LA QUINTA, Calif. – With only 36 holes remaining at the final stage of Web.com qualifying, six Canadians sit inside the top-45 at PGA West in La Quinta, Calif.

Cam Burke of New Hamburg, Ont., continues to lead the Canadian contingent after firing a 3-under 69 on Sunday. His 13-under total trails Utah’s Scott Pinckney by eight strokes and leaves him in a tie for 13th.

Toronto’s Albin Choi carded his fourth consecutive under-par round after a 3-under 69 and currently sits 16th at 12-under par. Choi sits one stroke ahead of Oshawa, Ont., native Derek Gillespie, who fired a 5-under 67 to vault up the leaderboard Sunday.

Nick Taylor of Abbottsford, B.C., made the biggest move of the day for the Canadians after a 5-under 67 moved him up 19 spots into a tie for 23rd.

Justin Shin of Maple Ridge, B.C., and Roger Sloan of Merritt, B.C., also carded under-par rounds and both sit in a tie for 38th at 8-under par.

Full scores for the 11 Canadians in the field this week are below. The Canucks will look to finish inside the top-45 after 108 holes of play, which will give them exempt status until the Web.Com Tour’s second periodic re-order of the 2014 season. To see more on the qualifying breakdown, click here.

Canadian Scores after Round 4 of Web.com Final Qualifying

T13. Cam Burke, New Hamburg, Ont. (-13) 67-72–67-69–275
T16. Albin Choi, Toronto, Ont. (-12) 69-71–67-69–276
T17. Derek Gillespie, Oshawa, Ont. (-11) 71-67–72-67–277
T23. Nick Taylor, Abbottsford, B.C. (-10) 69-70–72-67–278
T38. Justin Shin, Maple Ridge, B.C. (-8) 64-74–73-69–280
T38. Roger Sloan, Merritt, B.C. (-8) 68-70–72-70–280
T65. Devin Carrey, Surrey, B.C. (-5) 68-71–71-73–283
T107. Yohann Benson, Montreal, Que. (E) 73-74–70-71–288
T128. Riley Wheeldon, Comox, B.C. (+3) 74-71–71-75–291
T128. Eugene Wong, North Vancouver, B.C. (+3) 73-70-75-73–291
T135. Max Gilbert, St-Georges, Que. (+5)  73-74–74-72–293

For complete scoring from Web.com Tour Final Qualifying, click here.

NAPLES, Fla. – Matt Kuchar and Harris English set a tournament course record by finishing at 34 under at the Franklin Templeton Shootout on Sunday.

Kuchar and English beat the duo of Retief Goosen and Freddie Jacobson at the Tiburon Golf Resort’s Gold course. The winners shot 25 under in their last 28 holes.

Playing Sunday under a scramble format, they shot a 14-under 58. Goosen and Jacobson cut their deficit to three shots after three holes before Kuchar and English warmed up. They were 11-under 61 for the day and 27-under for the tournament.

Finishing third were Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter, who had a 13-under 59 and went 26 under overall. Chris DiMarco and Billy Horschel were in fourth at 24 under.

Host Greg Norman and partner Jonas Blixt tied Steve Stricker/Jerry Kelly and Canada’s Graham DeLaet/Mike Weir at 19 under. They finished tied for 8th, earning (US) $80,000 each.

CHONBURI, Thailand – Sergio Garcia shot a final-round 68 to beat Henrik Stenson by four strokes and win the Thailand Golf Championship at the Amata Spring Country Club on Sunday.

The 33-year-old Spaniard, who held the lead since the second round, turned in a solid final round that featured six birdies and two bogeys to finish on 22-under 266.

The victory is Garcia’s first this year with his last win coming at the Johor Open, an Asian Tour event in Malaysia last December.

“It was great, an amazing week,” said Garcia, who has now won four Asian Tour titles in his career. “I’m very, very happy and I can’t wait to go back home to Switzerland and kind of sleep on it a little bit.

“I knew Henrik was going to make it difficult for me. He’s been playing so amazingly great, and he did. I started well, but he also did. He kept hitting good shot after good shot,” Garcia added.

Garcia raised some eyebrows by playing with his girlfriend, Katharina Boehm, as his caddie this week, but the partnership has proved to be effective.

Sweden’s Stenson, who recently made history when he became the first player to win the Race to Dubai and the FedEx Cup, matched Garcia’s 68 in his final round for an 18-under 270 total.

“It was a good week. Especially (because) I’ve had a great year but coming here really on the fumes left in the tank, not too much going for me to perform this week in that sense. But … I was hanging in there and I was just coming up a couple short,” Stenson said.

“I needed something really, really good to happen there. I had a couple of chances to get a little bit close around 8 and 9 but I didn’t make those two birdie putts and Sergio was hanging in there, made one or two good saves and then he made three birdies in a row, and then he pulled away, and then really I would need something spectacular to happen the last four or five holes.”

Alexander Levy of France shot a 69 to finish another four shots back for a 274 total and third place. Last year’s winner, Charl Schwartzel of South Africa, with a second straight 67, was joint fourth on 275 along with Yuki Kono of Japan, US Open champion Justin Rose, and Anirban Lahiri of India.

American Rickie Fowler endured an up and down round that featured six birdies and four bogeys for a 70 and an 11-under 277 to finish in a share of eighth place with Thailand’s Chapchai Nirat.

LA QUINTA, Calif. – Two Canadians soared up the leaderboard at Web.com Final Qualifying on Saturday at PGA West in La Quinta, Calif.

Cam Burke of New Hamburg, Ont., snuck inside the top-15 after a 5-under 67 moved him up 12 spots the leaderboard at the midway point of the 108-hole marathon. Toronto’s Albin Choi also carded a 5-under 67 to leap into a tie for 16th at 9-under par for the tournament.

A handful of Canadians sit in good position after 54 holes including, Devin Carrey of Surrey, B.C., who carded a 1-under 71 to share 31st place alongside Derek Gillespie of Oshawa, Ont., and Roger Sloan of Merritt, B.C.

First round leader Justin Shin of Maple Ridge, B.C., carded a 1-over 73 on Saturday to slip into a tie for 42nd with Abbottsford, B.C., native Nick Taylor.

Steve Saunders of Albuquerque, New Mexico currently holds the overall lead at 17-under 199 after a third round 5-under 67.

Full scores for the 11 Canadians in the field this week are below. The Canucks will look to finish inside the top-45 after 108 holes of play, which will give them exempt status until the Web.Com Tour’s second periodic re-order of the 2014 season. To see more on the qualifying breakdown, click here.

Canadian Scores after Round 3 of Web.com Final Qualifying

T12. Cam Burke, New Hamburg, Ont. (-10) 67-72–67–206
T16. Albin Choi, Toronto, Ont. (-9) 69-71–67–207
T31. Derek Gillespie, Oshawa, Ont. (-6) 71-67–72–210
T31. Roger Sloan, Merritt, B.C. (-6) 68-70–72–210
T31. Devin Carrey, Surrey, B.C. (-6) 68-71–71–210
T42. Nick Taylor, Abbottsford, B.C. (-5) 69-70–72–211
T42. Justin Shin, Maple Ridge, B.C. (-5) 64-74–73–211
T105. Riley Wheeldon, Comox, B.C. (E) 74-71–71–216
T111. Yohann Benson, Montreal, Que. (+1) 73-74–70–217
T122. Eugene Wong, North Vancouver, B.C. (+2) 73-70-75–218
T139. Max Gilbert, St-Georges, Que. (+5)  73-74–74–221

For complete scoring from Web.com Tour Final Qualifying, click here.

NAPLES, Fla. – Keyed by a blazing back nine, Matt Kuchar and Harris English took a four-shot lead after better ball play Saturday in the Franklin Templeton Shootout.

Thanks to a 27 on the back nine and 60 overall, Kuchar and English are at 20-under at Tiburon Golf Resort’s Gold course. Their better-ball effort is one shot off the tournament record, set by John Daly and Frank Lickliter in 2001.

Retief Goosen andFreddie Jacobson are four shots back at 16-under.

The format will change to a scramble Sunday.

English and Kuchar had six pars in their seven holes before taking off. From Nos. 8-17, they had nine birdies and an eagle.

Canadians Graham DeLaet and Mike Weir are tied for 10th with Jason Dufner & Dustin Johnson at 7-under heading into the final round on Sunday.

DURBAN, South Africa – Dawie van der Walt shot a 4-under 66 Saturday to win the Nelson Mandela Championship by two shots, giving the tournament a South African victory in a week when the country bids farewell to its former president.

Van der Walt finished with a three-round total of 15-under 195 as the sun eventually shone on the final day of the rain-shortened event. It was his second European Tour victory. England’s Matthew Baldwin (68) and Spain’s Jorge Campillo (68) were tied for second.

Even before the rain disrupted the first two days, organizers had changed the schedule ensure the tournament didn’t run over into Sunday out of respect for the state funeral of Mandela, the South African anti-apartheid leader who died last week.

“It’s making you kind of part of history, winning the Nelson Mandela at this time when it’s sad for everyone and everyone’s mourning and tomorrow’s the big day,” Van der Walt said, wearing a black ribbon on his cap. “It obviously means a lot and can be something that I can keep close to my heart forever.”

Van der Walt lifted a trophy that depicts an image of Mandela surrounded by children and also won a painting bearing the signature of South Africa’s most famous figure. The tournament donated money to one of Mandela’s charities, a children’s hospital that bears his name.

Englishman Daniel Brooks had held a three-shot lead after the second round in Durban, which was only completed earlier Saturday because of the weather delays. But he struggled with five bogeys and a double bogey in his final-round 76.

Van der Walt, who was tied for second heading to the final 18 holes, made five birdies and an eagle to go with three bogeys on the Mount Edgecombe course. He recovered from his third bogey at No. 11 by making eagle at No. 12 and birdie at No. 13. The South African also caught a break on the par-5 No. 14 when a shot heading toward the rough took a favorable bounce.

Neither Baldwin nor Campillo could apply enough pressure in the final stretch, with Baldwin making just one birdie in his last 11 and Campillo dropping a crucial shot at No. 15. Campillo and Colin Nel on Friday became the first players to shoot 59s in a European Tour event, although their scores don’t count as records because players were given preferred lies on the rain-soaked course.

France’s Romain Wattel was alone in fourth at 12 under and South Africa’s Oliver Bekker fifth. American John Hahn finished in a four-way tie for sixth alongside four-time European Tour winner Branden Grace.

LA QUINTA, Calif. – There was a lot of movement today for the Canadians taking part in Web.com Final Qualifying in La Quinta, Calif. – some good, some bad.

Justin Shin of Maple Ridge, B.C. was the opening-round leader heading into second-round action Friday, but shot a 2-over par 74 to fall into a tie for 25th at 6-under with a slew of players including fellow Canadians Derek Gillespie and Roger Sloan.

Gillespie, from Oshawa, Ont., improved on his opening-round of 71 by following it up with a 5-under par 67 today. The 67 included eight birdies, three bogeys and was the lowest number on a Canadian scorecard on the day.

Sloan, from Merritt, B.C., tallied four birdies and a single double bogey en route to his round of 70 Friday.

Chris Epperson of Savannah, GA is leading the 152 player field at -16. He has a four shot lead over Nathan Tyler and Steve Saunders.

Full scores for the 11 Canadians in the field this week are below. The Canucks will look to finish inside the top-45 after 108 holes of play, which will give them exempt status until the Web.Com Tour’s second periodic re-order of the 2014 season. To see more on the qualifying breakdown, click here.

Canadian Scores after Round 2 of Web.com Final Qualifying

T25. Justin Shin, Maple Ridge, B.C. (-6) 64-74–138
T25. Derek Gillespie, Oshawa, Ont. (-6) 71-67–138
T25. Roger Sloan, Merritt, B.C. (-6) 68-70–138
T36. Cam Burke, New Hamburg, Ont. (-5) 67-72–139
T36. Devin Carrey, Surrey, B.C. (-5) 68-71–139
T30. Nick Taylor, Abbottsford, B.C. (-5) 69-70–139
T48. Albin Choi, Toronto, Ont. (-4) 69-71–140
T77. Eugene Wong, North Vancouver, B.C. (+1) 73-70–147
T105. Riley Wheeldon, Comox, B.C. (+2) 74-71–147
T127. Yohann Benson, Montreal, Que. (+3) 73-74–147
T127. Max Gilbert, St-Georges, Que. (+3)  73-74–147

For complete scoring from Web.com Tour Final Qualifying, click here.

NAPLES, Fla. – Defending champions Kenny Perry and Sean O’Hair shot an 8-under 64 in modified alternate-shot play Friday for a share of the first-round lead in the Franklin Templeton Shootout.

The teams of Matt Kuchar-Harris English and Charles Howell III-Justin Leonard also shot 64 on the Ritz Carlton Resort’s Tiburon course. The 24 teams will play better ball Saturday and finish with a scramble Sunday.

After playing the front nine in 3 under, Perry and O’Hair birdied Nos. 13-16.

“It was a fun day for me,” said Perry, the Champions Tour player of the year and Charles Schwab Cup points champion. “When (O’Hair) poured it in from about 15 feet on the first hole I knew it was going to be a good day for us. We were never in any trouble.

“We had a great chance to really go low today and better than 8 under, but that’s OK. I mean, alternate shot is a tough format. To me it’s my favourite format. I love it more than any format of all the three. So, you know, you can lose it. If we get off to a crummy start it’s hard to catch up with best ball and scramble coming up.”

Kuchar and English birdied Nos. 12-14 and eagled No. 17.

“Yeah, it was a lot of fun playing with Harris,” Kuchar said. “I knew he was on some pretty good form and knew I had a good horse for a partner.”

English replaced the injured Brandt Snedeker in the field

“This is a tournament that I’ve always watched on TV growing up and it seemed like such a great format and such a good competition,” English said.

English hit a 6-iron shot from 192 yards to 6 feet to set up the eagle.

“When you start hitting some good shots and start getting some momentum, you keep rolling and we did a good job of keeping that momentum going on the back nine and making a bunch of birdies and making eagle on 17,” English said.

Howell and Leonard birdied the final three holes on the front nine and added birdies at Nos. 10, 12, 13, 17 and 18.

“Today we chose Justin to hit first and that was great for me because he drove it in the fairway every time and I could swing away at it.” Howell said.

Retief Goosen and Fredik Jacobson shot 67, and Jason Dufner and Dustin Johnson matched Chris DiMarco and Billy Horschel at 68. Tournament host Norman and Jonas Blixt had a 72.

Canada’s Mike Weir and Graham Delaet are 12th at 1-over (73).

LEVIS, Que. –  The Champions Tour event that was played in Montreal the past four years will be moving to the Quebec City area next summer.

Promoter Synchro Sports announced Friday the US$1.6-million tournament will be held Sept. 5-7 at the La Tempete Golf Club.

It is the first PGA Tour-sanctioned event in the area since Billy Casper won the 1956 Labatt Open.

The Quebec Remparts junior hockey team will join Synchro Sports as marketing partners for the event, which will be called the Quebec City Championship.

The event was called The Montreal Championship the last four years and was won by Larry Mize in 2010, John Cook in 2011, Mark Calcavecchia in 2012 and Esteban Toledo in 2013.

The move is taking place because the 2014 RBC Canadian Open will be conducted in Montreal July 21-27 at The Royal Montreal Golf Club in Ile Bizard, Que.

NAPLES, Fla. – In the late 1980s, Greg Norman wanted to put together a golf tournament with a relaxed atmosphere and unique team format to benefit children’s charities.

This is the 25th year Norman’s event has been on the PGA Tour calendar. It has gone by seven names, and is now called the Franklin Templeton Shootout. It has gone from California to Florida, with the last 13 years at the Norman-designed Tiburon Golf Course at Ritz Carlton Resort. New features include a 5K run.

“Quite honestly, I never expected to go 25 years, especially in the circle silly season we slotted ourselves into,” Norman said. “Back in ’89 starting off with four players and here we are 24 players, that’s a testament to the tournament itself. … I never anticipated making 25 years, never in my wildest dreams.”

The idea is the same. To have a fun, low-pressure event where players can bring their wives, bond with their teammates and can take part in pre-tourney festivities just before the holidays. Meanwhile, more than $12 million has been raised for children’s charities.

The Shootout will start Friday with the 12, two-man teams playing modified alternate shot. The format changes to better ball on Saturday and a scramble on Sunday.

Norman is teaming with Jonas Blixt.

“He’s young enough, he’s strong enough, he can carry me around,” Norman said. “I’m always a big believer in seeing what the young talent is doing in the world.”

Nine of the top 50 players in the world ranking will compete, including No. 7 Matt Kuchar, No. 8 Steve Stricker, No. 13 Jason Dufner, No. 14 Ian Poulter, No. 15 Dustin Johnson and No. 24 Lee Westwood.

Also in the field is Kenny Perry, the Champions Tour Player of the Year and Charles Schwab Cup winner. He’s the co-defending champ with Sean O’Hair – a former RBC Canadian Open champion.

With the purse at $3.1 million, every player is guaranteed at least $70,000 and the winners will each get $385,000.

Dufner is teaming with Johnson, and Poulter is paired with fellow English star Westwood.

Dufner won the PGA Championship this year for his first major title.

“I’ve been asked about (reflecting) a lot but I’m not sure what reflecting means,” he said. “When you live what you’re doing, especially as golfers, you’re trying to stay in the moment. I’m proud of what I did and how hard I worked to get there.”

Poulter, a four-time Ryder Cup player, has four, top-10 finishes this season.

Westwood has been in eight Ryder Cups. He’s considered one of the best players on the tour not to have won a major and that was magnified in the 2013 British Open when he had a two-shot lead heading into the final round, only to shoot a 75 and lose to Phil Mickelson.

The label irks him.

“Every time I heard, ‘I think, really?”’ Westwood said. “It’s always nice to be the best player to have done something or not done it. I’ll hit the next person that says it.

“Those are some amazing stats they keep putting up on the Golf Channel. Sixteen top 10s without winning a major, most majors ever played without winning a major, most top threes without winning a major. I’ve got all those categories completely.”

Westwood smiled.

But he made his point. No one asked him a follow-up question.

“He’s got more than enough game, he knows it, and I’m sure he gets frustrated with all you guys saying he hasn’t won one yet,” Poulter said.