LONDON, Ont—For Doug Alexander, the fact that much of Canadian golf has come together in Southern Ontario this summer is just happenstance.

Alexander, the president of Golf Canada, is an accountant by trade. So he knows what the numbers add up to, even if he says it wasn’t part of a master plan.

This week London, right in the center of Southwestern Ontario, will host the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open. Earlier this year the city held Golf Canada’s annual meeting. In September PGA Tour Canada’s Tour Championship will be battled over at Sunningdale Golf and Country Club, just a few minutes’ drive from London Hunt, where Lydia Ko will shop up this week as two-time champ.

But it doesn’t stop there. The Canadian Women’s Amateur was contested at Craigowan in Woodstock, about 40 minutes east of London, and an equal distance west, at Maple City, Courtney Tolton won the Ontario Junior Girls title.

At the heart of it is the Canadian Women’s Open, rebranded the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open after the railway that came on as title sponsor.

Scott Simmons, CEO of Golf Canada, says there are some real advantages to having such a large number of significant events in one area.

“Once you realize you have this critical mass of events and can market it around it by calling London the capital of golf this summer,” Simmons says. “The breadth of golf in that area makes it a hotbed of golf in Canada.”

According to Alexander, the decision to head to London for the event was made by CP CEO Hunter Harrison. He liked the market and the natural synergy it has with the Canadian Women’s Open. The tournament last appeared in London in 2006, the first year it was with CN, and drew record crowds. Mid-markets like London tend to draw enthusiastic fan support, and CP, under Harrison, was keen on revisiting the town and venue, London’s Hunt Golf and Country Club, where the 2006 tournament was met with such fanfare.

Mark Wallace, CP’s chief of staff and vice-president of corporate affairs, said the company was anxious to take the tournament to London, certainly with the recognition of the success the LPGA and Golf Canada had with it eight years ago.

“It presents a great opportunity,” he said at a press conference in London earlier this year.

Golf Canada works with the title sponsors to find locations that work for their respective tournaments both from a fan perspective, and strategically for the business, says Simmons. London, it turns out, is “good for both parties,” he adds.

“You want to work with the CP and make sure it achieves their goals,” he says. “And for London it is just a wonderful market for this type of event. That market always wraps around big events and it is a big market for CP. And then the quality of golf is great—you can’t do better than London Hunt.”

And so far this summer London has seen its share of high-profile successes. Smiths Falls, Ont.’s Brooke Henderson won the Women’s PGA Championship at Firerock Golf Club, just outside of the city, at the end of July, and turned up at the Hunt Club the next day to see the course in preparation for the CP Women’s Open. Who did she play with during her visit? None other than Doug Alexander, who also happens to be a member at London Hunt, and took Henderson and her father around the course as the 16-year old prepared for the tournament.

Alexander admits there are a lot of connections among the golf tournaments in the region, though there was never a grand design.

“In a funny kind of way everything has come together,” says Alexander. “Though a lot of it is really just accidental.”

That doesn’t mean it all works easily. There’s still corporate support needed for many of the events. And yes, CP has stepped up for the women’s open in London, and Freedom 55 has back the PGA of Canada’s Tour Championship, which is run by Golf Canada. But Alexander admits that corporate support can be a challenge in a community like London, which was hard hit by the economic downturn of 2008.

“This has been a tremendously generous community as far as golf goes,” he says.

In the end, Alexander says the biggest question about the Southern Ontario golf juggernaut is what the impact on the area will be once all the events have been completed. As the national sports organization in charge of golf, Alexander says there’s a real goal of improving the visibility of the sport at the elite level, something the region will have seen plenty of, from the elite amateur level through to the professionals. And when all is said and done, and the tournaments are over and the corporate tents have been put away, what’s key is the lasting ramifications of the tournaments and the people who connect with golf in some fashion.

“As a national sports organization you want to improve in any way you can the culture in your sport,” Alexander says. “This is the perfect opportunity. When we get to October, and all of these events are completed, there’s a real chance of increasing the interest in golf. And if we do that, we’ll have accomplished something.”

If you go:

What: CP Women’s Open
Where: London Hunt Golf and Country Club, London, Ont.
When: Aug. 18-24
www.cpwomensopen.com

What: PGA Tour Canada Tour Championship
Where: Sunningdale Golf and Country Club, London, Ont.
When: Sept. 8-14
www.golfcanada.ca/tourchampionshipofcanada

CALGARY—Kevin Sutherland, who became the latest professional to shoot 59 and first on the Champions Tour, will lead a group of three that have fired golf’s magic number into Calgary to tackle the Canyon Meadows Golf and Country Club for this year’s Shaw Charity Classic in just one week’s time.

Sutherland went where nobody has ever gone on the Champions Tour breaking the 60 mark on the scorecard over the weekend by firing a sizzling 13-under par round, which included 12 birdies, one eagle and one bogey. The lone bogey came on the final hole of the par-72 En-Joie Golf Club in Endicott, New York.

“Amazing round. Obviously I played really well. I was just in my own little world,” said Sutherland.

The 50-year-old Champions Tour rookie was greeted on the 18th hole with a standing ovation and many of his fellow Champions Tour players who rushed out to the green to witness this historic moment.

“The response I got when I came up 18 I have to admit gave me chills. I guess if your Jack Nicklaus or Arnold Palmer you get used to that, but when everybody stood up around the green and was clapping, I got some chills,” said Sutherland, whose low round on the PGA Tour coincidentally came at the 2010 Canadian Open when he shot 62. His lone PGA Tour victory was at the 2002 World Golf Championships Match Play Championship.

“To have the players behind the green giving me hugs and high fives, hand shakes and congratulations, that stuff means a lot and that is the stuff I’m going to remember most today.”

One of those players standing behind the 18th green to watch Sutherland complete his near flawless round was his best friend on Tour, and another member of golf’s 59 Club, Paul Goydos.

Goydos will join Sutherland in Calgary later this month – both in search of their first Champions Tour victories. Goydos became the fourth player in PGA Tour history to card a 59 when he made history himself in the opening round of the 2010 John Deere Classic. A Champions Tour rookie, Goydos has two PGA Tour titles: 1996 Bay Hill Invitational and the 2010 Sony Open in Hawaii.

Rounding out the trio of the 59 Club members that will swing into Alberta’s foothills for the second annual Shaw Charity Classic, August 27-31, 2014, is Chip Beck.

One of the Tour’s most colourful characters, Beck shot his 59 in the third round of the 1991 Las Vegas Invitational at Sunrise Golf Course. A four-time winner on the PGA TOUR, Beck also represented the United States on three Ryder Cup teams. Beck was part of the 81-man field that competed in the inaugural Shaw Charity Classic one year ago.

Tournament officials will announce the complete list of players that will tee it up in Calgary during a media conference on August 20.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Martin Piller won the News Sentinel Open on Sunday at Fox Den to give himself a chance to earn a PGA Tour card through the regular-season money list.

The 28-year-old Piller, married to LPGA Tour player Gerina Piller, shot an 8-under 63 for a two-stroke victory over former Texas A&M teammate Bronson Burgoon.

“Wow, I did it,” Piller said. “It was really awesome.”

Piller finished at 22-under 262 for his third career Web.com Tour title and first since 2010.

“I don’t even know what to say right now,” Piller said. “It’s been a tough couple of years, but this is sweet.”

He earned $99,000 to jump from 134th to 29th on the money list with $120,676, with the top 25 after the Portland Open next week earning 2014-15 PGA Tour cards.

Piller eagled the par-5 10th and had seven birdies and a bogey in the final round. He opened with rounds of 65, 67 and 67.

Burgoon matched the course record with a 62 after shooting a 64 on Saturday.

“I’ve been playing good all week,” said Burgoon, who moved to 36th on the money list. “I’ve been hitting it close all week; I finally got some putts to fall. I’m thrilled, this gets me into the playoffs.”

The four-event Web.com Tour Finals – also offering 25 PGA Tour cards – starts Aug 28-31 in Fort Wayne, Indiana.

Darron Stiles was third at 18 under after a 64.

Canada’s Roger Sloan finished at 9-under 275, leaving him in a tie for 30th.

GREENSBORO, N.C.  – When Camilo Villegas finished his final round in the Wyndham Championship, he was hoping to get into a playoff.

Instead, every other contender stumbled, and the Colombian didn’t have to hit another shot to win his first PGA Tour title since 2010.

Villegas shot a 7-under 63 and finished at 17-under 263. He earned $954,000 and 500 FedEx Cup points in the final regular-season event.

Villegas had four birdies and an eagle on the front nine, added a birdie on the par-5 15th and watched the rest of the tournament from the air-conditioned scorer’s tent with his caddie.

“I was hoping for a playoff,” Villegas said. “I thought I needed one more (stroke).”

Turns out, he didn’t. When the rest of the field struggled late, he wound up with his fourth PGA Tour title and first since the 2010 Honda Classic.

He also became the second first-round leader to win the tournament since its 2008 move back to Sedgefield Country Club and first since Arjun Atwal in 2010.

Bill Haas and Freddie Jacobson tied for second. Haas had a 64, and Jacobson shot 66.

Jacobson needed a par on the final hole to force a playoff, but he rolled his 11-foot putt inches past the hole.

Heath Slocum was two strokes back after his 67. Brandt Snedeker, Webb Simpson and third-round leader Nick Watney were at 14 under.

Ottawa’s Brad Fritsch finished tied for eighth at 13 under.

Villegas had to wait about 40 minutes after his round ended before his victory was secure.

He closed his round with three straight pars, tapping in from about 2 feet on 18 and hoping it was good enough.

It was – once the crowd thinned itself out.

“When the boys got closer to the last hole, you can get a little anxious,” Villegas said. “You don’t have a golf club in your hand. You can’t really control it.”

Watney was at 17 under and appeared headed for his sixth PGA Tour victory before he ran into trouble on 14 and picked up his third bogey of the tournament and second of the day.

He followed with three straight pars, leaving him needing a birdie on the final hole to tie Villegas.

He had one on Saturday – but couldn’t do it again.

He wound up with a double bogey after his tee shot bounced past a cart path and out of bounds.

“I knew what was at stake, and I pushed it a little bit,” Watley said. “Extremely disappointed. If you said at any point, you birdie (the) last hole, you’re in a playoff, you would take it. … That was really a bad shot at a really bad time.”

That came after Jacobson also couldn’t catch Villegas.

The Swede’s second shot on 18 fell short of the green and his 70-foot birdie putt from the front edge rolled well past the hole before he was wide with his par putt.

“It really sucks when you play solid all day and, you know, I really thought it was my day coming in,” Jacobson said. “All I needed was a solid strike to get up there and good feed in and have a good chance of winning.”

Congestion atop the leaderboard was expected after 12 players entered their last trip around Sedgefield within three strokes of third-round leader Watney, who was at 14 under through three rounds.

And Villegas wasn’t one of them.

He began five strokes back but made a quick trip up the leaderboard, with three birdies and an eagle among his first five holes to move to 15 under and put himself within striking distance.

The other main subplot here this week was the last-gasp push for spots in the PGA Tour’s playoffs, which begin next week at The Barclays in New Jersey.

Slocum, who arrived at No. 158 on the points list, was briefly at 17 under but slipped off the pace by closing with two bogeys that also helped keep him out of The Barclays field. He finished at No. 129.

Martin Laird, who was at No. 136, was near the lead all weekend but his tie for 14th could only propel him to No. 127.

Paul Casey, 125th at the start of the week, tied for 18th to put himself safely in the field. Sang-Moon Bae played his way into the playoffs with a tie for 14th that moved him to No. 120. Jhonattan Vegas was at No. 124 but kept himself securely in the field with his tie for eighth.

“The goal was definitely to move on to next week,” Vegas said. “Mission accomplished.”

PITTSFORD, N.Y. – Inbee Park successfully defended her title in the LPGA Championship, beating Brittany Lincicome with a par on the first hole of a playoff Sunday to end the United States’ major streak at three.

On the playoff hole on Monroe Golf Club’s par-4 18th, Park hit her second into the rough behind the hole. Lincicome hit her approach to the left fringe, nearly identical to her position on the final hole of regulation when she made a bogey to fall in the playoff.

Lincicome chipped 6 feet past the hole and failed to convert for bogey. Park, the winner last year at Locust Hill in a playoff with Catriona Matthew, chipped to 3 feet and calmly sank her par putt for her fifth major title and fourth in the last two seasons.

Park finished with a 2-under 70 to match Lincicome at 11-under 276. Lincicome had a 71.

Americans had won the first three majors of the LPGA Tour season for the first time since 1999. Lexi Thompson began the run at Kraft Nabisco, Michelle Wie won the U.S. Women’s Open and Mo Martin the Women’s British Open.

The 26-year-old Park, from South Korea, was coming off a playoff loss to Mirim Lee last week in Michigan. Park also won this season in Canada and has 11 LPGA Tour victories.

She’s projected to jump from third to second in the world, passing 17-year-old Lydia Ko of New Zealand. Ko, trying to become the youngest major winner in LPGA history, shot a 70 to finish third at 8 under.

Spain’s Azahara Munoz (70) and Sweden’s Anna Nordqvist (71) tied for fourth at 6 under.

Lincicome squandered the lead she had held all day on the final hole of regulation. She hit her second shot to the left fringe and was in a good spot, but a long delay for a ruling on a shot by Suzann Pettersen only heightened the tension, and it showed.

With top-ranked Stacy Lewis among the gallery clapping, Lincicome left her first putt 8 feet short and failed to make par, forcing the playoff.

Pettersen, a two-time major winner, started the day a shot behind as she chased her first win this year. But her day went badly at the start and she shot 4-over 76. She tied for sixth at 5 under with Lewis (68), Julieta Granada (71), Shanshan Feng (72) and Lee (74).

Park’s clutch birdie putt at No. 17 put her in position to challenge and her par save at 18 was crucial. Her approach on the closing hole landed in the rough to the right of the green and she botched her shot out. Her 12-foot putt left no margin for error and the crowd roared when it rolled in.

Lincicome had held the 54-hole lead at a major only once before, at the 2006 U.S. Women’s Open, but she faltered with a closing 78 and finished seventh. This time, she shook off the nerves until the end as the chance to win her second major ended in disappointment. Lincicome won the 2009 Kraft Nabisco.

Leading by two shots at the turn and with two generous par 5s ahead, Lincicome, who admitted a serious case of the nerves Saturday, birdied the par-4 11th to offset Park’s birdie at No. 12.

Park, who had made a bogey and two pars at the hole the previous rounds, got a huge reprieve when Lincicome faltered at the 12th.

Lincicome hit her second shot into rough on a severe slant above a greenside bunker, barely made it up to the edge of the fringe, then botched her third shot, nearly double-hitting it, and made bogey as her lead dwindled to one shot. It was her first bogey on a par 5 in the tournament.

Lincicome saved par at the par-3 13th hole with a nice putt that caught the lip and dropped.

Park’s bid to tie failed when her 8-foot birdie putt slid by the right side of the hole.

Lincicome rebounded with a birdie at the par-5 14th hole for some breathing room, and it wasn’t easy. Her second shot landed in the rough, but she made a brilliant pitch that stopped a foot from the hole.

The tour made the switch this year to Monroe after 37 years at nearby Locust Hill. The Donald Ross-designed course is about 300 yards longer at 6,717 yards and does not have a single water hazard, but it does feature 106 bunkers, more than double the number at Locust Hill, and the wider fairways favor long hitters.

Jennifer Kirby of Paris, Ont. was the lone Canadian to make the 36 hole cut. She finished tied for 53rd at 5-over 293.

ENDICOTT, N.Y. – Bernhard Langer rallied to win the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open on Sunday for his fifth Champions Tour victory of the year, while Kevin Sutherland followed his tour-record 59 with a 74 to drop into a tie for seventh.

The 56-year-old Langer closed with a bogey-free 66 for a one-stroke victory over Woody Austin and Mark O’Meara. Langer did not make a bogey in the event and finished at 16-under 200 at En-Joie for his 23rd career victory on the 50-and-over tour

“It doesn’t happen very often you go through a tournament without a bogey,” Langer said.

Sutherland, the second-round leader, had five bogeys – four on the first 10 holes – and three birdies in the final round. Playing his third Champions Tour event since turning 50 in June, he finished at 12 under.

Sutherland said he was pressing too much early.

“So, I made some dumb bogeys,” Sutherland said. “Just got myself behind early. I was surprised I didn’t play better today. A lot of energy was expended (Saturday) and I think I had a hard time just getting into the round.”

Langer said he really wasn’t watching the leaderboard.

“I knew I was close,” Langer said. “I just tried to keep my head down and make quality shots. When I looked at 16, I saw I was one up on someone who had already finished the round and figured I would be OK if I just parred out.”

That he did, and won for the first time with his daughter, Christina, serving as his caddie.

“I was more nervous for her than for me,” Langer said. “We hadn’t won a tournament with her caddying, though I’ve won a couple with my son. It’s always special when your kids are caddying.”

Christina is a junior at Florida Atlantic University.

Austin had a 65, and O’Meara shot 66.

Langer, tied for fifth with Bob Charles on the tour victory list, earned $277,500 to increase his tour-leading total to $2,652,520. The German has three victories in his last five starts.

Steve Lowery had a 72 to tie for fourth at 13 under. After challenging Langer for most of the round he hit into the pond on the par-3 14th en route to a double bogey and dropped another stroke on the par-4 15th.

Lowery birdied Nos. 7, 8, 9 and 11 to take a one-stroke lead at 15 under.

On the 14th, Langer made a 20-foot birdie putt for a three-stroke swing.

Canada’s Rod Spittle tied for 22nd at 7-under 209.

RICHMOND, Va. – Marissa Steen won the Eagle Classic on Sunday for her third Symetra Tour title of the year, earning $15,000 to jump from second to first on the money list with $75,348.

Steen, the 24-year-old former University of Memphis player from West Chester, Ohio, closed with a bogey-free 6-under 66 for a four-stroke victory. She finished at 14-under 202 at Richmond Country Club.

“It feels just as good as the first two,” Steen said. “Being tied for the lead going into Sunday and then putting up a solid round was great. I just wanted to stay within myself today and feel like I did that very well. … It feels really good to go out and have my lowest round of the week on Sunday.”

Steen had already wrapped up a spot next year on the LPGA Tour, with the top 10 on the money list after the final three events earning cards. As a three-time winner, she also has the option to play on the LPGA Tour for the remainder of this season.

“I talked with one of the officials after the round and it sounds like I can get into the tournament in Portland so I’m going to definitely think about that and talk it over with my family,” Steen said. “I haven’t made any decisions yet but I do plan on playing in Daytona for the last Symetra Tour event of the year.”

Steen also won in April in Sarasota, Florida, and May in Asheville, North Carolina.

Demi Rumas was second. She finished with a 67.

Runas jumped from 20th to 12th on the money list.

“It takes a little bit of weight off the shoulders but not much,” Runas said. “Everyone is kind of bunched up there so you’ve got to keep doing the same thing for the last three events.”

Madison Pressell followed at 9 under after a 67.

Overnight leader, Nicole Vandermade of Brantford, Ont., carded a 76 Sunday to fall into a tie for 15th at 4-under 212.

JOHNS CREEK, Ga. – Team Canada’s Corey Conners lost the 36-hole final match of the U.S. Amateur to South Korea’s Gunn Yang, 2 & 1.

Yang jumped out to an early 2 up lead after the first two holes, but Conners continued to fight in the back-and-forth affair, winning four holes on the first 18 to sit 1 down heading into the afternoon lunch break.

Conners, a recent Kent State graduate, took advantage of a bogey by Yang to open the second round to make the match all square. They stayed even for the next four holes, until Yang birdied the par-4 6^th, and followed that up with a par on the 7^th, to earn a quick two-hole advantage.

As raindrops began to fall, Conners buried a 10-footer on the par-4 10^th to cut the lead back to one. The rain began to pour heavily on the 11^th, forcing officials to suspend play. Suspense continued to mount during the delay that lasted over an hour.

After play resumed, they remained all square until Yang birdied the par-4 14^th (32^nd hole) to earn his two-hole advantage back. Yang missed a short birdie putt to win on the 16^th, giving Conners one last chance to make a run. That was it, however, as Yang closed out Conners on the 17^th to win, 2 & 1.

Yang, a virtual unknown, joins the company of past champions Bobby Jones, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods. With the win, the San Diego state sophomore will surely improve on his no. 776 World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR).

Caddying for Conners was Team Canada and Kent State teammate, Taylor Pendrith (Richmond Hill, Ont.). The 2014 Monroe Invitational champion was on the bag for Conners since being eliminated in the round of 64.

Sunday’s finish marks both a female and male Canadian reaching the U.S. Amateur final in the same year, as Brooke Henderson (Smiths Falls, Ont.) placed runner-up earlier this month. That had not happened since 1966 with Gary Cowan and Marlene Streit.

Both Yang and Conners will receive exemptions into the 2015 U.S. Open and a likely invitation to the Masters – provided they remain amateurs. Additionally, Yang earned an exemption into the British Open.

Yang become the second South Korean winner of the title, following Byeong-Hun An in 2009.

Click here for full scoring.

Click here to listen to a our media teleconference with Conners.

LONDON, Ont. (Golf Canada) – The final four spots into the 2014 Canadian Pacific Women’s Open field will be determined Monday as the Final Qualifier is set for Sunningdale Golf and Country Club in London, Ont.

A total of 32 competitors will challenge for one of four spots into the field for Canada’s National Women’s Open Golf Championship.

The Final Qualifier features 18 holes of stroke play with the low four competitors receiving an exemption into the 2014 Canadian Pacific Women’s Open field.  If necessary, a hole-by-hole playoff will be conducted immediately following the conclusion of play.

Click here for pairings, start times and results for Canadian Pacific Women’s Open Final Qualifying on Monday, August 18. Results will be available as players complete their rounds.

Tournament week for the 2014 Canadian Pacific Women’s Open kicks off Monday, August 18 at London Hunt and Country Club. In addition to practice rounds in the morning, the Golf Canada Foundation Pro-Am gets underway at 12:30pm. Nineteen teams will tee it up alongside notable Canadian professional and Team Canada amateur golfers along with Olympic gold medalists Tessa Virtue (Ice Dance) and Becky Kellar (Women’s Hockey).

LONDON, Ont. (Golf Canada) – The final four spots into the 2014 Canadian Pacific Women’s Open field will be determined Monday as the Final Qualifier is set for Sunningdale Golf and Country Club in London, Ont.

A total of 32 competitors will challenge for one of four spots into the field for Canada’s National Women’s Open Golf Championship.

The Final Qualifier features 18 holes of stroke play with the low four competitors receiving an exemption into the 2014 Canadian Pacific Women’s Open field.  If necessary, a hole-by-hole playoff will be conducted immediately following the conclusion of play.

Click here for pairings, start times and results for Canadian Pacific Women’s Open Final Qualifying on Monday, August 18. Results will be available as players complete their rounds.

Tournament week for the 2014 Canadian Pacific Women’s Open kicks off Monday, August 18 at London Hunt and Country Club. In addition to practice rounds in the morning, the Golf Canada Foundation Pro-Am gets underway at 12:30pm. Nineteen teams will tee it up alongside notable Canadian professional and Team Canada amateur golfers along with Olympic gold medalists Tessa Virtue (Ice Dance) and Becky Kellar (Women’s Hockey).