As golf has become more global and the wealth of the PGA Tour has made it the premier destination, there has been grumbling over the years that it has become easier for international players to earn a PGA Tour card through world rankings that get them into the biggest events.

This year shows another side to that equation.

The penalty for not meeting membership requirements is far stiffer than it is for Americans.

Martin Kaymer of Germany, a two-time major champion and former No. 1 player in the world, joined the PGA Tour in 2013. As a European, he is entitled to the “home circuit” policy that allows him to play unlimited European Tour events. However, he is required to play a minimum of 15 events on the PGA Tour.

Kaymer built the FedEx Cup playoffs into his worldwide schedule, had a poor year by his standards and ran into a big problem – he failed to qualify for the playoffs, and wound up playing only 13 times.

The penalty is Kaymer forfeits his PGA Tour membership for next season. Even if he were to win next year, he could not rejoin the tour until the 2016-17 season. He cannot compete in the FedEx Cup next year and he is allowed to play no more than 12 PGA Tour events (including majors and World Golf Championships).

And then there’s Steve Stricker, who entered into semi-retirement a year ago.

Stricker played only nine events this year (he was not eligible for the World Golf Championships or two majors) and finished at No. 176 in the FedEx Cup. He also is required to play a minimum 15 times to keep his membership, but in his case, that only means he can’t vote on tour issues (player advisory council, awards). But he would be eligible for the FedEx Cup next year.

The difference? Stricker didn’t activate the “home circuit” policy because the PGA Tour is his home. If Americans want to play overseas (Rickie Fowler at the Scottish Open, for example), they must get a “conflicting event release” from the PGA Tour. The guideline is three releases for every 15 tour events played.

Kaymer isn’t alone in this predicament.

Victor Dubuisson of France also took up PGA Tour membership. He played only 10 times on the PGA Tour and finished No. 190 in the FedEx Cup. Because he claimed the home circuit policy, he will not be eligible for the FedEx Cup next year.

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MONEY & POINTS: Charlie Beljan didn’t qualify for FedEx Cup playoffs for the second straight year and managed to keep his card.

There’s a difference between FedEx points and PGA Tour earnings, and it has saved him. Beljan finished in the top 10 only once this year; He was third at the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am, which had a $6.8 million purse. Beljan earned $462,400 that week, which was 59 percent of his season earnings. So while he finished at No. 149 in the FedEx Cup, he wound up at No. 118 on the money list, enough to keep his full PGA Tour card for next year.

Points are evenly distributed at all PGA Tour events, with a slight bump for the World Golf Championships and another for the majors. Prize money varies at tournaments, from the $6.8 million at Pebble Beach and $10 million at the majors to $5.4 million for the Wyndham Championship and $4.7 million for the John Deere Classic.

The PGA Tour kept the top 125 on the money list as part of its criteria when it shifted to the wraparound season and said it would evaluate whether to keep it. So far, the policy board has decided to keep it.

That’s good news for Beljan, Will MacKenzie, Jamie Donaldson, Whee Kim and David Toms. They all finished in the top 125 on the money list and failed to make the playoffs. Kaymer also was in the top 125, though he didn’t meet his minimum requirement of 15 starts. Scott Stallings, serving a three-month suspension for violating the anti-doping policy, also was in the top 125 but he already was exempt for next year from his 2014 win at Torrey Pines.

Seven players who reached the top 125 in the FedEx Cup standings were outside the top 125 on the money list – Vijay Singh, Jonas Blixt, Erik Compton, John Huh, Stewart Cink, Spencer Levin, Camilo Villegas and Jeff Overton.

Overton is No. 125 in the FedEx Cup. He was No. 154 on the money list.

William McGirt was safe either way, though he had the greatest discrepancy – No. 74 in the FedEx Cup, No. 114 on the money list.

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NEW TO THE ROTATION: The Barclays already has been held at five golf courses since the FedEx Cup began. It’s about to get another.

The PGA Tour announced Tuesday that Glen Oaks Club on Long Island will host the opening FedEx Cup event in 2017. The course was designed by Joe Finer and opened in 1971. It was named club of the year in 2015 by the Metropolitan Golf Writers Association.

That means The Barclays will be held at five courses over the next five years – Bethpage Black in 2016, Glen Oaks in 2017, Ridgewood in 2018, Liberty National in 2019 and Plainfield in 2020.

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ANIRBAN LAHIRI: Anirban Lahiri of India tied for fifth at the PGA Championship, though his bogey on the final hole at Whistling Straits proved costly. It ultimately was worth $72,500, the difference in getting a PGA Tour card for next year.

Lahiri finished with $712,794 in non-member earnings, which was the equivalent of No. 128 on the money list. Had he been in the top 125, he would have earned a card.

Even with a tie for fifth at the PGA Championship, he was not eligible for the Wyndham Championship because he was not a special temporary member and had already used up the maximum 12 exemptions on the PGA Tour.

So what’s next?

Lahiri will be eligible to take part in the Web.com Tour Finals and could try to earn his card through those four events.

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DIVOTS: PGA Tour rookie Justin Thomas gets new shirts for his first FedEx Cup playoff event. He has signed an endorsement deal with Citigroup, which starts this week. The logo will be on his left sleeve. Thomas is No. 36 in the FedEx Cup. … Davis Love III at No. 613 in the world became the seventh player ranked outside the top 200 to win on the PGA Tour this season. The others were Nick Taylor (566), James Hahn (297), Padraig Harrington (297), David Lingmerth (212), Fabian Gomez (288) and J.J. Henry (426). … Leona Maguire of Ireland won the Mark H McCormack Medal as the No. 1 female in the 2015 world amateur ranking. … The PGA of America has selected former PGA Tour commissioner Deane Beman to receive its Distinguished Service Award. Beman will be honored Nov. 13 during the PGA’s annual meeting in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida.

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STAT OF THE WEEK: Dating to the start of the FedEx Cup in 2007, Ernie Els made the cut in all four majors for the first time, and missed the playoffs for the first time.

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FINAL WORD: “He’s the real deal, and he can play under pressure. He’s like Tiger. I didn’t know if we’d find somebody that could make the putts that he does and stay consistently through the pressure rounds of the majors, and he seems to have that kind of game.” – Johnny Miller on Jordan Spieth.

PGA champion Jason Day has withdrawn from the pro-am at The Barclays after tweaking his back.

Day was moving an item under his motor coach on Tuesday night when he tweaked his back. His trainer says Day withdrew from the Wednesday pro-am at Plainfield Country Club because of a longstanding disc issue. The Australian wanted a day of rest so that he could play in the tournament.

Day has a history of injuries that include his back and hand. He suffered vertigo symptoms at the U.S. Open this year.

Day is coming off his first major at Whistling Straits when he won by three shots over Jordan Spieth. At No. 2 in the FedEx Cup, he is to play the opening round with Spieth and Bubba Watson.

NEW GLASGOW, N.S. – Garrett Rank wasted little time in opening his title defence at the 2015 Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship at Abercrombie Country Club in New Glasgow, Nova Scotia. Rank was one of three players to register a round below par on the opening day of the nation’s premiere competition for those over 25.

“I was pretty good off the tee today,” reflected the 27-year-old, who tallied five birdies en route to a 5-under 65 performance. “I got it in play and gave myself a lot of chances. I hit a few close and then hit a few really good wedge shots. I tried to give myself as many opportunities as I could from 15 feet all day.”

Rank is the defending champion after claiming the President’s Cup in 2014 following a playoff victory over Rob Couture of Dallas, Texas. The native of Elmira, Ont., recognizes the challenges of playing as a past winner, but likens the experience to the difficulties of participating in the many big events that have highlighted his season.

“There’s a little bit of pressure, but it’s not really anything that’s new or different. There’s pressure playing in the RBC Canadian Open. There’s pressure playing in the Pan Am Games. There’s pressure playing in the U.S. and Canadian Amateurs. You just have to try and take it one shot at a time.”

The former University of Waterloo Warrior remains focused on the task at hand – claiming victory and a prized exemption into the 2016 edition of Canada’s National Open Championship.

“The goal here is to win and get into the RBC Canadian Open again next year,” said Rank. “But you can’t think about that stuff. You’ve just got to worry about playing golf. You just need to stay patient. You can’t try and get too aggressive. If you just keep grinding away and hitting solid shots, hopefully some good scores will follow.”

Sitting with a share of second is another competitor looking to build upon his legacy at this championship – Garth Collings of Matlock, Man. The 57-year-old, who won this competition in 2003, opened with three birdies across a bogey-free front nine and would go on to finish 1-under on the day. Tyler Wright of Regina, Sask., notched three birdies to also end the first day of competition tied for runner-up.

With his round of 69, Collings leads the over-40 Mid-Master division. Woodbridge, Ont., product Dave Bunker’s 18 even-par holes has him in second. The 50-year-old is a three-time Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur champion, having collected three consecutive titles from 2008-2010. Stony Plain, Alta., native Jeff Murdoch is in third at 1-over 71.

Team Ontario leads the inter-provincial competition that is played concurrently with the first 36 holes of the tournament. Comprised of Garrett Rank, New Hamburg, Ont., native Josh Hunke and Toronto’s Kevin Fawcett, the trio registered a combined score of 3-under 137 to lead by five strokes.

In second place totaling 142 is Team Alberta made up of Jeff Murdoch, Kevin Temple (Calgary) and Brandon Markiw (Edmonton). Rounding out the top-three is the host province – Team Nova Scotia. The efforts of Stuart Lenehan (Dartmouth, N.S.), Paul Coulson (Biblehill, N.S.) and Glenn Robinson (Middle Sackville, N.S.) have the hosts at 4-over 144. British Columbia, which hoisted the R. Bruce Forbes Trophy in 2014 as team champions, currently sits T6 at 148.

Following the two opening rounds of play, the field will be reduced to the low 70 competitors and ties.

For more information regarding the 2015 Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship, please visit the tournament website.

MEDICINE HAT, Alta. – The top Canadian and American senior male golfers will tee off at Desert Blume Golf Club in Medicine Hat, Alta., for the 53^rd playing of the Canadian Men’s Senior Championship.

The 72-hole stroke play competition will feature a practice round on August 31 followed by tournament play from September 1-4. The national championship is open to players over the age of 55, while competitors 70 years of age and older will also be eligible for the Super Senior division to be played concurrently over the first 36 holes of the tournament.

“With a field of highly-touted senior golfers ready to take on Desert Blume Golf Club, the 2015 Canadian Men’s Senior Championship will prove to be an exciting competition,” said Tournament Director Mary Beth McKenna. “The course is in excellent condition and will test the best senior golfers from across our country and the United States.”

Vancouver’s Doug Roxburgh will attempt to defend his 2014 Canadian Men’s Senior title and earn his seventh national golf championship to add to his Canadian Golf Hall of Fame career. Inducted in 1990, the 63-year-old has claimed a Canadian Junior Championship, four Canadian Amateur titles and a total of 13 B.C. Amateur Championships. Last year, Roxburgh finished 7-under par to complete a wire-to-wire victory and capture his first Senior championship.

Challenging Roxburgh for the title will be Paul Simson of Raleigh, N.C. The 64-year-old made history in 2010 by becoming the first player to win the British, U.S. and Canadian senior titles in the same year. Simson is hoping to carry forward momentum from winning the 2015 North Carolina Senior Amateur title at Champion Hills Club in Hendersonville, N.C.

Simson ranks No. 23 on Golfweek’s Senior Amateur Rankings and will be joined by Steve Hudson of Birmingham, Ala., who finished last year’s competition in third. Hudson, the top-ranked player in the field at No. 3, opened the year by capturing the 2015 Golfweek Senior National Championship at Stone Creek Golf Club in Ocala, Fla.

Collingwood, Ont., native Michael Jackson is the top-ranked Canadian at No. 28 on Golfweek’s Senior Amateur rankings. Jackson, 62, claimed this year’s Ontario Senior Men’s Amateur title in a three-way playoff thriller.

Also in the hunt for the national championship will be Golfweek’s Senior Amateur No. 26, Brady Exber of Las Vegas, Nev. A member of the Golf Hall of Fame in his hometown, Exber is looking to improve upon his runner-up result at this event in 2014. The 59-year-old is joined by a trio of Americans in the top-25 of Golfweek’s rankings, including Pat Thompson of Asheville, N.C. (T18), Jack Hall of Savannah, Ga. (T18), and Gary Robinson of Fayetteville, N.C. (No. 21).

A Senior Inter-Provincial Team Championship will also be played in conjunction with the first two rounds of competition; British Columbia enters as the defending champions.

The 2015 Canadian Men’s Senior champion will earn an exemption into the 2015 U.S. Senior Amateur Championship at Hidden Creek Golf Club in Egg Harbor Township, N.J., from September 26 to October 1.

More information on the championship can be found here.

BERLIN – Europe captain Carin Koch named her four wild cards for the Solheim Cup on Tuesday, completing the 12-member team to face the United States in September.

Caroline Hedwall of Sweden, Karine Icher of France, Caroline Masson of Germany and Catriona Matthew of Scotland all return to the team, having helped Europe to a record 18-10 victory over the U.S. in Colorado in 2013.

They join Suzann Pettersen of Norway, Gwladys Nocera of France and Charley Hull and Melissa Reid of England, who qualified from the Ladies European Tour points list, and Anna Nordqvist of Sweden, Azahara Munoz of Spain, Sandra Gal of Germany and Carlota Ciganda of Spain, who earned their spots by their world rankings.

“Now I can really start focusing on the week and making sure we’ll have a great week there,” Koch told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. “There’s still lots to do.”

The Solheim Cup takes place Sept. 18-20 at the St. Leon-Rot Golf Club near Heidelberg in Germany.

Koch, who was on Europe’s winning teams in 2000 and 2003, said she was excited by the mix of youth and experience she had gathered together. She has been diligent with her preparations to date, spending time with victorious Ryder Cup counterpart Paul McGinley.

“It’s great to have him, to be able to ask questions and get some advice from him,” Koch said. “He’s given me a lot of good tips. Our situations are quite similar going into the event so it’s been very helpful.”

Europe is looking for a third consecutive victory, having captured back-to-back Solheim Cup titles for the first time in 2013, but Koch said past success had little influence on the present.

“This is a new event, this is Solheim Cup 2015. We don’t have to concentrate so much on the past. We concentrate on this event,” the 44-year-old Swede said.

“Obviously we’re going to go out and play as well as we can, make as many birdies as we can, and give the Americans a good match. On paper they’re going to be the stronger team, and I know they’re going to come out strong because they don’t want to lose three in a row,” she added. “It’s going to be a tough one, but I’m very confident with the team I have. They’re going to be great.”

Hedwall became the first player to win five out of five matches in 2013 and she retained the cup for Europe by winning the 14th point. The 26-year-old Swede was also on Europe’s winning team in 2011.

Icher was on the 2002 and 2013 teams so this will be the 36-year-old’s first Solheim Cup appearance on European soil.

Masson earned 2 1/2 points as a Solheim Cup rookie in 2013 and is looking forward to defending the title in her home country.

“It’s been a huge goal to make the team for the last two years and I have been waiting for that call, to see what decision Carin would make. When she told me I was a pick I was super happy,” the 26-year-old Masson said.

Matthew is the most experienced player in the team at age 46, along with Pettersen, and she will be taking part in her eighth Solheim Cup.

“The event’s got bigger and bigger, each one I’ve played in, and it’s just a great thing to play in a team event when normally it’s such an individual sport,” Matthew told the AP.

United States captain Juli Inkster completed her team Monday, when she picked Brittany Lang and Paula Creamer, the next two available players from the Solheim Cup standings.

They join Stacy Lewis, Lexi Thompson, Cristie Kerr, Michelle Wie, Brittany Lincicome, Morgan Pressel, Angela Stanford and Gerina Piller – who qualified on points – and world ranking-qualifiers Alison Lee and Lizette Salas.

“World ranking-wise they’d come out ahead of us so in that respect you might call them favorites but it’s home soil for us and we’ve won the last two so we’ve got momentum,” Matthew said. “I think it’s going to be close and hopefully we’ll just edge them out.”

Koch highlighted the importance of the Solheim Cup to women’s golf and women’s sport in general.

“It’s huge,” she said. “We can see with the preparations for this event how big the Solheim Cup has become. It’s our chance to showcase women’s sport or women’s golf in Europe and around the world.”

The term National Junior Golf Development Centre might be a mouth-full, but its strategy is very clear-cut.

A joint initiative between Golf Canada, the PGA of Canada, and the Provincial Associations, Development Centres offer best-in-class programming, instruction and facilities for junior golfers between the ages of 5–18.

First and foremost, the purpose behind the initiative is to point parents, teachers and junior golfers in the right direction for finding the best, most welcoming experience for juniors.

The need for these centres addresses a gap where industry bodies had difficulty identifying facilities—with absolute certainty—that offer best-in-class programming. Since inception in 2013, the initiative has grown 33% from 30 facilities to 40. With that said, the main focus remains on quality of programming and commitment to junior golf—hence the following criteria for accreditation:

Each National Junior Golf Development Centre must possess the following before applying:

• Meet minimum coaching requirements as defined by the PGA of Canada
• Offer Long-Term Player Development­­ (LTPD) compliant programming
  • CN Future Links
  • Learn to Compete
• Demonstrate a healthy relationship with a Golf in Schools facility in their community

“Golf Canada is proud to stand behind National Junior Golf Development Centres as those facilities that go above-and-beyond when delivering junior programming,” said Jeff Thompson, Golf Canada’s Chief Sport Officer. “These centres have demonstrated the ability to deliver junior programming at all levels from introductory to competitive and play a key leadership role in Canada’s player development pathway.”

To find a National Junior Golf Development Centre in your area, visit the postal-code locator at Golf Canada Juniors website: golfcanada.ca/juniors

Click here to view all National Junior Golf Development Centres across Canada.

ORLANDO, Fla. – Juli Inkster completed her Solheim Cup team by adding Brittany Lang and Paula Creamer as captain’s picks Monday night.

Creamer has one LPGA Tour victory in the last five years, but she brings plenty of experience. She has played on every Solheim Cup team dating to her rookie season in 2005 and has a 12-6-5 overall record. Lang will be playing in her fourth Solheim Cup.

Lang and Creamer were the next two available players from the Solheim Cup standings.

“They add a lot to the team not just as far as golf, but chemistry and experience,” Inkster said. “They are very competitive players. Paula has been in a little bit of a funk but I expect her to be out of it and ready to go. B Lang has been playing really good. I’m looking forward to it and I think the team is really stoked to get over there and turn the tide a little bit. We are going there as underdogs but we are going to go in there and fight for everything.”

Europe won on U.S. soil for the first time in 2013 at Colorado Golf Club and has won the last two times. The Americans still have an 8-5 lead in the series.

The matches will be Sept. 18-20 at the St. Leon-Rot Golf Club in Germany.

Stacy Lewis, Lexi Thompson, Cristie Kerr, Michelle Wie, Brittany Lincicome, Morgan Pressel, Angela Stanford and Gerina Piller qualified on points. Alison Lee and Lizette Salas qualified through the world ranking.

Among the players Inkster skipped over were Mo Martin, who won the Women’s British Open at Royal Birkdale last year, and Austin Ernst, who captured her first LPGA title in Portland last year. Neither has played in a Solheim Cup. Both were slightly ahead of Creamer on this year’s money list.

Inkster has only one rookie (Lee) and five players who have competed in at least five Solheim Cups. Wie, meanwhile, has been coping with injuries and hasn’t won since her U.S. Women’s Open title last year at Pinehurst No. 2.

European captain Carin Koch fills out her team with two picks on Tuesday.

Coquitlam, B.C. (Golf Canada) – Lydia Ko calmly tapped in a two foot par putt on the first playoff hole at The Vancouver Golf Club to defeat Stacy Lewis and take home her third Canadian Pacific Women’s Open title in the last four years.

“It feels amazing,” Ko said. “It’s great to come back to Vancouver and play well in front of such big crowds. I had an amazing week. I didn’t know that in 2012, I might be coming back here in a couple years, and then win here again. So many great memories here and hopefully we’ll be able to come back here.”

The victory is the eighth of Ko’s young career and the three wins in Canada ties her with Meg Mallon and Pat Bradley for the most in tournament history.

“It would have been great if I was coming down the 18th with like a four-shot lead like I did in 2012,” Ko said with a smile. “But it is what it is. Stacy played amazing today; to shoot 67 under those conditions.”

Lewis forced the playoff with a 5-under final round to tie Ko, who shot an even par 72 on Sunday, and send the duo back to the 18th for extra holes.

On the playoff hole, Lewis found trouble off the tee and with her approach and was forced to scramble for a missed par attempt, while Ko calmly hit the fairway and green and then two-putted for her third victory of 2015.

“I said, hey, you’ve just got to concentrate on your game, just one shot a time, and that’s what I tried to do,” Ko explained. “I said, I don’t want to get too aggressive to that pin but maybe it was a little bit too safe and maybe wasn’t the best shot going in. I made a really good first putt on my normal 72nd hole, and made a good putt on the first playoff hole. If the put was any longer for my second one, I would have been really nervous.”

“Well, if you would have told me at the beginning of the day, I was going to be in a playoff, I would have been pretty happy,” Lewis admitted. “Just with the way my game has been over the last month or so, I felt I was close to putting together a good round, and that’s what I did today. Still left a few out there. But would have liked a better lie in the rough in the playoff, but other than that, it was pretty good.”

While Ko has taken home the trophy three times, 2015 will mark the first time that Ko is able to take home a winner’s cheque in Canada as her victories in 2012 and 2013 came when she was still an amateur.

“You know, really the cheque is the last thing I’m thinking about,” Ko said. “It’s great to be back in the winner’s circle, and to play good golf in front of great crowds was really one of the highlights of this week. I kind of feel like somewhat Canadian. But the CP Women’s Open is such a great event, with the top players playing here, so, you know, every year, I have fun.“

Brooke Henderson capped a special homecoming at The Vancouver Golf Club with her best round of the week, a 5-under 67 to finish with a tournament-total 4-under and the Sandra Post Low Canadian Medal. The 17-year-old came into Canada’s National Women’s Open Championship fresh off a victory last week at the LPGA Cambia Classic in Portland, a historic accomplishment that put her centre-stage all week long with fan and media expectations.

“I’ve received quite a bit of attention in my amateur days and then earlier this year playing well. But after a win and coming back to Canada, I have received a lot of attention that made my schedule extremely busy,” said Henderson who finished T23 to add $22,816 to her 2015 earnings. “But it’s a great problem to have, as I’ve been saying to a lot of people. I learned a lot about myself and how I can handle it, and I think it will be good for the next time.”

Rounding out the Canadian trio to make the cut was Alena Sharp of Hamilton, Ont. who carded a final-round 75 to finish T47 and Maude-Aimee Leblanc of Sherbrooke, Que., whose final-round 80 dropped her into a share of 74th position.

COQUITLAM, BC – Lydia Ko beat one of the strongest fields on the LPGA tour this year to win the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open title, but it is British Columbia’s kids that will leave with the biggest prize as CP is donating $1.2 million to BC Children’s Hospital Foundation (BCCHF) in support of pediatric cardiac research.

“We are proud to have brought professional golf to the Lower Mainland and we are even prouder to make one of the largest charitable donations on the LPGA tour to this important cause,” said CP President and Chief Operating Officer Keith Creel. “The leading edge cardiology research being conducted at BC Children’s Hospital has the potential to change and even save the lives of children living in BC, and the newly established CP Healthy Hearts Research Fund will ensure these benefits continue long after the end of our tournament.”

The CP Healthy Hearts Research Fund will expand the abilities of BC Children’s cardiology department, specifically by way of research. PhD trained researchers will be hired to lead new studies related to Heart Rhythm Disorders and Congenital Heart and Vascular Health. A predominant focus of the research will also connect the effects of exercise on those with congenital heart disease.

“Congenital heart disease affects one in every 100 children; it’s among the most common congenital anomalies,” said Dr. Shubhayan Sanatani, head of Cardiology at BC Children’s Hospital. “As the centre for specialized pediatric cardiology care in British Columbia, BC Children’s Hospital treats infants, children and teens with complex heart problems from all over BC, the Yukon and other Western Canadian provinces. This tremendous support from CP will allow us to continue to provide excellent care to this important population. It will also allow us to improve our care by expanding our research efforts to find even better treatments for these children.”

The final donation total was a result of a number of fundraising initiatives leading up to the conclusion of the golf tournament, including BC Children’s Hospital Miracle Weekend, Grind for Kids and online donation matching.

“Through this tournament and its CP Has Heart initiative, Canadian Pacific has engaged the community to support our hospital’s cardiac programs and research,” said Teri Nicholas, President and CEO of BC Children’s Hospital Foundation. “It’s an ideal partnership: CP takes care of the country’s major arteries while our cardiac specialists take care of the smallest. We are extremely grateful to CP, Golf Canada, The Vancouver Golf Club and all who contributed to help BC Children’s achieve its vision to provide the best care possible.”

BC Children’s Hospital serves close to one million children living in BC and the Yukon, with the Heart Centre seeing thousands of patients a year. Patients like 17-year-old Samantha Armstrong, the CP Has Heart ambassador for the 2015 CP Women’s Open. On the day she was born, Armstrong was diagnosed with a rare congenital heart defect. At age nine she had open-heart surgery at BC Children’s Hospital.

“When I was born I had a congenital heart defect called Ebstein’s Anomaly and I’ve been in treatment with BC Children’s Hospital my whole life. The doctors have counselled me to be stronger and work on my cardio, and this has allowed me to live my life as a normal kid, and not have my heart condition hold me back from anything,” said Armstrong. “CP Has Heart is a really great cause that means so much to me, my family and my friends with heart defects. BC Children’s means our lives, to us.”

CP has extended its commitment as the title sponsor of Canada’s National Women’s Open Golf Championship through 2018 and will continue to give back to host communities throughout the lifetime of the sponsorship. The 2016 CP Women’s Open, to be held in Calgary at Priddis Greens Golf and Country Club, will benefit Alberta Children’s Hospital’s pediatric cardiac care and research.

“People continue to rally around the CP Has Heart cause and we are delighted with all the fundraising success CP had through this event,” said Scott Simmons, CEO of Golf Canada. “We look forward to working with CP over the next few years as they continue to leave legacies in the host cities of this world-class event.”

GREENSBORO, N.C. – During their practice round together before the Wyndham Championship, Tiger Woods pumped local favorite Davis Love III for tips on how to play the course.

Looks like Love saved a few secrets for himself.

Love became the third-oldest winner in PGA Tour history with his victory Sunday, while Woods’ season came to an abrupt end.

The 51-year-old Love closed with a 6-under 64 for a one-stroke victory over Jason Gore.

“Tiger and I were talking on the putting green – one of us needed to get going and win this thing,” Love said.

He did.

Woods had trouble getting his final round started.

The dominant storyline all week at Sedgefield Country Club was the mere presence of Woods, who needed a victory to earn a spot in the FedEx Cup playoffs opener next week.

He was poised to challenge Sunday, starting just two strokes off the lead. But he only had one birdie during his first 10 holes, dropping way off the pace with a triple bogey on the par-4 11th. Woods shot a 70, finished four strokes back and ended at No. 178 in the standings, well outside the top 125.

“I gave myself a chance, and I had all the opportunity in the world today to do it,” Woods said. “I didn’t get it done.”

Now comes a break before his next tournament, the Frys.com Open in October in northern California. It’s the first event of the tour’s 2015-16 season.

“This is my offseason right now,” he said.

Love – who started at No. 186 – played himself into The Barclays by earning 500 FedEx Cup points and $972,000 in prize money.

At 51 years, 4 months, 10 days, Love trails only Sam Snead and Art Wall on the tour’s age list. Snead won the last of his eight Greensboro titles in 1965 at Sedgefield at 52 years, 10 months, 8 days, and Wall took the 1975 Greater Milwaukee Open at 51 years, 7 months, 10 days.

“Any victory now is going to be really sweet when you’re over 50,” Love said.

Love has 21 career victories, three in Greensboro. His previous two wins came across town at Forest Oaks Country Club in 1992 and 2006, and he had just one win since then – at the 2008 Children’s Miracle Network Classic in Florida.

“To have your name thrown out there with Sam Snead at any point is incredible,” Love said. “For some reason, this tournament has been good to guys in my age group.”

Love finished at 17-under 263. Gore, the third-round leader, shot a 69. Scott Brown (68), Charl Schwartzel (66) and Paul Casey (67) were two strokes behind Love.

Love, four strokes back after three rounds, started strong with four birdies and an eagle on Nos. 2-6. He moved to 17 under with an eagle on the par-5 15th – the first of his career during a competitive round on that hole.

He closed with three straight pars, walked off the 18th green with a two-stroke lead over Brown and Gore, and headed to the range to hit a few shots and rest up for a possible playoff.

“You don’t really know what to do,” Love said. “You don’t go to the cabin and think that you’ve won.”

Brown pulled within one stroke of Love with a birdie on 15, and Gore made things even more interesting with an eagle on that hole.

Neither got any closer.

Brown hit his approach on the 18th to about 60 feet, left his putt about 10 feet short and three-putted for bogey. Gore needed to make a 50-foot birdie putt on 18 to force a playoff, but he left it about a foot short to wrap up the victory for Love.

“I told my coach starting today, ’17 is a playoff and 18 is a winner,'” Brown said.

There was quite a crowd near the top of the leaderboard for a while. Midway through the afternoon, five players shared the lead at 15 under.

None of them was Woods.

Chasing his first victory since 2013, he opened with six straight pars, including one on the easiest hole on the course – the par-5 fifth, which he birdied in each of the first three rounds.

Woods sent his tee shot on the par-3 seventh into the huge gallery that had been waiting for him to reel off some birdies and make his move, then two-putted for his first bogey.

And when he made the turn, he was three strokes behind co-leaders Gore and Brown – his playing partner.

The 11th hole pretty much sank Woods.

His chip-and-run ran all the way off the green. He couldn’t keep his ensuing chip on, and wound up three-putting for triple bogey. Not even three straight birdies on Nos. 13-15 could help him recover.

“I just wasn’t able to get any kind of roll early,” Woods said. “I had my chances to get it going. I just never did.”