TORONTO – Golf Canada, along with leading fan engagement company Stadium Digital, today announced the re-launch of golfcanada.ca.

The new platform introduces the roll out of a responsive national website network across Canada’s provincial golf associations, beginning with albertagolf.org. The digital home for the national sport federation is the go-to destination for millions of Canadian golfers and 1,400-member golf clubs across the country.

Developed and powered by Canadian sports technology leader, Stadium Digital, the bilingual platform features a dynamic new content hub to share Canadian golf news, information and highlights of Golf Canada’s slate of championships, programs and services for golfers and member clubs. The sites also feature original content to showcase the next generation of Canadian rising stars as well as informative articles for golf enthusiasts from coast to coast.

“The launch of our new bilingual digital network is an important evolution in golfer engagement for Golf Canada and our provincial associations, allowing us to go well beyond our previous capabilities,” said Golf Canada Interim CEO Jeff Thompson. “Stadium Digital’s network infrastructure platform gives us the much-needed scale so we can connect with our golfers, fans, partners and sponsors in a much more meaningful way.”

The digital network development was supported in part by a grant through the Canadian Olympic Committee’s (COC) National Sport Federation (NSF) Enhancement Fund. The program was devised to assist NSFs in the creation of efficiencies and enhancements that could benefit other sport federations.

“We are thrilled to see Golf Canada develop this innovative digital network to engage with golf enthusiasts across Canada,” says Chris Overholt, Chief Executive Officer of the Canadian Olympic Committee. “The insights learned through this initiative can now be shared with other national sport federations who look to build their own platforms. This is a great example of how sport organizations can work to strengthen the system as a whole.”

The infrastructure, hosted on the Microsoft Azure Cloud Platform, allows for a streamlined interface for users across devices. While all Golf Canada digital content lives on a single network managed by Stadium Digital, the infrastructure allows provincial golf associations to customize the look of their sites and develop their own unique content and sponsorship opportunities to serve local golfers and clubs.

Highlights of the new digital network include:

• New content hub & video player with full integration of on-demand video
• Standardized look for teams & championships
• Content sharing across all provincial golf associations
• Improved member & golf club services
• New national & local sponsorship opportunities
• Bilingual engagement
• Improved discovery of original content – video, photos & stories
• Enhanced navigation capabilities

“This is an exciting new era for golf in Canada with so many dynamic young players and a growing number of members and marquee events,” said Mark Silver, President of Stadium Digital. “It has been wonderful working with the team at Golf Canada and the provincial golf associations to develop a new platform and content hub to serve golf lovers and fuel Canada’s passion for golf for years to come.”

Stadium Digital has confirmed that work is already underway to build other Canadian provincial golf associations into the platform and that they are ultimately planning to extend the model to other national sports associations.

AVONDALE, La. – PGA Tour star Jason Day expects to arrive in Augusta, Georgia, on Friday to start practicing for the Masters, but said he could pull still out of the season’s first major, depending on his mother’s prognosis following surgery for lung cancer last week.

“Obviously, I’m still nervous because we’re still waiting to see … if it has spread or not,” said Day, who spoke Monday on a video conference set up by organizers of the PGA Tour’s Zurich Classic in late April. “From there, we have to kind of come up with a game plan whether to go chemo – a form of chemo radiation – or something else.

“It’s still kind of a bit of an emotional time for me,” added Day, whose father, Alvin, died of cancer when he was 12. “Obviously, I’ve been hanging out with my mom a bit and seeing her and she’s recovering well. She’s a tough lady, but it’s hard because I look at her and she’s on the pain killers and all that stuff, what she needs to do to recover … but I can’t help but think of my dad when I see her in that situation.”

The world’s third-ranked golfer revealed that his mother, Dening, has cancer after withdrawing from the Dell Technologies Match Play in Austin, Texas, last Wednesday. Day has said the initial diagnosis came in Australia at the beginning of this year and that she had scheduled surgery in Columbus, Ohio, late last week.

Day said Monday that doctors deemed the surgery successful, and now the family awaits results of tests to see if cancer is present in Dening Day’s lymph nodes.

“My mom told me not to worry about it,” Day said. “It’s hard to do that. It’s easy to say … but it’s really, really difficult. So currently I’m scheduled to play Augusta … but if things don’t come back the way we want them, I don’t know what’s going to happen.”

Day said he “hasn’t touched a golf club at all” in the days since joining his joining his mother in Ohio last week.

“It’s very, very difficult to even think about playing golf when a loved one is going through such a traumatic experience,” Day said. “Once I get past this initial stage, hopefully I’ll find some balance and I’ll be able to kind of move on and really focus on getting my game back.

“Unfortunately, I’m human. I like to feel like I’m always on it, I’m always … ready to go and trying to compete and I want to get back to that stage, but sometimes it’s very, very difficult.”

Day also is scheduled to participate in the Zurich Classic, which runs from April 27-30 and has changed to an unusual format featuring 80 two-player teams, with player picking their own partners. Teams will alternate shots in the first and third rounds and play best ball in the second and final rounds.

Day joked that he was enthusiastic about the new format as soon as Rickie Fowler agreed to be his teammate. He added that, as much as he respects tradition, golf needs to do a better job capturing younger viewers.

“Golf is kind of in a limbo stage right now. We’ve got to somehow be able to keep it traditional but also add some format play that makes it interesting and makes people want to watch the PGA Tour on a regular basis,” Day said. “This is kind of the first step in a direction that potentially could change the way we look at traditional stroke-play events.”

The pairing of Day and Fowler will make them favourites at the par-72 TPC Louisiana outside New Orleans. Other teams of note include Justin Rose with Henrik Stenson; Branden Grace with fellow South African Louis Oosthuizen; Bubba Watson with J.B. Holmes; Justin Thomas with Bud Cauley, who both played golf for Alabama; and Jason Dufner and Patton Kizzire, who played for Auburn.

Defending Zurich Classic champion Brian Stuard is paired with Chris Stroud.

The last time a PGA Tour event featured team play was the 1981 Disney Classic.

BEAUMONT, CALIFORNIA, March 26, 2017 – Daniela Darquea (Quito, Ecuador) holed out for eagle on the 13th and drained birdie on 18 to win the IOA Championship by three shots with a final-round 5-under, 67 on Sunday. She finished with a three-day total of 12-under, 204, the lowest winning score in the three years at Morongo Golf Club at Tukwet Canyon.

Darquea’s victory is historic as she becomes the first player in the history of the Symetra Tour or the LPGA from Ecuador to win. 

“It’s such a special feeling knowing that kids in Ecuador can look up to someone and say ‘I can play golf and be successful’,” explained an emotional Darquea. “Golf is not a very popular sport in Ecuador so this is so special and really important to me.”

Darquea nets a first-place check of $15,000 and moves to second on the new Volvik Race for the Card 

money list. Olivia Jordan-Higgins, who withdrew from the IOA Championship, remains in the top spot. Darquea has earned a total of $16,783 through two weeks. 

Darquea, who entered the day in a share of the lead, made the turn at 2-under for the day and had a share of the lead early on the back nine. On the 13th hole, she holed out for eagle from 130 yards out in the fairway to grab a two shot lead. 

“It is one of the toughest holes on the course and I was in the fairway and hit my 9-iron and the ball bounced on the front edge of the green and the second bounce hit the pin and went in,” explained Darquea. “I couldn’t see from where I was, but everyone on the green started screaming so it was really cool.”

Darquea made four straight pars and then stuck her approach on 18 to five feet and put an exclamation on the win with a birdie. 

“I was nervous and my hands were shaking, but that is pretty much why I play golf,” said Darquea about the last putt. “Thank god the ball went in.”

Darquea earned partial LPGA status through Qualifying Tournament by finishing T29. She actually won Stage I of Q-School in the area at the Dinah Shore Courses in Rancho Mirage. She isn’t sure how many LPGA events she will play, but is thoroughly enjoying her time on the Symetra Tour.

“I didn’t really expect to win this quick,” said Darquea, who finished T17 at the season opener. “I just love to play golf and compete and I’m super about this.”

Benyapa Niphatsophon (Bangkok, Thailand) and Team Canada Young Pro Squad member Anne-Catherine Tanguay (Quebec, Canada) shared second place at 9-under, 207. 

The Tour heads to Mesa, Arizona next week for the Gateway Classic at Longbow Golf Club. The event runs Thursday, March 30 through Sunday, April 1. 

8-YEAR LPGA VET AND FORMER GRADUATE NEARLY COMES FROM BEHIND: Alison Walshe (Westford, Mass.) graduated from the Symetra Tour to the LPGA in 2009 and has been on the big tour for the last eight years. She struggled last year and plans to play some Symetra Tour to supplement the LPGA events she’s able to get in.

On Sunday, she put together a blistering 6-under, 66 to move from T19 to a tie for fourth. She actually moved into the lead midday through the day. 

“The first few days, I was grinding it out because of my driving, I was really slicing it,” explained Walshe, who carded a 70-72 on the first two days. “I called my coach and a few people and I was like ‘any thought will help right now’ and I was able to sort it out and play more aggressive today.”

The perfect example came on the par-5 fourth. She sliced the ball in the bunker off the tee on Saturday and made bogey. On Sunday, she was on in two and made eagle. 

“I hit my driver well and was able to reach the green in two today and was about 12-15 feet,” said Walshe. “I made a good putt there and that was big.”

Walshe has five career top 10 finishes on the LPGA Tour. She isn’t 100 percent sure how her schedule will align this year. She will play next week on the Symetra Tour at the Gateway Classic at Longbow Golf Club. 

“I came into the beginning of the year trying to go to a couple Mondays (Monday Qualifiers) and see what my little bit of status will get me in (on the LPGA),” said Walshe. “I’m going to kind of go by feel. The last few years, I’ve kind of just played in everything and I kind of got sick of it and that is why I didn’t play well.”

Walshe recorded seven top 10 finishes in 2009 on the Symetra Tour.

CARLSBAD, Calif. – Mirim Lee took the lead into the final round of the Kia Classic two years ago and was overhauled by Cristie Kerr, who won with a tournament record of 20-under.

Lee had the 54-hole lead again this year, and she wasn’t about to let anyone catch her.

Lee, of South Korea, shot a 7-under 65 to win by six strokes Sunday and tie Kerr’s tournament record.

It was her third LPGA Tour victory and first since winning two titles in 2014, her rookie year.

She played a bogey-free round at Aviara, with birdies on each of the odd-numbered holes on the front nine to reach 18-under.

Lee twice just missed putts that would have put her at 21-under. She left an eagle putt short on 16 and then rolled a 40-foot birdie putt even with the hole on 18.

She was so far ahead, she wasn’t tempted to think about the lead she lost in 2015.

“I just thought I didn’t play very well at that time. Today, I tried not to think about it,” she said.

Lee was doused with water by fellow South Koreans Mi Jung Hur and In Gee Chun.

“Only the winner can enjoy the moment so it was very special,” said Lee, who came into the final hole with a one-shot lead over Hur.

If Lee wins the season’s first major next weekend, the ANA Inspiration at Mission Hills in Rancho Mirage, she can get another wet celebration – by jumping into Poppie’s Pond.

Ryu (66) and Austin Ernst (67) of Greenville, South Carolina, tied for second at 14-under.

Kerr (70) was in a group of five at 12-under. Calgary’s Jennifer Ha (69) tied for 49th at 2 under.

Lee “was at 20-under. I knew at that point you’re basically playing for second place unless she does something coming down the stretch,” Ernst said. “I think Mirim had a good lead all day. She played really good golf. Your entire game needs to be solid here.”

Said Ryu: “It’s really great to see Korean players keep playing well. Also, I always feel very proud to see many Korean companies sponsoring the LPGA tournament. We just have a kind of like responsibility to play well on the LPGA. Hopefully a lot of fans are having a lot fun to watch her play. Yeah, if another Korean girl is going to win the tournament, hopefully next one is going to be me.”

RIO GRANDE, Puerto Rico – D.A. Points was never better at the start, and good enough at the end.

Points opened the final round of the Puerto Rico Open with five straight birdies, and then overcame a rugged stretch by saving pars and piling up enough birdies for a 6-under 66 on Sunday and a two-shot victory.

It was the third PGA Tour victory of his career, and felt just as sweet as when he won at Pebble Beach with Bill Murray as his partner, and four years ago at the Houston Open to get to the Masters.

This won’t send him to Augusta National because it was played opposite a World Golf Championship. It was no less important for Points, who lost his card a year ago and now has a full two-year exemption.

“I was just really proud of myself for finding some way – hitting about as low as I’ve ever been golf-wise and finding my out – and then to be able to hang in there and win today is something that I wasn’t sure if I had in me,” he said. “And I’m really proud of myself.”

Two-time U.S. Open champion Retief Goosen (64), Bill Lunde (68) and former U.S. Amateur champion Bryson DeChambeau (67) tied for second at Coco Beach Golf and Country Club.

Sam Saunders, one week after missing the cut at the first Arnold Palmer Invitational without his grandfather there as the host, closed with a 65 and tied for fifth. Also tying for fifth was former U.S. Amateur champion Peter Uihlein, who plays the European Tour and was in Puerto Rico on a sponsor’s exemption.

That sends both of them to the Houston Open next week for finishing in the top 10. Six others in the top 10 were eligible for the Houston Open, where the winner gets an invitation to the Masters.

Chris Stroud, with his first 54-hole lead as he tried to win his first PGA Tour event in 277 starts, closed with a 71 and finished four shots behind. David Hearn (68) of Brantford, Ont., tied for 17th at 14 under and Ottawa’s Brad Fritsch (67) tied for 44th at 9 under.

Points closed with a birdie to finish at 20-under 268.

“I’ve never, that I can think of, just started out with five straight birdies,” Points said. “It was just like, ‘Wow!’ I just hit in the fairway and I hit it right at the flag and tapped it in. It was pretty fun.”

And then it became a grind.

He dropped a shot at the sixth, another at the eighth and then a third bogey at No. 10 when he three-putted. But he saved par at No. 11 and faced another 5-footer for par at No. 12.

“I said, ‘If I can just make this putt, I’ve got a chance to kind of get the momentum going back the other way.’ And then I holed a nice putt on 13 and then I settled my swing down and started hitting it close again,” he said. “Golf is like that, right? You have highs and lows and rarely do you just play every hole perfect. To bounce back after kind of a rough stretch there, I’m really proud.”

Even though the victory doesn’t get him into the Masters, Points will be at The Players Championship in May and the PGA Championship in August, along with access to smaller fields like Colonial and the Memorial. And he starts out next year on Maui at the Tournament of Champions.

AUSTIN, Texas – Dustin Johnson won the Dell Technologies Match Play with more drama than he needed to cap off an otherwise dominant week that made him the first player to sweep the four World GolfChampionships.

The scorecard will show Johnson never trailed in any of his seven matches over 112 holes, ending with a 1-up victory over Jon Rahm for his third straight victory that left no doubt who was No. 1 in the world.

The look of concern, especially as Rahm made a bold charge in the final hour Sunday, spoke to a long day.

Johnson was 4 up with six holes to play when the Spanish rookie with a big game and no fear hit driver over the water and onto the 13th green to win the hole with a birdie. He stuck a wedge close on the 15th for another birdie. Rahm hit a shot through the trees on the 16th and won the hole with a 30-foot birdie.

The rematch Rahm wanted against Johnson, who held him off in Mexico City three weeks ago, ended the same way.

His big rally was a little short.

Playing the 356-yard 18th hole for the first time in competition all week, and needing a birdie to send this heavyweight bout to overtime, Rahm smashed driver over the back of the green. But his chip down the slope checked up and stayed short of the ridge, and he had to settle for par.

Johnson came up just short of the green, chipped to 30 inches and rolled in it to complete another big week.

“That was a tough day, a long day,” Johnson said. “I’m proud of the way I played, the way I hung in there.”

None of his first five matches went longer than 16 holes until Sunday, when Johnson faced the first threat of the week. Hideto Tanihara caught him with two birdies on the back nine, and Johnson needed a pitching wedge to 6 feet on the short but troublesome par-3 17th to take the lead again. Then, he had to make an 8-foot par putt to beat Tanihara and avoid extra holes.

Rahm, who dispatched of Bill Haas in the semifinals, 3 and 2, wanted to face the hottest player in golf in the championship. And for the longest time, it looked as though the 22-year-old Spaniard regretted it.

Rahm gave away three straight holes by missing par putts from 6 feet and 8 feet, and missing a birdie putt from 4 feet. Johnson stretched his lead to 5 up with yet another bogey by Rahm, and it looked as though this match might be over early.

Not so fast.

Rahm, who already is No. 14 in the world in just his 15th tournament as a pro, began chipping away. Johnson three-putted the 10th hole for the third straight match, regained momentum with a two-putt birdie on the 12th hole – Rahm hit his tee shot downhill and downwind at 438 yards, Johnson at 424 yards – and then the Spaniard began his remarkable rally that came up short.

The result was another victory for Johnson, the 15th of his career, and makes him the clear-cut favourite at the Masters in two weeks. The next stop is the Houston Open, where another victory would make him the first player since Tiger Woods in 2008 to win four straight tournaments.

? That’s a winner ?

Dustin Johnson defeats Jon Rahm 1UP to win the @DellMatchPlay for his third consecutive victory. pic.twitter.com/at1GgFeqkA

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 26, 2017

Johnson became just the second player in the 19-year history of this event to never trail the entire week. Luke Donald did it in 2001, but that was before round-robin play and so Donald played only six 18-hole matches that week.

Not only did Johnson never trail, he led in 94 per cent of the holes he played. Donald was ahead in 91 per cent of his matches.

Johnson previously won the Mexico Championship earlier this month (and Cadillac Championship at Doral in 2015), the HSBC Champions in Shanghai in 2013 and the Bridgestone Invitational last summer at Firestone.

That gives him five World Golf Championships, well short of the 18 that Woods won. Woods only played the HSBC Champions twice after it became a WGC event in 2009.

AUSTIN, Texas – Dustin Johnson finally held up his end of the bargain Sunday morning, setting up a powerful title bout in the Dell Technologies Match Play against Jon Rahm.

Johnson was forced beyond the 16th hole for the first time all week in an error-filled finish against Hideto Tanihara of Japan, and the world’s No. 1 played didn’t escape until he holed an 8-foot par putt on the 18th to preserve a 1-up victory.

Johnson headed to the championship match Sunday afternoon with a chance to become the first player to sweep the four World Golf Championships.

In his way was Rahm, the rising star from Spain who faced a tough semifinal of his own against Bill Haas before pulling away with three birdies over his last four holes for a 3-and-2 victory. Rahm has yet to play the 18th hole at Austin Country Club in competition.

Even as Johnson was locked in an unexpected battle with Tanihara, the 22-year-old Spanish rookie said he was hopeful to see Johnson in the final for what he referred to as a rematch from Mexico. Johnson won the Mexico Championship three weeks ago, but not before Rahm made a bold charge in the final round until two bogeys at the end.

A victory for Rahm would make him the youngest player to win a World Golf Championship and put him in the top 10 in the world.

Johnson hasn’t trailed in a match all week, and he has led after 89 of the 94 holes he has played.

But he finally looked beatable against Tanihara.

Johnson was 2 up at the turn when he three-putted the 10th for the second straight round. He looked as if he would lose the par-5 12th when he couldn’t reach the green from a fairway bunker and Tanihara had 18 feet for eagle. In a shocking swing, Tanihara ran it 6 feet by and three-putted for par, and Johnson pitched to 8 feet and won the hole with a birdie.

But it wasn’t a swing in momentum.

Tanihara hit two great shots, a flip wedge to a dangerous pin over the water on the 13th to 4 feet, and a long iron into the wind on the 14th to 6 feet, to win both holes and square the match. From there, Johnson appeared to be playing not to lose.

With Tanihara in trouble on the 15th, Johnson came up well short of the green with a wedge and missed a 5-foot par putt to win the hole. On the par-5 16th, Johnson missed an 8-foot birdie putt to win the hole. He finally regained the lead with a pitching wedge to 6 feet for birdie on the 17th. Even so, he made it tough on himself by leaving yet another wedge short on the 18th and having to save par for the victory.

Rahm had only trailed on one hole this week – the first he played – until Haas rolled in a 40-foot birdie putt on the third hole. Rahm used his power to make birdie on the fifth and sixth to take the lead, only for Haas to answer with a birdie on the seventh to square the match.

Haas had three straight birdie putts from the 15- to 20-foot range starting at No. 9 and couldn’t convert.

Rahm hit a bolder tee shot on the 13th that left him a short wedge that he hit to 10 feet for birdie and a 1-up lead. Haas squandered a great chance to halve the match when Rahm missed the 14th green long, hit a flop shot about 20 feet by and made bogey. From a swale short of the green, Haas chipped weakly to 15 feet and missed the putt to stay 1 down. Rahm took it from there.

Haas and Tanihara played a consolation match with $678,000 going to the winner and $545,000 for fourth place.

BEAUMONT, CALIFORNIA, March 25, 2017 – Anne-Catherine Tanguay (Quebec, Canada) and Daniela Darquea (Quito, Ecuador) made 13 total birdies while playing in the same group on Saturday and both moved into a share of the lead at 7-under, 137. Later in the day, Briana Mao (Folsom, Calif.) posted a 4-under, 68 to get to 7-under. Tanguay, who has six career top 10’s including a T10 to open the year at the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic, posted a 4-under, 68 while Darquea, a rookie playing in just her second career event, turned in a 5-under, 67. 

There are five players just one off the lead including Burbank native Emily Tubert. There are 11 players within three shots of the leaders.  

The cut was made at 2-over, 142 and 72 players will play on Sunday. The first group will tee at 7:30 a.m. while the final group of Darquea and Mao will tee at 1:10 p.m. 

“I just really got my putting going today, I made a bunch of 10 and 12 footers,” said Tanguay, who attempted 29 putts. “I made some up-and-downs on the par 5’s, which was key so overall it was a solid round.”

Tanguay decided this past offseason to stay in Florida to prepare for the season and said it was her best offseason to date. She only took about a week off.

“Two weeks before the season started, I was getting itchy to play because I’ve worked a lot on short game, chipping and putting and made some equipment changes that are helping my game,” said Tanguay. “I got some new wedges and I got some more distance off the tee with a new driver.”

Tanguay also said that she will have her boyfriend on the bag full-time this year and the duo works well on the course.

“It gets stressful sometimes on the road and it is good to have someone that helps me relax,” explained Tanguay. “He knows my game well, he knows me well and I think we make a great team on the course.”

The 26-year-old has made ten birdies against just one bogey this week. She did have a double bogey on Saturday on the 17th hole. 

Tanguay’s low finish on Tour is a tie for fourth. She’ll go for her first win on Sunday.

“My mission this year is to be a little lighter on the golf course and have more fun,” said Tanguay. “It’s definitely nice to be in this position and I’ve been here before and I know how it feels and I think I can do better this time around.”

Darquea will try to become the first player from Ecuador to ever win on the Symetra Tour. 

“I putted really well today,” said Darquea, who finished 17th in her pro debut at the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic. “On the 20-footers and in I made a lot of them, however on the really long putts I wasn’t as confident. I actually three-putted three times.”

Darquea, who took medalist honors at Stage I of LPGA Qualifying Tournament in 2016, turned professional after three seasons at Miami. 

“I’m super excited how I am playing,” said Darquea. “I love to play golf and so far the start to my 

professional career has been fun. I’m really happy that I am playing well.”

When Darquea was little, her parents bought a membership to a golf club in Quito and she started playing when she was four years old. 

“I just fell in love with the game and I couldn’t stop playing,” explained Darquea. “I went to college and then turned professional so golf has pretty much been my entire life.”

Darquea said that taking advantage of the par-5 holes will be critical on Sunday. 

Mao, who trains in Palm Desert at La Quinta PGA West, made four birdies over her first seven holes and five total for a 68. 

“I was hitting it really well and had a lot of good looks including birdie opportunities on each of the first six holes,” explained Mao. “I was feeling good going into the back nine, but just kind of lost my rhythm. I started swinging too fast and missed some fairways.”

Just like Tanguay and Darquea, Mao will also go for her first win.

“I’m going to go work on ball striking a little and then I’ll be fully prepared for Sunday,” said Mao, an All-ACC performer at the University of Virginia. “There are a bunch of good players towards the top so who knows what will happen.”

EMREY POSTS CAREER LOW ROUND: Allison Emrey (Charlotte, N.C.) carded a career low 6-under, 66 on Saturday to jump from T33 to a tie for fourth at 6-under for the tournament. 

She made seven birdies against just one bogey. 

“I played really consistent and I hit the ball well and capitalized on that and made the putts,” said Emrey, who attempted 28 putts. “I had a great group and we were talking all day so that put me at ease.”

Emrey played with Elizabeth Szokol (Winnetka, Ill.) and Kim Welch (Sacramento, Calif.).

The 23-year-old finished 51st on the Volvik Race for the Card money list as a rookie and feels ready to improve upon that.

“I feel like it is definitely easier your second year because you’ve seen all the courses before and you know all the players and you know what is going to happen each week,” explained Emrey. “I’m staying with my same host family from last year so it is really nice to come back to Beaumont. 

She will likely improve upon her finish last year at Morongo Golf Club at Tukwet Canyon when she closed T55. 

LACROSSE GETTING CLOSE AFTER NEARLY A YEAR OFF: Cindy LaCrosse, who won three times on the Symetra Tour in 2010 and has made 88 career starts on the LPGA, feels her game is headed in the right direction. This week is a good sign as she posted a 2-under, 70 on Saturday and stands at 6-under, 138. 

“I played really well, if a few more putts had dropped it could have been even lower,” said LaCrosse, who only played in two Symetra Tour events last year. “I’m hitting the ball really well and I’ve done a lot over the last year with swing changes and they are really starting to feel comfortable.”

LaCrosse played in the first Symetra Tour event last year and then withdrew from the rest to make big changes. She started working with Justin Sheehan out of Tampa, who also coaches Brittany Altomare and a few other professionals.

“I told him that I’ll do whatever you tell me with the golf swing so it took a long time,” said LaCrosse. “Even at Q-School, I was still uncomfortable. I knew if I wanted to keep playing I needed to do something drastic.

LaCrosse was the Symetra Player of the Year in 2010. She hasn’t had a top 50 LPGA finish since 2013. 

FRANCE’S RICORDEAU PLAYING SYMETRA TOUR FOR FIRST TIME: Marion Ricordeau (Laon, France) posted a 1-under, 71 to move to 3-under for the tournament. She played six years on the Ladies European Tour (LET) and then earned partial LPGA Tour status through Q-School in 2015 and played the LPGA in 2016. She finished T23 at the LOTTE Championship in Hawaii, but struggled the remainder of the season. She has decided to focus on the Symetra Tour in hopes of returning to the LPGA. 

“I tasted it (LPGA) and I loved it so obviously I want to try and get there again,” said Ricordeau, who made 14 starts on the big tour last year. “I want to do my best each week to try and get my card through Symetra (Tour), if not then Q-School.”

Ricordeau finished 48th on the LET Order of Merit in 2015 when she last played in Europe. She has three career top 10’s on the LET.

“It’s pretty motivating on the LPGA when you can’t play average to make a living, you have to give your best every week,” explained Ricordeau. “I started to work (on my game) more than I ever have in the past because I had to against the competition.”

Ricordeau confirmed that she likely won’t play in many LET events because she doesn’t want to travel back-and-forth between the states and Europe. 

During off weeks, Ricordeau will spend time with her coach, Patricia Meunier-Lebouc, in Jupiter, Florida. Meunier-Lebouc won twice on the LPGA Tour including the 2003 Kraft Nabisco Championship. 

OF NOTE

• Stanford products Lauren Kim (-4) and Mariah Stackhouse (-3) are both in the top 10.

• Brittany Benvenuto, who finished 3rd at Tukwet Canyon in 2015, is T10 with back-to-back 70’s.

• Rookie Lindsey Weaver, who finished fourth at the Florida’s Natural Charity Classic, is ninth heading into the final round at 5-under, 139. 

CARLSBAD, Calif. – Moving day at the Kia Classic set up what should be an exciting final 18 holes at Aviara on Sunday.

Mirim Lee shot a 5-under 67 in the third round Saturday to go to 13-under and take a one shot lead over Mi Jung Hur, who made a 67-foot putt on No. 18 to card a 66.

Another South Korean, In Gee Chun, was tied at 10-under with Cristie Kerr, who was in a three-way tie for the lead after the first round and was alone atop the leaderboard after 36 holes.

The most pressure Sunday might be on Kerr, the 2015 Kia champion.

Kerr had her most erratic round of the tournament, a 1-under 71 that ended with a bogey on 18.

“I like my position,” Kerr said. “Honestly, I didn’t hit it that great today. I scrambled a lot. That last pin was really difficult. It was kind of hard to judge the speed through the shadows, and I didn’t do a very good job. I three-putted the last hole.”

She said her coach flew in on Saturday, “so I get to go do a little session with him tonight. I’m going to go work with my coach and try to hit it a little better tomorrow and give myself more opportunities to make birdies.”

Hur was energized by her long putt on 18, which she thinks was the longest she’s ever made.

“I definitely feel very, very good right now because I finish with a birdie on the last hole,” she said. “That was a huge, long putt. That helps a lot, the last putt. It put me second place. I’m getting excited to be playing tomorrow.”

Her only bogey was on the par-3 11th.

“I just want to stay positive and still be patient for those greens,” she said. “It actually was good today and my putter was good. I struggled a little bit with my iron shots.”

Brittany Lincicome made an early run with four birdies and an eagle in her first eight holes to get to 10-under before she had two bogeys on the back nine in a round of 67 that tied her with Austin Ernst and Karine Icher at 9-under. Calgary’s Jennifer Ha (76) was tied for 62nd at 1-over par.

In a group of five golfers at 8-under was Jackie Stoelting, who at 30 has earned, lost and earned back her tour card. After making the cut in an LPGA tournament for the first time since 2015, she got to 11-under through 10 holes before double-bogeying the par-4 13th and bogeying the 18th for a 70.

Two years ago at the Kia, she shot 4-under in the first round and 4-over in the second round and missed the cut by one.

“I’m not going to lie, yesterday I had a lot of nerves thinking, ‘I don’t want to do that again,”’ said Stoelting, whose husband, Travis, is her caddie. “I made a couple birdies – actually bogeyed my second hole and made a couple birdies coming in the front nine and really settled down.

“I’ve been in contention a lot on the Symetra Tour,” said Stoelting, who admitted getting nervous Saturday when the TV crew began following her.

“That really helped me settle down a little bit more, knowing that I’ve dealt with cameras before,” she said. “It’s definitely different out here. But I enjoy that feeling.”

She has only $10,398 in career LPGA earnings and is ranked 303 in the world. Her biggest paycheque has come via Big Break on the Golf Channel, when she won some $70,000 and other prizes.

Stoelting said she owes a lot to her clothing sponsor, 2GG Apparel, which is owned by former major league pitcher Russ Ortiz.

“We talked a lot last week just about playing fearless and just really believing in myself,” she said. “I think that’s the biggest difference this week.”

She said she decided last year she was either going to get her card through the Symetra Tour or Q-School, or quit. She got it through the Symetra Tour.

“A lot of people say, ‘You’re 30, you’re 30.’ But the golf ball has no clue how old I am.”

RIO GRANDE, Puerto Rico – Chris Stroud has gone 276 tournaments over the better part of a decade trying to win on the PGA Tour. A birdie on the final hole Saturday in the Puerto Rico Open gave him his first 54-hole lead, and he hopes his experience will keep him calm.

Looking over his shoulder could make that very difficult.

Stroud kept a clean card at Coco Beach Golf and Country Club for a 5-under 67, giving him a one-shot lead over Bill Lunde and D.A. Points. What makes the final round more challenging is 10 players were within three shots.

“I feel like at this point in my career _ it’s my 11th year on tour _ I’ve got experience on my side,” Stroud said. “I was very calm today. Nothing really freaks me out. Middle of the round, I got a little loose, but I’m going to draw from that. I feel like I’m way overdue.”

Stroud was at 15-under 201. David Hearn (71) of Brantford, Ont., was tied for 15th at 10 under and Ottawa’s Brad Fritsch (71) was tied for 65th at 4 under.

Points is a two-time PGA Tour winner, most recently in 2013 at the Houston Open. Lunde won the Turning Stone Resort Championship in 2010, and only got into the Puerto Rico Open as a past champion. This is his first event in five months, so winning could not come at a better time.

The Puerto Rico Open is opposite a World Golf Championship, so it does not include an automatic invitation to the Masters. But it offers a two-year exemption, and that would mean everything to Stroud and to Lunde, who do not have full status. Stroud is a conditional member from finishing out of the top 125 last year.

“That would be the biggest change, versus kind of waiting around to play my five, six events a year,” Lunde said. “It would give me somewhere to play all the time. That would be the greatest thing that would come with a win tomorrow.”

Wesley Bryan, who needed a victory for any hope of moving into the top 50 and getting into the Masters, shot 73 to fall out of contention. That no longer is an issue, anyway, because with Hideto Tanihara (semifinals) and Ross Fisher (quarter-finals) advancing in the Match Play, Bryan could not crack the top 50.

Stroud simply wants a victory. He twice shared the 54-hole lead. The closest he came to winning was losing in a playoff to Ken Duke in 2013 at the Travelers Championship.

Andrew “Beef” Johnston of England shot a 66 and was two shots behind. Also two shots back was the local favourite, San Juan native Rafael Campos, who shot a 69 and was warmed by the loud ovation as he approached the 18th green. Campos has as much pride in his local event as anyone on the PGA Tour.

“I don’t really mind me playing good or bad, I just want to make golf visible here,” he said. “And seeing that many people following me and all that, I think to myself, ‘OK, I’m pretty sure after the week at least two or three guys will want to start picking up golf here.’ That’s my main goal right now, try to promote the game. Yeah, obviously it’s great when I’m playing good.”

Former U.S. Amateur champion Bryson DeChambeau also was two shots behind after a 70, while former Puerto Rico Open champion Scott Brown and Peter Uihlein, a former U.S. Amateur champion who plays the European Tour, were three shots back.

Sam Saunders, the grandson of Arnold Palmer, shot 67 and was five behind.