Bath, Ont. product Augusta James capped a busy few days by Monday qualifying for the LPGA’s Bank of Founders Cup, running later this week from March 16-19.

The long-standing Team Canada athlete—and current Young Pro Squad member—dialed in a 7-under 65 to finish atop the 83-player field. She was joined by American Kaylin Yost as the two competitors to earn their spots at Wildfire Golf Club.

James, who currently holds partial status on the LPGA Tour, aims to play her way into events through Monday qualifiers where her schedule permits. She’s coming off one day’s rest, having finished T18 at the Symetra Tour season opener which concluded on Sunday.

She’s set to tee it up with fellow Canadians Brooke Henderson, Alena Sharp, Maude-Aimee Leblanc and Jennifer Ha.

The quest to earn Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada status begins this week at Carlton Oaks Country Club in Santee, California, where 120 players will look to earn their cards to compete on the Mackenzie Tour this season. Below are all the details from this week along with storylines to watch for from California:

HOW IT WORKS

120 players will compete at each qualifying tournament with hopes of earning their cards for 2017. Below is a breakdown of the status available at each site:

Finish Position
Status
Medalist
Exempt for 2017
2nd through 5th (no ties)
Exempt for first eight events and subject to second re-shuffle
6th through 16th (no ties)
Exempt for first four events and subject to first re-shuffle
17th through 40th (plus ties)
Conditional status

WHAT THEY’LL FACE

Carlton Oaks, a 7,410-yard layout designed by Perry Dye (son of Pete Dye), has hosted qualifying for the U.S. Amateur as well as the first stage of the PGA TOUR Qualifying Tournament in 2010. Last year, Californian John Chin claimed medalist honours and went on to have a successful season, recording two top-10s and finishing 29th on the Order of Merit.

“You’ve got to be pretty solid tee-to-green. The course is demanding, and pars don’t really hurt you,” says Chin, who went on to earn Web.com Tour status this year and ranks 39th on that Tour’s Money List. “The key is to stay away from big numbers, put your head down and grind away.”

THE START OF SOMETHING BIG

For many players, earning Mackenzie Tour status represents the first step on the path to the PGA TOUR. From college standouts taking their first crack at the professional ranks to players in search of that big break, earning a card at Q-School is the point of embarkation on the dream.

One needs to look no further than the example of Tony Finau, who had yet to find a footing in the professional ranks when he came to Mackenzie Tour Q-School in 2013. Finau earned his card and played a full season in Canada, and the rest is history; he’s since claimed wins on the Web.com Tour and PGA TOUR, and last year made a deep run in the FedExCup Playoffs.

Other Mackenzie Tour alumni to have earned their card at Q-Schools in California include The Five members Greg Eason, Taylor Pendrith and Sam Ryder, 2015 ATB Financial Classic winner Daniel Miernicki.

FIVE PLAYERS TO WATCH

Below are five in the field to keep an eye on this week in California:

Rico Hoey (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.)

Currently the 15th-ranked player in the World Amateur Golf Rankings, Hoey is in his senior season at the University of Southern California and has already been named an NCAA All-American three times.

Jonathan Khan (Tucson, Ariz.)

A Mackenzie Tour member in 2015 and 2016, Khan was the unlucky No. 61 on the Order of Merit last year to barely miss out on retaining exempt status for 2017. He co-led through 54 holes at last year’s National Capital Open to Support Our Troops.

Kevin Stinson (Mission, B.C.)

A veteran of 38 Mackenzie Tour starts, Stinson Monday Qualified five times in 2014 and 2015 and will look to regain full status this week.

Andy Shim (Duluth, Ga.)

The 2012 U.S. Junior Amateur champion decided to forgo college and turned pro in 2013 at age 18, and will look to earn Mackenzie Tour status for the first time.

Eric Hawerchuk (Barrie, Ont.)

The son of NHL legend Dale Hawerchuk, Eric has played in six career Mackenzie Tour events and led after round at the British Columbia Q-School last season before narrowly missing out on earning status.

CANADIANS IN THE FIELD (12)

Daniel Kim (Toronto, Ont.)

Adam Craig (Stoufville, Ont.)

Brett Kennedy (Waterloo, Ont.)

Kevin Stinson (Mission, B.C.)

Brendan Barrack (Toronto, Ont.)

Darren Day (Victoria, B.C.)

Drew Nesbitt (Shanty Bay, Ont.)

Gianfranco Guida (Maple, Ont.)

Eric Hawerchuk (Barrie, Ont.)

Gajan Sivabalasingham (Stoufville, Ont.)

Vincent Blanchette (Saint-Jean-Sur-Richlieu, Qc.)

Colin MacGregor (Hamilton, Ont.)

ALUMNI WATCH

Adam Hadwin’s maiden PGA TOUR victory at the Valspar Championship was the 130th by all-time Mackenzie Tour alumni on the PGA TOUR. The Abbotsford, British Columbia native won twice on the Mackenzie Tour at the 2010 Desert Dunes Classic and the 2011 Pacific Colombia Tour Championship.

Thanks to his epic hole-out and playoff win in Panama, 2015-16 Mackenzie Tour member Ethan Tracy leads the way among alumni on the Web.com Tour Money List through four events this season. Eight alums are currently in position to finish in The 25 and earn PGA TOUR cards for next season:

ANNE-CATHERINE ENTREPREND 2017 AVEC UN TOP DIX EN FLORIDE 

L’année est bien lancée pour Anne-Catherine Tanguay, laquelle a pris l’honorable 10^e place en fin de semaine dernière au tournoi Florida Natutral Charity Classic, premier rendez-vous de 2017 à la série Symetra disputé à Winter Haven pour une bourse totalisant 125 000$.

Anne-Catherine a joué sous la normale chaque jour en signant des cartes de 71, 70 et 71 pour un cumulatif de -4 lui valant 2617$.

Encore cette année, les dix premières boursières en fin de calendrier gradueront directement à la LPGA en 2018. 

Une très heureuse initiative des responsables a été la retransmission en direct en mode web diffusion. Espérons vraiment qu’il y aura une suite afin d’aider nos filles.

SARA-MAUDE REMONTE 

La victoire est allée à l’Écossaise Olivia Jordan Higgins à -10 ce qui lui a valu le magot de 18 750$.

Sara-Maude Juneau a progressé de jour en jour comme le montrent ses pointages de 75, 73 et 71 pour prendre la 34^e position qui lui rapporte 937$. 

La Britanno-Colombienne Samantha Richdal a été la meilleure Canadienne avec son 9^e échelon à -5.

DOMMAGE POUR LORIE 

Membre du Panthéon du golf canadien, Lorie Kane a été écartée du dernier parcours après deux comptes de 75 qui représentaient un coup de trop afin de pouvoir poursuivre.

Anne -Catherine Tanguay avait terminé 2^e plus tôt à l’Omnium de la Floride, mais cette présentation n’était pas sanctionnée par Symetra. 

Tout le monde prend congé pour voyager. La prochaine sortie aura lieu dans deux fins de semaine à Beaumont, en Californie.

WINTER HAVEN, Fla. – Olivia Jordan-Higgins won the season-opening Florida’s Natural Charity Classic by a stroke Sunday for her third Symetra Tour title.

Jordan-Higgins closed with a 2-under 70 to hold off Christine Song (66) and China’s Yu Liu (67). The winner finished at 10-under 207 at the Country Club of Winter Haven and earned $$18,750.

“I don’t think I can really put into words how it feels yet,” Jordan-Higgins said. “This has been 18 months’ work all put together. I couldn’t ask for a better start right now.”

Jordan-Higgins is from Jersey, the largest of the Channel Islands between England and France, and played at Charleston Southern. She also won tour events in 2013 and 2014.

Jordan-Higgins took a two-stroke lead into the final day after opening with rounds of 66 and 70. She birdied the par-3 second and made a double bogey on the par-4 seventh, then _ after a nearly two-hour rain delay _ rallied with birdies on the par-5 11th and par-4 14th and 16th.

“The key today was patience,” Jordan-Higgins said. “I was a little tense on the front and trying too hard to make things happen that just weren’t happening and I did make some a mistake on seven. It just came down to patience and knowing that I had a lot of birdie changes left after my double on seven.”

Kelowna, B.C. product and defending champion Samantha Richdale led the way for the Canadian contingent, carding a final-round 71 (-1) to finish in ninth place at 5-under par. She was trailed by Team Canada Young Pro Squad member Anne-Catherine Tanguay of Quebec, who closed at 4-under par to share 10th place. Rounding out the Canucks to finish inside the Top-20 were the trio of Team Canada graduates Brittany Marchand (Orangeville, Ont.), Augusta James (Bath, Ont.) and Elizabeth Tong (Thornhill, Ont.), who finished at 1-under in a five-way tie of 18th.

The top 10 on the final money list will earn 2018 LPGA Tour cards.

PALM HARBOR, Fla. – Canada’s Adam Hadwin is skipping his first World Golf Championship and asking for a refund for his honeymoon to Tahiti.

He couldn’t be happier.

Seven weeks after he shot a 59, and two weeks before his wedding, Hadwin added another eventful chapter to his amazing year.

He threw away a two-shot lead with three holes to play by hitting a tee shot into the water, kept his wits and then closed with two strong pars for an even-par 71 to win the Valspar Championship by one shot over Patrick Cantlay for his first PGA Tour title Sunday.

✅ Win on @PGATOURCanada
✅ Win on @WebDotComTour
✅ Win on @PGATOUR

Adam Hadwin wins the @ValsparChamp for his first victory on TOUR. pic.twitter.com/9bVybd130S

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 12, 2017

“You’re never quite sure when you’re going to get the job done,” Hadwin said. “I just went there today and stuck to what I do best, just hit some quality golf shots and really made the game super easy outside of hole No. 16. I feel a little fortunate after that hole to be sitting here, but I’ll certainly take it, and I can’t wait for everything that comes with this win.”

The victory moves him to No. 51 in the world and makes him eligible for the Dell Match Play – except that he’s getting married that week.

It also sends the 29-year-old Abbotsford, B.C., product to the Masters, meaning he will have to postpone that honeymoon to French Polynesia. Instead, he’ll be preparing for Augusta National, the place he called the “greenest place on earth.”

Even with a four-shot lead going into the final round, all he wanted was a chance over the final few holes.

The trick Sunday was reminding himself he was right where he wanted to be.

Hadwin twice holed big birdie putts on the back nine at Innisbrook as Cantlay was in close for birdies of his own, a 25-footer on the par-5 11th and then a 55-footer on the par-3 13th to keep a two-shot lead.

Adam Hadwin …

From another time zone. #QuickHits pic.twitter.com/dqy26lsrxJ

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) March 12, 2017

But it all changed on the 16th, the start of a tough three-hole finish at the Copperhead Course. His 3-wood peeled off to the right and never had a chance, and Hadwin walked off the hole with a double bogey and a tie for the lead

From the 18th fairway, Cantlay blinked first.

The former No. 1 amateur in the world, playing for only the second time after missing two years with a back injury, leaked his approach into a bunker. Hadwin’s approach went just over the back against the collar of the fringe, leaving him a belly wedge down the grain that came off perfectly and settled 2 feet below the cup.

Cantlay’s bunker shot was well short, and he missed the 15-foot par putt to force a playoff.

He was 1 of 6 in sand saves for the week.

The consolation prize for Cantlay was a runner-up finish that paid $680,400, more than enough for him to secure full status for the rest of the year.

“It doesn’t really feel like much consolation at the moment,” Cantlay said. “I didn’t finish the deal.”

Even in loss, it was a bright return for the UCLA star. Cantlay wondered if his back would ever allow him to regain his form. While still in college, he shot 60 at the Travelers Championship in 2011, was low amateur in the U.S. Open and didn’t finish out of the top 25 in his four PGA Tour starts that summer.

A stress fracture in his back kept him out of golf for two years. Then, he endured a far greater burden a year ago February when his best friend and caddie, Chris Roth, was struck and killed by a car as they were walking to a restaurant for dinner in California.

He looked like he was never gone. Trailing by four shots with 10 holes to play, he ran off five birdies in a six-hole stretch that put enormous pressure on Hadwin.

“I was just trying to catch him,” Cantlay said. “And I caught him, and gave it to him in the end.”

Hadwin is the third Canadian to qualify for the Masters, joining RSM Classic winner Mackenzie Hughes and 2003 champion Mike Weir. He finished at 14-under 270.

His success earned praise from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Congratulations to Abbotsford’s @ahadwingolf on winning the PGA’s #ValsparChampionship today, and all the best on your upcoming wedding!

— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) March 12, 2017

Jim Herman (68) and PGA Tour rookie Dominic Bozzelli (67) tied for third, two strokes behind Hadwin.

Tony Finau closed with a 64 to finish alone in fifth, though that likely will narrowly keep him out of the Dell Match Play in two weeks. Finau only moves to No. 70 in the world, and as many as five players are likely to withdraw.

Jason Dufner birdied his last two holes for a 67 to tie for 11th and qualify for Match Play.

David Hearn (70) of Brantford, Ont., tied for 18th at 4 under, Graham DeLaet (67) of Weyburn, Sask., finished 22nd at 3 under and Nick Taylor (74) of Abbotsford was 62nd at 5 over.

Hadwin’s fiancee, Jessica Kippenberger, made the wedding date for March 24 because that’s when the venue was available. Hadwin checked the schedule and figured it worked out beautifully.

“I looked at it as, ‘Hey, we picked the week of Puerto Rico,’ not we picked it the week of the WGC,” he said with a laugh.

The honeymoon deposit was only for the hotel. He booked refundable airline tickets with the Masters in mind.

PALM HARBOR, Fla. – Canada’s Adam Hadwin only wants a chance to win when he tees it up on the PGA Tour, and he’s never had a chance like this one.

Birdie putts from 35 feet and 55 feet on the back nine Saturday at the Valspar Championship stretched his lead to four shots. Equally important to him was the slick, bending six-foot par putt on the final hole.

“Three shots is much easier to come back from than four shots is,” Hadwin said after a clean card of 4-under 67. “That extra shot could be everything tomorrow. That was a big putt for me, I think, mentally going into tomorrow.”

The 29-year-old from Abbotsford, B.C., overcame a brief bout of nerves on the practice range with a flawless day in a strong, warm breeze on the Copperhead Course at Innisbrook. That six-foot par putt made it 31 straight holes without a bogey, put him at 14-under 199 and gave him the four-shot lead over Patrick Cantlay.

It was the third time in the last four PGA Tour events the 54-hole leader was up by at least four shots, and all of them won comfortably – Jordan Spieth at Pebble Beach, Dustin Johnson at Riviera and Rickie Fowler at PGA National.

More than a big lead, there is not a lot of experience chasing Hadwin. Of the three players within six shots of him, only Jim Herman has experienced winning on the PGA Tour. Herman won the Shell Houston Open last year for his first victory. He had a 71 playing in the final group and fell five shots behind.

PGA Tour rookie Dominic Bozzelli had a 70 and was at 8-under 205.

Hadwin also had a 54-hole lead in the CareerBuilder Challenge when he shot 59 in the third round. He closed with a 70 and was runner-up to Hudson Swafford. He started that final round with a one-shot lead over Bozzelli.

Four shots is a lot bigger than one, though Hadwin said it could work both ways. He knows enough about Innisbrook to realize it can disappear quickly.

“But the other side of things is that guys are going to have to shot a good score to catch you,” he said. “To go bogey-free today, I mean, I’d love to do that again tomorrow. I think somebody would have to play an extremely good round of golf to catch me. Make some pars and make guys come and get you.”

British Open champion Henrik Stenson never made a move and struggled again getting his distance right in the wind, allowing for only a few reasonable birdie chances. He had another 71 and was seven shots behind, along with J.J. Henry (67).

David Hearn (68) of Brantford, Ont., was tied for 18th at 3 under, Graham DeLaet (72) of Weyburn, Sask., was 49th at 1 over and Nick Taylor (73) of Abbotsford was tied for 54th at 2 over.

For Hadwin, life has never been better.

It was at Innisbrook a year ago that he broke his 7-iron against a tree in anger, a starting point to learn how to smile more and worry less about golf, which he believes has led to better scores.

Plus, he’s getting married in two weeks.

A victory, perhaps even second place alone, might be enough to get Hadwin into the Dell Match Play. He won’t be going either way because his wedding is Friday (March 26) of that week.

A victory would get him into the Masters. In that case, the honeymoon might be postponed.

For now, he’s only thinking about playing good golf on Sunday and forcing everyone to catch him on the toughest track in Florida (that doesn’t convert par 5s into par 4s).

Equally compelling is the guy Hadwin will see on the first tee Sunday.

Cantlay was the No. 1 amateur at UCLA who swept all the big awards as a sophomore, and then shot 60 in the Travelers Championship the week after he was low amateur in the U.S. Open at Congressional. He played four PGA Tour events in summer of 2011 and never finished out of the top 25.

But at Colonial in 2013 as a rookie, he felt back pain. Doctors eventually diagnosed it as a stress fracture, and it took two years for him to feel healthy again. Turns out that wasn’t his biggest setback. He was walking to dinner with Chris Roth, his best friend and his caddie, a year ago February when Roth was struck and killed by a car.

From such a dark period, Cantlay managed to get his head, his back and his game in shape.

He says he is the same person who had such big expectations as an amateur.

“A few more low, highs and lows,” Cantlay said. “Gave me a little different perspective. At the time things were rolling so good all the time, I guess I didn’t think they could go any other way. But life hit me in the face pretty quick. So it’s really nice to be here playing, feeling good, and playing well.”

PALM HARBOR, Fla. – Adam Hadwin knows all about going low on the PGA Tour. Still to be determined is whether that translates into a victory.

The Canadian, who shot a 59 at the CareerBuilder Challenge two months ago, ran off five straight birdies to start the back nine Friday at the Valspar Championship and posted a 7-under 64 to take a one-shot lead into the weekend.

Even playing in the afternoon in a strong breeze and crustier putting surfaces, Hadwin one-putted every hole on the back nine until he had no choice but to lag a 20-foot birdie attempt on the 18th hole to make sure it didn’t race all the way off the green and into the fairway.

He shot 29 on the back and reached the halfway point at Innisbrook at 10-under 132, one shot clear of Jim Herman.

“You can’t go out and shoot 7 under on the Copperhead Course without doing everything right,” said the native of Abbotsford, B.C. “I put myself in position off the tee box, hit a ton of fairways then just really hit the irons solidly today. … And here I am going into the weekend.”

And he still has a long way to go.

Herman, coming off a 62 in the opening round, began with 11 straight pars before trading birdies and bogeys and settling for a 71.

Tyrone Van Aswegen had a 65 and was two shots behind, followed by a group at 7-under 135 that included British Open champion Henrik Stenson (71), Russell Henley (71) and Dominic Bozzelli (68).

Graham DeLaet (71) of Weyburn, Sask., Nick Taylor (70) and David Hearn (74) of Brantford, Ont., were all at even par, tied for 52nd.

Stenson opened with a birdie to get within one shot of the lead, but he didn’t make another one until holing a 30-foot putt on the 15th. He was fooled at times by the wind, which kept him from more reasonable birdie chances. Still, the 40-year-old Swede felt his iron play getting better, and he got one bonus that had nothing to do with golf. Walking down the second fairway, 2-year-old daughter Alice saw her dad and ran out to greet him.

“She doesn’t know how to stay outside the ropes, that’s for sure,” Stenson said with a smile. “She comes running in when she sees me. That was good.”

Stenson is No. 6 in the world, the highest-ranked player at Innisbrook. The Valspar Championship will be missing its other top 10 player because Justin Thomas, who swept the Hawaii swing, had a 74 and missed the cut.

Also missing the cut was Billy Horschel, leaving him no chance of qualifying for the Dell Match Play in two weeks. Horschel, who won the FedEx Cup in 2014 and reached as high as No. 12 in the world two years ago, has not been eligible for the last four World Golf Championships.

Hadwin could make his way into Match Play with a runner-up finish, though now it’s all about winning.

He became the ninth player with a sub-60 rounds on the PGA Tour in the California desert, only to finish one shot behind Hudson Swafford. A week later, he was in the final group Saturday at Torrey Pines until fading to a 74-76 weekend.

“I’ve put myself in position the last couple of years,” Hadwin said. “I feel like the finishes have gotten stronger, and I keep kind of putting myself there going into the weekends. Just getting more comfortable out there. Learnings how I feel under pressure, and figuring out how to deal with that. I’m excited for this weekend, what it will bring, and hope to keep some of these scores coming.”

PGA Tour rookie Wesley Bryan, best known for his trick shots that made him a YouTube golf sensation before earning a tour card, had another 68 and was only four shots behind. Bryan tied for fourth in his last two starts at the Genesis Open and Honda Classic.

He would need to finish seventh to have any chance of making the 64-man field for the Match Play in two weeks.

Also at stake this weekend is a spot in the Masters for the winner. Only three players from the top 12 going into the weekend – Stenson, Swafford and James Hahn – already are eligible for the Masters.

A year ago, Herman earned his first trip to Augusta National by winning the week before the Masters at the Shell Houston Open. He’d like to take care of that sooner, and playing in the last group Saturday gives him hope.

He wasn’t stressed by following a 62 with a 71, mainly because the conditions were tougher in the afternoon. Herman also knows a 71 isn’t going to hurt him.

“Any time you make par, it’s not like you’re backing up,” Herman said.

Golf Canada and adidas Golf today announced an agreement that will see adidas Golf become the official apparel and headwear outfitter for Golf Canada’s National Team Program.

The adidas Golf performance products will be worn by Team Canada athletes, coaches and sport science staff in training as well as during competition at domestic and international golf championships.

“We are honoured to be a part of the Team Canada program—supporting the next generation of elite Canadian golfers,” said Lesley Hawkins, Brand Director for adidas Golf. “A key area of focus for adidas Golf is the growth of the game through the pyramid of influence, and Golf Canada has done a tremendous job connecting with these athletes. We’re very excited to kick off the 2017 season together.”

The partnership marks the second Golf Canada program to be supported by adidas Golf, who are also the official apparel partner of the Golf Fore the Cure program.

“The adidas mark is rooted in elite athlete performance and we are thrilled to have them align their brand with Team Canada as our official apparel outfitter,” said Golf Canada Interim Chief Executive Officer Jeff Thompson. “Performance is the foundation of our partnership and the athletes and coaches are excited to train and compete in adidas Golf’s leading edge competitive apparel.”

PALM HARBOR, Fla. – Jim Herman was persuaded to play the Valspar Championship by an influential acquaintance, and he made it pay off Thursday with a 9-under 62 for a two-shot lead.

No, it wasn’t President Donald Trump this time.

Herman wasn’t getting much out of his game – three missed cuts and a tie for 27th – when he played the Seminole Pro-Member the day after the Honda Classic. Jack Welch, the former chairman of General Electric, came along for nine holes and liked what he saw from Herman, who said he would have had a 65 that day.

“Had a really good day there, and got urged on from Jack Welch – he’s a member there – to play here,” Herman said. “I was looking at taking two weeks off, so I was kind of a late commit to this tournament. I guess I’m certainly glad I took his advice.”

David Hearn of Brantford, Ont., and Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, B.C., both shot 68s to sit in a tie for 11that 3-under par. Graham DeLaet (71) of Weyburn, Sask., was tied for 56th at even par and Nick Taylor (72) of Abbotsford was in a group at 79th at 1 over.

Herman putted for birdie on all but two holes, and except for a 35-foot putt from the fringe on No. 10 (his opening hole), the rest of his birdie putts were all from 15 feet or close. He only came close to bogey once, making an 8-foot par save on No. 2.

He wound up missing the course record by one shot, but still had a two-shot lead over British Open champion Henrik Stenson and Russell Henley. The first round did not finish because of a one-hour fog delay Thursday morning, though it should be back on schedule by the weekend.

Herman, of course, is most famous for his relationship with Trump.

After grinding on the mini-tours for longer than he cares to remember, he took a job as an assistant pro at Trump National in New Jersey and one day was summoned to play with the boss. Herman played great that day, and Trump encouraged him to give the PGA Tour another attempt.

He eventually made it, and picked up his first PGA Tour victory last year at the Shell Houston Open. Herman still has an endorsement deal with Trump, and he has the Trump golf logo on the crest of his shirt and on his golf bag.

The two weeks he missed on the West Coast Swing was to attend the inauguration.

Herman has only one top 10 since his victory in Houston last year and has slipped to No. 89 in the world, meaning he likely will need a victory in the next few weeks of he wants to return to the Masters.

This was only a start, and looming behind him is Stenson.

The powerful Swede has a plan for the tree-lined Copperhead Course at Innisbrook, and Stenson stuck to it on Thursday by hitting 3- and 4-iron off the tee when Charl Schwartzel and Bubba Watson were hitting driver.

Stenson’s strength is his irons, however, and he kept giving himself ample birdie chances.

He even laid so far back on the par-5 opening hole after making the turn that he 270 yards to the pin. He put that in the corner of a bunker next to the green and blasted out to a few feet for an easy birdie.

For the 456-yard sixth hole, Stenson hit 4-iron off the tee and another 4-iron toward the green. He missed it well to the right toward the gallery, but answered with a pitch-and-run to 3 feet for par. He also played bogey-free, needing a 12-foot par putt on the 12th hole to keep a clean card.

“When the putter feels good and the short game is in good shape, a lot of times I see it more as guaranteeing having a second shot into the green, even if it’s a longer club,” Stenson. “That’s what I’ve done around here the previous two times, and it’s worked out fine.”

Stenson tied for fourth in 2015 and tied for 11th last year.

“There’s certainly a few holes where you can try and push a little bit,” he said. “Thursday is not really the day where you need to make those kind of decisions.”

Henley opened with a bogey on No. 10 and then made eight birdies over his next 11 holes before finishing with six pars.

One day after an amateur’s shot in the pro-am hit a tree and struck Schwartzel on the wrist, he appeared to be free of pain. He just didn’t make enough putts, only had two birdies and opened with a 70.

Seamus Power of Ireland had a 66, the best score among those who played in the afternoon when the greens became crustier and the wind picked up a little more. Charles Howell III was in the group at 67.

The board of directors of British Columbia Golf was held up as a shining example of inclusion at the United States Golf Association’s North American Golf Innovation Symposium in Vancouver.

“What makes the organization unique and quite frankly unique in golf, as well as unique generally in business, is the nature of inclusion that exists on the board of directors,” the USGA’s Steve Schloss told the symposium at the Marriott Pinnacle hotel.

“Every organization around the world is asking themselves the same question: how inclusive is our board, how effective is the board serving its customers, serving the members, and in this case you have an organization that has far exceeded what most boards do. They have become consciously aware of how to be inclusive to serve their particular marketplace.”

British Columbia Golf executive director Kris Jonasson and four members of the 12-member board of directors — Patrick Kelly, Helen Jung, Jasvinder Dhaliwal and Michelle Collens — participated in a 45-minute session entitled Driving Innovation through Inclusion.

Jonasson told the audience that in recent years British Columbia Golf had cut the size of its board to nine from 50 when the men’s and ladies provincial golf associations amalgamated in 2004. Two years ago, he asked the board to approve adding three more members to help make it more representative of B.C’s diverse golfing population.

“We started to look around and we looked at a lot of the demographic data . . . and we said, you know what, when we show the population of British Columbia who the board of the golf association is, it doesn’t look like the same people that are out on our golf courses. We needed to change that.

“We recognized that we couldn’t do it in a reasonable period of time with only nine people on the board so we said to the nominating committee at British Columbia Golf, we want to increase the size of the board to 12, we want to use those three additional spots to make sure we are more reflective of who actually plays golf. That’s how we got to where we are today.”

Jung, who is of Korean descent, is director of golf at Belmont Golf Course in Langley. She said her background helps her at a club that gets a tremendous amount of play from Metro Vancouver’s growing Korean population.

Kelly, who also serves as president of British Columbia Golf, drew applause when he spoke about how the membership at his course, Gorge Vale Golf Club in Victoria, got youngsters from a nearby First Nations reserve involved in the club’s junior program.

About three years ago, Kelly was informed by a fellow Gorge Vale member about some problems the course was having on weekends. The course borders one of the communities of the Songhees First Nation and on Friday and Saturday nights, some of the band’s young people were hopping the fence and doing some partying on one of the greens.

Kelly was asked if he could speak to the band’s elders and he did a lot more than that. With the blessing of Gorge Vale’s membership, he asked the band’s elders if they would be interested in having some of their young people join the club as junior members.

“They had never been asked before in all the 77 years up to that point and the reaction was very positive,” Kelly said. “We now have 15 First Nations juniors involved in our junior program and they are integrated with everybody else. All the members play with them, help them understand the game and we all provide whatever we can to help them out.

“The other interesting thing about that is the issues on that hole, ever since we took this initiative, have totally disappeared. It’s great.”