RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. – National Amateur Squad members Brittany Marchand of Orangeville, Ont., Elizabeth Tong of Thornhill, Ont., and Jennifer Ha of Calgary will join 17 other Canucks in Thursday’s opening round of LPGA Qualifying School at the Mission Hills Country Club.

Stage I, commencing from Aug. 6–9, will feature 288 players competing in the 72-hole stroke-play event for one of the top-60 scores that earn a pass through to Stage II of qualifying.

The full list of Canadian players is listed below:

Jessica MacPhee

Sabrina Sapone

Melissa Mabanta

Leilanie Kim

Krista Fenniak

Megan Osland (a)

Robyn Doig

Jennifer Ha (a)

Anna Young (a)

Kyla Inaba

Maya Parsons

Laura DeMarco

Alexa Kim

Brittany Marchand (a)

Aram Choi

Christina Foster

Anna Kim (a)

Joo Youn Seo (a)

Vivian Tsui

Elizabeth Tong (a)

—

Stage II of the LPGA Qualifying Tournament will be held from Oct. 22–25 at the Plantation Golf and Country Club in Venice, Fla.

Final Stage of LPGA Qualifying School will feature the top-80 scorers from Stage II and will run from Dec. 2–6 at LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Fla.

Click here for scoring

YORKTON, Sask. – Team British Columbia emerged as the Inter-Provincial Junior Girls team champions while Jessica Ip claimed the lead following second-round play at the Canadian Junior Girls Championship at Deer Park Golf Course in Yorkton, Sask.

Ip bested her opening-round score by one shot with a 4-under 69 performance despite tough rainy conditions. The Richmond Hill, Ont., native sits at 7-under par for the tournament and holds a two-stroke advantage going into the third round.

“I was a little more external today; I was thinking not really about my swing, but just about hitting the greens since there’s not much I can do about the weather. I guess I just hit a lot of greens and made a few putts, more than yesterday,” explained the 18-year-old.

Ip, who is heading into her second year playing for the University of Iowa Hawkeyes, partially credits the experience of playing NCAA golf for her early success in the tournament.

“I feel like my mentality coming back from school has changed this summer. I think I’ve been a little more aggressive and ambitious about how I’m shooting and how I should be playing. I think that has really helped me,” said Ip who carded five birdies on the day.

Two shots back is Hannah Lee who opened with the lead after 18 holes. The 15-year-old battled tough conditions early in the morning, but re-focused to card a 2-over par round. The product of Surrey, B.C., is 5-under for the tournament and leads the Juvenile Division.

In third place is Team Canada Development squad member Michelle Kim, also of Surrey, B.C., who carded an even-par second round and is 2-under through 36 holes.

The two Team British Columbia members led their home province to victory in the Inter-Provincial team competition played concurrently with the first two rounds of play. The pair, along with 12-year-old Akari Hayashi of Victoria, posted a two-day total of 7-under par 285 to capture the team championship by 20 strokes.

“It’s nice playing as a team because we usually play as individuals. We don’t really get to cheer on each other, we usually try to bite off each other’s heads,” joked Lee, whose 7-under par competitive course record in her first round gave the trio an early advantage in the team contest. “Canada has a strong field of girls and being able to win nationals was one of my goals for sure.”

Céleste Dao (Notre-Dame-de-l’Île-Perrot, Que.), Sarah-Eve Rheaume (Québec City, Que.) and Annie Lacombe (Laval, Que.) of Team Québec finished as runners-up with a two-day total of 305. Two shots back and finishing in third place was Team Ontario, comprised of Mississauga, Ont., product Chloe Currie, Alexandra Naumovski of Hornby, Ont., and Richmond Hill, Ont., native Kristen Wong.

Four shots back of Hannah Lee in the Juvenile Division is Kathrine Chan. The Richmond, B.C., native shot 3-over 76 and is two strokes clear of fellow British Columbian Euna Han of Coquitlam. The 12-year-old tallied four birdies on the day; at even-par 146, she also sits seventh in the overall competition.

Seventy players who shot 22-over par or better through the opening two rounds have advanced to the third round of play, which begins Thursday at 7 a.m. CST.

Tee times and full results for the 2015 Canadian Junior Girls Championship are available here.

VAUDREUIL-DORION, Que. – Maxwell Sear holds the 54-hole lead at the Canadian Junior Boys Championship hosted by Summerlea Golf & Country Club in Vaudreuil-Dorion, Que.

Maxwell Sear shared the 36-hole lead of the national championship heading into today’s third-round. The Unionville, Ont., native was able to finish the day with an even-par 72.

Sear had a rough start this morning with three bogeys in the first five holes. “I started off a little slow but I settled down with a birdie on 9 and then another on 12 which was a good birdie because it was playing into the wind so it was a tough hole,” said Sear of this third-round.

Sear was able to keep his round in control and stay at even-par for the tournament at 216. Sear’s impressive 2015 season includes a win at the Ontario Junior Boys Spring Classic, a runner-up finish at the CN Future Links Ontario Championship and a tie for third at the Ontario Men’s Amateur.

“Whenever you give yourself a chance to win it’s always nice. It’s going to be exciting going into the back-nine tomorrow,” said Sear when asked about playing in the final group Thursday.

Sear will be challenged by the three individuals tied for second-place at 217. Quebec products Charles-Éric Bélanger of Québec City, Brandon Lacasse of Châteauguay and Raphaël Lapierre-Messier of St-Jean-sur-Richelieu are only one stroke off the lead, each hoping to become the first Canadian Junior Boys Champion from Quebec since André Nols won in 1976.

Opening-round co-leader Bélanger also continues to lead in the Juvenile division after a round of 1-under 71 today. Bélanger was able to reach 4-under par until making a bogey on hole 13. He made four pars before a disappointing double bogey on 18 to post one of only two under-par scores on Wednesday.

Lacasse moved up the leaderboard to finish in second-place with a third-round of even-par that was highlighted by an eagle on the par 5 hole 14. Lapierre-Messier fell back from his 36-hole share of the lead to join the trio at 1-over 217 after a third round 2-over 74. He made three straight birdies from holes 8 to 10.

The tight leaderboard has an additional two players, A.J. Ewart of Coquitlam, B.C., and Kevin Gordon of Whitby, Ont., at 2-over 218 tied for fifth place. In the Juvenile division, A.J. Ewart is only one behind Bélanger’s lead.

In a tie for third place in the Juvenile division are Tristan Mandur from Mill Bay, B.C., and Jack Simpson  from Aurora, Ont., at 7-over 223.

Team Canada’s Development Squad member Patrick Murphy of Crossfield, Atla., signed for a round of 2-over 74 to sit T14 heading into tomorrow’s final round.

The winner of the 2015 Canadian Junior Boys Championship will earn an exemption into the 2015 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship co-hosted by Weston Golf & Country Club and The Lambton Golf & Country Club from August 8 – 13.

The final round of the 2015 Canadian Junior Boys Championship will begin tomorrow at 7:30 a.m. EST with the leaders teeing off at 9:42a.m.

For more information on the 2015 Canadian Junior Boys Championship, including final-round pairings and full scorecards, please click here.

Not even halfway through your round and you’re hot. Man, are you hot.

Sure, the thermometer is in the upper 20s, but it’s not the summer heat that’s frying you.

It’s the waiting on every shot. Every shot!

“Why is that group in front of us so @%#%-ing slow?!”

Cool down. It just might not be their fault. Or the fault of the groups in front of them.

At this year’s Golf Canada annual meeting, attendees were enlightened about the USGA’s research into pace of play by Director of Strategic Projects Hunki Yun and Technical Director Matthew Pringle. You can view their presentation below.

Enlightened, to say the least, because the data indicate that while pace of play is a shared responsibility, much of the blame for slow play may be laid at the feet of course operators.

Pringle says “one of the biggest misconceptions is that slow play is the fault of the group in front of you. That may be the case at times but it is more likely that the golf course is set up to fail. It can’t flow properly, so you will end up waiting at some point. The operator has to balance flow onto and through the course. There are structural reasons why delays occur.”

Yun cites a hypothetical situation where an easy par-4 is followed by a difficult par-3. Golfers finish the par-4 too fast and a bottleneck occurs on the par-3 tee. If the course operator intentionally slowed play on that par-4, perhaps by lengthening it or growing in more rough, the overall round would be more enjoyable for everyone.

“We have been preaching to operators to look critically at their golf course and setting tee time intervals that are realistic,” Pringle says. “The player experience will be better and there will be an economic benefit, too.”

Much of the USGA data reinforce what Bill Yates, founder of Pace Manager Systems, has been preaching for about 20 years. A couple of years ago, he started working with the USGA in their effort to try to understand the root causes of slow play.

Using his training as a process engineer, Yates looked at a round of golf from the perspective of an efficiency expert. “My previous job was to improve efficiencies in how companies produced their product, whatever that might be. In most cases, 90 per cent of the responsibility was on management to improve how they did business. And make no mistake about it. Golf produces a product: It’s the player’s experience when they are at a course.

“Players are not the biggest reason for slow play on our courses, any more than slow drivers, for example, are the reason that gridlocked freeways are slow.”

In other words, if there are too many cars pouring onto a highway with too few lanes, traffic jams are inevitable. The problem isn’t really slow play; it is that golfers hate to have to wait on every shot. (Yun calls it, “Slow versus flow.”) Stop and go. Hurry up and wait. Bottlenecks.

“By understanding the flow of your course and the cycle times of each hole, you are not only getting the same amount of golfers or maybe more around the course, but they will finish in less time and have a much better experience,” says Yun.

But before you go pointing fingers at the operator of the course you are playing, make sure you have done your part: Playing from the correct tees for your ability, playing ready golf, continuous putting, and so on.

Pace of play is everyone’s responsibility.

To understand more about the USGA’s pace of play initiative, click here.

National Amateur Squad members Austin Connelly – a dual-citizen of Canada and the U.S. – and Blair Hamilton of Burlington, Ont., take some time to share their excitement after sharing Gary Cowan medals (low amateur honours) following their first RBC Canadian Open experience at the Glen Abbey Golf Club in late July.

Team Canada Men’s Head Coach, Derek Ingram, also chimed in on another memorable experience at Canada’s national open:

Click here to learn more about Team Canada.

TORONTO – The 111^th playing of the Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship will re-visit the roots of Canadian golf in 2015. Lambton Golf & Country Club – the home of the tournament’s most decorated champion, George S. Lyon – will co-host the competition alongside Weston Golf & Country Club, which is celebrating its 100^th year, from August 8-13.

“This year’s co-hosting venues have a long history with the Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship and Canadian golf,” explained Tournament Director Adam Helmer. “George S. Lyon, an eight-time winner of this tournament, honed his game at Lambton. Weston saw a young Arnold Palmer win his first Tour victory and has since played a significant part in growing Canadian golf over the past century. Both courses are among Canada’s best and we look forward to seeing our impressive field challenge them.”

The Canadian Men’s Amateur Qualifier is set to take place at Weston Golf & Country Club on August 7. Two days of practice rounds are slated for August 8 and 9 before competitors from eight countries take to both courses on August 10 and 11 for the championship’s first 36 holes. The field will be reduced to 70 players and ties for the two final rounds at Weston as competitors try to claim the historic Earl Grey Trophy. James Beale of New Zealand won the trophy in 2014 after a thrilling three-hole playoff.

The field of 264 competitors will be competing for exemptions into the 2016 RBC Canadian Open to be played at Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville, Ont., as well as, the 2015 U.S. Amateur Championship at Olympia Fields Country Club in Olympia Fields, Ill. The champion will also be eligible to receive an exemption into the U.S. Junior Amateur, the U.S. Mid-Amateur or the U.S. Senior Amateur, if applicable.

Team Canada’s Austin Connelly of Irving, Texas and Blair Hamilton of Burlington, Ont., will be among the Canadian contingent vying for the championship. Connelly is Canada’s highest-ranked amateur at No. 16 on the World Amateur Golf Ranking. The two national team members are coming identical 1-under performances at the 2015 RBC Canadian Open which saw them recognized as co-recipients of the Gary Cowan Medal for low amateur honours.

Reigning Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur champion and 2015 Ontario Mid-Amateur champion Garrett Rank will continue a busy summer. The Elmira, Ont., native represented Canada at the Toronto 2015 Pan-Am games alongside Connelly and also competed in Canada’s National Open Championship.

All six members of Team Canada’s Development Squad will round out the national team contingent in the competition. Étienne Papineau of St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., is looking to build upon a successful summer that has seen the 19-year-old capture the Alexander of Tunis trophy and the Quebec Men’s Amateur Championship – two legs of Golf Quebec’s prestigious Triple Crown. Teammate Trevor Ranton is hoping to carry forward momentum after claiming the 2015 CN Future Links Pacific Championship and winning the Golf Association of Ontario’s Investors Group Junior Boys’ Championship.

Rico Hoey of Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., returns to the Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship looking to improve upon a T6 finish in last year’s event. The No. 74-ranked amateur finished runner-up at the 2015 Saguaro Men’s Amateur Championship. Fellow Californian Eli Cole of Beverly Hills hopes to become a two-time winner of this event to go with his 2013 title.

An inter-provincial championship will take place in conjunction with the first two rounds of the tournament with three-member teams competing for the Willingdon Cup. Team Ontario claimed the competition in 2014 with Chris Hemmerich (Kitchener, Ont.), Corey Conners (Listowel, Ont.) and Taylor Pendrith (Richmond Hill, Ont.) combining to shoot 9-under 275, eight strokes clear of Team Alberta.

A minimum of five spots into the 2015 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship will be awarded through the championship’s qualifier on Friday, August 7 at Weston Golf & Country Club. Pairings and start times can be found here.

Admission to the 2015 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship at Weston Golf & Country Club and Lambton Golf & Country Club is free during tournament week. Additional information regarding the championship is available here.

LONDON, Ont.  – Freedom 55 Financial has announced the signing of rising Canadian golf star and Symetra Tour winner Augusta James to its roster of brand ambassadors.

James joins current Freedom 55 Financial ambassadors Albin Choi, Matt Hill, Mackenzie Hughes, Taylor Pendrith, Adam Svensson, Damian Warner and Jen Cotten on Team Freedom, a group of young Canadian athletes striving to achieve their athletic dreams.

Hailing from Bath, Ont., James was a standout amateur and longtime member of Golf Canada’s national amateur team. The 2012 ACC Freshman of the Year and 2014 Canadian Women’s Amateur champion left North Carolina State University and turned professional in February 2015. James captured her first victory as a professional on the Symetra Tour just five starts into her career. James will look to carry this momentum into other events on this year’s Symetra Tour.

“I have followed Augusta’s career and have seen the unbelievable potential she displays both on and off the golf course,” said Mike Cunneen, Senior Vice-President for Freedom 55 Financial. “Team Freedom is about providing a supportive presence as these athletes pursue their aspirations. It’s an honour to be a part of her journey as she follows her dreams in women’s golf. She will be a great addition to Team Freedom.”

The addition of James to Team Freedom further solidifies Freedom 55 Financial’s support of and commitment to golf in Canada, from grassroots to professional levels. Freedom 55 Financial supports grassroots development initiatives as national sponsor of the Canadian Junior Golf Association’s Clinics for Kids program, for which Team Freedom golfers will serve as ambassadors. The company is also the title sponsor of the Freedom 55 Financial Championship in London, Ont., Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada’s flagship event, which sees five players graduate to the Web.com Tour each season.

“I am honoured to join Team Freedom,” said James. “It is amazing to have a great Canadian company supporting young Canadian athletes, and it is an honour to be a part of such a talented group working to achieve their dreams.”

To follow these young professionals on their journey, use the Twitter hashtag “#TeamFreedom”.

VAUDREUIL-DORION, Que. – Team Quebec captured the inter-provincial team championship on home soil at Summerlea Golf & Country Club in Vaudreuil-Dorion, Que. The competition comprised of three-person teams is conducted in conjunction with the first 36-holes of the Canadian Junior Boys Championship.

With a combined score of 288, Team Quebec was led by the strong second-round play of Raphaël Lapierre-Messier who posted a 3-under round of 69. Lapierre-Messier co-leads the Junior division at 1-under 143.

The St-Jean-Sur-Richelieu, Que., native was joined on Team Quebec by Étienne Papineau, a native of the same hometown. Papineau, a member of Team Canada’s Development Squad, posted a second-round 1-under 71 to sit T4. The final member of Team Quebec, Félix Normand of Beloeil, Que., signed for a score of 78.

“Étienne and I were able to fight back even though it was really hard out there. The wind was blowing strong. I was proud of how we fought back even though we didn’t start great,” said Lapierre-Messier of his team’s win.

Lapierre-Messier recorded a total of five birdies en route to the tournament’s only score in the 60s through the second round.

“I started off my front nine really solid and I played good golf, it was nothing extraordinary, but it was solid,” explained the 18-year-old. “On the back nine, I struggled a little, but my putter saved me. I did miss some putts, but I made a lot to make up for it. It was a good day.”

Joining him at the top of the leaderboard is Maxwell Sear of Unionville, Ont. The 2015 Ontario Junior Boys Spring Classic champion climbed up the standings with five birdies today after an opening round of 73.

In third place at one stroke back is Whitby, Ont., product Kevin Gordon who posted a round of 1-over 73 with back-to-back birdies on holes 11 and 12.

Team Ontario finished runner-up in the inter-provincial competition with a total of 296. Ontarians Kyle Johnston of Shelburne and Sam Meek of Peterborough carded rounds of 1-under to account for their team’s score. In third place was defending champion Team Alberta with a combined total of 302. The team’s second round tally was comprised of Camrose, Alta., native Andrew Harrison’s 3-over 75 and Calgary product Alexander Smith’s 78.

In total, 73 players who shot 13-over 157 or better made the 36-hole cut and will advance to the final two rounds.

In the Juvenile division, opening-round co-leader Charles-Éric Bélanger of Québec City, Que., moved into solo first at 146 following a 3-over 75 second round. A.J. Ewart of Coquitlam, B.C., is one stroke back in second place while Jack Simpson of Aurora, Ont., rounds out the top three players aged 16-and-under.

The winner of the 2015 Canadian Junior Boys Championship will earn an exemption into the 2015 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship co-hosted by Weston Golf & Country Club and The Lambton Golf & Country Club from August 8 – 13.

The third round of the 2015 Canadian Junior Boys Championship will begin tomorrow at 7:30 a.m. EDT.

For more information on the 2015 Canadian Junior Boys Championship, including third-round pairings and full scorecards, please click here.

YORKTON, Sask. – Hannah Lee carded a competitive women’s course record of 7-under par 66 at Deer Park Golf Course in Yorkton, Sask., to claim the lead as play began at the 2015 Canadian Junior Girls Championship.

The Surrey, B.C., native tallied more birdies on her card than any of her competitors. The 15-year-old carded nine birdies, including back-to-back sets on three separate occasions. She notched her final pair across her last two holes to take the lead in both the Junior and Juvenile divisions.

“When I started today, I honestly didn’t expect to break my lowest score,” said Lee, who topped her personal best of 6-under par. “It feels good, especially to shoot it in a big tournament.”

The soon-to-be eleventh grader has a three-shot advantage going into the second round of competition. “I was able to sink a couple of putts and my tee shots were pretty good today. I’m going to do the best I can tomorrow just like I did today,” added Lee.

Kathrine Chan of Richmond, B.C., shot a 4-under 69 and currently sits in second place. Her first round was highlighted by three birdies and an eagle on the par-5 fourth hole. The 15-year-old went bogey-free across the front nine and shot even-par on the challenging second half of the course.

“My driver was working really well for me today and so were my irons. I’m just looking to play my own game and not worry about what others are doing,” said Chan when asked about her game plan heading into the rest of the tournament.

The 15-year-old earned her way into the Canadian Junior Girls Championship after a fourth place finish at the CN Future Links Prairie Championship. “That was a lot of fun and it helped me prepare for this tournament. It helped my mental game and I gained a lot of experience,” she reflected.

Four shots back after shooting a 3-under par round is Richmond Hill, Ont., native Jessica Ip who tallied five birdies in her opening round. The 18-year-old competed in last week’s Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship in Saskatoon, Sask., and benefited from lessons learned at the competition.

“I really realized what I was struggling with because those two rounds kind of emphasized that my ball striking wasn’t that good and I wasn’t making any putts. I came here early and worked on that,” explained the University of Iowa sophomore who credits her short game for Tuesday’s result.

Team Canada Development squad members Michelle Kim of Surrey, B.C., and Victoria product Naomi Ko are tied for fourth after carding rounds of 71.

Team British Columbia leads the inter-provincial competition after a combined 9-under par performance. The team comprised of current leader Hannah Lee, Team Canada’s Michelle Kim and Victoria’s Akari Hayashi holds a 14-shot advantage over second-place Team Manitoba. The provincial team competition will conclude following the second round of play.

The top 70 players and ties will make the 36-hole cut and advance to day three of the National Championship on Thursday.

For full details on tee times and scoring, click here.

Men’s Development Squad member Étienne Papineau has committed to play golf for West Virginia University beginning in the fall of 2016.

Papineau, the lone remaining member of the Men’s Development Squad yet to commit to a post-secondary school, made the announcement just days following his amateur championship win in his home province of Québec.

The 18-year-old St-Jean-sur-Richelieu native has elected to remain home for another year to improve his English while continuing to solidify his golf game with provincial head coach Fred Colgan before joining the Mountaineers.

West Virginia Unviersity, a Div I school in the Big 12 conference, is re-launching its golf program after a 30-year hiatus from competition. Papineau will look to be a part of the Mountaineer’s core for years to come.