five spots and tying for eighth at 13 under. David Hearn (65) of Brantford, Ont., was 11 under and Corey Conners (69) of Listowel, Ont., was 7 under.

From @MacHughesGolf to @austincookgolf.

Another rookie winner at @TheRSMClassic. pic.twitter.com/v9K5EP4fa5

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) November 20, 2017

Spaun, a stocky former University of San Diego player, made the biggest move of the day and twice cut Cook’s lead to one shot _ the last time on an 8-foot birdie putt at the par-4 16th.

However, Spaun bogeyed No. 17 when he failed to get up-and-down from a greenside bunker, and Cook birdied No. 15 with a 4-footer and No. 17 with a 15-footer to seal the victory.

Spaun’s birdie at No. 16 could have put him into a tie for the lead but he missed a 4-foot birdie attempt on the previous hole.

“That (Spaun’s miss at No. 15) was big,” said Cook, who said he’s an obsessive leaderboard-watcher and knew exactly when Spaun had come within a shot.

Cook, who has Gay’s former caddie, Kip Henley, carrying his bag, never slipped after a bogey at the second hole, just his second of the week. He missed only two fairways in the final round and made par after four of his five missed greens. He led the field in scrambling, converting 11 of 12 pars after missing greens, and tied for fourth by hitting 48 of 56 fairways.

“With Kip on the bag, he was able to keep me in the moment and keep me pressing instead of playing conservative,” Cook said. “There was a lot of stuff going on, mostly up here (tapping his head). My ball-striking was great and for the most part, my putting was great. Holding the nerves down, playing a good round in these conditions. … I’m so happy.”

NAPLES, Fla. – Lexi Thompson won $1 million for the CME Race to the Globe and left so much more behind Sunday in the LPGA Tour’s final event.

Thompson was poised to win the CME Group Tour Championship and LPGA player of the year until she jabbed at a 2-foot par putt and missed it on the 18th hole at Tiburon Golf Club. That paved the way for Ariya Jutanugarn, who birdied her last two holes for a 5-under 67 and a one-shot victory.

It was a wild ending to the LPGA Tour season and sent four players home with a trophy of some variety.

Although she lost the tournament, Thompson still won the CME Race to the Globe and the $1 million bonus. She also won the Vare Trophy for having the lowest adjusted scoring average.

Thompson had to win the tournament to be player of the year. Instead, the points-based LPGA player of the year was a tie between a pair of major champions from South Korea, So Yeon Ryu and LPGA rookie Sung Hyun Park. It was the first time the award was shared since it began in 1966.

Park, the U.S. Women’s Open champion, was trying to become the first rookie since Nancy Lopez in 1978 to sweep the major awards. She already had won rookie of the year. She had to settle for a tie for player of the year, and her 75 in the third round damaged her chances of winning the Vare Trophy.

Brooke Henderson (72) of Smiths Falls, Ont., tied for 25th at 6 under and Hamilton’s Alena Sharp (69) tied for 46th at 1 under.

What stood out on another sunny afternoon was the sterling performance of Jutanugarn, who won for the second time this year.

She was three shots behind Thompson with six holes to play when her putter saved the day.

Jutanugarn was at 13 under on the par-5 17th when she hit a hybrid for her second shot into the bunker and blasted out to about 18 feet. Ahead of her on the 18th green, Thompson was at 15 under and lagged a 50-foot birdie attempt beautifully down the slope on the 18th to 2 feet left of the cup.

Jutanugarn made birdie. Thompson missed her par putt, and there was a three-way tie for the lead at 14 under that included Jessica Korda, who was playing with Thompson and had left her 25-foot birdie attempt well short.

Thompson and Korda each closed with a 67.

Jutanugarn hit her approach about 18 feet above the hole and made it for winning birdie. She finished at 15-under 273 and earned $500,000.

“I had no expectation at all,” Jutanugarn said. “I really did not think about the outcome.”

Jutanugarn was part of a four-way tie for the lead going into the final round, and the CME Group Tour Championship was up for grabs most of the day until Thompson seemingly seized control with 32 on the front nine, a 10-foot birdie on the 13th and then a superb pitch from left of the 17th green that set up a 3-foot birdie.

Pernilla Lindberg had reason to believe she needed birdie from long range on the 18th to have a chance. She ran that 7 feet by the hole and three-putted for a bogey and a 68. She wound up finishing two shots behind, along with Eun-Hee Ji (67).

Michelle Wie, trying to win for the first time since the U.S. Women’s Open in 2014, had a share of the lead until she hit near the edge of a bunker and made double bogey on No. 9, and then dropped two more shots on the back nine. Even with seven birdies, Wie still only managed a 70. She tied for sixth with Park, who closed with a 69. Park was at 13 under through 35 holes and played 1 over the final 37 holes.

Ryu was coping with a shoulder injury and was happy to squeeze in 72 holes. She wound up a part-winner of LPGA player of the year.

Thompson was on the putting green when she heard the cheer for Jutanugarn’s final birdie.

It was the second time this year that Thompson appeared to be in control and was stunned to not win. She had a four-shot lead in the final round of the ANA Inspiration when she was penalized four shots – two for incorrectly marking her golf ball on the green in the third round, and two more shots because the infraction wasn’t discovered by a viewer until the next day, and so she signed an incorrect scorecard in the third round.

She wound up losing to Ryu in a playoff, though Thompson said this week it made her a stronger person.

This will be another wound from which to recover, though she at least takes $1 million home with her as a consolation.

ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – PGA Tour rookie Austin Cook shot a 4-under 66 on Saturday to increase his lead to three strokes in the RSM Classic.

Cook, a shot ahead after a second-round 62, had five birdies and a bogey – his first of the week – to reach 18-under 194 with a round left at Sea Island Golf Club’s Seaside Course.

“Putting is key right now,” Cook said. “Been able to make a lot of clutch putts for the pars to save no bogeys. Hitting the ball pretty much where we’re looking and giving ourselves good opportunities on every hole.”

Former University of Georgia player Chris Kirk was second after a 64.

“I’m really comfortable here,” Kirk said. “I love Sea Island. I lived here for 6 1/2 years, so I played the golf course a lot, SEC Championships and come down here for the RSM Classic. My family and I, we come down here a few other times a year as well.”

Brian Gay was another stroke back at 14 under after a 69.

“I love the course,” Gay said. “We keep getting different wind directions so it’s keeping us on our toes. Supposed to be another completely different wind direction tomorrow, so we’re getting a new course every day.”

J.J. Spaun had a 62 to get to 13 under.

“I just kind of played stress-free golf out there and kept the golf ball in front of me,” Spaun said. “I had a lot of looks and scrambled pretty well, even though it was only a handful of times, but pretty overall pleased with how I played today.”

Ben Silverman (69) of Thornhill, Ont., was the low Canadian at 9 under. David Hearn (69) of Brantford, Ont., and Corey Conners (68) of Listowel, Ont., are 6 under.

Cook has made the weekend cuts in all four of his starts this season. The 26-year-old former Arkansas player earned his PGA Tour card through the Web.com Tour.

“I think with an extra year on the Web this past year, I really grew mentally and with my game, just kind of more confidence,” Cook said. “I was able to put myself in contention on the Web.com more this year than I have in the past. I think I’ve just, you know, learned from experiences on the Web to help me grow out here.”

He planned to keep it simple Saturday night.

“I’ve got my parents here and my in-laws are both here as well as my wife,” Cook said. “Go home and just have a good home-cooked meal and just kind of enjoy the time and embrace the moment.”

Kirk won the last of his four PGA Tour titles in 2015 at Colonial.

“It’s nice to be back in contention again,” Kirk said. “It’s been a little while for me. But I felt great out there today, I felt really comfortable, and so hopefully it will be the same way tomorrow and I’ll keep my foot on the pedal and stay aggressive, try to make some birdies.”

NAPLES, Fla. – Sung Hyun Park was in the palmetto bushes, near the base of the tree, in the bunkers and going nowhere in the CME Group Tour Championship.

Perhaps most surprising at the end of the day was that Park was no longer in the lead.

What looked to be a victory lap for the 24-year-old rookie from South Korea turned into a free-for-all Saturday at Tiburon Golf Club. Park at least was in solid position, one shot out of the lead, in her bid to become the first rookie since Nancy Lopez in 1978 to sweep all the major LPGA Tour awards.

She just never expected so much company.

Michelle Wie, who lost six weeks to an emergency appendectomy, had a 6-under 66 and was part of a four-way tie for the lead going into the final round. Kim Kaufman, who is recovering from mono, ran off eight birdies in her round of 64. Joining them at 10-under 206 were Ariya Jutanugarn (67) and Suzann Pettersen (69).

“Just really feeling like my old self,” said Wie, who hasn’t won since the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open at Pinehurst No. 2. “Really feeling comfortable out there and having fun, and that’s why I play my best.”

Brooke Henderson (70) of Smiths Falls, Ont., was tied for 23rd at 6-under par. Hamilton’s Alena Sharp (69) was tied for 54th at 2 over.

“Being this far back with that many people ahead of you it’s very unlikely that I could be the champion of this event this year,” said Henderson. “However, I can still get into the top 10, maybe even better if I get off to a hot start tomorrow and hopefully make a few putts.”

Park, who didn’t make a birdie until the 13th hole and shot 75, was among seven players one shot behind.

Now she can only hope her one bad day is behind her.

“I think that over the course of four days, there is always a day where I’m not quite in tip-top shape,” Park said. “I think that day might have been today. Keeping your focus is not that easy to do consistently over four days, so I think there is always one day where my focus is a little off.”

Lexi Thompson, who leads the CME Race to the Globe, suddenly has just as good of a chance as Park to capture the $1 million bonus. Thompson also is poised to win the Vare Trophy for the lowest adjusted scoring average. Park needed to finish 10 shots ahead of Thompson – she started Saturday six shots ahead – to win the Vare Trophy.

“I’m not going into tomorrow with any different attitude,” Thompson said. “Just going to go out there, free swing, commit to my targets, and try to do my best.”

The final day is so wide open that 31 players were separated by four shots.

That includes Shanshan Feng, in her debut at No. 1 in the world, and Brooke Henderson of Canada. They only have to win the Tour Championship to claim the CME Race to the Globe. And they all have Park to thank for every having a chance.

Kaufman showed early that low scores were available in her round of eight birdies. Park showed early that it was going to be a grind when she missed the green to the left on No. 2 and pitched far too strong up the slope, leading to bogey.

Then, she hit into palmetto bushes on the par-5 sixth and made double bogey, and the game was on.

Park looked as though she had steadied herself with an 8-foot birdie on No. 13 and scrambling for birdie after a poor drive in the waste area right of the 14th. But she took bogey from the bunker on the par-3 16th to fall back into a share of the lead, and then drove well left on the par-5 17th next to a tree. She chipped into a sandy waste area, came up short into a bunker and failed to get up-and-down.

Stacy Lewis (67), who ended a three-year victory drought two months ago, shot a 67 and was in the group at 9-under 207 that included Thompson (69), Park, Karine Icher (68) and Austin Ernst, whose 69 featured a quadruple-bogey 8 and an eagle-birdie finish on the back nine.

At stake on Sunday is just about everything.

So Yeon Ryu, who was only five shots behind but had 31 players ahead of her on the leaderboard, still had an outside chance at holding on to her lead for LPGA player of the year if Feng, Park and Thompson failed to finish near the top of the leaderboard.

Thompson suddenly looks good for the Vare, while Park remained in good shape to capture the money title.

Jutanugarn, who won five times last year, is No. 9 in the CME Race to the Globe. She could win the $1 million bonus by winning the tournament and have Thompson finish out of the top nine. Instead of a sprint to the finish, so many players have a chance that it still feels like a long way off.

NAPLES, Fla. – Golf felt so easy to Sung Hyun Park that only when she took out her card to catch up on her scores did she realize she had closed out the front nine with five straight birdies at the CME Group Tour Championship.

Park kept right on attacking.

The 24-year-old from South Korea added a 30-foot eagle putt late in her second round and finished with a 7-under 65, giving her a three-shot lead going into the weekend at Tiburon Golf Club.

Nothing seems to bother her, even the chance to cap off an amazing rookie season by sweeping all the big awards on the LPGA Tour.

“To be honest, I don’t feel quite as nervous as I thought I would,” Park said through an interpreter. “After the first shot, after the first hole, I felt a lot more comfortable. I’m not feeling as nervous as I thought I might be going into today.”

Leave that to the players chasing her.

Even with a three-putt bogey on the final hole, Park was at 12-under 132 and was three shots clear of Caroline Masson (66) and Sarah Jane Smith (69).

More importantly, none of the other players in the chase for the $1 million Race to the CME Globe bonus or any other big award was within five shots of Park, who is trying to become the first rookie since Nancy Lopez in 1978 to win LPGA player of the year.

Lexi Thompson, who leads the Race to the CME Globe and the Vare Trophy for lowest adjusted scoring average, shot a 67 and wound up losing ground. She was six shots behind and must stay within 10 shots of Park to win the Vare.

So Yeon Ryu, who leads the points-based award for player of the year, managed a 71 with her sore right shoulder but was 11 shots back.

The other two players who need to win the tournament to collect the $1 million bonus also had their work cut out for them. Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., had another 70 and was eight shots behind, while world No. 1 Shanshan Feng shot 73 and was 11 shots behind. Hamilton’s Alena Sharp was 5 over.

Park was in control, only she didn’t see it that way.

“I don’t think it’s quite that far of a lead,” Park said. “Two, three shots of a lead can change at any moment. We will have to see what’s in store for this weekend.”

Park began her big run with an 18-foot birdie on No. 5, got up-and-down for birdie from just off the green at the par-5 sixth, holed a 25-foot birdie putt on No. 7, and then closed out the front nine with birdie putts from 8 feet and 15 feet.

“I actually didn’t know that I was going five birdies in a row,” Park said. “Come hole No. 10, I realized that I hadn’t been jotting down my scores as diligently, and so I realized it a little bit later on. And it felt great.”

That gave her the lead by one shot over Suzann Pettersen, except that Pettersen faded badly on the back nine.

Pettersen dropped four shots in a three-hole stretch by getting out of position off the tee and she shot 39 on the back nine for a 70 to fall five shots behind.

“I feel like I’m playing good,” Pettersen said. “Three bad drives on the back nine cost me four shots. That should not be possible on this course, where the fairways are about 100 yards wide.”

Park was honoured at an awards banquet Thursday night as the LPGA rookie of the year. Now, she has more awards in her sights. A victory would give her the award for player of the year. She would capture the money title, which she leads over Ryu. And depending on how the weekend goes, she might be able to surpass Thompson in the race for the Vare Trophy.

Thompson did well to recover from two bogeys on her opening three holes.

“I hit a few really erratic shots in the beginning. It wasn’t a good start to the round,” Thompson said. “Just tried to stay positive and find something that could work for the last 14, 15 holes.”

Lydia Ko fell six shots behind in her bid to avoid a winless season. She was one shot behind going into the second round but managed only three birdies in her round of 71.

Park, meanwhile, had everything going her way. Even when she pulled her drive on the par-5 14th into a sandy area with a root next to her ball, she picked it clear and sent it through a goal post of trees back to the fairway. Three holes later, she blasted a drive and had only a 7-iron into the green at the par-5 17th, which she hit to 30 feet and made the long putt.

Does anything make her nervous?

“I hate spiders,” she said. “But in terms of golf, I always get nervous to this day on the first tee. I can feel my heart pounding.”

It’s a feeling that doesn’t appear to last very long.