Development Squad’s Chloe Currie carded a 3-over-par 75 in the final round of the Investors Group Ontario Women’s Amateur finish T5 at 9 over par at Galt Country Club in Cambridge, Ont.

The Mississauga, Ont., had had three birdie, and six bogeys to finish 10 shots back Kesley Sear from Unionville, Ont., who won at 2 over par.

Sear carded a 2-over-par 70 in Friday’s final round, the lowest score of the day.

Madeline Marck-Sherk from Ridgeway, Ont., was second at 3 over par after a final round 71 (-1).

Another Mississauga resident Michelle Ruiz was third at 9 over par.

Currie, 17, is in her second year on the Team Canada Development Squad. She was T5 at the 2017 Future Links driven by Acura Ontario Championship earlier this year.

Maple, Ont., native Alyssa DiMarcantonio was fourth 10 over par. Rounding out the top-five was Mitchell, Ont., native Courtney Tolton who was T5 with Currie at 12 over par.

Currie’s Development Squad teammate Monet Chun is T32 at 27 over par – carding an 11 over par 83 in round three.

Click here for the full leaderboard.

Patrick Rodgers shot a 7-under 64 on Friday to take a two-shot lead after the second round of the John Deere Classic.

Rodgers had eight birdies and a bogey to finish at 13-under 129 at TPC Deere Run. Finishing on the front nine, he had five birdies in a seven-hole stretch before closing with a bogey on the par-4 ninth.

“It was nice to keep making birdies and keep the gas pedal down,” Rodgers said. “It was tricky with some breeze, but I know 13 under is not going to win the golf tournament. So, I got to keep that same mindset for the next two rounds.”

Bryson DeChambeau was second after a 65.

Local favourite Zach Johnson, the 2012 winner, had a 67 to join Charles Howell III, the co-leader after the first round, at 10 under. Howell followed his opening 63 with a 69.

Kevin Tway (63), Chesson Hadley (64), Chad Campbell (68) and J.J. Henry (64) were 9 under.

Tway had nine birdies in a 10-hole stretch en route to the best round of the day.

Hadley is coming off a victory Sunday in the Web.com Tour event in New York.

Rodgers, the 25-year-old former Stanford star who is winless on the PGA Tour, has followed the formula that many players have used to win at TPC Deere Run _ converting makeable birdies and largely avoiding mistakes.

Rodgers also made his fair share of tough shots, notably chipping in from 50 feet on the par-3 third hole and holing a 50-foot birdie putt on the seventh hole.

“I put together a really nice round. Was very much in control. Rolled in some nice putts and stayed very patient,” Rodgers said.

DeChambeau, who was just above the FedEx Cup playoff cut line entering the weekend, survived a pair of early bogeys to grab second place.

Tway was struggling to stay above the cut line when he went on his birdie binge, making seven in a row at one point. But Tway’s tee shot on his 17th hole found the rough and he was forced to settle for a bogey.

Tway’s round, the best of his career, was highlighted by a 28-foot birdie putt on the forgiving third hole.

“I was kind of hoping it would never stop,” Tway said. “You’ve got to make a lot of birdies around here.”

Hadley said after his bogey-free round that he felt like he was playing with “house money” after wrapping up a PGA Tour for next season card last week.

“I’ve been heading in the right direction for a while, and I think it kind of starts with your attitude, how you think about and handle things,” Hadley said. “So I kind of finally got that right, and then everything came together last week obviously.”

First-round co-leader Ollie Schniederjans had a 74 to drop eight shots behind Rodgers.

Two-time Masters champion Bubba Watson shot a 70 to make the cut at 3 under, as did Davis Love III (68). Three-time tournament winner Steve Stricker (67) made the cut on the number at 2 under.

Defending champion Ryan Moore shot a 71 and missed the cut, finishing at 3 over after two rounds. Moore missed the previous five weeks with a left shoulder injury.

Click here for the full leaderboard.

Shanshan Feng opened a two-shot lead Friday after two rounds of a U.S. Women’s Open that got its first visit from a sitting president.

Fresh from a Bastille Day celebration in Paris, President Donald Trump pulled into his Trump National Golf Club around 3:40 p.m., visited his president’s box next to the 14th green less than two hours later and played to the crowd, waving at the fans, giving them the thumbs up and pumping his fist.

That’s what a president can do for crowds not used to being within a 100 yards of one. Many critics of the president had hoped he would stay away from the $5 million tournament because of his comments about women and the fear that he would steal the spotlight.

Only three sitting presidents have attended USGA events with Warren G. Harding (1921) and Bill Clinton (1997) going to the U.S. Open.

Feng was the star on the course for the second straight day. The 27-year-old Chinese player shot a 2-under 70 and had a 36-hole total of 8-under 136 on the 6,732-yard course that played even longer because of rain over the past two days.

“My putting is really working. I’ve had two good rounds and I just hope to keep doing the same thing” – Shanshan Feng at #uswomensopen pic.twitter.com/Gc27b86Boi

— LPGA (@LPGA) July 14, 2017

Amy Yang of South Korea continued her good play in the Women’s Open and remained in second place, although her deficit grew to two shots after a 71. Yang has four top-five finishes in this event in the past five years.

Jeongeung Lee, who has had a win and 10 top-10 finishes on the KLPGA Tour, shared second after posting a second straight 69.

Lee uses the “6” after her first name because there are six other South Korean players with the same name.

Hye-Jin Choice, a 17-year-old from South Korea who is the world’s second-ranked amateur, also was at 6-under after a second straight 69. She was tied with Feng at 8 under after 15 holes, but bogeyed two of her next three holes to fall back.

Seon Woo Bae, a winner in South Korea last year, was alone in fifth place at 5 under after a 69.

Top-ranked So Yeon Ryu (72) and 2015 winner In Gee Chun (70) topped the group at 4 under, while Marina Alex (70) of Wayne, New Jersey was the top American at 3 under. Lydia Ko (73) and Smiths Falls, Ont., native Brooke Henderson (71) also were 3 under.

"I'm a few shots back. Hopefully I can make that up the next 2 days & put myself in contention on Sunday” — Brooke Henderson #uswomensopen pic.twitter.com/7VCYHZGntg

— LPGA (@LPGA) July 14, 2017

Hamilton’s Alena Sharp and Maddie Szeryk of London, Ont., did not make the cut.

Earlier in the day, 2014 winner Michelle Wie withdrew because of a neck injury. She shot a 73 on Thursday and stopped on her second hole the next day.

Among those missing the cut at 2 over were Brittany Lincicome, who said two weeks ago that Trump should not attend the tournament so the focus would be on the golfers, and Danielle Kang, who two weeks ago won the KPMG Women’s PGA. Second-ranked Ariya Jutanugarn and two-time Open champion Inbee Park also missed the cut.

Click here for the full leaderboard.

Golf Canada concludes its 2017 Future Links championship season as the Future Links, driven by Acura Atlantic Championship is ready to take place at Clare Golf and Country Club from July 17-20.

With support from the Nova Scotia Golf Association, the Future Links, driven by Acura Atlantic Championship is the final regional junior championship presented in partnership with Acura this season. The 54-hole stroke play tournament will begin with a practice round on July 17 before the tournament gets underway with round one on July 18.

Founded in 1967, Clare Golf and Country Club will be hosting its first ever Future Links Championship. Overlooking St. Mary’s Bay, the course offers a challenging layout for golfers of all abilities and possesses a full variety of holes with distinctive character and beauty.

“Golf Canada and the Nova Scotia Golf Association are excited to present the 2017 Future Links, driven by Acura Atlantic Championship in Church Point,” said David Campbell, Tournament Director. “The beautiful setting here at Clare Golf and Country Club will pose a tough test for Canada’s premier junior golfers and give them an opportunity to showcase their skills against the strongest junior golfers in Atlantic Canada.”

The field will consist of 76 junior golfers in the Junior Boys Division with the top six earning exemptions into the 2017 Canadian Junior Boys Championship on July 31-Aug. 3 at Cataraqui Golf & Country Club in Kingston, Ont. A tie for the sixth position will be decided by a playoff following the conclusion of play.

The Junior Girls Division will consist of 22 golfers with the top six (including ties) earning an exemption into the 2017 Canadian Junior Girls Championship on Aug. 1-4 at Camelot Golf & Country Club in Cumberland, Ont.

On July 17, the U.S. Men’s Amateur Qualifier will take place at Granite Golf Club in Stouffville, Ont., while the U.S. Women’s Amateur Qualifier will be hosted by Richmond Country Club in Richmond, B.C.

The current fields consist of 75 men and 17 women competing against each other at their respective qualifiers for a chance to play in the U.S. Men’s Amateur Championship at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif., from Aug. 14-20 and the U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship at San Diego Country Club in Chula Vista, Calif., from Aug. 7-13.

The men will navigate the gentle rolling countryside of Granite Golf Club, which borders a protected wildlife habitat, that was designed by Canadian golf architect Thomas McBroom. Over at Richmond Country Club, the women will take on one of B.C.’s premiere golf venues set within the greenbelt of the agricultural land reserve.

Highlighting the men’s field is Canada’s top ranked amateur golfer Garrett Rank (No. 90) from Elmira, Ont. In 2016, the 29-year-old won his third consecutive Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship and finished T2 at the Sunnehanna Amateur Tournament for Champions.

Also in the men’s competition is 21-year-old Matt Lemay who plays for the Georgian Grizzlies. This season, he won the bronze medal at the PING CCAA Golf National Championships and lead his school team to a silver medal at the OCAA Championships. Back in 2014, he walked away with the Ontario Junior Boys Championship title.

In the women’s contest, Surrey, B.C.’s Michelle Kim leads all Canadians in the field. The 19-year-old is the highest ranked Canadian participant on the World Amateur Golf Rankings at No. 357. Kim is fresh off a T3 finish at the B.C. Women’s Amateur Championship at the end of June, and in 2015 she won the Canadian Girls Championship, the B.C. Junior Girls Championship and the B.C. Women’s Amateur Championship.

Representing Team Canada’s Development squad is 18-year-old Mary Parsons who successfully defended her 2016 title at the Future Links, driven by Acura Pacific Championship in May. The Delta, B.C. product had four victories in 2016 and finished third at the Canadian Junior Girls Championship.

More information – including tee times – on the Men’s and Women’s Qualifiers.

FERNIE, B.C. – Logan Carver rebounded after a sloppy start to edge the competition in the final holes while Angela Zhang won the girls division at the Future Links, driven by Acura Western Championship at Fernie Golf and Country Club on Thursday.

Carver shot a 3-over-par 73 to complete his wire-to-wire victory by one stroke. The 18-year-old, who held the lead through the first two rounds, recorded four bogeys on the front nine and two more immediately after making the turn to fall three strokes behind both Ty Steinbring and Ethan Choi.

Carver capitalized on late mistakes by the other two boys and finished the tournament going birdie-birdie and scraping out the victory.

Choi (Pincher Creek, Alta.) and Steinbring (Barrhead, Alta.) looked like they were clear of Carver heading down the stretch, but Choi carded two bogeys in his final four holes and Steinbring fell down the leaderboard due to a triple bogey on the 15th hole, opening the door for Carver’s dramatic finish.

Choi carded a final-round 72 to secure his second-place finish while Steinbring shot a 4-over-par 74 to finish in third, two strokes back of Carver.

Rounding out the top six finishers in the boys division who earned exemptions into the 2017 Canadian Junior Boys Championship on July 31-Aug. 3 at Cataraqui Golf and Country Club in Kingston, Ont., are: Bennett Ruby (Waterloo, Ont.), Hunter Thompson (Calgary, Alta.) and Michael Valk (Medicine Hat, Alta.).
Zhang shot a 1-under-par 71 to lock up the girls division and win her first Future Links, driven by Acura event.

The 15-year-old Vancouver native was leading after the first round on Tuesday, but she entered Thursday one shot back of Claire Lovan of Surrey, B.C. Zhang got off to a good start going bogey-free on the front nine and managed to hold off Lovan’s late surge to come away with a two-stroke victory.

Lovan, also 15, struggled to start her final round and carded two bogeys and a double bogey on holes four, five and six. After she made the turn, Lovan managed to close out her round bogey free and dropped in two birdies during her last four holes, but the push was too late to catch Zhang.

Rounding out the top six earning exemptions to the 2017 Canadian Junior Girls Champions on Aug. 1-4 at Camelot Golf & Country Club in Cumberland, Ont., are: Sydney Scraba (Calgary, Atla.), Tillie Claggett (Calgary, Alta.), Taylor Stone (Calgary, Alta.) and Stephanie Chelack (Calgary, Alta.).

Shanshan Feng had her best round in the U.S. Women’s Open, and the first-round lead.

Afternoon rain and lightning forced officials to suspend play for more than two hours Thursday in the biggest event in women’s golf, and play was stopped because of darkness with 39 players still on the course. They will return early Friday to complete the round at Trump National Golf Course.

The weather was the only hitch for the players and the USGA, which took a lot of criticism for failing to move the $5 million event to another course after comments by President Donald Trump about women.

Despite fears of protests, Day 1 was uneventful.

There were no demonstrators. The golf was excellent and Feng was outstanding, shooting a 6-under 66 in a tournament in which she has rarely played well in her 10 seasons as a professional in the United States. It marked the first time the 27-year-old from China broke 70 in 42 Open rounds.

Amy Yang of South Korea, who has had two seconds, a third and a fourth in this event in the last five years, was a shot behind.

"I felt so comfortable out there" @shanshanfengCHN after carding a 6-under 66 at the #USWomensOpen pic.twitter.com/FpDh2D240D

— LPGA (@LPGA) July 13, 2017

Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., is the top Canadian with a 2-under 70. Amateur Maddie Szeryk of London, Ont., is even while Hamilton’s Alena Sharp opened with a 4-over 76.

Lydia Ko of New Zealand played in the same threesome with Feng and was tied for third at 68 with top-ranked So Yeon Ryu of South Korea.

Carlota Ciganda also was 4 under with a hole left. She would have to eagle the par-5 18th to get a share of the lead.

Former Open winner Cristie Kerr, who played with back spasms, and Megan Khang were the best U.S. finishers at 69.

Feng, who has never finished better than fourth in the Open (2012), started her round on the 10th hole and played the back side in 5 under, rolling in five birdies. She added another at No. 1 and then parred her last eight holes.

“I started the round very great,” said Feng, who lipped out on two birdie putts on her final nine. “I mean I had three birdies in the first four holes and then after that I mean I just felt so comfortable about everything.”

Feng had to push it to get to Trump National. She played in a tournament in China that was run by her sponsor last week and her flight to Beijing was delayed. She did not arrive in New Jersey until around noon Monday, and did more sleeping than playing over the next three days.

Everything worked out Thursday.

“I just had a great day so hopefully the next three days that I can perform well also and let’s see what happens,” said Feng, who has a win and three other top-10 finishes this season.

Feng was the hottest player on the tour at the end of last year, winning her last two starts and finishing eighth or better in her final seven events. She won the major LPGA Championship in 2012 for the first of her seven LPGA Tour titles.

Yang had six birdies and a bogey in her round. She took advantage of the back nine, playing it in 4 under.

The 27-year-old who now calls Orlando, Florida, home, refused to say this would be the year she won the Open.

“I’ll keep trying,” she said. “I’m playing good, you know, played good lately and I’m hitting the ball solid and making some putts, you know. I’m going to do same things, you know, next three days and see what happened.”

Ko, who had the lead going into the final round last year, was tied with Feng at 6 under after 13 holes. She bogeyed her 14th and then the last.

Ryu, the only two-time winner on the tour this year, had four birdies. Kerr had five birdies and two bogeys.

Goodnight from the #USWomensOpen pic.twitter.com/MPOFbXKHMm

— LPGA (@LPGA) July 14, 2017

In Gee Chun, who won this event two years ago, was in a group at 70, one shot ahead of No. 3 Lexi Thompson and former No. 1 Stacy Lewis.

Amateur Rachel Heck, the 15-year-old from Memphis, Tennessee, who is the youngster player in the field, also was at 3 under with five holes to play.

Defending champion Brittany Lang had a 72 in a round where the players who teed off in the morning had the better conditions.

Michelle Wie had a 73. She was bothered by neck issues in the afternoon that required treatment on the course after the delay.

Second-ranked Ariya Jutanugarn shot 79, and seventh-ranked, two-time Open champion Inbee Park had a 77.

Click here for the full leaderboad.

Development Squad’s Chloe Currie carded a 4-over-par 76 in round three of the Investors Group Ontario Women’s Amateur to sit T5 at 9 over par through three rounds at Galt Country Club in Cambridge, Ont.

The Mississauga, Ont., had had one birdie, three bogeys,  and a double-bogey to shoot 76 for the second consecutive day and sit five shots back of Ridgeway, Ont., native Madeline Marck-Sherk and Kesley Sear from Unionville, Ont., who share the lead at 4 over par.

Marck-Sherk carded a 7-over-par 78 in round three, and Sear posted a 2-over-par 73, the lowest score of the day, in wet and tough conditions that led to play being suspended early on for a few hours.

Currie, 17, is in her second year on the Team Canada Development Squad. She was T5 at the 2017 Future Links driven by Acura Ontario Championship earlier this year.

Mitchell, Ont., native Courtney Tolton is T3 at 8 over par alongside Victoria Zheng from Markham, Ont.

Rounding out the top-five is another Mississauga resident Michelle Ruiz who is tied for fifth with Currie at 9 over par.

Currie’s Development Squad teammate Monet Chun is T22 at 18 over par – carding an 11 over par 83 in round three.

Click here for the full leaderboard.

Charles Howell III and Ollie Schniederjans each shot 8-under 63 on Thursday to share the first-round lead in the John Deere Classic.

Playing alongside local favourite Zach Johnson, Howell birdied seven his first nine holes and added a birdie on No. 7 in his morning round at rain-softened TPC Deere Run. The two-time PGA Tour winner lost a playoff to Kyle Stanley two weeks ago in the Quicken Loans National.

“This morning without traffic, they were rolling like carpet,” Howell said. “This morning was absolutely the best scoring we’ll see all week, which would also lead me to believe that tomorrow morning you’re going to see some low scores as well. Here, it’s about minimizing bogeys as much as you can and take advantage of the holes that you need to.”

Schniederjans birdied five of his last eight holes in his lowest round of the PGA Tour. The 24-year-old former Georgia Tech star earned a PGA Tour card last year through the Web.com Tour.

“I haven’t had a great start really all year on the first round,” Schniederjans said. “I have had some decent first rounds and good Fridays, but this is the first really goof round I’ve had on Thursday. It’s nice to get off to a good start and hopefully keep it going.”

Johnson was two strokes back at 65 along with Rory Sabbatini, Patrick Rodgers and Chad Campbell. Johnson, from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, won the 2012 tournament.

“With this Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday rain we had, it’s one of those you feel like you got to keep the pedal down,” Johnson said. “The course is still nice. I was surprised we didn’t play it up today. I technically only had 1 1/2 mud balls probably, so that was pretty good considering.”

He holed a 24-foot birdie putt on his second-to-last hole to get within two strokes.

“I’m very comfortable with this golf course, essentially any condition,” Johnson said. “All that being said, you still have to execute. (Thursday) was one of those good days.”

Howell and Schniederjans are coming off injuries.

.@Ollie_GT has all the shots. #QuickHits

Proof: pic.twitter.com/kNCKanTqtE

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) July 13, 2017

“I had nine weeks off prior to the Quicken Loans with a rib injury, and it was my first injury – knock on wood – I’ve had in my career,” said Howell, making his 11th at Deere Run. “I went to Quicken Loans quite honestly not prepared to play well. I had only been hitting balls for four or five days prior to that event. Expectations were extremely low and I played well.”

Schniederjans has been fighting a pulled muscle in his back since Colonial in late May.

“It kind of lingered and I tried to play through it, and then ended up taking like 15 days off without hitting a ball and still is sort of there,” Schniederjans. “Kind of have to have maintenance. … It’s been fine the last three weeks, but my game has been getting better as the days have gone on, too.”

David Hearn of Brantford, Ont., is the top Canadian after shooting an even 71. Ottawa’s Brad Fritsch is 1 over while Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, B.C., shot a 5-over 76.

Bubba Wastson, the two-time Masters making his first Quad Cities start in seven years, opened with a 69. Fifty-year-old Steve Stricker, the winner from 2009-11 at Deere Run, had a 73.

Defending champion Ryan Moore had a 74 in his return from a strained tendon in his left shoulder that sidelined him for five weeks.

The British Open is holding one spot for the leading player among the top five who is not already exempt next week at Royal Birkdale.

Click here for the full leaderboard.

Fulton, Mississippi’s Chad Ramey shot a 6-under 66 at Whitewater Golf Club before first round play was suspended due to inclement weather at the Staal Foundation Open presented by Tbaytel, the fifth event of the 2017 Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada season.

The 24-year old carded seven birdies and one bogey to reach 6-under, one ahead of Rancho Cucamonga’s Rico Coey, Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida’s Tyler McCumber and Atherton, California’s Jonathan Garrick.

“My putter got hot. I made about three putts in a row that were pretty good,” said Ramey, who finished his day by hitting a bunker shot to within two feet at the ninth hole – his last of the day – to save par and post the lead at 66.

Rain fell for most of the morning, making scoring a challenge before play was halted at 1:34 p.m. due to unplayable conditions. Round one play was called for the day at 5 p.m. and will resume with players in position at 8 a.m. on Friday morning.

“The main thing is staying dry, and staying patient,” said Ramey on his approach in dealing with the rain. “Overall, 6-under in those conditions? I’d take it every day.”

Hoey, who finished tied for sixth last week at the Players Cup, managed six birdies and one bogey to share second with McCumber, the son of 10-time PGA TOUR winner Mark McCumber, and Garrick, who still had two holes remaining in his first round.

“I feel really happy. I knew that the rain was going to come, so I took the opportunities early in the round and made some putts. I’m glad I shot 5-under,” said Hoey.

This may not be Southern California weather, but that's no problem for @RicoHoey.

He cards a 5-under 67 in the rain to lead early on. pic.twitter.com/9eHZzqJdUh

— Mackenzie Tour (@PGATOURCanada) July 13, 2017

The four-time NCAA All-American recently graduated from USC and was consistently ranked among the top 20 players in the World Amateur Golf Ranking during his Senior season.

Ramey is in his first season on the Mackenzie Tour, having earned exempt status for the first eight events of the year at the USA East #2 Q-School this spring.

In four starts so far, he’s made two cuts and ranks 90^th on the Order of Merit.

The 24-year old played college golf at Mississippi State and came to the Mackenzie Tour partly in thanks to encouragement from 2013 Players Cup winner Carlos Sainz, Jr., a fellow Mississippi State alum.

“I talked to [Carlos Sainz, Jr.] a good bit. He played on the Mackenzie Tour last year too, and plans on playing again this year. He said it’s a great Tour and he’s loved it, and kind of persuaded me into doing it,” said Ramey after earning his card at Q-School.

Click here for the full leaderboard.