You’ve heard the boilerplate reasons to maintain an accurate handicap factor.

“Level playing field.” “Track your progress.”

Blah, blah, blah.

Here’s the real reason.

Don’t be a cheater. Be a real golfer. An honest golfer.

Oh, I am sure your intentions are good. You stand on the first tee and when asked what your handicap factor is, you say, “Well, I usually shoot about xx.” Then you go and shoot xx minus 10.

There’s no polite way to say this. You cheated. And you are no doubt a little embarrassed. As an unintentional result, there will be whispers of “sandbagger” when your name is mentioned subsequently.

I have no doubt your intentions were honourable and so are you. But because you didn’t have a verifiable factor, you cheated your fellow competitors (who hopefully had a Golf Canada handicap factor) of the opportunity to compete equitably.

If anyone has a passion for this topic, it’s Craig Loughry, Golf Canada’s Director of Handicap and Course Rating. Only he would call the handicapping system “cool.”

“The obvious cool part of handicaps is allowing golfers of any ability to have either a fun, friendly match with a friend or relative or a serious competition with anyone. Look at the alternative. Otherwise, the higher-handicapped player would be slaughtered in a gross stroke-play event or worse, they enter into a heated negotiation on the first tee as to how many strokes each should get.”

Loughry points out that the Golf Canada handicap system provides for golfers who play from different tees in the same event to compete on an equitable basis.

And there are many other advantages to maintaining an accurate and official Golf Canada handicap factor over other informal and unapproved score tracking systems, including being able to observe your progress (or lack thereof) over the course of years.

Consider yourself a “real golfer”?

You’re not if you don’t maintain an accurate Golf Canada handicap factor.

And if we meet on the first tee, you’re not getting any strokes from me.

Dusseldorf, Germany’s Max Rottluff shot a 3-under 67 on Sunday at Uplands Golf Club to claim his second career Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada victory at the Bayview Place Cardtronics Open presented by Times Colonist.

The 24-year old built a three-stroke lead down the closing stretch, then hung on to win by one over Jacksonville, Florida’s T.J. Vogel to earn his second career Mackenzie Tour title. The win moves Rottluff to second place on the Order of Merit, in position to earn Web.com Tour status for 2018.

“It’s great to get a win early in the season,” said Rottluff, who finished eighth on the Order of Merit last season thanks to a win at the SIGA Dakota Dunes Open. “I know it’s a long year, and there are a lot of quality players on this Tour, so I expect a lot of other guys to be in contention, but I’ll give it my best to secure a spot in The Five.”

Beginning the day two strokes behind Vogel, Rottluff was one of several players in the hunt as the leaders headed to the back nine, with Rottluff, Vogel and Lake Mary, Florida’s Jhared Hack holding a share of the lead.

It was then that Rottluff, a former 1st team NCAA All-American at Arizona State, took control, making birdies on holes 10 through 12 to jump in front by two shots over Vogel.

The deciding moment came at the par-4 16th, when Rottluff poured in a 30-footer for birdie to extend his lead to three. After Vogel birdied the 17th but narrowly missed a birdie putt at the 72nd hole, Rottluff needed only a two-putt bogey at the last to secure his second professional victory.

“I knew exactly what the ball was going to do,” said Rottluff of his decisive birdie putt at 16. “I was able to match the speed perfectly, and that was a huge, huge momentum swing for sure.”

The win was extra special for Rottluff and his father Sepp, a former pro hockey player in Germany who is caddying for his son during the B.C. Golf Swing, the three Mackenzie Tour events in Vancouver, Victoria and Kelowna.

“I had a special caddie last year for my first win, and I had a very special caddie for me again this week,” said Rottluff, whose girlfriend Emily caddied for him during his first win last year. “It means a lot for me to pull a win off with him.”

Vogel carded an even-par 70 on Sunday to finish at 15-under and record his best career Mackenzie Tour finish, while Hack and Danville, California’s Cody Blick both notched career-best T3 finishes a shot further behind at 14-under.

Rottluff becomes the first player during the PGA TOUR era on the Mackenzie Tour (2013-present) to win in back-to-back seasons.

He remains the only German-born winner in Mackenzie Tour history and claimed victory the same day that countryman Stephan Jaeger won the Web.com Tour’s Rust-Oleum Championship.

With a total score of 10-under par in a tie for eighth, Stony Mountain, Manitoba’s Aaron Cockerill finished as the top Canadian on the leaderboard, earning Freedom 55 Financial Canadian Player of the Week honours and a $2,500 prize.

Check out the final round recap below.

For the full leaderboard click here

The first few shots of Daniel Berger’s final round didn’t give much clue that his second straight victory at the St. Jude Classic was only a few hours away.

He hit his drive on No. 1 into the rough, sent his next shot into the rough far past the hole and his third shot was a chip that didn’t even make it to the green. What was left was an awkward 25-foot chip to save par.

He drilled it.

And from that point on, Berger put together a stellar day on a firm, fast, challenging course at TPC Southwind, shooting a 4-under 66 to erase a three-shot deficit and beat South African Charl Schwartzel and South Korean Whee Kim by one stroke.

Now he just might be one of the young players to watch going into the U.S. Open next week at Erin Hills in Wisconsin.

“We hear a lot about the young guns and about the Justin Thomases and Jordan Spieths, but I feel like I kind of get forgotten a little bit,” Berger said. “I’m pretty good, so I’m just going to try and keep doing my thing and see if I can’t get a few more.”

Berger is the fourth back-to-back winner at St. Jude and the first since David Toms did it in 2003 and ’04. He played a bogey-free round on Sunday, usually avoiding trouble after the first hole. His 17-foot birdie putt on No. 15 put him ahead for good and he finished at 10-under 270.

"Come on!!"@DanielBerger59 is hoping to go back-to-back.

?❓ #QuickHits pic.twitter.com/mkEN9J1zk9

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) June 11, 2017

“I played really great through the first couple days but I didn’t make as many putts,” Berger said. “Then the last couple days they just started to fall and that was the big difference.”

Schwartzel shot a 66 and Kim shot a 67 to finish in second. Amateur Braden Thornberry and Billy Horschel were among five players two shots back.

Schwartzel played well for most of the tournament, but a 4-over 74 in the third round made for a steep hill to climb on Sunday. He nearly made it, but a long putt on No. 17 stopped just short of the birdie he needed to pull even with Berger.

Stewart Cink, Ben Crane and Rafa Cabrera Bello started Sunday with a one-shot lead on a crowded leaderboard that included 12 players within three shots of the lead. Cabrera Bello stayed in contention for most of the day, finishing with a 71, but Cink and Crane both shot a 73.

The leaderboard was a jumbled mess through much of the final round. At one point, there were nine players tied for the lead at 8-under before Berger finally emerged from the pile.

“I just hit so many good shots coming down the stretch and I can’t even explain,” Berger said. “It’s just – I feel like I wasn’t even on the golf course. It just kind of happened.”

Phil Mickelson briefly had a share of the lead during the final round, but a triple bogey on No. 12 –
which included a shot into the water – knocked him out of contention. He still shot a 68 and finished at 7-under, three shots behind the leaders.

Mickelson, who is not expected to play in the U.S. Open next week because of his oldest daughter’s high school graduation, said he feels good about how he’s playing except when it comes to between his ears.

“The good news is that my physical game is there and I should be able to find the mental toughness here soon,” Mickelson said.

Thornberry shot a 65 and became the first amateur to finish in the top 10 at the St. Jude Classic since 1965. Thornberry, a sophomore at Mississippi who is from nearby Olive Branch, Mississippi, recently won the NCAA individual championship with for the school’s first golf title.

Brantford, Ont., native David Hearn finished T10 at 6-under par after a final round 70. The 10th place finish is his best result of the season to date.

For the full leaderboard click here.

Canadians Adam Svensson (Surrey, B.C.) and Ben Silverman (Thornhill, Ont.) finished T8 at 5-under par at the Web.com Tour’s Rust Oleum Championship, in Invanhoe Il, eight shots back of the winner Germany’s Stephan Jaeger.

The 23-year-old Svensson carded an even par 72 on Sunday at the Ivannhoe Club, and Silverman posted a 1-under par 71.

Coming into the week, Svensson was 60th on the Web.com Tour’s Order of Merit. He jumped up to 45th thanks to his second top-10 finish this season.

His first was a career best T6 at the Corales Puntacana Resort and Club Championship at Corales Golf Club in May.

Silverman birdied three of his last four holes on Sunday and will move from 87th to 61st on the Web.com Tour’s Order of Merit after his best result of the season.

For the full leaderboard click here.

Ariya Jutanugarn was seated by the scorer’s tent snapping selfies with In Gee Chun on Sunday, thinking there was little chance they would return to the course for a playoff at the Manulife LPGA Classic.

A short time later, Jutanugarn was posing for pictures as the tournament champion.

Lexi Thompson buckled down the stretch and missed a four-foot putt to win in regulation, forcing her to return to the 18th tee with Jutanugarn and Chun for a playoff hole.

Jutanugarn found the rough with her drive but her approach was pin-high and she drained a 25-foot birdie putt for her first victory of the season.

That. Winning. Putt. Ariya @Jutanugarn #Playoff #ManulifeClassic pic.twitter.com/Y8VBYu3YE7

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 11, 2017

The 21-year-old from Thailand is a virtual lock to move up one position Monday and knock Lydia Ko off her perch as the world’s top-ranked women’s player.

Jutanugarn, who won five times last year, had three birdies over a four-hole stretch around the turn at Whistle Bear Golf Club. She closed with six straight pars for a 3-under-par 69 that left her at 17-under 271.

Thompson, meanwhile, started the day with a one-shot lead and led by four strokes after a birdie on No. 9. Four bogeys on the back nine did her in, with the final one coming when she three-putted on the 18th hole.

“I had like a five-footer, six-footer, and about a four-footer and missed them all,” Thompson said of her last three holes. “If I made those I would have won, but that’s golf I guess.”

Conditions were warm and blustery for the second straight day and preferred lies remained in effect. Thompson finished with an even-par 72 while Chun had a 70.

Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., was the top Canadian. She finished six strokes back in a tie for 11th after a 71.

"I really appreciate all the support I got this week – the crowds were amazing” – @BrookeHenderson finished T11 @ManulifeClassic pic.twitter.com/6B27P8JWNx

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 11, 2017

Hamilton’s Alena Sharp started the day three shots behind Thompson but was unable to make a run. She had a double bogey on her final hole and finished at 10 under after a 76. Sponsor invite Brittany Marchand of Orangeville, Ont., struggled to an 81 (285).

Sharp, who had a share of the 36-hole lead, was looking for her first career victory in 246 career LPGA Tour starts. Henderson, meanwhile, had an uneven round with an eagle, six bogeys and six birdies.

“Obviously I’m a little bit disappointed, but (tied for) 11th, I can’t complain too much,” Henderson said. “I feel like my game is so close to being so great.”

Jutanugarn birdied three of four holes over the turn and closed with six pars in a row. She earned US$255,000 of the $1.7-million purse for the victory.

Jutanugarn is the 13th different winner on the LPGA Tour this season. Her last victory came at the 2016 Canadian Pacific Women’s Open.

Worth a look ==> Final Round highlights from Canada & @ManulifeClassic where Ariya Jutanugarn won in a playoff:https://t.co/OqxIPHXOqY pic.twitter.com/8O8Tld0BnX

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 11, 2017

Marchand, a full-time member of the Symetra Tour, was making her first career weekend appearance at an LPGA Tour event. She tumbled from a tie for ninth place into a tie for 46th.

The last Canadian to win on home soil was Jocelyne Bourassa at the 1973 La Canadienne Golf Championship.

Manulife will not return as sponsor next season. The LPGA Tour has said it hopes to return to the area and the search is underway for a new title sponsor.

For the full leaderboard click here.

Jacksonville Beach, Florida’s T.J. Vogel carded a 3-under 67 on Friday at Uplands Golf Club to take a two-stroke lead into the final round of the Bayview Place Cardtronics Open presented by Times Colonist, the second event of the 2017 Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada season.

The 26-year old made three birdies, an eagle and two bogeys to maintain his overnight lead of two strokes over Lake Mary, Florida’s Jhared Hack and Dusseldorf, Germany’s Max Rottluff heading into Sunday’s final round.

Vogel, a former college standout at the University of Florida and University of Southern California, bounced back after he held the 36-hole lead last week in Vancouver and ultimately fell to a 3-over 75, instead taking an aggressive approach into this weekend at Uplands.

“That was huge for me to know that that mindset is what’s going to work at this level,” said Vogel. “You don’t want to come out complacent.”

Do you like birdies? We’ve got birdies in bunches.

Watch: Third round highlights from the @BPCOpenGolf pic.twitter.com/Up7ucxMGO2

— Mackenzie Tour (@PGATOURCanada) June 11, 2017

A low round was certainly a requirement to keep the lead on Saturday, as multiple players carded rounds in the low 60s to set the pace. Danville, California’s Cody Blick set the new Uplands course record with a 10-under 60 – narrowly missing out on a 59 after bogeying the 18^th hole – while Calgary, Alberta’s James Love shot 61.

“There are too many good players on this Tour that will catch you, so you need to go out there, take care of business and make more birdies,” said Vogel.

Vogel’s round was keyed by an eagle at the 335-yard par-4 13^th, where he took driver off the tee and reaped the benefits of a solid swing, hitting it to 14 feet and making the eagle putt.

“That was an aggressive play. I did it last year, driving the green, and I figured I was driving it well. I just had to trust myself, and I made a great swing and had a good look,” said Vogel.

Rottluff pitched in for birdie at 18 to shoot 63 and reach 13-under, while Hack carded a 67 alongside Vogel to keep pace and share second going into Sunday.

BACKGROUND ON THE LEADER: As an amateur, Vogel was one of the country’s top players, having claimed the 2012 U.S. Amateur Public Links to earn a spot in the field at The Masters the following year. He was an NCAA All-America selection at both USC and Florida before turning pro, and has since made 58 combined starts on the PGA TOUR, Web.com Tour, Mackenzie Tour and PGA TOUR Latinoamérica.

After taking the 36-hole lead last week in Vancouver, Vogel said he learned what not to do with the lead, having tried a more conservative approach that led to closing rounds of 75-71 and a T14 finish.

“3-under’s a lot better than 3-over,” said Vogel, comparing his differing third rounds over the last two weeks. “I just had a totally different mindset today. I just focused on trying to stay aggressive pretty much the whole day, and that was the key.”

In 2016, Vogel recorded two top-10s and finished the year 26^th on the Order of Merit.

Adam Svensson (Surrey, B.C.) carded an 2-over par 74 to sit T9 after three rounds at the Web.com Tour’s Rust Oleum Championship, in Invanhoe Il.

Svensson – a graduate of Team Canada – went out in 1 over par on the front nine at the Ivannhoe Club. He carded a 37 (+1) on the back nine to sit eight shots back of the leader Germany’s Stephan Jaeger who carded a third round 68 (-4) to move to 13-under par.

The Barry University alumni’s his best ever finish on the Web.com Tour came earlier this year, at the Corales Puntacana Resort and Club Championship at Corales Golf Club when he finished T6.

Coming into the week, Svensson was 60th on the Web.com Tour’s Order of Merit. He is looking to improve on his 59th place finish a year ago.

Ben Silverman from Thornhill, Ont., is T15 (-4) after a 1-over par 73 in round three.

Calgary’s Ryan Yip carded a 2-under par 70 on Saturday to move into T30.

For the full leaderboard click here.

Rafa Cabrera Bello shot a 5-under 65 on Saturday to join Ben Crane and Stewart Cink in a three-way tie for the lead after three rounds at the St. Jude Classic.

Cabrera Bello, a 33-year-old from Spain, has four international victories, but has never won on the PGA Tour. He’s 30th in the World Golf Ranking.

Crane shot a 68 while Cink had a 69 to tie Cabrera Bello at 9-under 201.

The 44-year-old Cink has gradually improved his game since missing several weeks last year to help care for his wife Lisa, who was diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer. He qualified for the U.S. Open on Monday in Ohio and has now had three solid rounds at the par-70 TPC Southwind course to contend for his first victory since winning the 2009 British Open.

He had a good start on Saturday, with birdies on three of his first five holes. He opened up a three shot lead at 11-under after a seven-foot birdie putt on No. 5, but dropped back to the field after three bogeys on the back nine.

Crane won the St. Jude Classic in 2014.

Luke List and Chad Campbell both shot a 66 and are one stroke behind the leaders. List made two eagles on the back nine to vault into contention.

Campbell, who recently turned 43, hasn’t won a tournament since the 2007 Viking Classic. He started Saturday five shots back of the leaders, but charged up the leaderboard with five birdies and only one bogey.

Chez Reavie, Charl Schwartzel and Sebastian Munoz started the third round with a one shot lead over Cink, but all of them struggled. Reavie is still in contention after shooting a 72 and is tied with Matt Jones and Kevin Chappell at 7-under, two shots behind the leaders.

Schwartzel shot a 74 and Munoz a 75.

Brantford, Ont., native David Hearn is T9 after a 3-under par 67. He’s 6-over par three shots back of Cabrera Bello

For the full leaderboard click here.

Brittany Marchand is making the most of her first weekend appearance at an LPGA Tour event. Fellow Canadians Alena Sharp and Brooke Henderson are right in the mix too.

Marchand had a 67 Saturday at the Manulife LPGA Classic to move five shots behind third-round leader Lexi Thompson of the United States, who closed with a birdie for a 67 to move to 17-under-par 199.

Sharp, who started the day in a three-way tie for the lead with Thompson and South Korea’s Hyo Joo Kim, shot a 70 to sit three shots off the pace. Henderson was also within striking distance after a 68 left her seven strokes behind.

“It was good to get through this round,” Sharp said. “I didn’t hit it as great as I would have liked to but my putter saved me. I had a lot of up and downs.”

American Lindy Duncan was alone in second place at 16 under and South Korea’s In Gee Chun was two shots off the lead at 15 under.

Marchand, a Symetra Tour player from Orangeville, Ont., wasn’t intimidated despite playing with world No. 2 Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand, who was tied with Sharp in fourth place after a 65.

“I felt like I would probably be nervous today and I actually felt a lot more comfortable than I expected,” Marchand said. “I think that’s a good sign for tomorrow.”

Five early birdies helped Marchand to a blistering 31 on the front nine in warm, breezy conditions at Whistle Bear Golf Club. On the back nine, she bogeyed No. 10 but got the stroke back with a birdie on the 13th hole.

Henderson, from Smiths Falls, Ont., kept herself in the mix despite opening with a bogey. She followed that hiccup with two straight birdies and played bogey-free golf from there.

“I started out a little bit shaky and got a little bit shaky in the middle,” Henderson said. “I made a lot of birdies to compensate.”

This was new territory for Sharp, who’s from nearby Hamilton. It was the first time in her 12-year LPGA Tour career that she has been the leader or co-leader after 36 holes – a span of 246 starts.

Marchand, meanwhile, is playing on a sponsor exemption. She’s coming off a season-best 15th-place result at last week’s Fuccillo Kia Classic of New York on the lower-level Symetra Tour.

She earned US$1,749 for that result. The 24-year-old will be in line to earn much more than that on Sunday.

"This experience has helped me believe that I belong here” – Canadian & @ROAD2LPGA member @Britt_Marchand is currently T9 @ManulifeClassic pic.twitter.com/V6G8154g8l

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 10, 2017

A victory here would give her Category 7 status on the LPGA Tour and a likely spot in the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship later this month.

Marchand has also played at the U.S. Women’s Open and the Canadian Open over her career. This is the first time she has made a cut in six career appearances on the LPGA Tour.

The 2012 Ontario Women’s Amateur champion played at the collegiate level with North Carolina State University.

For the full leaderboard click here.

After starting the final round in a tie for seventh Montreal, Que., native Joey Savoie finished T2 at 1-under par at the Monroe Invitational in Pittsford, N.Y.

Savoie carded a 2-under par 67 in the fourth round at Monroe Golf Club to finish one stroke behind winner Derek Bard (New Hartford, N.Y).

A senior at Middle Tennessee University Savoie had a 72.1 stroke average this season with the Blue Raiders.

In a field that included 11 Canadians, Garret Rank (Elmira, Ont.) was the next highest on the leaderboard. Rank finished T12 at 4-over par after a final round 70 (+1). Rank was in a tie for fourth after 36 holes, but a 6-over par 75 in round three derailed his chances.

Josh Whalen (Napanee, Ont.) carded a 73 (+4) in the fourth round to finish T15 at 5-over par.

Team Canada Development Squad member A.J. Ewart (Coquitlam, B.C.) was T27 at 9-over par, alongside Luke Moser (Waterloo, Ont.).

Austin James (Bath, Ont.) from the Team Canada Amateur Squad was T57 at 16-over par. His teammate, Hugo Bernard (Mont-St-Hilaire, Que.) was T63 (+18)

Ewart’s Development Squad teammate Peyton Callens (Langton, Ont.) was 75th at 22-over par.

For the full leaderboard click here.