Nearly 15 years ago to the month, Canadian Ralph Dunning was in Hawaii with his wife watching friends race in an Ironman triathlon, the most grueling of all physical challenges. A longtime designer and manufacturer of clothing for cyclists, Dunning told his wife he was going to start a golf company, and bring the fabric technology he knew from cycling to a golf-specific product.

Fast-forward to today, and Dunning Golf is in 100 pro shops across the country, another 1,300 in the U.S., and just experienced 25 percent growth year-over-year, almost an unheard-of feat in today’s unpredictable golf climate.

And it all started in Dunning’s basement.

“I went to all my mills and factories and I wanted to build a complete line,” reflects Dunning, fresh off a successful trip to Orlando, FL for the PGA of America’s annual Merchandise Show.

Dunning laughs when he is asked to recall his first meeting with a big Canadian golf company in 2001.

“I sent Golf Town a catalogue I made on my printer at home,” he says. “I was working out of my basement with no real inventory, just a concept.”

Dunning explains he didn’t know who Stephen Bebis (the then-CEO and founder of Golf Town) was, but he knew Golf Town was “a pretty fun place to go shopping.”

According to Dunning, Bebis told him the Dunning concept was “going to change the golf industry” and gave him a huge order.

“I had to figure out how to build this company,” he explains. “It was a grass-roots company in my basement.”

Despite Bebis’ vote of confidence, there were a lot of skeptics of Dunning’s tech-fabric idea. However, a handful of ‘visionary’ people put Dunning in their pro shops, and the name started to grow.

Ralph Dunning

The Dunning brand got a boost in 2002 thanks to Mike Weir, who started to wear the Dunning outerwear by choice – he was not on a contract to do so. There was an iconic picture on the cover of The Globe & Mail featuring Weir wearing a Dunning rain suit during the waterlogged Masters that year.

“(Weir) was the first guy to really embrace what we were doing,” explains Dunning. “It helped get the word out across the country.”

At the 2005 PGA Merchandise Show, Dunning says his company was the first to have a full system designed for golfers, and the elements golfers face while playing.

“We had a point of difference,” he says. “People were starting to understand the fabric, and we became known for having the better fabric.”

A decade later, although Weir no longer wears the brand, Dunning counts David Hearn as one of their key PGA Tour ambassadors along with Charles Howell III, Brendan Steele, Russell Knox, and European Nicolas Colsaerts.

“Signing David was a really big deal for me, because when he first turned pro we got a phone call asking if we wanted to sign him and we couldn’t. We couldn’t afford it,” says Dunning. “When the opportunity came up this time, I really fought to have him be part of our roster.

“We couldn’t have hand-picked a guy who is better for the brand than David. He just fits all the checks for Dunning.”

The brand, according to Dunning, has stayed true to its understated design principles as it has evolved. However, it hasn’t ignored trends in menswear either. Dunning introduced a sportswear line this year that was influenced by its PGA Tour ambassadors and their on-the-road lifestyle.

“The sportswear side, we’re seeing all the pro shops want to carry that now because, if you think about it from a business perspective, how do we grow our industry? How many golf shirts do you really need?” explains Dunning. “You want to wear brands that are a reflection of your lifestyle, and that’s where the whole sportswear theme came in.”

As the brand continues to find new success, Dunning is cognizant that the global growth of his company will be a key factor moving forward. He says that the biggest takeaway from the recent PGA Merchandise Show was the number of accounts from Europe, Australia, the Middle East, and Japan were keen to learn more.

“All of a sudden, Dunning is becoming a global brand that is known for its quality and its premium position as this clean-styled brand,” Dunning says. “As Canadians, we’re a hybrid between what goes on in the U.K. and what happens in America, so that’s why there is this global thing going on.”

Global expansion, North American growth, and a roster chalk-full of PGA Tour stars – a far cry from an idea in a basement.

Visit www.dunninggolf.com to learn more.

Ralph Dunning, Jonathon Wong, Adam Stanley

SAN DIEGO – Jim Furyk was No. 7 in the world, No. 9 in the FedEx Cup standings and already assured a spot on the Presidents Cup team when he tied for fourth in the Deutsche Bank Championship for his seventh top 10 of the year.

That was Sept. 6, and that was the last tournament he finished.

Furyk withdrew midway through the opening round at Conway Farms a week later with a sore wrist, which has caused more problems than he imagined. He sat out the rest of the year to let it heal, and then missed Kapalua to give it more time.

The next solution is surgery.

Furyk didn’t say when the surgery was planned – he was at a New York Knicks game Sunday night in Madison Square Garden – but that he would be out three months.

“While I am disappointed that the wrist has not healed sufficiently for me to return to play, I am confident that the surgery at this point is the best course of action, and will get me back in the shortest possible time,” he said in a statement. “This has been frustrating for me to this point, but I am focusing on an aggressive rehabilitation program and having a strong year once I am sufficiently healed.”

Three months would mean missing the Masters for the first time since 2004, when he missed three months from surgery on his left wrist to repair torn cartilage.

Even though his world ranking average has dropped from 7.21 to 4.99, the Team RBC member has slipped only three spots to No. 10.

***This story was originally published in February of 2016

If you have ever played Turnberry or Royal Troon on Scotland’s Ayrshire coast and observed the uninhabited island of Ailsa Craig looming far out in the Firth of Clyde, you have witnessed a close connection between golf and curling. Those courses have played host to Open Championships and, for centuries, Ailsa Craig’s unique granite has been quarried to create most of the world’s curling stones.

But that connection is just geographical and coincidental.

The two sports have a much closer and multi-faceted relationship here in Canada. Thousands of recreational players enjoy both in their respective seasons. Some Canadians are not only among the best curlers in the world, but pretty good golfers as well.

The complementary seasonality of golf and curling in this country is obvious, says Bob Weeks, TSN’s expert on both sports, but the parallels don’t stop there. “If you’re a golfer in Canada and you don’t go south, curling is a great way to pass the winter. The cultures of both are very similar, very social. You can go and play with your pals and have a drink after in a club setting.”

If anyone understands the symmetry between golf and curling, it is Weeks. Thanks to a father who loved both sports, he has participated in both for most of his 55 years, not only as a player but as a journalist. “Right now, I am a 15 handicap from the blue tees at Weston Golf Club [his longtime home club in Toronto] and, to put it in golf terms, about a 7 in curling. I was always a better curler than golfer. I would say I was scratch at one point.” In fact, he competed in six provincial championships as well as on the pro circuit for a number of years.

Last year, he ended his 30-year tenure as the editorial director of SCOREGolf and his 25-year involvement with the Ontario Curling Report to take on his new responsibilities at TSN. He has written books on both sports.

One of those books was Hurry Hard: The Russ Howard Story. Howard may be the most recognizable name in Canadian curling, both as a champion and broadcaster, but few may know he was the head professional at Brooklea Golf and Country Club in Midland, Ont., for several years before moving to New Brunswick.

“Our dad owned the driving range across the road from Brooklea, so we spent literally days there picking balls, cleaning balls, hitting balls,” recalls his younger brother, Glenn, who has remained in the Midland area. “Golf was our first love and then Dad got us into curling.”

Good decision, Dad. Russ won two Briers, two World Curling Championships and a gold medal at the 2006 Winter Olympics as part of Brad Gushue’s rink. (“Gushue was a really good junior golfer and once attended a Golf Canada training camp with Brad Fritsch,” Weeks notes.) Glenn has won four World Curling Championships, four Briers and 15 Ontario provincial championships, including a record eight straight from 2006 to 2013.

Having been exposed to both sports for a lifetime, Glenn sees many similarities. The technical aspect, for one. “Dad was a stickler for technique, whether it was golf or curling. He said if you had the right fundamentals, you could always trust them when you were under pressure.

“And, of course, you have so much time to think between shots in both. They’re not reactionary sports like basketball or hockey or baseball. That’s what can get in your way in both—that six inches between your ears—and that’s what separates a good player from a great player.”

Another common theme is that, like Weeks and the Howards, just about every Canadian curling golfer—or golfing curler—says they were introduced to the sports by family.

Mike Harris is both an Olympic silver medallist in curling and a PGA of Canada member who has been the head pro at notable clubs including North Halton and Donalda in Ontario and Banff Springs in Alberta. Now 48, he has been playing both sports since he was nine, thanks to encouraging parents.

Currently unattached to a golf club, he is focusing on what he readily admits is his “first love”—curling—not only in competitions, but as a coach for the Scottish Curling Federation and as CBC’s curling analyst.

Perhaps because of his deep involvement over many years, Harris understands the challenges facing both sports. “There are undeniable demographic similarities in golf and curling. The question is how do you make them younger, more inclusive, more diverse?”

Weeks is blunt: “There’s a stigma that they are top-heavy with older white males. They have to push to become younger, widen their reach, look to the future.”

Morgan Court, consultant for the PGA of Canada, plays lead on Allison Flaxey’s rink from Listowel, Ont. A curler since age nine (introduced to the game by family, of course), she came to golf in her 20s.

She is well positioned to understand that changing family structures and dynamics, combined with more ethnic diversity, means those traditional family connections aren’t providing enough new golfers or curlers to revitalize the sports.

“Absolutely, there could be synergies between the two sports. Both have taken steps to get into schools, although golf is much farther ahead at this point. The PGA of Canada and Golf Canada are really pushing the new Long Term Player Development 2.0 program while curling has somewhat embraced it. And curling clubs don’t really have pros or instructors the way golf clubs do. So there is still lots of work to do.”

Harris and Weeks cite the addition in 1998 of curling as an Olympic sport as helping to elevate the sport’s profile in Canada and internationally. They surmise the same might happen to golf as it returns to the Olympics this summer for the first time since 1904.

Historically, the participation and popularity of curling and golf have ebbed and flowed according to socio-economic, cultural and other factors. In contrast to those earlier episodes, however, their respective governing bodies are developing strategies to help keep both viable and flourishing long-term.

One encouraging sign, a nod to a time-honoured sporting tradition, can be seen in some golf clubhouses and curling clubs these days. An Ontario-based company has begun marketing Triple Bogey and Hurry Hard brands of beer to those respective outlets.

Now that’s synergy.

Another end…

Several curlers, other than those mentioned above, are or have been involved in golf at a significant level. Here are a few examples.

According to Bob Weeks, “Alberta’s Kevin Martin skipped his team to a gold medal at the 2010 Olympics, and is part owner of a golf course in Palm Springs, Calif. It actually hosted a Canadian Tour event. Martin’s team had a sponsorship from Callaway for a while. Mark Dacey of Nova Scotia, a Brier winner, was the PGA of Canada pro at Fox Harb’r for a few years.”

Wayne Middaugh of Victoria Harbour, Ont., is a three-time world curling champion, a PGA of Canada member and the general manager at Port Carling Golf and Country Club. His wife, Sherry, is a past Ontario curling champion.

Greg Balsdon, who was on the 2013 Canadian Mixed Curling Championship winning team, is the curling manager and associate golf professional at Glendale Golf and Country Club in Hamilton.

When Russ Howard won his first provincial championship—the 1976 Ontario Colts for curlers with fewer than seven years of experience—his team included fellow Midland, Ont., resident Jim Clark. Clark, a Golf Canada volunteer for almost 30 years now, has been the RBC Canadian Open’s Tournament Chair a record eight times and chaired golf’s organizing committee at the 2015 Pan/Parapan Am Games.

Two-time world and Brier champ John Kawaja, born in Chandler, Que., spent three decades working for TaylorMade-adidas in Canada and the U.S. until he left his position as executive vice-president in 2015.

SAN DIEGO – Team RBC ambassador Brandt Snedeker wound up winning the Farmers Insurance Open on Monday without hitting a shot.

Snedeker closed with a 3-under 69 in nasty wind and rain on Sunday. There was some question whether his lead would hold when the final round at Torrey Pines was suspended because of the conditions.

Turns out the wind was just as bad – perhaps even worse considering the change in direction – and no one could top his score of 6-under 282.

K.J. Choi missed a 30-foot birdie putt on the 18th that would have forced a playoff. He closed with a 76 and finished one shot behind. Jimmy Walker made bogey on four of the eight holes he played Monday and wound up three shots behind.

Adam Hadwin finish as the top Canadian. He was 9-over and tied for 63rd. Graham DeLaet tied for 69th at 12-over.

LONDON, Ont. – London Ontario Golf has named local golf legend and Canadian golf pioneer Bob Martin recipient of its 2016 Heart Award.

Martin, 76, of London is the sixth annual Heart Award winner. The local golf legend will be honoured June 14 at a ceremony at Greenhills Golf Club.

The Heart Award recognizes members of the London and area golf industry who unselfishly give back to the game of golf. Each June (Stroke Awareness Month), the Heart Award recipient, as selected by the editors of LondonOntarioGolf.com, is honoured within the categories of golf professionals/instructors, golf mentors, golf course owners/operators, golf course architects/designers and members of the media. Previous winners of the London Ontario Golf Heart Award include Mike Olizarevitch (2011), Fred Kern (2012), Patty Howard (2013), Mike Weir (2014) and East Park (2015).

“For 55 years, Martin’s name has been synonymous with golf in London,” said LondonOntarioGolf.com editor Jeffrey Reed. “He was an industry pioneer, opening Canada’s second off-course golf retail store in 1963 in a tiny William Street basement shop. He has provided thousands of junior golfers with free golf clubs over the years. And he has unselfishly helped raise funds for and awareness of numerous charities during his storied career. We are honoured to celebrate Martin’s achievements with the 2016 Heart Award.”

“When I see my name alongside such names as Mike Weir and Patty Howard, I feel very proud,” said Martin. “I have always had the support of my family and friends, along with loyal fellow workers, customers and clients. I have been truly blessed to be surrounded with such positivity, and it is my pleasure to help grow the game of golf.”

Today, as owner/operator of Bob’s Range on Wonderland Road South in London, Martin is as familiar to local golfers as was his popular radio jingle – “Bob Martin Means Golf!” – during his lengthy retail career. From 1957-60 he was an assistant golf professional at Sunningdale Golf and Country Club, then left to join the new East Park Golf Gardens as its managing golf pro, a title he held from 1963 through 1977.

During the winter months, Martin would sell golf equipment within the cozy confines of 609 William Street. Chuck Brown’s Golf Shop in Ottawa was the first off-course golf retailer in Canada. In 1978, Martin opened his off-course shop year-round. He operated Bob Martin’s Golf, and later Bob Martin’s Golf and Fashions, until he sold his business in 2002 – three years before his current range opened.

In between, Martin did business with the Nevada Bob’s franchises, was part-owner of Oakville SportDomes, and operated the Wally World golf range with the Spivak family from 1999-2003. From the late-1990s to 2013, he teamed up with senior long drive competitor Ron Lampman of St. Thomas as part of the Golf Unleashed clinic/demonstration and long-drive show. Today, in addition to supporting golfers of all ages – including junior golfers, through his summer golf camps and continued philanthropic efforts – he joins London golf instructor Derek Highly of Canadian Fade at golf clinics and demonstrations.

Today, Martin and his wife, Kathy, are proudly supported by their daughter, Jennifer, and her husband, Mike Stoner, parents of Bob’s grandson, Griffin, who no doubt will soon have a golf club in his hands courtesy of his grandfather.

“Martin’s unending dedication to growing the game of golf in London has, for more than half a century, been unparalleled,” added Reed. “No one else’s name is tied so closely to golf in London as is Martin’s. And his passion for the game burns as brightly today as it did 55 years ago. We’re thrilled to honour him with the 2016 London Ontario Golf Heart Award.”

February is Heart Month. The Heart & Stroke Foundation of Canada is the Official Charity of London Ontario Golf.

The Heart Award will be on display at the London Golf Show and Sale March 12-13 at the Progress Building, Western Fair District. Visit the London Ontario Golf booth.

SAN DIEGO – Brandt Snedeker called it one of the best rounds he ever played, one he doubts he could repeat if he had to start over. Still to be determined was whether his 3-under 69 in a raging wind and occasional rain at Torrey Pines was good enough to win.

The final round suspended three times because of conditions deemed too severe to play, and it was uncertain if the Farmers Insurance Open would finish Sunday.

Snedeker played the final 17 holes without a bogey, and he was the only player to shoot par or better in gusts that topped 40 mph and rain that made it feel even stronger. He one regret was not getting up-and-down for birdie on the par-5 18th hole, fearing that might leave him short of another unlikely victory at Torrey Pines.

Snedeker posted at 6-under 282.

As he stood on the 18th tee with the wind at his back, the final group of Jimmy Walker, K.J. Choi and Scott Brown were above him on the ninth tee headed in the other direction. When play was halted for the third time, Walker was at 7 under, one shot ahead of Snedeker and Choi. The final group was through 10 holes.

“It’s like playing a British Open on a U.S. Open setup,” Snedeker said. “This course is so tough. It’s blowing 25 mph, gusting out there and windy and rainy conditions. It’s really tough. I wish I could say why I shot what I shot today. It was one of those days where you throw everything out of your mind and go play golf land grind as best as you possibly could.”

The average score when play was halted was over 78.

The next best score to Snedeker was a 73 by Shane Lowry of Ireland.

There already were nine rounds in the 80s and certain to be more.

Snedeker started the final round six shots out of the lead. He won at Torrey Pines in 2012 by rallying from seven shots back in the final round, needing help from a triple bogey by Kyle Stanley on the final hole before beating him in a playoff.

This time, his help might come from Mother Nature.

Adam Hadwin will most likely finish as the top Canadian. He was sitting at 8-over with five holes to go when play was called.

PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas – Hyo Joo Kim won the season-opening Pure Silk-Bahamas LPGA Classic on Sunday, relegating Stacy Lewis to yet another second-place finish.

Kim rebounded from a bogey on the 16th hole with a 9-foot birdie putt on the par-3 17th and closed with a par for a two-stroke victory over Lewis, 2015 champion Sei Young Kim and Anna Nordqvist.

Hyo Joo Kim shot a 7-under 66 at the breezy Ocean Club to finish at 18-under 274. The 20-year-old South Korean player has three LPGA Tour victories, also winning the 2014 Evian Championship and 2015 Founders Cup.

Needing an eagle to force a playoff, Lewis parred the par-5 18th for a 68. She has nine runner-up finishes in a 40-event victory drought that dates to June 2014. The 11-time tour winner has 22 career second-place finishes.

Sei Young Kim also shot a 68, and Nordqvist had a 69.

Hyo Joo Kim made three straight birdies – holing putts of 18 feet on the par-3 12th, 15 feet on the par-4 13th and 5 feet on the par-4 14th – to open a three-stroke lead. After the bogey on the difficult par-4 16th, she hit a slight draw with a 4-iron to set up the birdie putt on the 171-yard 17th.

She had four birdies on the front nine, making three in a row on Nos. 4-6 and adding another on No. 8. The nine-time Korean LPGA winner parred all three par 5s on the back nine.

The third-ranked Lewis parred the final three holes after birdieing Nos. 13-15. After missing long birdie tries on 16 and 17, she hit a 3-wood into the light rough near the right-side front bunkers on 18, flopped 8 feet past and two-putted for par.

Sei Young Kim had a double bogey on the par-4 ninth, then rallied with four back-nine birdies.

Nordqvist, tied with Charley Hull for the third-round lead, birdied the final two par 5s.

Pornanong Phatlum matched the tournament record with a 65 to tie for fifth with Paula Creamer (66) and 2013 winner Ilhee Lee (68) at 15 under. Brittany Lincicome also shot a 65 to join Hull (71) and Min Seo Kwak (67) at 14 under.

Megan Khang, playing her first event as an LPGA Tour member, bogeyed the final hole for a 60 to drop into a tie for 11th at 13 under.

Brooke Henderson carded a final-round 70 and to get to 9-under and tie for 21st. Maude-Aimee LeBlanc shot 72 Sunday and finished 7-under for a share of 31st. Alena Sharp tied for 38th a shot back at 6-under thanks to a 70.

PANAMA CITY – Ryan Armour won the Web.com Tour’s season-opening Panama Claro Championship on Sunday for his first victory in 217 career starts.

The 40-year-old former Ohio State player closed with a 6-under 64 for a three-stroke victory over Kyle Thompson. Armour finished at 12-under 268 at Panama Golf Club.

Thompson had a 66.

Third-round leader Curtis Thompson shot a 72 to drop into a tie with Martin Flores at 8 under.

Jonathan Byrd (65) and Austin Cook (67) followed at 7 under.

The tour will be in Bogota next week for the Club Colombia Championship.

Adam Svensson was the top finishing Canadian. He finished 3-under and tied for 14th.

SAN DIEGO – K.J. Choi one-putted his last six holes Saturday to salvage an even-par 72 and a share of the lead with Scott Brown going into the final round of the Farmers Insurance Open.

Choi made three birdies and saved par three times down the stretch.

Brown was solid again on the South Course. He was the only player to reach 10 under until a bogey on the 15th and missed birdie chances over the last three holes. He still had a 70 and will have a shot to win and get to the Masters for the first time.

They were at 9-under 207, one shot ahead of Jimmy Walker (68) and Gary Woodland (73).

Dustin Johnson didn’t make a birdie until the 13th hole and shot 74. He was three shots back.

It was a tough day for the two Canadians remaining in the field.

Graham DeLaet shot an 82 thanks to seven bogeys and a triple. Adam Hadwin was 4-shots better with a 78. They are 71st and T63 respectively.

PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas – Charley Hull and Anna Nordqvist shared the lead Saturday in the season-opening Pure Silk-Bahamas LPGA Classic, and Ha Na Jang had the first hole-in-one on a par 4 in tour history.

Hull made a 10-foot birdie putt on the par-5 18th to match European Solheim Cup teammate Nordqvist at 12-under 207 in breezy but calmer conditions at the Ocean Club. The 19-year-old Hull, from England, had a 4-under 69. Nordqvist, from Sweden, also birdied the 18th for a 68.

“It’s a little different because, obviously, it’s been really windy, so I got used to playing in that wind.” Hull said. “And today the first couple holes I think I was allowing too much of the wind and there wasn’t that much up there.”

Jang made the albatross on the eighth hole, at a mere 218 yards playing at a distance normally considered a par 3. Her 3-wood shot into light wind landed a yard in front of the green and rolled in.

“I don’t see the ball finish, but my dad was, ‘Oh, you made it,'” Jang said. “It’s unbelievable. Amazing.”

She was disappointed that she didn’t win a car.

“A new car, please. A car, please,” Jang said. “I wanted a car. I need a car.”

The South Korean player was five strokes back after a 68.

Winless in 30 career starts on the LPGA Tour, Hull birdied four of her last eight holes. She had a bit of an adventure Friday night at dinner when a candle burned her napkin.

“I was like, ‘Oh, good thing we didn’t have the pizza because it smells a bit burny,'” Hull said. “I looked down and there’s this hole like growing bigger and bigger and bigger, and I’m like, ‘Sheez!'” So I patted it out.”

Nordqvist rebounded after hitting a wedge approach long into the water for a bogey on the par-5 11th. She won the ShopRite LPGA Classic last year in New Jersey for her fifth LPGA Tour title.

“I’m really excited,” Nordqvist said. “I really had zero expectations coming into this week. It’s the first tournament of the year. I’m just excited to be back playing. Put in a lot of work this winter.”

Third-ranked Stacy Lewis, defending champion Sei Young Kim and Hyo Joo Kim were a stroke back. Lewis birdied the 18th for a 67, and Sei Young Kim and Hyo Joo Kim shot 68.

Lewis won the last of her 11 LPGA Tour titles in June 2014, a 39-event drought that includes eight runner-up finishes.

“I think tomorrow is supposed to be even less wind, maybe a little more calm,” Lewis said. “So, you’re going to have to make some birdies. You’re going to have to shoot a good score, but you’re not trying to force things. That’s the biggest thing for me tomorrow is just to stay patient and trust my golf swing.”

Sei Young Kim birdied the 18th after losing the lead with a double bogey on the par-4 16th. On 16, she drove left in palm trees, chipped out through the fairway and into the rough, and hit her third over the green into bushes that line the water. She made a 12-foot putt to save double bogey.

“The tee shot was a bad choice,” Sei Young Kim said about her decision to use a driver. “I’m very disappointed there. I’m OK. I have a one day tomorrow.”

Hyo Joo Kim chipped in for eagle on 18.

Megan Khang, playing her first event as an LPGA Tour member, was two shots back along with 2013 winner Ilhee Lee. The 18-year-old Khang, from Rockland, Massachusetts, had a 71 after shooting a 68 on Friday for a share of the lead with Hull and Haru Nomura.

“Wind was definitely better today,” Khang said. “So much the driving and approach shots, so much the putting, I just couldn’t find a putt to drop. … I definitely am excited for tomorrow.”

Lee shot a 66.

Canadians Brooke Henderson and Maude-Aimee LeBlanc have a share of 16th at 6-under after matching 70s Saturday. Compatriot Alena Sharp is 3-under and has a share of 31st.