OPELIKA, Ala. — L’Australien Mark Hensby a réussi des oiselets sur trois des quatre derniers trous, vendredi, et il s’est hissé en tête du classement du Championnat Barbasol de la PGA, à égalité avec le Sud-Coréen Whee Kim.

Hensby a complété le deuxième parcours avec un score de 64, sept coups sous la normale, pour une fiche cumulative de 133, neuf coups sur le par. Kim, une recrue sur le circuit de la PGA, a signé une carte de 66.

Hensby, qui est âgé de 43 ans, vise une deuxième victoire sur le circuit de la PGA, après son triomphe lors de la Classique John Deere en 2004.

L’Argentin Emilian Grillo (66), Sam Saunders (70) et Charlie Beljan (64) accusent un coup de retard sur les comeneurs.

OAKVILLE, Ont. – Golf Canada and RBC are pleased to announce the final field of competitors vying for the US$5.8 million purse at the 2015 RBC Canadian Open, July 20-26 at Glen Abbey Golf Club.

Defending champion Tim Clark will be challenged by a stellar field of PGA TOUR stars including World No. 3 Bubba Watson, World No. 6 and two-time RBC Canadian Open champion Jim Furyk, World No. 9 Jason Day, World No. 13 J.B. Holmes, World No. 15 Matt Kuchar, World No. 22 Brooks Koepka, World No. 26 and 2013 RBC Canadian Open Champion Brandt Snedeker, World No. 30 Ryan Palmer, World No. 44 Charley Hoffman, World No. 55 Graeme McDowell and World No. 64 Luke Donald, as well as, World Golf Hall of Fame member Ernie Els.

Other notable additions to the field for the 106^th playing of Canada’s National Open Championship include 34-time PGA TOUR winner Vijay Singh, 20-time winner Davis Love III, 12-time winner Justin Leonard, 12-time winner Steve Stricker, eight-time winner K.J. Choi, seven-time winner Retief Goosen, six-time winner Rory Sabbatini and three-time winner Angel Cabrera.

Clark, who captured the 2014 RBC Canadian Open trophy at The Royal Montreal Golf Club in Île-Bizard, Que., will be joined by nine other former champions including Team RBC members Brandt Snedeker – who won in 2013 at Glen Abbey Golf Club – and Jim Furyk who claimed back-to-back championships in 2006 and 2007. Other confirmed past champions include Scott Piercy (2012), Sean O’Hair (2011), Carl Pettersson (2010), Nathan Green (2009), Chez Reavie (2008), Vijay Singh (2004), and John Rollins (2002).

In total, 156 players will compete for the US$5.8 million purse next week in Oakville when Canada’s National Open Championship returns to Glen Abbey for a record 27^th time.

14 CANADIANS CURRENTLY SET TO COMPETE FOR THE NATIONAL TITLE

Leading the Canadian contingent will be World No. 80 Graham DeLaet of Weyburn, Sask., who recorded a fourth-place finish last month at the Travelers Championship, as well as, David Hearn of Brantford, Ont., who will look to build on a playoff runner-up finish at The Greenbrier Classic.

PGA TOUR rookies and Abbotsford, B.C., natives Adam Hadwin and Nick Taylor, along with Roger Sloan of Merritt, B.C., will also be in the field alongside Web.com Tour player Brad Fritsch of Manotick, Ont.

Team Canada will be well-represented with Young Pro Squad members Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., Taylor Pendrith of Richmond Hill, Ont. and Adam Svensson of Surrey, B.C., as well as, National Amateur Squad members Austin Connelly of Irving, Texas and Blair Hamilton of Burlington, Ont.

Connelly’s 2015 Pan Am Games Team Canada teammate Garrett Rank of Elmira, Ont., will be in the field after earning an exemption through his 2014 Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur victory.

PGA of Canada professional Billy Walsh of Markham, Ont., earned his way into the 2015 RBC Canadian Open field as the No. 1-ranked player on the PGA of Canada Player Rankings presented by RBC.

Former Team Canada member Richard Jung of Toronto earned his exemption into the field by topping the 144-player field at the RBC Canadian Open Regional Qualifier in Ontario.

The Canadians in the field have their sights set on becoming the first Canadian to capture the national title since Pat Fletcher claimed victory in 1954.

Golf Canada also confirmed today that Canadian Golf Hall of Fame member Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., has withdrawn from the event for personal reasons. Weir was slated to make his 25^th appearance at the RBC Canadian Open.

“The field is nearly set and we’re ready to tee-up the 106^th playing of Canada’s National Open Championship starting next week at Glen Abbey Golf Club,” said Tournament Director Brent McLaughlin. “We’ve got a tremendous mix of international stars and Canadian talents ready to compete and a family-friendly festival experience ready to welcome spectators of all ages to the 2015 RBC Canadian Open.”

In addition, the winner of the Toronto 2015 Pan Am Games Golf Competition will be granted an exemption into the RBC Canadian Open. The competition at Angus Glen Golf Club in Markham, Ont., began on July 16 and will conclude on July 19.

The top three players on the Mackenzie Tour-PGA Tour Canada Order of Merit following this week’s Staal Foundation Open presented by Tbaytel in Thunder Bay, Ont., will also earn exemptions into the field for the 2015 RBC Canadian Open.

The final four exemptions into the field for the 2015 RBC Canadian Open will be handed out at the Monday Final Qualifier on July 20 to be played at Heron Point Golf Links in Alberton, Ont.

Click here for the full list of competitors competing in the 2015 RBC Canadian Open at Glen Abbey Golf Club from July 20-26.

ST. ANDREWS, Scotland – The grand pursuit of Jordan Spieth, redemption for Dustin Johnson, the mystery that has become Tiger Woods. It all came to a momentary halt Friday in the gloaming of St. Andrews when Tom Watson said goodbye to the British Open.

Watson, the most prolific winner of golf’s oldest championship in the last century, finished his 129th round with lights from the Royal & Ancient clubhouse illuminating the 18th green. The five-time champion made bogey. The score was irrelevant.

“There were no tears,” Watson said. “This is a joyous occasion. I have a lot of great, great memories. And those memories filled me up.”

Everything else about this wet and wild second round remained unsettled.

A heavy downpour at dawn flooded the Old Course and disrupted the start by more than three hours. Johnson and Spieth teed off shortly before 6 p.m. and were headed in different directions when it was too dark to continue.

In swift, shifting weather – umbrellas on one hole, sunglasses on the next – Johnson made three birdies in four holes on the front nine and built a two-shot lead before he made his first bogey of the tournament. He three-putted on the par-3 11th in wind so severe he had to back off a 4-foot putt and wipe his eyes.

Johnson was at 10-under par.

Spieth three-putted for bogey three times in 11 holes to offset three birdies and was five shots behind Johnson, whom he beat by one shot in the U.S. Open last month to capture the second leg of the Grand Slam.

Both were just short on the par-5 14th hole in two shots when they chose to mark their golf balls and return at 7 a.m. Saturday to resume the round.

“I’m in a good spot,” Johnson said. “Definitely got very tricky this afternoon, all day. Even the front side, the wind was howling and it was blowing straight left-to-right pretty much. It played very tough all day.”

Danny Willett of England had to cope with the wind, too, and he had a 3-under 69 to walk off the 18th green with his name atop the leaderboard at 9-under 135.

“Yeah, I think it’s a childhood dream and looking up there it’s still a little bit surreal, but something I’m going to have to get used to,” Willett said. “Otherwise, no point in being up there. We’re going to try and rest up and then try and go out for another good weekend and hopefully, we can be up there in two days’ time.”

Watson wasn’t the only player to bid farewell to the Old Course.

Nick Faldo, the three-time Open champion regarded as Britain’s greatest champion, came out of the TV tower to play St. Andrews one last time. He switched into a sweater that he wore for his first Open title in 1987 at Muirfield, thrust his arms in the air atop the Swilcan Bridge, and saved par for a 71.

And then there was Woods, headed toward the wrong kind of history. Barring a burst of birdies when he returns Saturday morning – the kind of form he has not shown in two years – he was likely to miss the cut in the U.S. Open and the British Open for the first time in the same year. Woods was 5 over with seven holes to play.

So much attention has been on Spieth and Jordan, the main characters from the drama that played out at Chambers Bay last month. Johnson had a 12-foot eagle putt on the final hole to win the U.S. Open, and three-putted to finish one shot behind golf’s new golden child.

The wind was fierce, taxing shots with every club in the bag down to the putter.

Johnson continued to hammer away with his driver, setting up birdies, and he looked every bit like the player to beat. Spieth got in enough trouble off the tee that he often left long-range putts that led to bogeys instead of birdies.

Behind them, a long list of players lined up to take their shot on the weekend.

Jason Day, in contention at Chambers Bay even though he battled symptoms of vertigo, was at 8-under par through 11 holes. Paul Lawrie, the `99 champion at Carnoustie, also was at 8 under through 12 holes. Louis Oosthuizen, who won the claret jug the last time the Open came to St. Andrews, was at 7 under through 11 holes.

Graham DeLaet of Canada sits at even-par for the tournament and is in line to make the cut.

Among those who managed to finish was Adam Scott, a former Masters champion who is starting to feel the void of giving away the British Open at Royal Lytham & St. Annes in 2012 when he bogeyed the last four holes. Scott was in control in blustery weather, flighting his ball low and judging the bounce to perfect. He made three birdies around the loop at the far end of the course and closed with a birdie for a 67.

Scott was at 7-under 137, along with Zach Johnson (71), Marc Warren (69) and Robert Streb (71).

“The last few years at the Open has been some of my favorite golf,” Scott said. “Getting into contention at this championship and having a chance to lift the claret jug is what it’s all about. This is a great position. I’m excited for my weekend.”

SYLVANIA, Ohio — South Korea’s Ha Na Jang shot a 4-under 67 on Friday to increase her lead to two strokes in the suspended second round of the LPGA Tour’s Marathon Classic.

Jang had a 9-under 133 total at Highland Meadows. Winless in 23 career tour events, she capped her bogey-free round with a 12-foot birdie putt on the par-4 ninth.

South Korea’s Q Baek was second after a 67.

The start of the round was delayed 2 1/2 hours because of rain and lightning, and play was suspended for the day at 8 p.m. because of more lightning. Fifty-four players were unable to complete the round.

Jang has fought through back problems that had her thinking about withdrawing before the first round.

“I think not much practice makes it easier to playing golf,” Jang said. “Not tired. Just feels really, really good. Body is a little tight, but my swing is very good.”

She had a one-hour massage after Thursday’s round and planned to do the same thing Friday.

Her success during the first two rounds has helped Jang’s confidence. She went back to South Korea to play in two tournaments and that also helped improve her confidence.

“I have a little bit more confidence in Korea,” Jang said. “It’s just a little different feel than one month ago. Every day practicing, change my swing and then everything change really good. I have 100 percent, 200 percent confidence right now.”

Baek had five birdies, making four in a row on Nos. 18-3, and one bogey.

“(I) missed a lot of birdie opportunities earlier, but I was able to sink a couple putts a bit of a distance from the hole,” Baek said. “I really gained confidence from there and made four birdies in a row.”

Baek said her experience last weekend at the U.S. Women’s Open has helped.

“I played last week at the U.S. Open with great players,” Baek said. “I learned a lot from them. I had a good experience there. I have something that I am really focusing on this week, so going into the weekend, I am really, really looking forward to it.”

Baek said she was not bothered by the morning delay, adding that she enjoyed the additional sleep.

Shanshan Feng, Sarah Kemp and Dewi Claire Schreefel were tied for third at 6 under. Feng shot a 67, Kemp had a 69, and Schreefel a 68.

Kemp, an Australian, bogeyed her final hole for the second straight round.

“It’s nice to put another round in the 60s,” Kemp said. “I’ll take 69 around here any day. With the conditions this morning, it played a lot longer.”

Being able to advance to weekend play is exciting for Kemp, who has missed the cuts in seven of 12 starts this season.

“This is great. I’m going to enjoy it because it hasn’t happened very much so it must mean I’m doing something good,” Kemp said. “I haven’t been in this position very much so everything that happens from now on it a total learning experience.”

Moriya Jutanugarn, Caroline Masson, Angela Stanford and Gerina Piller were 5 under. Jutanugarn shot a 66, Masson and Stanford had two holes left, and Piller had three to go.

Canadian Alena Sharp is 4-under for the tournament was tied for 10th after second round of play.

Top-ranked Inbee Park and defending champion Lydia Ko, ranked second, were 4 under after 14 holes. Third-ranked Stacy Lewis was tied for 18th at 3 under after a 68.

“Score-wise it was obviously better,” Lewis said. “Still I think, just knowing me, I think I could have done better. I could have made a few more putts. But all it all, it really was a better day. Hopefully, it leads to some better things.”

MARKHAM, Ont. – Canada’s Austin Connelly shot a second-round, 3-under 69 at Angus Glen Golf Club to climb into medal contention in the Pan Am Games Golf Competition at Angus Glen Golf Club in Markham, Ont.

Connelly, 18, battled wet conditions including periods of steady rain throughout his round to sit tied for fourth position in the men’s individual competition at 5-under through 36 holes. Connelly heads into weekend action three shots off the lead and a single shot out of second.

Connelly’s teammate, Garrett Rank of Elmira, Ont., bounced back from an opening-round 79 to shoot even-par 72, good for 20^th position overall. Rank was 3-under through 15 holes, but triple-bogeyed the 16^th hole at Angus Glen to finish his second round at even-par.

Felipe Aguilar of Chile shot a second-round 67 to sit alone atop the leaderboard at 8-under while Luis Barco and American Lee McCoy fired matching 68’s to grad a share of second at 6-under through 36 holes.

Click here to the see the complete men’s individual leaderboard

In the women’s individual competition, Canadian Lorie Kane struggled Friday with a second-round 83 to fall to 22^nd position at 18-over through 36 holes.

Sitting atop the women’s leaderboard is American Andrea Lee who shot a second-round, 4-under 68 to climb to 7-under for the tournament, good for a two-shot lead over Columbia’s Mariajo Uribe and Julieta Granada.

Click here see the complete women’s individual leaderboard

In the overall mixed team competition, Canada currently sits 11^th through 36 holes. The team competition counts the top male and female score each day from each of the participating countries.

Click here to see the complete overall team leaderboard

What they said:

Austin CONNELLY (CAN)

On his strong, 3-under back nine:

“Early in the back nine I started hitting some really good tee balls and really good second shots and I was gaining some confidence.”

On being part of the Pan Am Games:

“I’m not playing for a silver medal, and I don’t think anyone here is, and if you are you probably shouldn’t be here. I go into every event trying to win; it’s just another golf tournament with a couple of really neat things on the side.”

Garrett RANK (CAN)

On his strong front nine and disappointing back nine including a triple-bogey on 16:

“I was three under on the front and didn’t really hit it much better than yesterday. (I) just hit it far enough offline that I was away from the trouble. I managed it around nicely on the front and just made a couple mistakes on the back.”

On his overall play on Friday:

“It was a good day aside from one hole, just try and do that tomorrow and play eighteen good holes instead of seventeen”

Lorie KANE (CAN)

On her performance and lingering hip injury:

“I felt better today actually. My game is built on tempo and my timing has been off for the last few days. No excuses. My hip is a little sore but it’s nothing I haven’t dealt with before. I’m just not seeing the shape I’m trying to hit. I’ve got a two-way miss going and you can’t do that.”

OPELIKA, Ala. — Australia’s Mark Hensby birdied three of the final four holes Friday for a 7-under 64 and a share of the second-round lead in the inaugural Barbasol Championship.

Hensby matched South Korea’s Whee Kim at 9-under 133 on Grand National’s Lake Course in the PGA Tour event for players who failed to qualify for the British Open.

“I played well. I gave myself a lot of chances,” Hensby said. “I hit a couple of wayward ones, but I haven’t played in a tournament in quite some time. You get a little nervy in the middle, but then kind of settled down and hit some good shots.”

The 43-year-old Hensby won the 2004 John Deere Classic for his lone PGA Tour title. He has fought rotator cuff problems in his right shoulder and has limited tour status.

“I had some injuries and the last two years I’ve been healthy, but I missed second stage of Q-school last year, so that gives you nothing,” Hensby said. “There’s just nowhere to play. I’ve played a couple mini-tours here and there, but this is my first tournament in quite some time. It’s good to be back.”

Kim shot a 66. He’s playing his 19th event in his rookie season on the PGA Tour.

“I just tried to keep it in the fairway,” Kim said. “If I miss the fairway for tee shots, going to be really tough to get to the green. So, I just tried to focus on the fairway.”

Argentina’s Emiliano Grillo, the highest-ranked player in the field at No. 98, shot a 66 to join first-round leader Sam Saunders and Charlie Beljan at 8 under.

Saunders, Arnold Palmer’s grandson, followed his opening 64 with a 70.

“I really didn’t play a whole lot different today than I did yesterday,” Saunders said. “The angles were a little off today. Hit it over a couple greens that I thought were good shots, and then I hit a couple of good shots that ended up in some funky places. That’s golf.”

Beljan had a 64.

“I was 3 over yesterday after my first nine and kind of just kept on doing the same thing and a couple putts went in and we built some momentum and here we are at 8 under,” Beljan said.

“It’s not an easy course. You’ve got to drive it well because you have to be able to control your shots into the greens with the quadrants the way they are.”

David Toms topped the group at 7 under after a 66.

THUNDER BAY, Ont. — Burlington, Ontario’s Michael Gligic shot a 5-under 67 on Friday at Whitewater Golf Club to take the 36-hole lead at the Staal Foundation Open presented by Tbaytel, the sixth event of the 2015 Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada season.

The 25-year old was bogey-free on Friday, reaching 13-under par and leading by one over Listowel, Ontario’s Corey Conners and Ostego, Minnesota’s Clayton Rask with two rounds in the books in Thunder Bay.

“I think I’m 13-under and I’ve made 15 birdies in two days, which isn’t something you do a lot, so the game is feeling pretty good and I’m rolling the ball well,” said Gligic, who owns one Mackenzie Tour win at the 2012 ATB Financial Classic and finished 11^th on the Order of Merit last year. With two rounds to go, however, the Tour veteran wasn’t getting ahead of himself after his solid second round.

“Like I said yesterday it’s a long tournament and a marathon, not a sprint. We’re only halfway done and there’s a long way to go,” said Gligic.

Rask, who leads the field with 17 birdies through two rounds, carded seven birdies on day two to offset two bogeys, while Conners moved up the leaderboard with birdies on his final two holes to sit one off the lead. The 23-year old, who finished runner-up at the U.S. Amateur last year and played in the 2015 Masters Tournament, is without status on the Mackenzie Tour, but can change that with a solid finish this week.

The top three non-members on the Order of Merit after this week will earn conditional status for the remainder of the season, with Conners currently sitting fourth in a tie for 56^th overall on the season-long money list. Adam Svensson and Christopher Trunzer, who occupy the top two spots, aren’t playing this week, and Conners can pass No. 3 Justin Shin, who missed the cut, with a solo 20^th place finish or better.

“Having status would be pretty nice. I’m not even sure what I need to do to get that, but I’m just going to try and play well and see what happens,” said Conners.

Two shots back of Gligic at 11-under were Matt Marshall and Mike Van Sickle. Sweden’s Krister Eriksson set the new course record at Whitewater Golf Club with a 10-under 62 and was four back at 9-under through 36 holes.

ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Annie Park of Levittown, New York was playing in the NCAA Women’s Golf Championships a month and a half ago. Now, she has the 36-hole lead at her fourth event ever as a professional golfer. She posted a 5-under 67, tied for the low round of the day, to vault to 9-under 135. Emily Talley (Napa, Calif.) and Giulia Molinaro (Treviso, Italy) are in a tie for second at 6-under 138.

“I just turned professional a month ago so this is all happening so fast,” said Park, who was surrounded by her first media scrum as a professional. “The transition was really quick, after Nationals I had the Open qualifier and then a week later I had my first professional event so I didn’t really have time to breathe.”

Her 11th round as a professional turned out to be her best so far.

“I was hitting it better than yesterday so that was an improvement,” said soft-spoken Park. “My putting wasn’t as hot as it was yesterday, but just being able to hit fairways and greens was nice.”

Park hit 13 of 14 fairways and 15 of 18 greens in regulation.

The 2013 NCAA individual champion at the University of Southern California made the turn at 1-under for the day. She kicked it into high gear with four birdies on the back nine including a 20-footer on 16.

“I was struggling with some shorter putts and that putt made me feel a lot better about myself,” said the 20-year-old Park. “My putting got better as the round went along and I’m happy that I was bogey-free.”

Since turning professional, Park has two top 20 finishes in three events including a tie for 13th two weeks ago at the Tullymore Classic.

In addition to pursing an LPGA Tour card this year, she is also going to continue her communications degree at USC starting this fall when she’ll take classes between Symetra Tour events.

“I’ll be headed into my senior year and I’ll have a year and a half left and I’d rather finish now than later,” said Park. “I’m planning on taking less classes each semester and I’ll talk to my professors and see how that works out.”

Park’s mom, who got her into golf, has been her travel companion and caddie in her rookie season on Tour.

“My mom has been my caddie basically my entire career so she knows me well on the course and I know her well,” said Park. “We work pretty well together. She got me started as a kid on the driving range when she said ‘I think you should play golf’ and I just said ‘OK’.”

Park earned Symetra Tour status by getting through stage one and two at 2014 LPGA Qualifying Tournament.

She is 93rd on the Volvik Race for the Card money list since she has only played in three events. A first place pay check of $22,500 would do wonders for her position on the money list.

Canadian Natalie Gleadall currently sits T8 with a second-round 71. Sara-Maude Juneau and Natalie Wallace are T11. Brooke Henderson signs for round of 70 to sit T19 alongside Maude-Aimee Leblanc. Brittany Henderson and Nicole Vandermade are T44.

Former Masters champion Mike Weir won’t play in his 25th RBC Canadian Open and is taking an “indefinite leave of absence” from pro golf for personal reasons.

Weir said in a statement posted on Twitter and that he is taking time off to focus on his personal life and children.

I have decided to take some time off from golf competition for personal reasons. Thanks to my fans for their support. pic.twitter.com/hsfB6EXqNa

— Weirsy (@MikeWeir) July 17, 2015

He and wife Bricia divorced earlier this year. They have two teenaged daughters.

“Mike has recently endured some difficult times in his personal life,” agent Danny Fritz wrote in an email to The Canadian Press. “With everything that has been going on away from the golf course, Mike’s golf game has been impacted as a result.”

Weir withdrew from his last PGA Tour event, the John Deere Classic, earlier this month after shooting a first-round 73. He missed the cut at his previous eight tournaments.

The 45-year-old said there’s no time table for his return.

“Family is incredibly important to me,” Weir said in the statement. “I love the game and will return when the time is right.”

Weir was expected to be one of more than a dozen Canadian players in the field for the RBC Canadian Open, which is set to begin Thursday at Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville, Ont. He was the runner-up to Vijay Singh in 2004 when he lost in a playoff at Glen Abbey.

That second-place finish came a year after he was the first Canadian golfer to win the Masters.

Weir, a native of Bright’s Grove, Ont., said it was “extremely difficult” to decide to miss the RBC Canadian Open because he loves playing in front of home fans.

“That’s unfortunate,” Golf Canada chief championship officer Bill Paul said in a phone interview from St. Andrews, Scotland. “I understand. We’ll wish him well and be watching him, and he’ll be back for his 25th sometime.”

Weir first played the Canadian Open in 1989 and has been the top Canadian four times. He’s tied for the tournament record for most consecutive rounds under par, a mark he set from 2007-2009.

Canadians Graham DeLaet and David Hearn are set to go right from the British Open to play at Glen Abbey.