Winnipeg, Man. (Golf Canada) – Top male amateur golfers from Australia, Canada, Colombia, New Zealand, Taiwan and the United States will vie for national supremacy at the 2014 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship.

The championship will be contested August 1-7 at both Elmhurst Golf and Country Club and Southwood Golf and Country Club in Winnipeg. The Canadian Men’s Amateur Qualifier will be held on Friday, August 1 at Elmhurst Golf and Country Club. The practice rounds along with the first 36 holes of the championship will be held at both clubs with the final two days contested at Elmhurst Golf and Country Club.

“We are thrilled to bring another national championship back to Winnipeg,” said Adam Helmer, Tournament Director. “The field is very strong this year and both golf courses will certainly challenge some of the world’s top amateur players this week.”

The winner of the Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship will earn exemptions into both the 2015 RBC Canadian Open at Glen Abbey Golf Club, as well as the 2014 U.S. Amateur Championship. Additionally, the winner is eligible to receive exemptions into the U.S. Junior Amateur, U.S. Mid-Amateur and the USGA Senior Amateur Championship, if applicable.

The 240-player field is led this year by Team Canada’s Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., alongside his teammates, Taylor Pendrith of Richmond Hill, Ont., Adam Svensson of Surrey, B.C. and Chris Hemmerich of Kitchener, Ont., who all ranked inside the Top-100 on the World Amateur Golf rankings. Garrett Rank of Elmira, Ont. sits narrowly outside at No. 109.

A recent graduate of the Kent State University Golden Flashes, Conners is the field’s highest ranked Canadian at No. 33 in world. In 2013, Conners finished runner-up at the Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship in Victoria and was a semi-finalist at the U.S. Men’s Amateur Championship. His teammate Pendrith recently finished T43 at the RBC Canadian Open and also captured the prestigious Monroe Invitational in June.

Ranked inside the Top-55 in the world, California’s Rico Hoey (No. 27) and Lee McCoy (No. 53) of New Pork Richey, Fla., will also vie for the historic Earl Grey Trophy.

In 2008, Elmhurst Golf and Country Club played host to the Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship and co-hosted the 2011 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship, while Southwood Golf and Country Club recently hosted the 2014 Canadian University/College Championship.

“Everyone at Elmhurst has been looking forward to hosting the Canadian Men’s Amateur as part of our centennial celebrations,” said Dave McMillan, Director of Golf Operations at Elmhurst. “The members have rallied around this championship and we’re working really hard to make this a memorable experience for everyone involved.”

Additionally, teams will compete for the Willingdon Cup that will take place in conjunction with the first two rounds, with three-member teams competing towards an overall team total. Team British Columbia captured the title in 2013, finishing one-strokes ahead of Team Ontario. This year Team Yukon and Team Northwest Territories will also be competing in the competition.

The final spots (minimum of five) into the field will be determined at the Canadian Men’s Amateur Qualifier on Friday, August 1. Pairings and start times for the qualifier can be found here.

After the first two rounds the field will be reduced to the low 70 players and ties for the final 36 holes of the championship finishing on Thursday, August 7 at Elmhurst Golf and Country Club. In addition, admission is free to all spectators throughout the week.

For a full field list as well as starting times, live scoring and post-round results for the 110th playing of the Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship, click here.

AKRON, Ohio – Tiger Woods finds out over the next two weeks if his season is over or just getting started.

The first stop is Firestone, where Woods is an eight-time winner and the defending champion. After that, he heads to Valhalla Golf Club for the PGA Championship, where he won in 2000 on his way to an unprecedented sweep of the majors.

At stake is a chance to extend a season already cut short by back surgery.

“I would like to win these two events and not have to worry about anything,” Woods said Wednesday. “That’s the plan. That’s the mindset. That’s the focus. We’ll see how it falls after these few weeks. I’m so far out of it right now that I need to play well to … get myself into the playoffs and ultimately – hopefully – play all four weeks.”

It’s hard to believe that just one year ago, Woods won this World Golf Championship by seven shots for his fifth victory of the year.

Not much has gone his way since then, mainly because of back pain that eventually led to surgery on March 31 and kept him out for three months. The Bridgestone Invitational will be only his third tournament since his return from surgery a month ago at Congressional, where he missed the cut.

And during his time at home, his position in two key standings plunged.

Woods is No. 215 in the FedEx Cup – only the top 125 qualifying for the playoffs.

He is No. 70 in the Ryder Cup standings, so far away from being among the nine automatic qualifiers after next week that even if he were to win at Firestone, he wouldn’t even crack the top 20 in the standings.

At least he is playing courses that bring happy memories.

Woods has been so dominant at Firestone that he averages $10,138 for every hole he has played in competition dating to 1997. His victory last year was the third time he had won at Firestone by at least seven shots.

But that’s because he was playing well.

Firestone also is the course where he finished 30 shots out of the lead in 2010, a week before he hooked up with Sean Foley, his third swing coach as a pro.

“There’s no secret formula,” he said. “It’s just go out and play well. This golf course is right in front of you. There’s no hidden secrets out here. You’ve just got to go out there and play well.”

Different from previous injuries is that Woods said he returned to competition not much longer after he was fit enough to play. After various knee injuries, he worked himself into shape by playing a lot of golf at home. This time, he only got in a couple of rounds.

Missing the cut at Congressional was satisfying because he knew he was pain-free. Finishing in 69th place at the British Open – his worst position at a major when making the cut – was more of a disappointment. Woods said he is progressing, though it starts with eliminating mistakes.

“My good shots are still really good,” he said. “My bad shots need to be in positions where I know I should miss the golf ball, instead of places where I have been missing it.”

The field is the toughest of the year for the World Golf Championships, missing only Dustin Johnson (No. 16) from the top 50.

Rory McIlroy is playing for the first time since his wire-to-wire win at the British Open two weeks ago. Woods is playing the opening two rounds with Martin Kaymer, who went wire-to-wire at Pinehurst No. 2 to win the U.S. Open.

McIlroy and Henrik Stenson each have a mathematical chance to replace Adam Scott at No. 1 in the world.

Some of the pairings for the opening two rounds are a reminder that the Ryder Cup is not too far away. Justin Rose is playing with Rickie Fowler, who has finished second in the past two majors. McIlroy is playing with Matt Kuchar. Jordan Spieth is paired with Victor Dubuisson of France, both expected to be Ryder Cup rookies.

Woods and Kaymer would be another Ryder Cup attraction – assuming Woods is on the team. U.S. captain Tom Watson has said he wants Woods on the team, provided he is healthy and playing well. At the moment, Woods is healthy.

“I think what it’s going to boil down to, would be my guess, is how healthy Tiger is and how he feels like his game is,” said Jim Furyk, who has secured his spot on the team for the ninth straight time. “But it’s hard to imagine not having a healthy Tiger Woods on the team. He’s arguably the best player ever. If he’s healthy and he’s been playing, it’s hard to imagine he wouldn’t be on the team. But that’s not my call.”

That decision is for Watson.

And Woods can make it a lot easier depending on how he plays the next two weeks.

Calgary – Rockville, Maryland’s Daniel Balin and Peterborough, Ont.’s Ted Brown shared the lead at 8-under par when play was suspended due to dangerous weather on Thursday at the ATB Financial Classic. Balin shot 64 to take the clubhouse lead, while Brown was 8-under through 15 holes.

The pair was one stroke ahead of defending champion Joe Panzeri of Meridian, Idaho and Linus Gillgren of Sweden, who shot a pair of 65s earlier in the day.

“I hit it pretty solid all day. I got a couple of good breaks to start off my round and didn’t really hit it off line, so I was able to take advantage of a few of the opportunities I had and just played solid,” said Balin, who recently became a PGA Tour Canada member thanks to some timely play earlier in the season.

A teaching pro out of Burning Tree Country Club in Greenwich, Connecticut, Balin has played in the last four PGA Championships thanks to solid performances in the Professional National Championship, and recently earned conditional status as one of the top three non-members on the Order of Merit through the Staal Foundation Open presented by Tbaytel. He open qualified into the field at the SIGA Dakota Dunes Open presented by SaskTel, where he finished in the top 20 to gain entry into the following week’s The Players Cup, where he finished tied for 13th. His earnings were enough to put him 52^nd on the Order of Merit six events, second among non-members.

“I just needed to go out and play,” said Balin, who also plays on NEC Series – PGA Tour Latinoamérica, where he has two top-10 finishes. “I finished top 20 in Saskatoon as well as the next week and found out there were three spots for non-members. I’m excited that I can come out here and hopefully play the rest of the events.”

With his number of starts on PGA Tour Canada and in South America making him ineligible to play the PGA Championship again this year, Balin has changed his focus towards a goal of making it to the PGA Tour as a full-time tour player.

“It’s a bit of a downer with that being always something to look forward to, but at the end of the day, trying to play full time, it’s something that I had to give up,” said Balin. “I experienced it four years in a row playing in a major, and I figured the next time I play will hopefully be as a player and not as a teaching pro or club professional.”

Brown, who has been named Freedom 55 Financial Canadian Player of the Week twice in his first season on PGA Tour Canada, continued what has been a strong season with a good start on Thursday to sit one shot ahead of Gillgren and Panzeri, who is looking to defend his title in Calgary.

Thornhill, Ont. (Golf Canada) – Grace St-Germain fired a second consecutive 2-under 70 to grab the outright lead after the second round of the Canadian Junior Girls Championship at Thornhill Golf and Country Club. 

During play on Wednesday the second round was suspended due to inclement weather at 2:40 p.m. ET and resumed after a 1.5 hour delay at 4:10 p.m. ET.

After the brief delay, St-Germain returned to the course and carded birdies on three of her final six holes to close with a 2-under 34 back-nine. The Ottawa native currently sits at 4-under 140 for the championship one-stroke ahead of Team Canada Development Squad member Valérie Tanguay. 

“I think the delay got me to calm down a bit and just regroup and I think that was good for me,” St-Germain said. “These are probably my best tournament scores in a row so far.”

Tanguay of St-Hyacinthe, Que., narrowly trails St-Germain after a second-round 1-under 71, while Christina Foster of Concord, Ont. vaulted into third place after a second round 4-under 68. Foster’s second round is the lowest score of the championship and was highlighted by a back-nine 4-under 32.

Nova Scotia’s Allison Chandler of Chester sits in fourth at 1-over 145 after a 1-under 71, while Michelle Kim of Surrey, B.C. sits in fifth place at 2-over 146.

In the Inter-Provincial Team competition that is conducted over the first 36 holes of the championship Team Quebec and Team Ontario went to a hole-by-hole playoff after finishing the championship tied at 5-over 293. Team Quebec’s contingent of Tanguay, Ocèane Jacques of St-Gabriel de Valcartier and Annie Lacombe of Laval captured the title on the third playoff hole. The teams played the first hole continuously until a champion was decided.

In the Juvenile Division (16 and under), St-Germain continues to lead by five strokes over Chandler.
 
Starting times, post-round results, full field list, and live scoring are available here.

Brooke Henderson did not disappoint in her opening round at the PGA Women’s Championship of Canada, presented by Nike Golf, firing a dazzling 7-under-par 65.

The 16-year-old’s first round included seven birdies and a hole-in-one on No. 17, en route to a new course record at the Thomas McBroom designed FireRock Golf Club in Komoka, Ont.

“My caddie told me it was over the back and I kind of panicked for a few minutes,” Henderson joked. “But when I went up there I checked and there it was-it was a great shot.”

Henderson leads by two strokes over Stephanie Connelly of Fleming Island, Fla. Sitting three shots back heading into Thursday’s final round is three-time champion Alena Sharp of Hamilton.

Earlier this summer Henderson, who is currently ranked No. 2 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings, earned low amateur honours (T10) at the U.S. Women’s Open, finished tied for 26th at the Kraft Nabisco Championship, and tied for 45th at the Manulife Financial LPGA Classic. The Team Canada member’s year has also included wins at the Canadian Women’s Tour event in Niagara Falls, the Porter Cup, the Ontario Women’s Amateur and the Scott Robertson.

“I’ve had a great summer and it’s definitely been a huge confidence booster,” Henderson said. “I’m looking forward to the future and want to use these experiences on the LPGA Tour when I finally get out there some day.”

The 2008 champion Hannah Jun, Team Canada member Anne-Catherine Tanguay, Brooke’s older sister Brittany Henderson of Smith Falls, Ont., and Australian Emma De Groot each fired opening rounds of 69.

In total, 12 players are at even par or better.

Click here for the full leaderboard.

The PGA Women’s Championship of Canada was first played in 1987 and past champions include Cathy Sherk, Gail Graham, Nancy Harvey, Lorie Kane and Jessica Shepley.

The PGA Women’s Championship of Canada counts as the third and final stop on the Canadian Women’s Tour with points awarded toward the Jocelyne Bourassa Player of the Year at the conclusion of the championship.

Similar to past years, the champion of each Canadian Women’s Tour stop and the PGA Women’s Championship of Canada will receive an exemption into the 2014 Canadian Pacific Women’s Open to be held Aug. 18-24, 2014 at London Hunt & Country Club in London, Ont. As well, following the conclusion of play at the PGA Women’s Championship of Canada, two (2) additional exemptions will be awarded to the top competitors, not otherwise exempt into the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open from the 2014 Canadian Women’s Tour Order of Merit.

In addition, the top five (previously the top 3) players on the Canadian Women’s Tour season-ending Order of Merit will be awarded direct entry into LPGA Stage-2 Qualifying.

Niagara Falls, Ont. (Golf Canada) – Play at the 2014 Canadian Junior Boys Championship at Legends on the Niagara was temporarily suspended today due to dangerous playing conditions after strong storm cells rolled through the Niagara Falls, Ont. area Wednesday. Play was suspended for the first time at 11:12 AM EDT, and was suspended for the day at 4:15 PM EDT after an attempted resumption of play. 

The second round will resume tomorrow at 7:00 AM EDT. Afternoon pairings from the second round will begin at 8:00 AM EDT on both the 1st and 10th tees. The third round will commence approximately one hour after the completion of the second round.  At the time of suspension, 78 players had begun their round.

At the time of suspension, overnight leader Patrick Murphy, 17, of Crossfield, Alta. sits in a tie for the lead with Austin James, 18, of Bath, Ont. Team Alberta sits unofficially in first in the Inter-Provincial Championship at 8-under-140. 78 players have yet to begin the second round.

For a full field list, live scoring, and more information regarding Wednesday’s suspension of play click here.

London, Ont.  – Canadian Pacific (CP) and Golf Canada are pleased to announce that Rolex Rankings No. 1 Stacy Lewis, No. 3 Inbee Park, No. 5 Lexi Thompson as well as No. 12 Paula Creamer will join a growing list of LPGA Tour stars who have confirmed their intention to challenge for the US $2.25 million purse at the 2014 Canadian Pacific Women’s Open, August 18-24 at London Hunt and Country Club.

Lewis will come into Canada’s National Women’s Open during an impressive season that has seen her capture three LPGA victories. Park, a 4-time major champion, won the 2014 Manulife Financial LPGA Classic for her 10^th LPGA Tour victory earlier this season. Thompson meanwhile was the year’s first major championship winner after claiming the Kraft Nabisco Championship, while Creamer added her 10^th LPGA title with a victory at the HSBC Women’s Championship.

Lewis, Park, Thompson and Creamer will also be joined by Rolex Rankings No. 27 English teen sensation Charley Hull along with recently turned professional, Stephanie Meadow, who finished third at the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open.

In addition, Thailand’s Jutanugarn sisters Ariya and Moriya are set to join the list of international stars set to compete. Ariya Jutanugarn holds a special connection to Canadian golf having previously captured the 2012 Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship.

Canadian teen sensation Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont. – the No. 2. ranked amateur in the world – headlines the list of competing amateurs after earning an exemption from her Canadian Women’s Tour Ontario victory earlier this summer. Henderson recently finished T10 at the U.S. Women’s Open and will be joined by Team Canada teammate Augusta James of Bath, Ont. who won the 2014 Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship victory last week to earn an exemption to compete at London Hunt and Country Club.

The players announced today will join a player field of previously confirmed LPGA stars and past champions including two-time defending champion and world No. 2 Lydia Ko as well as 2014 U.S. Women’s Open champion and 2010 Canadian Women’s Open winner Michelle Wie. In addition to Ko and Wie, past Canadian Women’s Open champions confirmed to compete include Karrie Webb (1999), Cristie Kerr (2006), Katherine Hull-Kirk (2008), Suzanne Pettersen (2009) and Brittany Lincicome (2011).

Canadian LPGA star and CP ambassador Lorie Kane will lead a Canadian contingent that also includes confirmed Canadian LPGA Tour players Rebecca Lee-Bentham of Toronto, Alena Sharp of Hamilton, Ont., Jennifer Kirby of Paris, Ont. and Sue Kim of Langley, B.C.

Additional Canadian and international exemptions will be announced in the coming weeks.

“We are very pleased with how the field for the 2014 Canadian Pacific Women’s Open is coming together and expect it to once again be among the strongest on the LPGA Tour,” said Tournament Director Brent McLaughlin. “With less than a month to go, the golf course at London Hunt and Country Club is in spectacular shape and ready to challenge the world’s best golfers.”

A field of 156 competitors will vie for the US$2.25 million purse when the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open makes its return to London Hunt and Country Club for the first time since 2006.

Tickets for all tournament days of the 2014 Canadian Pacific Women’s Open are available here, with children aged 17 and under getting in free all week with a ticketed adult.

As an added incentive, title sponsor CP has stepped up to encourage spectators to buy advance tickets to the event for the benefit of the Children’s Health Foundation in London Ontario. Through the CP Ticket Rally for Heart campaign, for every eligible ticket purchased to the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open until August 17^th, 2014, Canadian Pacific will donate at least $100 per ticket to the Children’s Health Foundation in support of paediatric heart health programs.

AKRON, Ohio – The Claret Jug is not out of sight. Rory McIlroy is just trying to get it out of his mind.

McIlroy had plenty of fun with golf’s oldest trophy after his wire-to-wire win in the British Open. He celebrated with friends in England, took the jug out for a night on the town in Belfast with his buddies, and brought it with him when he returned home to Florida. And yes, it’s with him at Firestone this week at the Bridgestone Invitational.

“I’ve sort of been taking pictures of it beside the TV and on top of the toilet and wherever it’s been,” he said. “It’s definitely nice to have it in my possession.”

And now it’s back to work.

McIlroy had two trigger words that helped him at Royal Liverpool – “process” and “spot.” They helped him focus on his long game and his putting.

He brought out a new word Tuesday at Firestone – forward.

“I think every time you have success, you need to reassess your goals because it’s only halfway, two-thirds through the season,” he said. “And a lot of the goals that I set myself for the start of the year I’ve achieved already. So that’s when you have to reassess and say, `OK, you’ve boxed that off. It’s great. Celebrate it for a couple of days.’ But then you’ve got to move on.”

“You’ve got to keep moving forward and keep thinking about what you want to achieve from now until the end of the year,” he said. “And then at the end of the year, you can really reflect on everything you’ve done and enjoy it.”

There are plenty of goals right in front of him.

McIlroy has never won a World Golf Championship, and the Bridgestone Invitational offers a great chance. Firestone is a big golf course, typically south, one that requires plenty of power, and McIlroy has that. It was at Firestone two years ago when McIlroy closed with a 68, which he cited as a key to winning the PGA Championship the following week at Kiawah Island.

And then there’s next week at Valhalla. As much as McIlroy is looking ahead to Augusta National next April and a chance to win the career Grand Slam, he wouldn’t mind getting his fourth major at the PGA Championship.

Also at stake is a chance for the 25-year-old from Northern Ireland to return to No. 1 in the world. He would have to win the Bridgestone Invitational, and Adam Scott would have to finish outside the top five.

McIlroy sounded as if he was all business.

He had a few media opportunities after winning The Open, and then headed to London for some fitness testing. After a corporate outing for one of his sponsors, he flew over to Florida and spent the rest of the time practicing for a big stretch ahead of him.

“Just decided I wanted to move on and move forward,” he said.

He has a history of moving forward. Two years ago, McIlroy followed his PGA Championship win at Kiawah Island by winning back-to-back tournaments in the FedEx Cup playoffs to wrap up his first PGA Tour money title, and then he won in Dubai at the end of the year to capture the European Tour money title.

“I didn’t want to rest on that,” he said. “I’d already had a pretty good year, but I wanted to just keep going.”

Thornhill, Ont. – Grace St-Germain and Valérie Tanguay co-lead at the Canadian Junior Girls Championship after firing 2-under 70’s at Thornhill Golf and Country Club. 

St-Germain of Ottawa, Ont. opened with a 2-under 34 front-nine and rolled in a closing birdie putt on the par-4 18th hole to finish in a tie for the lead.

“I started the first couple of holes and I was getting into a really good rhythm,” said St-Germain who also leads the Juvenile division. “I was like okay maybe you can go low today and I just tried to stay focused and it worked out.”

Playing in the final pairing of the day alongside her Team Canada Development Squad teammates, Tanguay of St-Hyacinthe, Que., ignited her round with an eagle on the par-5 8th hole.

“I think my eagle helped me a lot, I missed a couple of birdies but in general everything was good,” said Tanguay. “I missed some shots but I was able to get up and down and do better on the next hole to make par, my mental game was really there and I was calm and patient.”

The duo currently leads by two strokes over Michelle Kim of Surrey, B.C. who birdied two of her closing four holes to finish in third place at even-par. A trio of players share fourth place at 1-over par including Madeline Marck-Sherk of Ridgeway, Ont. and Team Canada Development Squad members Jaclyn Lee of Calgary and Victoria’s Naomi Ko. 

In the Inter-Provincial Team competition that is conducted over the first 36 holes of the championship, Team Alberta’s contingent of Lee, Calgary’s Sabrine Garrison and Cochrane’s Bria Jansen sit one-stroke ahead of Team Quebec at 5-over 149. Team Ontario and Team British Columbia narrowly trail Alberta in a tie for third at 7-over 151.

In the Juvenile Division (16 and under), St-Germain holds a three stroke at 2-under par over Marck-Sherk and Ko.
 
Starting times, post-round results, full field list, and live scoring are available here.

Golf Fore the Cure presented by Subaru represents support for women’s health in Canada – recreationally, physically and even emotionally. Whether organizing, participating, or donating, involvement with Golf Fore the Cure is, in some capacity, benefiting the status of women’s health.

Conducted by Golf Canada, the program looks to engage more women in golf through an unstructured, friendly format. And that doesn’t just mean a round of nine or 18 holes – it means laughter, friends, and conversation. It means taking a break to enjoy some good company on a day outdoors. It means a new hobby that will last a lifetime.

All fundraising totals from across Canada are donated to the Canadian Cancer Society to go towards breast cancer research, making Golf Fore the Cure’s cause both meaningful and important.

For a greater scope of what the program is all about, watch the video below:

There are many ways you can help. Get involved at golfcanada.ca/golfforethecure.