PORTLAND, Ore. – Canada’s Helene Chartrand and Lara Tennant of Oregon each recorded a 36-hole total of 2-over par 146 to earn co-medalist honors in the 2017 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur Championship at Waverley Golf Club, which is set up at 5,836 yards and a par of 72.

Tennant, who had a large gallery following her, including three of her five children and her husband, Bob, carded five bogeys and four birdies to match her Round 1 total of 1-over 73. Bob grew up in a house on Waverley’s 12th hole. Tennant’s father, George Mack Sr., an accomplished Oregon golfer who learned how to play on the course, carried her bag.

Chartrand, 61, bested her first-round score by four strokes Sunday, carding a 1-under par 71 that was highlighted by a 12-footer for birdie on the par-3 ninth hole, her final hole of the day. It was one of only two under-par rounds in the championship.

“I feel strange, happy, I don’t know where this is coming from because I haven’t been playing that great,” said Chartrand, the Canadian Senior Women’s Amateur champion in 2014 and runner-up in 2016. “I took a couple putting lessons from my coach a few weeks ago and changed my setup, and have worked hard on pace and speed and trying to trust myself.

“Usually, I’m the queen of three-putts, and I had four yesterday, but only one today,” said Chartrand who is playing in her sixth consecutive U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur and made a quarterfinal appearance in 2014, losing 1 down to champion Joan Higgins. “So, I stroked the ball really well today. I actually don’t think I can hit the ball any better than I have the last two days. I missed three greens yesterday and only two today.”

The U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur, open to female amateurs age 50 and older with a Handicap Index® not exceeding 18.4, consists of 36 holes of stroke play, with the low 64 players advancing to match play, which begins Monday. The championship, scheduled to conclude with an 18-hole final on Thursday, is one of 13 national championships conducted annually by the USGA, 10 of which are strictly for amateurs.

Other Canadians advancing through to match play are:

• Judith Kyrinis
• Marie-Therese Torti
• Sandra Turbide
• Terrill Samuel
• Jackie Little
• Mary Ann Hayward

GARDEN CITY, Kansas, September 9, 2017 – Katelyn Dambaugh (North Charleston, S.C.) is currently reading a book entitled “Chasing the Lion”. On Saturday, she chased down the entire field with a 4-under, 68 in sustained winds of 22 miles-an-hour to grab the 36-hole lead at the Garden City Charity Classic at Buffalo Dunes. Dambaugh, who stands at 5-under, 139, will sleep on the lead for the first time in her short professional career.

Anne-Catherine Tanguay (Quebec, Canada), No. 8 on the Volvik Race for the Card money list, is one off the lead at 4-under, 140 after a 1-over, 73 on Saturday. August Kim (Saint Augustine, Florida) and Stephanie Na (Adelaide, Australia) are two back at 3-under. Dambaugh, Tanguay, Kim and Na will all go for their first career win on Sunday.

The final-round will begin at 8:00 a.m. and the final group of Dambaugh, Tanguay and Kim will tee at 10:01 a.m. A total of 68 players made the cut at 6-over, 150.

Dambaugh, 22, made six birdies and two bogeys to vault from a tie for 22nd to the lead. She was one of only four morning wave rounds under-par (Margarita Ramos, Lindsey Weaver and Caroline Inglis). Only six total players finished under-par with gusts peaking at 35 miles-an-hour. There are just 10 players under-par through 36.

“I took advantage of the par-5’s when I could, I tried to be aggressive when I had a wedge in my hand,” said Dambaugh, who made birdie on two of the four par-5’s. “I’m just trying to play really smart, especially on the downwind holes.”

Dambaugh felt like she stole a birdie on the par-3 8th, which was playing downwind. She hit a soft eight iron to 8-feet and made the putt. She nearly made birdie on nine to end her day.

“This is one of the best rounds I’ve played this year given the difficult conditions,” said Dambaugh, who has four top 10 finishes this season. “I had to stay focused and understand that everyone was going to make bogeys today, but I had to minimize them.”

Dambaugh said she developed a game plan early in the week knowing that wind was going to be a major factor.

“Depending on what direction the wind is going, I want to just let the wind take the ball,” said Dambaugh, who won the SEC individual title in 2017. “I also really wanted to hit a lot of fairways because then you have a pretty decent chance.”

Dambaugh plays out of Charleston (Bulls Bay Golf Club), which is near the water, so she has experience in the wind, but not quite to the ferocity of the wind speeds in Garden City.

She currently ranks 16th on the Volvik Race for the Card money list with $33,328 earned in just eight starts. The first-place payday of $22,500 could move her as high as No. 6. Dambaugh joined the Tour midway through the season after putting a ribbon on one of the greatest careers in South Carolina history.

Off the course, Dambaugh likes to read books that are motivational or have a religious undertone. She read Tim Tebow’s first book and is currently reading “Chase the Lion: If Your Dream Doesn’t Scare You, It’s Too Small” by Mark Batterson.

“It gives me a lot of determination,” said Dambaugh about the book. “It teaches me that there is going to be adversity, it is just how you deal with it.”

Dambaugh already has experience playing pressure-packed Sunday golf. Last week, she finished third at the Sioux Falls GreatLIFE Challenge. She is 6-under-par in final rounds over the last three weeks.

Tanguay, who has ten career top 10 finishes, would likely move to fifth with a win.

(September 9, 2017 – Innisfil, Ont.) – Camarillo, California’s Johnny Ruiz shot a 7-under 65 on Saturday at National Pines Golf Club to take the third-round lead at the Ontario Championship, the 11th event of the 2017 Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada season.

The 23-year old turned a slow start around with a blistering stretch of eight birdies in 10 holes and closed the round with a birdie 18 to reach 19-under through three rounds, two strokes ahead of Wilmer, Alabama’s Robby Shelton heading into Sunday.

“The putter started to heat up on the back nine a little bit, and once I started to make some putts it gave me some confidence that I didn’t need to hit it super close any more,” said Ruiz. “I hit a few to about 15 feet and got some of them to fall in.”

Ruiz, a winner earlier this year at the Staal Foundation Open presented by Tbaytel, began the day two strokes off the lead held by Georgia’s Scott Wolfes and found himself at 2-over par through five holes. After a birdie at No. 6, however, he produced a remarkable stretch that included five straight birdies on holes 8 through 12 to surge into the lead.

Entering the week at No. 4 on the Order of Merit and presented with a chance to secure his spot in The Five, Ruiz acknowledged the opportunity in front of him on Sunday but said he would do his best to remained focus on the task at hand.

“I’ve done a lot this year, but I’m still four on the money list and the goal is to be top five and I’ve got to play well tomorrow. I’m definitely not getting ahead of myself, and hopefully I’ll go have a fun day tomorrow and play well and we can talk about that after next week,” said Ruiz.

Shelton, also a winner earlier this year at the GolfBC Championship, birdied the 18th to shoot a 65 of his own, while Florida’s Lee McCoy was in solo third at 16-under after a 3-under 69.

NOTES

Johnny Ruiz

23-year old Johnny Ruiz is making his 10th career start on the Mackenzie Tour. Earlier this year, he earned exempt status for the first eight events of the season with a T2 finish at the British Columbia Q-School and has since recorded three top-10 finishes, including his first Mackenzie Tour win at the Staal Foundation Open last month.

Thanks to his win, Ruiz moved into second on the Mackenzie Tour Order of Merit and earned an exemption into the 2017 RBC Canadian Open. He missed the cut by one stroke. Ruiz ranks fourth on the Order of Merit heading into this week.

Ruiz did not begin playing golf until age 14 and notched his first pro win at the 2016 Monterey Open.

Robby Shelton

22-year old Robby Shelton is making his eighth career start on the Mackenzie Tour this week. The former University of Alabama standout ranks second on the Order of Merit thanks to a win at the GolfBC Championship runner-up finishes at the Players Cup and Cape Breton Open.

As an amateur, Shelton was consistently among the top players in college golf.

He played at the University of Alabama from 2013 to 2016, where he won seven times,

helped the Crimson Tide to the 2014 National Championship and was named a 1st team All-American in each of his three seasons.

Shelton finished third at the 2015 Barbasol Championship on the PGA TOUR, the

highest finish by an amateur on the PGA TOUR since Phil Mickelson won the 1991

Northern Telecom Open.

Shelton represented the United States in the 2015 Walker Cup along with fellow Mackenzie Tour members Lee McCoy, Hunter Stewart and Jordan Niebrugge.

Lee McCoy

University of Georgia alum and former NCAA All-American Lee McCoy is making his 11th career start on the Mackenzie Tour. Earlier this year, he set the record for largest margin of victory during the PGA TOUR era on the Mackenzie Tour with an eight-stroke win at the Freedom 55 Financial Open. McCoy ranks sixth on the Order of Merit heading into the week.

In 2016, he thrilled hometown fans in Palm Harbor, Florida by finishing solo fourth as an amateur at the Valspar Championship on the PGA TOUR.

QUOTABLES:

“I saw Patrick (Newcomb) up there, Robby, Lee and Johnny. They’re all playing well, which means I need to step up my game, because I haven’t secured anything. There’s two events left and I think it gave me a little extra motivation seeing those guys play well. I knew I had to play well today and thankfully I was able to get the putter rolling and come in with a good score.” – Order of Merit leader Kramer Hickok, who shot an 8-under 64 on Saturday.

“I always enjoy playing with Rob, and I really enjoyed playing with Johnny today. It’s a little bit of both ways because it is always great to play with great players, but I’m trying to beat probably two of the best players in the field, so it’s gonna be tough but I’m looking forward to the challenge. If it’s anything like the Johnny Ruiz session that I watched today, it’s going to be tough, but I think I’ve still got some good golf left.” – Lee McCoy on the challenge of competing for the title on Sunday.

Miscellaneous notes:

• Weather: 16 degrees Celsius, partly cloudy, winds at 8 km/h gusting to 2 km/h.
• Order of Merit leader Kramer Hickok shot an 8-under 64 and was in solo seventh going into Sunday at 11-under.
• Preferred lies were in effect for Round 3.

Click here for scores.

INDIANAPOLIS _ Lexi Thompson celebrated in the most traditional Indy style. She sipped some milk, poured the rest over her head and, of course, sealed it with a kiss of the bricks.

The 22-year-old Florida player earned it.

After dazzling fans with two days of almost error-free golf, Thompson overcame some late bobbles for a four-shot victory over Lydia Ko on Saturday in the inaugural Indy Women in Tech Championship.

Thompson closed with a 4-under 68 to finish at 19-under 197 at Brickyard Crossing, the Pete and Alice Dye-designed course that weaves around and inside the famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

“Kind of regretting it now because I feel really gross,” Thompson said, referring to the first milk bath by a female champion in Indy history. “Then I went around the track in a Corvette Stingray, which I also have one there at home. It was just an amazing experience. That made my day right there.”

She said she hit 122 mph on the track.

Shortly after collecting the Waterford crystal trophy and the champions’ wreath on the 18th green, Thompson was driven to the track’s start-finish line where she kneeled down in front of cameras and kissed the bricks. Then, after taking a quick sip, the slightly hesitant player doused herself in almond milk.

The only items that were salvaged were the shoes she wanted for The Evian Championship, the final major of the season next week in France, and her sunglasses that she handed to someone.

“Here goes this outfit,” Thompson said with a laugh before posing for more photos with a streak of milk running down her nose.

She didn’t notice _ or mind _ after a dominant weekend put her in position to jump from third to second in the world ranking.

Thompson won her ninth career LPGA Tour title and became the fourth player _ and first American _ with multiple wins this season. She also won the Kingsmill Championship in May in Virginia. In April in the major ANA Inspiration in the California desert, she lost a playoff to So Yeon Ryu after being penalized four strokes for a rules violation reported by a television viewer.

Ko had a chance to end a 14-month winless streak, but the 20-year-old New Zealander couldn’t keep up with Thompson over the final 10 holes.

Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., finished in a tie for fifth place at 12 under after shooting a final round 69. Augusta James of Bath, Ont., was 6 under for the tournament.

The low scores that seemed like such a breeze the first two days mostly disappeared in the heaviest wind of the weekend. It showed.

While Thompson had six more birdies Saturday, she also had two back-nine bogeys and had to scramble to avoid more trouble.

Ko, who had only one bogey during the first two rounds, wound up with a bogey and double bogey in a closing 72.

“Lexi played great,” Ko said after her best finish since April. “She had some 3- or 4-footers for par and she made all of them, so it just shows you how much confidence she was playing with. But it was great being in this position.”

Nobody else really contended.

Candie Kung started the day a shot behind Thompson and Ko, but finished with 74 to tie for fifth at 15 under. Minjee Lee wound up third at 14 under after a 67. Iceland’s Olafia Kristindottir (68) was another stroke back.

For the first eight holes, it looked as if Thompson and Ko would turn it into a match-play event.

They matched pars on No. 1 and birdies on No. 2. Thompson, the first-round leader after a 63, regained the outright lead when Ko bogeyed the par-3 third. But Ko birdied the par-5 fifth to tie it again, at 16 under, and it stayed that way until Thompson birdied Nos. 9 and 10.

“I had a three-putt on the third hole and that was my first three-putt of the weekend,” Ko said. “I tried to bring it back, but I just wasn’t putting as well today as did the other couple of days.”

Thompson’s biggest obstacle the rest of the way was herself.

She bogeyed the par-4 11th and gave back another stroke after hitting her tee shot into the water on No. 16. She nearly gave away another at No. 17 when her second shot rolled through the green.

But she rebounded with a birdie at No. 18 to kick off the post-tourney party.

“I was trying to comprehend that on the car ride over. I was like, what?” Thompson said when reflecting on her gender-breaking win at Indy. “It was a huge honour to be here in Indiana, to be able to kiss those bricks _ definitely a memory that I’ll never forget.”

INDIANAPOLIS _ Lydia Ko delivered a clear message to her LPGA Tour rivals Friday.

She’s having fun again _ and she’s ready to start winning again.

The 20-year-old New Zealander shot an 8-under 64 and grabbed a share of the lead with Lexi Thompson at 15-under 129 with a round left in the Indy Women in Tech Championship. If Ko puts together one more solid round Saturday, she could finally pick up her first win since July 2016.

“I know I’ve still got a whole, full 18 holes tomorrow to go, but I think really the key was that I’ve just kind of enjoyed being in this position and being able to hit some good shots and give myself some good looks at birdie,” Ko said. “When you start doing that, it builds your confidence and you’re not dwelling on, ‘Hey, am I going to hit a good shot or a bad shot.’ I think that’s kind of the mindset that I’ve kind of gotten into the last few months.”

After a summer full of frustration, the 14-time tour winner has shifted gears at Indianapolis Motor Speedway’s golf course.

Ko started the season with four top-10 finishes in seven events, but hasn’t finished higher than 10th since. She even missed the cuts in two of her last three tournaments.

Somehow, amid the intermittent sounds of chirping birds, jet engines, sirens and car horns while playing in the shadows of the racetrack’s grandstands, Ko found some serenity.

While playing partners Anna Nordqvist and Stacy Lewis, the winner last week in Portland, Oregon, struggled, Ko took advantage of the wide fairways and receptive greens and started playing like the world’s No. 1 player_ a title she held for more than 80 consecutive weeks.

Now No. 8 in the world, Ko started on the back nine and opened with consecutive birdies to tie Thompson at 9 under. Ko finally broke the tie with a birdie at No. 15, then took charge with five straight birdies on the front side to reach 16 under. The only glitch came on No. 8 when Ko missed the green to the left and slid her par putt to the right for a bogey.

“It was a little disappointing to finish off with a bogey on my 17th hole, but I felt like I played the toughest hole out there,” she said while Thompson prepared to tee off nearby. “Sometimes you have those mistakes but you need to move on from that. To me, it’s just nice to play some solid golf and put myself in a good position.”

Ko also understood her score might not hold up for the outright lead.

Thompson made sure of it, following her opening 63 with a 66.

The 22-year-old Florida player closed out the front nine with three birdies on the final four holes then adding birdies at Nos. 13 and 14 to tie Ko. But Thompson’s birdie putt at No. 16 missed just to the left of the hole and she wound up scrambling for par on the final two holes when her approaches went through the greens.

“Actually, I didn’t hit one bad golf shot today,” Thompson said. “I feel great about it, I’ll never complain about a 6-under round.”

Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., is six shots back at 9 under after shooting a 68. Augusta James (69) of Bath, Ont., is the only other Canadian to make the cut at 3 under.

Hamilton’s Alena Sharp (73), Jennifer Ha (75) of Calgary, and Maude-Aimee Leblanc (77) of Sherbrooke, Que., missed the cut.

The final threesome Saturday might not need to do much scoreboard watching.

Candie Kung made nine birdies and shot a 64 to reach 14 under.

“Luckily, I was able to hit some really close ones and have some 3-footers and 5-footers for birdies and I pretty much made all of them except the last one,” Kung said.

Ashleigh Buhai was fourth at 11 under after a 66, and Cristie Kerr (67) and Amy Olson (68) were 10 under.

Kerr has more than golf on her mind.

“We live in Scottsdale, Arizona, right now, but my whole family is there (in Florida) and tons of friends and I’m just really, really worried for everybody,” Kerr said as her home state braces for Hurricane Irma.

Sandra Gal was tied with Kung at 14 under, then bogeyed the par-3 15th and hit two drives into the water on the par-4 16th en route to a 10. She finished with a 73 to drop eight strokes behind the leaders.

Amateur Erica Shepherd was 5 under after a 68.

Lewis made the cut on the number at 2 under with rounds of 72 and 70.

Nordqvist failed to advance, shooting 74-71 to finish at 1 over.

GARDEN CITY, Kansas, September 8, 2017 – Anne-Catherine Tanguay (Quebec, Canada) and Carlie Yadloczky (Casselberry, Florida) posted stellar rounds of 5-under, 67 in sustained winds of 18 miles-an-hour to share the 18-hole lead at the Garden City Charity Classic at Buffalo Dunes. Tanguay made one eagle on the day while Yadloczky made eagles on back-to-back holes. Wind was a major factor for much of the day with gusts reaching 23 miles-an-hour in the afternoon.

Six players share third place at 4-under, 68 including No. 4 on the Volvik Race for the Card money list Erynne Lee (Silverdale, Washington), No. 11 Kendall Dye (Edmond, Oklahoma) and No. 13 Sophia Popov (Heidelberg, Germany).

The first-place payout of $22,500 would go a long way in moving Tanguay, No. 8 on the money list, closer to securing her LPGA Tour card. She could move as high as fifth with a victory, which would be the first of her career.

“My ball striking was really, really solid,” said Tanguay, who made five birdies and an eagle on hole 13. “I gave myself a lot of chances to go at pins. I felt like I was at home in Norman, Oklahoma. I have to thank my coach Veronique Drouin-Luttrell for putting us through these conditions. It think it really pays off and I’m in my comfort zone here.”

Tanguay played college golf at the University of Oklahoma from 2010-2014 and posted 15 top 10 finishes. She also closed her career with the second lowest scoring average in school history.

“This was an above average windy day in Norman,” said Tanguay. “You can get out of practice in windy conditions and it has been awhile, but I stayed really focused all day and that helped me a lot.”

Tanguay hit 12 of 14 fairways and attempted only 25 putts.

“Everything was good today,” said Tanguay. “I hit it close enough to give myself a lot of birdie chances, some four-five footers for birdies, but you have to make those putts. My putter was rolling really nicely and I made a 25-footer for eagle on 13.”

In 2015, Tanguay finished in a tie for fourth in Garden City so she has good memories at Buffalo Dunes. She didn’t play last year.

“This course fits my game really well, but I’m a different player than I was two years ago so it is good to be able to test my game again,” said Tanguay. “I took some more aggressive lines and it is definitely good to know the greens.”

Tanguay started the year with five top 10 finishes in the first six events, but doesn’t have a top 10 since May. She was pleased to start strong this week.

“I feel like I’ve been playing well these last few months, but the results haven’t been there,” admitted Tanguay. “It is good for my confidence to shoot under-par and I’m really happy.”

(September 8, 2017 – Innisfil, Ont.) – St. Simon’s Island, Georgia’s Scott Wolfes shot a second consecutive 7-under 65 on Friday at National Pines Golf Club to take the second-round lead at the Ontario Championship, the 11th event of the 2017 Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada season.

The 24-year old made six birdies, an eagle and a bogey on the day to reach 14-under, one stroke ahead of Tampa, Florida’s Lee McCoy through two rounds at National Pines. With three top-25s this year but no top-10 finishes, the Georgia Southern grad said he hoped to turn his season around this weekend.

“It’s been a struggle this year. I know I’ve been good enough and the scores just weren’t there, and I’ve just been trying to stay patient,” said Wolfes, admitting that his year to this point hasn’t been what he had hoped for in his second Mackenzie Tour season. “Hopefully I can produce some good results this weekend. I have nothing to lose, so I’m just trying to get better and get on the Web.com Tour.”

McCoy, who was one of five co-leaders after day one, shot a 66 to sit one back heading to the weekend, crediting his round to a strong tee-to-green performance once again.

“If you told me, given those conditions, that I would be not in the lead at 13-under, I would have told you that you were wrong,” said McCoy with reverence for Wolfes’ playing. “Obviously Scott played some great golf yesterday and today, and I’m looking forward to tracking him down.”

California’s Johnny Ruiz was a stroke further behind at 12-under after a 67, while British Columbia’s Stuart Macdonald was at 11-under with a 67 of his own.

NOTES

Scott Wolfes

24-year old Scott Wolfes is making his 22nd career start on the Mackenzie Tour this week. He owns one previous top-10, when he finished T2 at the 2016 ATB Financial Classic. Wolfes ranks 55th on the Order of Merit this season thanks to three top-25 finishes, including a season-best T11 at the Players Cup. Wolfes played college golf at Georgia Southern University, where he was named an Honorable Mention All-American in 2015.

Lee McCoy

University of Georgia alum and former NCAA All-American Lee McCoy is making his 11th career start on the Mackenzie Tour. Earlier this year, he set the record for largest margin of victory during the PGA TOUR era on the Mackenzie Tour with an eight-stroke win at the Freedom 55 Financial Open. McCoy ranks sixth on the Order of Merit heading into the week. In 2016, he thrilled hometown fans in Palm Harbor, Florida by finishing solo fourth as an amateur at the Valspar Championship on the PGA TOUR.

Johnny Ruiz

23-year old Johnny Ruiz is making his 10th career start on the Mackenzie Tour. Earlier this year, he earned exempt status for the first eight events of the season with a T2 finish at the British Columbia Q-School and has since recorded three top-10 finishes, including his first Mackenzie Tour win at the Staal Foundation Open last month. Thanks to his win, Ruiz moved into second on the Mackenzie Tour Order of Merit and earned an exemption into the 2017 RBC Canadian Open. He missed the cut by one stroke. Ruiz ranks fourth on the Order of Merit heading into this week. Ruiz did not begin playing golf until age 14 and notched his first pro win at the 2016 Monterey Open.

QUOTABLES:

“I’ve definitely been waiting for it all year, for special things like that to happen that don’t happen every week. It was nice to have them happen today, but I’m going to have to make a few more putts the next couple of days. This week is do-or-die for me, so it’s just kind of pedal to the medal and whatever happens, happens.” – Riley Wheeldon on a 6-under 66 that included a hole-out eagle on No. 7 and a chip-in eagle on No. 9.

“Honestly, I had one of my best ball striking rounds I’ve had in a while and just kind of caught fire. I threw a lot of darts and had a bunch of tap-ins.” – Stuart Macdonald on a 6-under 66 that included an inward nine of 6-under 30.

Miscellaneous notes:

• Weather: 14 degrees Celsius, partly cloudy, winds at 15 km/h gusting to 22 km/h.
• Preferred lies were in effect for Round 2.

Click here for scores.

CHIBA, Japan _ Scott McCarron was in a familiar spot at the top of a PGA Tour Champions leaderboard in his first trip to Japan. California childhood rival Kevin Sutherland was close behind _ again.

Coming off his third victory in the last six tournaments, the 52-year-old McCarron shot his second straight 6-under 66 on Saturday at Narita Golf Club to take a one-stroke lead over Sutherland in the Japan Airlines Championship _ the senior tour’s first event in Japan.

“I’ve been in this position a lot as of late,” McCarron said. “I really enjoy being in this position. I get to play with Kevin Sutherland again. We’ve been making a habit out of it this last month, I think we’ve been in the final group three out of the last four weeks. We’ve been battling it out and I’m sure it will be a good battle tomorrow.”

Sutherland, tied for the first-round lead with Glen Day at 65, had a 68. Also visiting Japan for the first time, Sutherland made a 30-foot putt on the par-4 18th for his third birdie on the last four holes.

“I stayed really patient today,” Sutherland said. “I didn’t get frustrated at all. I wasn’t making any birdies and then all of a sudden you birdie three of the last four. But I think a lot of it was just early in the round I just didn’t let any sort of frustration creep in.”

The long-hitting McCarron birdied all four par 5s after birdieing three of them Friday. He saved par on 18 with a 6-footer to keep the outright lead.

“These greens are absolutely perfect,” McCarron said. “The golf course is in great shape, so we’re just having a lot of fun here.”

McCarron won the Shaw Charity Classic last week in Calgary, Alberta, to tie Bernhard Langer for the tour victory lead with four. The three-time PGA Tour winner won the Allianz Championship in February in Florida, the major Senior Players Championship in July in Maryland and the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open three weeks ago in upstate New York. He has six victories in the last two seasons on the 50-and-over tour.

“I prepared very hard to get ready for this PGA Tour Champions,” McCarron said. “I knew how good these guys were and I wanted to get my game in the best shape that I could possibly be in. I’m starting to reap some of those rewards from all that hard work. But it’s just been a lot of fun for me. That’s the biggest thing I think why I’m playing well, I’m really enjoying it out here.”

The 53-year-old Sutherland has five straight top-10 finishes. He was second in the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open and tied for third in Calgary to remain winless on the tour. His lone PGA Tour victory came at McCarron’s expense in 2002 at La Costa in the Accenture Match Play Championship, when he beat the fellow Sacramento, California-area player 1 up in the 36-hole final.

“I felt like I drove the ball a lot better today, which is a good sign for tomorrow,” said Sutherland, the only player to shoot 59 in tour history.

Todd Hamilton, the 2004 British Open champion and an 11-time winner on the Japan Golf Tour, was three strokes back at 9 under along with Colin Montgomerie and Carlos Franco. Hamilton birdied the last two holes and five of the last seven for a 65.

“I figured I would see some people I hadn’t seen for a while, which I have,” Hamilton said. “The Japanese people are very good hosts and I think we’ve been treated to a very good week.”

Montgomerie had a 66, and Franco shot 68.

“The greens were most difficult today,” Montgomerie said. “They were quicker and the pins were on more slopes than they were yesterday, so it was harder.”

Jeff Sluman birdied the last four holes for 66 to match Paul Goydos (69), Stephen Ames (67) and Wes Short Jr. (69) at 8 under. Goydos won the 3M Championship last month in Minnesota.

Day was another stroke back after a 72.

Ames’ second round 5 under 67 has him 8 under through 36 holes, four shots off the lead. Fellow Canadian Rod Spittle sits T14 at 6 under.

Massy Kuramoto topped the six Japanese players in the field at 5 under after a 72.

Fan favourite John Daly closed with a double bogey for a 73 that left him 2 under. Tom Watson, at 68 the oldest player in the field, was 1 under after a 73.

(September 7, 2017 – Innisfil, Ont.) – Murray, Kentucky’s Patrick Newcomb, Camarillo, California’s Johnny Ruiz, Tampa, Florida’s Lee McCoy, St. Simon’s Island, Georgia’s Scott Wolfes, and Raleigh, North Carolina’s Carter Jenkins each shot rounds of 7-under 65 on Thursday at National Pines Golf Club to share the first round lead at the Ontario Championship, the 11th event of the 2017 Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada season.

The quintet finished the day one stroke ahead of six players at 6-under 66, with 21 players within two strokes of the lead after Thursday’s play.

Newcomb, the winner last week at the Cape Breton Open, was bogey-free on the day with seven birdies and said he was even better on the greens than during his three-stroke victory last week.

“I holed a couple of putts today that I haven’t been holing, even last week, so it was good. I hit 17 greens today and just had no stress, and I almost chipped in on the one I missed, so it was a nice, easy day,” said Newcomb.

Ruiz, a winner earlier this year at the Staal Foundation Open presented by Tbaytel, birdied three of his last four to reach 7-under and said he was comfortable on this week’s course, which was designed by Tom McBroom – the same designer as Whitewater Golf Club, where he captured his win in Thunder Bay.

“The course really suits my eye. If I can keep it in the fairway and hit a couple of irons close, I can play really well this week. It’s a matter of hitting them close and making a few putts here and there,” said Ruiz.

McCoy, who also owns a win earlier this year at the Freedom 55 Financial Open, said a great day tee-to-green led him to his 7-under 65 despite minimal help from a cold putter.

“My ball striking was awesome. Most of my birdies were tap-ins, and I didn’t really make any putts, which has kind of been the trend lately. I did have a couple of holes where it felt a little bit better, so I’m starting to feel a little bit more comfortable and am just working the kinks out on some of the shorter ones,” said McCoy.

Wolfes and Jenkins each birdied their final holes of the day to share the lead, one ahead of Kentucky’s Hunter Stewart, Missouri’s John Kelly, Oklahoma’s Max McGreevy, Texas’ Brian Dwyer, Georgia’s Greyson Sigg and England’s Charlie Bull.

Miscellaneous notes:

• Weather: 14 degrees Celsius, cloudy with showers, winds at 9 km/h gusting to 14 km/h.
• Preferred lies were in effect for Round 1.
• Jared du Toit, Sebastian Szirmak and Stuart Macdonald were tied for low Canadian after opening with a trio of 5-under 67s
• Click here for scores.

INDIANAPOLIS _ Lexi Thompson shot a 9-under 63 on Thursday to take a one-shot lead over Sandra Gal and Kris Tamulis in the LPGA Tour’s inaugural Indy Women in Tech Championship.

Thompson had 11 birdies and two bogeys to fall a stroke short of the Brickyard Crossing record set by Mike McCullough in the PGA Tour Champions’ 1999 Comfort Classic.

“It was quite the early morning, so it was a bit cold on the range and struggled a bit on the range, but I just hit a few good drivers at the end,” Thompson said. “I just committed to one thing going into the round and I think that’s what made my day a lot easier on me. I just stuck to my routine and committed to my golf shots.”

Gal, like Thompson, started her morning round on the back nine that features four holes inside the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Gal hit 12 of 14 fairways in regulation in her bogey-free round.

“It’s cool, it’s funky. I really do like the course,” Gal said. “I think it has really good challenges off the tee and the greens, and it’s cool being inside the track. It gets a little bit windy in there actually. It’s just so big, it’s unbelievable to be in there.”

Tamulis had the best afternoon score with four birdies on each side.

“I think actually just worrying about the hurricane makes me feel like golf’s not a big deal, so I just hit it where I was looking, made some putts,” said Tamulis, who lives in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Thompson, the 22-year-old Florida player ranked No. 3 in the world, tied for 21st last week in Portland, Oregon, in her first event since the Solheim Cup _ where she overcame a big deficit in her closing singles match against Anna Nordqvist to earn a half-point for the winning Americans.

“I would say that round definitely gave me the confidence that I can make those birdies if I just let it go and fire at pins and commit to my shots and don’t doubt it,” Thompson said. “That’s how golf is. Golf is a lot about confidence and just committing to yourself and believing in yourself, something I’m learning along the way.”

Taking advantage of the wide fairways and forgiving greens softened by overnight rain, Thompson birdied three of the first five holes. She has seven birdies and a bogey in an eight-hole stretch from No. 17 to No. 6, and rebounded from a bogey on No. 8 with a birdie on No. 9.

“It was just two really bad iron shots and just ended up bogeying,” Thompson said. “But for the most part, I hit it great. Just hit a few bad shots with the bogeys, but I’m definitely not complaining.”

She won at Kingsmill in May for her eighth career victory.

The 32-year-old Gal needed a little more time to get started. After opening with five straight pars, the German player birdied six of the next seven holes and closed with two more birdies at Nos. 5 and 9.

“I’ve been feeling like my game’s been pretty good the last couple months, but I just haven’t been scoring, so everything just came together,” Gal said. “I think I also had a good attitude. I felt like I enjoyed it a little bit more out there.”

Lydia Ko, winless in more than a year, was two shot back at 65 along with Moriya Jutanugarn.

“It’s nice to get off to a really solid start,” Ko said. “I’ve been struggling the last few months, so it’s nice to be able to put myself in a different rhythm. And I was with a really good group with Anna and Stacy (Lewis). Obviously, Stacy winning last week, it’s really nice to play alongside them.”

Nanna Koerstz Madsen and Amy Olsonshot 66, and Cristie Kerr and Brooke Henderson topped the group at 67.

“It’s so different than every other golf course that we get to play,” Henderson said. “It’s in amazing condition and it really makes you think all the way around, which I think is good for my game.”

Lewis opened with a 72. The Houston player donated her winnings last week in Portland to hurricane relief efforts in her hometown area.

Nordqvist had a 74.

Danielle Kang tried to play through a leg infection, but withdrew before finishing the round.

The 54-hole event ends Saturday.