As most of us were adjusting to our post-holiday routines, the athletes of Team Canada’s Amateur Team and Development Squad were sweating it out on the golf course. With their first training camp already completed in late November, Team Canada is now working on fine-tuning the weaker areas that were exposed in the initial testing from the first camp.

Each team was training out of a different facility in the United States from Jan. 2-7 – find out what they were up to below.

Men’s Amateur Team

The Men’s Amateur Team were training out of the high-end facilities at the Vintage Club in Indian Wells, Calif. over the weekend. The warm, beautiful conditions at the Vintage Club were a welcome surprise for Head Coach and Winnipeg native, Derek Ingram.

“David Woods and the members at the Vintage Club have been incredible hosts and we are very fortunate to train on their world class facilities” he said enthusiastically. “This is the best training camp we’ve ever had“.

Ingram was recently recognized as one of three Canadian coaches to be recognized on Golf Digest’s best teachers outside of the United States list.

Corey Conners, who recently turned 22, took to twitter to express the beautiful scene at The Vintage Club:

Awesome birthday in paradise! #thevintage #pictureperfect #golfcanada http://t.co/qVOuXOKGIZ

— Corey Conners (@coreconn) January 7, 2014

 

Garrett Rank was one of few members unable to join the team in training as he had a special opportunity to referee the World Under-17 gold medal hockey game in Sydney, N.S. Rank, 26, has been a passionate referee for Ontario Hockey League and Junior B games for many years.

Men’s Development Squad

Meanwhile, the men’s Development Squad was training out of The Raven Club at Verrado in Phoenix, Ariz., a familiar facility and friend to Team Canada. Robert Ratcliffe, Head Coach of the Development Squad, is leading the new team through their second official camp.

In case you didn’t know: Ratcliffe has assumed full responsibility as the Head Coach of the Development Squad moving forward. In the past, he worked beside Ingram as the assistant coach, addressing players on both the Amateur Team and Development Squad. His new role allows him to focus primarily on the Development Squad players and prepare them for a transition to the Amateur Team. He will continue to work closely with Ingram.

Women’s Amateur Team

On the women’s side, the National Team was at the Desert Princess in Cathedral City, Calif., under the direction of Head Coach, Tristan Mullally.

Mullally is very optimistic about the year ahead as he continues to prepare his coaching plans for the individual needs of each athlete.

“ We’ve had a lot of fun out here, we’ve used every part of the facilities and they have been super in supporting us in our training” he said. “All of the girls continue to grow with their training, for instance, Anne-Catherine (Tanguay) has made some superb changes in the past six weeks and I am very excited for what’s to come in the year ahead.”

Anne-Catherine Tanguay takes a moment to enjoy the scenery as well:

Last day in Palm Springs! Then off to Mission for a few days and back to school http://t.co/PFQqv2VodJ

— AC Tanguay (@ACTanguay) January 6, 2014

Tanguay, a Québec City native, will tee-it-up with her Oklahoma Sooner teammates again on Feb. 9 at the Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge in Palos Verdes Estates, Calif.

Women’s Development Squad

Lastly, the girls of the Development Squad were training at The Lodge at Ventana in Tuscon, Ariz.

The Head Coach of the girls Development Squad, Ann Carroll, couldn’t be more excited about the prospects for the athletes and what the future holds.

proud of @TheGolfCanada‘s DevTeam and their relentless efforts & hardwork this week @taylorkim94 @valtanguay @sabrinegarrison Jaclyn Naomi

— ann carroll (@AnnAnncarroll) January 6, 2014

Did you know: Ann Carroll’s role with Team Canada has also changed for the upcoming season in very similar fashion to that of Ratcliffe. Carroll will now act as the Head Coach of the girls Development Squad but will remain to work in tandem with Mullally on the development of both teams.

Ann Carroll and Tristan Mullally share a laugh

In case you missed it…

Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., ran away with the Junior Orange Bowl Championship in Coral Gables, Fla., shooting a final round 67 to win by five strokes.

Read the full story here.

Garrett Rank, an Elmira, Ont., native and member of the Men’s National Amateur Team finished T7 at the 83^rd Dixie Amateur Championship at Heron Bay Golf Club in Coral Springs, Fla.

Read more here.

Brooke Henderson and Tony Gil to tee-it-up at the Junior Orange Bowl Championship

Brooke Henderson and Tony Gil will be representing Canada this week at the upcoming Junior Orange Bowl Championship from Dec. 26-30 at The Biltmore Golf Course in Coral Gables, Fla.

Henderson, a member of the National Amateur team, will be representing the girls side whereas Gil, 15, will be participating in one of his first events as a new member of the Development Squad for the boys.

The Orange Bowl is an international invitational for the top amateur golfers from around the world. Past champions include Tiger Woods, Bubba Watson and former Team Canada athlete Maude-Aimee Leblanc.

For more information on the upcoming tournament, click here

Get to know Augusta James of the National Amateur Team

Hometown: Bath, Ont.
Age: 20

Q: What are some of your nicknames?
A: “Gus”, “AJ”

Q: What is your best golfing moment? (i.e. Tournament finishes, first eagle, hole in one etc..)
A: My two hole-in-ones and playing at the World Amateur in Turkey

Q: What is your worst golfing moment, and the lesson you learned from it?
A: Bogeying the last six holes of Regionals to miss Nationals by one. I learned how to breath better and pull myself aside to realize what’s happening so I can control/stop it

Q: Who is in your dream foursome?
A: Stacey Lewis, Annika Sorenstam, Tiger Woods

Q: What is something most people don’t know about you?
A: I am born on the opening Monday of the Masters tournament!

Q: Do you have a favourite athlete?
A: Tiger Woods

Q: What is the best thing about your hometown?
A: The support from everyone and the beautiful views of downtown as well as the lake

Q: Favourite type of shot to hit?
A: 2-yard draws and low hooks under trees

Q: What is the most surprising thing in your golf bag?
A: A warmup schedule

Three alumni capture Web.com Tour cards

Three graduates of the Team Canada program finished inside the top 45 at last week’s Web.com Q School at PGA West in La Quinta, Calif.

Albin Choi of Toronto (2009-2012), Nick Taylor of Abbottsford, B.C. (2010, 2009, 2008, 2006), and Cam Burke of New Hamburg, Ont. (2010), all earned full playing status through to the second periodic re-order of the Web.com Tour’s 2014 season.

Read the full story and see how other Canadians fared here

Meet Carter Simon of the Development Squad

Hometown: Sutton, Ont.
Age: 17

Q: What is your best golfing moment? (i.e. Tournament finishes, first eagle, hole in one etc..)
A: Making eagle in a playoff to win the CN Future Links Ontario Championship

Q: What is your worst golfing moment, and the lesson you learned from it?
A: Making a 10 on the 8^th hole of the final round of a tournament I was leading. Quickly learned how to hit it in the fairway after that.

Q: Who is in your dream foursome?
A: My grandfather, Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer

Q: Do you have a favourite athlete?
A: Joe Sakic (former NHL player)

Q: What is the best thing about your hometown?
A: No traffic and very few people!

Q: Favourite type of shot to hit?
A: Has to be the high cut, I hate the high draw.

Q: What is the most surprising thing in your golf bag?
A: My White Teddy Bear (pocket sized)!

Q: If you could have a walk-up song on the first tee box, what would it be?
A: “Hells Bells” by AC/DC

Robert Ratcliffe, Team Canada’s Development Squad Coach, has come home with yet another award for his coaching efforts in the 2013 season. The announcement was made by the PGA of Canada on Thursday along with eight other distinct award recipients.

Ratcliffe was recognized with the ‘Ben Kern Coach of the Year’ award, and will be honoured on “Canada Night” in January at the PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando, Fla. Each year, a national selection committee reviews application submissions for each award before deciding the year’s winners. The 2012 winner of the award was Jon Roy of Uxbridge, Ont.

Ratcliffe operates out of the Crown Isle Resort & Golf Community in Courtenay, B.C. and the Duncan Meadows Golf Club in Duncan, B.C. He also earned his third straight PGA of B.C. “Coach of the Year” award earlier this year. His 2013 season was highlighted by leading Team B.C. to all four gold medals at the Canada Summer Games in Sherbrooke, Que. as well as a gold medal at the Copas de las America’s tournament in Miami, Fla.

To learn about the other PGA of Canada award recipients, click here.

Team Canada alumni in the hunt at Web.com Q School

Many former members of Team Canada are chasing their coveted Web.com Tour Cards this week at the PGA West in La Quinta, Calif. There are six alumni vying for one of top-45 spots that earn exempt status until the Tour’s periodic re-order of the 2014 season. There are two of six rounds still remaining, with the final taking place on Tuesday.

T13. Cam Burke, New Hamburg, Ont. (-13) 67-72–67-69–275
T16. Albin Choi, Toronto, Ont. (-12) 69-71–67-69–276
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
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

17th hole at Stadium. #finalstage #qschool http://t.co/TvKbjzEuHE

— Eugene Wong (@TheRealWongster) December 8, 2013

To see all Canadians in the field, click here.

To view the full leaderboard, click here.

Meet Naomi Ko of the Development Squad

Hometown: Victoria, B.C.
Age: 16

Q: What are some of your nicknames?
A: Nao, “Nuk-Nuk”

Q: What is your best golfing moment? (i.e. Tournament finishes, first eagle, hole in one etc..)
A: Hole-in-one at the AJGA Girl’s Championship in South Carolina (8^th hole)

Q: What is your worst golfing moment, and the lesson you learned from it?
A: Missing the cut by just one stroke. I need to always play it one shot at a time

Q: Who is in your dream foursome?
A: Tiger Woods, Adam Scott, Inbee Park

Q: What is something most people don’t know about you?
A: I am obsessed with Korean drama!

Q: Do you have a favourite athlete?
A: Yuna Kim (figure skater)

Q: What is the best thing about your hometown?
A: The Inner Harbour and the Butchart Garden

Q: Favourite type of shot to hit?
A: Fade with my 7 iron

Q: What is the most surprising thing in your golf bag?
A: My White Teddy Bear (pocket sized)!

Q: If you could have a walk-up song on the first tee box, what would it be?
A: “Emotions” – Mariah Carey

The men and women of Team Canada’s 2014 National Amateur Team were all together for the first time to continue their training in the warm conditions of Phoenix, Ariz., at the Raven Golf Club at Verrado from Nov. 27 – 30.

Much like the Development Squad camp, the amateur athletes undergo three full days of training that incorporate golf tests, sports science assessments, team workouts, seminars and more.

The images below show what activities athletes endure during a typical day at training camp.

Women’s Head Coach Tristan Mullally goes over the game plan with the girls

Garrett Rank & Corey Conners: the final two remaining in the beep test! (Head Coach Derek Ingram looks on)

IST coaches Jason Glass & Greg Redman assess Taylor Kim of the Development Squad

Adam Svensson and Kevin Kwon follow the lead of strength and conditioning coach, Jason Glass

Nicole Springle (nutritionist) gives the women’s team a detailed tour of the grocery store

The men’s team heads home after a long day

To view the full roster of Team Canada athletes, click click here.

Get to know Anne-Catherine Tanguay

Hometown: Quebec City
Age: 22

Q: What are some of your nicknames?
A: “AC”, “Anne-Cat”

Q: Who or what got you into golf?
A: My mom had me and my siblings take clinics when we were younger

Q: What is your best golfing moment? (i.e. Tournament finishes, first eagle, hole in one etc..)
A: Playing my first LPGA event in Edmonton (CN Canadian Women’s Open in August of 2013)

Q: What is your worst golfing moment, and the lesson you learned from it?
A: Disqualified myself from Canadian Amateur because I realized I had signed a wrong scorecard. I learned that integrity and honesty are the most important qualities to have

Q: When you aren’t working on your golf game, you are likely:
A: Working out, at the movies, eating or shopping

Q: Who is in your dream foursome?
A: Fred Couples, Suzann Pettersen and Tiger Woods

Q: What is something most people don’t know about you?
A: My dad and I were born on the same day (Jan. 8^th)

Q: What course would you most like to play that you haven’t already?
A: Pebble Beach.

Q: What is the best thing about your hometown?
A: Being next to the St. Lawrence river

Q: Favourite type of shot to hit?
A: Low punch dead into the wind (I play lots of golf in Oklahoma!)

Q: What is the most surprising thing in your golf bag?
A: I have all the necessities (Kleenex, Advil, Tylenol, Immodium, band-aids etc..)

Q: If you could have a walk-up song on the first tee box, what would it be?
A: “Army Of Me” – Christina Aguilera

Q-School Alumni Updates

LPGA tour

Jennifer Kirby, a 22-year-old Team Canada alumnus, tallied five solid sub-par rounds (71-69-69-71-68) to finish the five-day, 90-hole event at 12-under par. As a result, the Paris, Ont. native earned her LPGA Tour card for the 2014 season. Read the full story here.

Web.com tour

Six former members of the High Performance program look to advance through the third and final qualifying stage to earn their respective Web.com Tour Cards. They will tee-it-up this week from Dec. 12-17 at the PGA West Stadium Course in La Quinta, Calif.

Beautiful morning here in Palm Springs. Looking forward to these next 9 days! #Qschool #PGAWest

— Albin Choi (@AlbinChoi) December 9, 2013

Chris Hemmerich in the spotlight

Chris Hemmerich, a member of the Men’s National Amateur Team, has received recent recognition for his solid play as the captain for the University of Guelph Gryphons. The senior is one of the premier golf talents that chose to display their skills at post-secondary institutions in Canada. He was recently profiled in the University’s ‘At Guelph’ publication. Read more

Training Camp

Last week, Team Canada’s newly announced Development Squad took to the facilities at the University of Houston for their first official training camp of the new season. All 10 players were in attendance to begin the rigorous training routine and sports science assessments that come along with the first training camp of a new season.

To give some insight into what a typical day is like at a Development Squad camp, see the agenda below:

7:00am – Team breakfast

7:30am – Flight Scope technology

8:30am – Physiotherapy

9:00am – Strength & Conditioning assessment

9:30am – Strength & Conditioning coaching

10:00am – Sports Psychology

11:00am – Class: Sports Nutrition

12:00pm – Lunch

1:00pm – Alternate through morning activities

4:00pm – 9 holes of golf with coaches

6:30pm – Dinner

8:00pm – Class: Shot by Shot

Get to know Sabrine Garrison

Hometown: Calgary
Age: 17

Q: What are some of your nicknames?
A: “Gare Bear”

Q: Who or what got you into golf?
A: My dad introduced me to the game of golf. I swung my first golf club at the age of 4!

Q: What is your best golfing moment? (i.e. Tournament finishes, first eagle, hole in one etc..)
A: Winning the CN Future Links Western with a final round of 69.

Q: What is your worst golfing moment, and the lesson you learned from it?
A: Shooting 11 over par on the front nine of my very first AJGA. I was so nervous and couldn’t find my swing. On the back nine I stopped caring about the score and finished that nine only one over. This experience taught me to forget about the score until the end of the round.

Q: When you aren’t working on your golf game, you are likely:
A: Hanging out with my friends, doing homework and taking hot yoga classes.

Q: Who is in your dream foursome?
A: Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Annika Sorenstam

Q: What is something most people don’t know about you?
A: I have completed my grade 6 Royal Conservatory of Music Piano Exam.

Q: What course would you most like to play that you haven’t already?
A: Augusta National

Q: What is the best thing about your hometown?
A: Being so close to the Rocky Mountains. (Skiing, scenery, lots to do).

Q: Favourite type of shot to hit?
A: Anything straight, but I do enjoy hitting a nice solid drive.

Q: What is the most surprising thing in your golf bag?
A: My varied assortment of allergy medication.

Q: If you could have a walk-up song on the first tee box, what would it be?
A: “Send me on My Way” – Rusted Roots

College signing tracker

See the latest official National Letter of Intent signings by our Team Canada athletes below:

Valérie Tanguay – University of Oklahoma

Carter Simon – NC State

Sabrine Garrison – University of Minnesota

Q-School Alumni Updates

Web.com Tour – final stage

Justin Shin
Maple Ridge, B.C.
Alumnus (2013)

Eugene Wong
North Vancouver, B.C.
Alumnus (2011, 2010, 2009, 2007)

Albin Choi
Toronto, Ont.
Alumnus (2012, 2011, 2010, 2009)

Cam Burke
New Hamburg, Ont.
Alumnus (2010)

Nick Taylor
Abbotsford, B.C.
Alumnus (2010, 2009, 2008, 2006)

Riley Wheeldon
Courtenay, B.C.
Alumnus (2008)

LPGA Tour – final stage

Jennifer Kirby
Paris, Ont.
Alumnus (2012, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007)

Nicole Vandermade
Brantford, Ont.
Alumnus (2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007)

Sara-Maude Juneau
Fossambault, Qué.
Alumnus (2010, 2008)

Maude-Aimée LeBlanc
Sherbrooke, Qué.
Alumnus (2010, 2009, 2008, 2007)

Brooke Henderson grabs gold medal at Spirit International

Playing for Team Canada alongside Development Squad members Jaclyn Lee, Tony Gil and Étienne Papineau, Henderson held on to defeat France’s Mathilda Cappeliez by a stroke in the individual competition of The Spirit Invitational.

Currently ranked No. 9 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings, Henderson, 16, finished the tournament at 13-under.

On the men’s side, Tony Gil, 15, grabbed a bronze medal in his debut performance as a member of Team Canada’s Development Squad.

As a team, Canada finished in solo eighth at 15-under 418 for the championship, 18 strokes behind Team USA, who took home team honours after firing 33-under over 54 holes.

Svensson’s fall season concludes at Barry University

Last week marked the end of the fall schedule for Adam Svensson, a sophomore at Barry University. Svensson currently sits as the No. 6 ranked player in Division II by Golfstat after finishing T14 at the McDonough Cup last week.

The 19-year-old had an outstanding fall season at Barry, notching back-to-back victories at the Brickyard Intercollegiate and the Guy Harvey Invitational to begin the season.

Heading into the winter break, the Surrey, B.C., native currently sits as the third highest ranked Canadian amateur in the world at No. 68 and continues to impress in the collegiate ranks for the Buccaneers.

Tanguay lifts Sooners to season-ending victory

AC Tanguay’s fifth place finish helped lift the Oklahoma Sooners to their first team victory of the season recently at the Alamo Invitational.

Tanguay, a senior at Oklahoma, carded rounds of 69-71-72 to finish at 4-under for the tournament. The fifth place finish was Tanguay’s best of the year, after posting three top-30 finishes to kick off her final year at Oklahoma.

Hemmerich repeats as OUA Champion

Chris Hemmerich captured his second straight OUA Championship title after firing rounds of 69-69 (-4) at Grey Silo Golf Club.

The National Squad member was the only player to break par in the championship and earned himself OUA Athlete of the Week honours after successfully defending his title.

Valérie Tanguay sets record at CCAA Championship

For the second straight year Valérie Tanguay captured the individual title at the CCAA Championship for Champlain St. Lawrence.

Tanguay, a member of the Development Squad, carded rounds of 67-71-73 to finish at 5-under for the championship.

Her 211 total, left her 14 strokes clear of the nearest competitor and set a new CCAA Championship scoring record.

Alumni Watch – Albin Choi rolls through First Stage of Web.com QSchool

Recent Team Canada graduate Albin Choi of Toronto, soared through the PGA TOUR’s first stage for Web.com TOUR recently in North Carolina.

Choi, 22, fired rounds of 68-72-74-73 to finish in 13th place with a 1-under 287 total. Choi was on of 32 to players to advance through to Stage II from the North Carolina qualifying site.

MEN

Garrett Rank returns to the National Team for his third consecutive year, bringing an array of elite golf skills to go along with a charismatic attitude and outlook on the game. Rank, 26, graduated from the University of Waterloo in 2012 and has set his goals on making the World Amateur team in 2014.

Born in Elmira, Ont., Rank has competed in several international events against the best talent in the world. This past season, Rank took home medalist honours at the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship in Lorton, Va., and finished second at the Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship. A month earlier, he finished second at the Ontario Amateur Championship. Rank was also runner-up at the 2012 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship and was the 2012 Canadian University College Champion.

Rank has also defeated a serious illness that he was diagnosed with in the winter of 2011. At 22 years young, Rank learned that he had testicular cancer. After successful surgery, he stepped back on the golf course with an enlightened perspective on the game to help him along his journey as one of Canada’s top amateur golfers.

Team Canada is pleased to welcome back Corey Conners, one of Canada’s top ranked amateur golfers (No. 33). Hailing from Listowel, Ont., Conners attacked green after green in the most prestigious events of 2013, including an appearance at the 2013 RBC Canadian Open. A senior at Kent State University, Conners captured a slew of top-10 finishes, highlighted by a second place finish at the U.S. Amateur Championship, a runner-up finish at both the North & South Championship and Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship and a third place finish at the Monroe Invitational.

At 21 years old, Conners has positioned himself to excel on the world stage as he enters his final collegiate season. The calm, composed Canuck is returning for his third year on the National Team. He was also a member of the Development Squad in 2010.

Conners plays out of the Listowel Golf Club, a 27-hole semi-private course in his hometown.

Taylor Pendrith bombs his drives 300 yards plus time and time again. The long-hitter from Richmond Hill, Ont., sits as Canada’s highest ranked male amateur at No. 29 in the world entering his senior year at Kent State alongside fellow teammate Conners. He is returning to the National team for a second straight year with high hopes of building on his budding golf talent.

Highlights from this past season include a win at the prestigious Porter Cup held at the Niagara Falls Country Club in Lewiston, N.Y. The Porter Cup plays host to some of the best amateur golfers from around the world every year, making the 22-year-old’s accomplishment all the more impressive. With the win, Pendrith ended a 28-year drought marking the last time a Canadian won the event.

Pendrith plays out of the Station Creek Golf Club, a Clublink course in Gormley, Ont.

Chris Hemmerich returns to the team for a second consecutive year after another strong performance during the 2012/13 season. Despite receiving interest from U.S. schools, the 20-year-old elected to stay home and study in Canada, choosing to attend Guelph University. Since then, Hemmerich has continued to lead by example as the captain of the men’s team.

Some of his best accomplishments include placing second at the 2013 Canadian University/College Championship and finishing in a T12 at the Porter Cup. Hemmerich also picked up a sixth place finish at the 2013 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship and finished in a T3 at the 2013 Ontario Amateur. Already this season, the Kitchener, Ont., native has posted four consecutive top two finishes playing for Guleph, solidifying his status as one of Canada’s best young amateurs.

Hemmerich is a member at the Westmount Golf & Country Club in Kitchener, Ont.

After being on the Development Squad for four years, Adam Svensson has made the jump to the National Team – and it’s well deserved. Now acting as the National Team’s youngest member, Svensson has strung together an impressive list of accomplishments. Hailing from Surrey, B.C., Svensson was acknowledged with the Phil Mickelson award, given to the most outstanding freshman in NCAA Division II men’s golf after his freshman season at Barry University.

In his first year at Barry, Svensson helped the Buccaneers win the Men’s Division II NCAA Championship. Individually, the 2012 Canadian Junior Boys champion placed T4 at the prestigious Sahalee Players Championship in early July. His strong play landed him an exemption into the RBC Canadian Open against the world’s best, an experience that many sophomores don’t get.

Svensson is positioned out of the King’s Links by the Sea, located in Delta, B.C. and is currently ranked No. 62 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings.

WOMEN

At just 16 years old, Brooke Henderson sits as the No.9 ranked female amateur in the world. The teenager from Smiths Falls, Ont., continues to show poise beyond her years in each and every competition. This year alone, the 10th grade student won the Canadian Women`s Amateur Championship and the CN Future Links Pacific Championship. She also made her mark on the professional stage with a third place finish on the CN Women`s Tour and a T35 finish at the LPGA Manulife Financial LPGA Classic and an appearance at the CN Canadian Women’s Open. Perhaps her most impressive accomplishment was making the cut at the 2013 U.S. Women`s Open – an LPGA major and premier world event.

This marks Henderson’s third year with the High Performance program, being on the National Team last year and the Development Squad the year before that. With lots of time for further development, Henderson`s future looks extremely bright.

A senior at NC State, Marchand brings a wealth of experience back to the National Women`s Team as she enters her third consecutive year. Based out of Orangeville, Ont., Marchand finished T11 at the Canadian Women’s Amateur and also took home the low amateur honours at the 2013 PGA Women`s Championship of Canada, finishing T5 overall against a very competitive field.

The 2012 All-ACC member also notched a T4 finish at the CN Women`s Tour event in Québec, showing her ability to match up against already established professionals. Marchand also excels as a student of engineering, being named to the All-ACC Academic team in 2012.

Marchand’s home club is the Brampton Golf Club in Brampton, Ont.

Augusta James will be entering her fourth consecutive year with the High Performance program. The 20-year-old from Bath, Ont., is building on an impressive collegiate career that features becoming the first NC State member to ever win the ACC Freshman of the year award. Now in her junior year, James has opened with a T3 finish at the Mason Rudolph Championship.

This past season James finished in fifth on the CN Canadian Women’s Tour Order of Merit after a T3 finish at CN Women’s Tour B.C. and T7 finish at the Quebec stop in the tour’s first two events. James was also a member of the 2013 Canadian Copas de las Americas championship squad, where she finished in a tie for fifth individually.

James plays out of the Loyalist Country Club in her hometown of Bath, Ont.

Making the jump from the Development Squad to the National Team is Calgary`s Jennifer Ha. The 19-year-old junior at Kent State earned her promotion after just one year in the National Team program. In her junior season at Kent State, Ha was recognized for two consecutive weeks as the Mid-American Conference (MAC) golfer of the week after victories at both the Minnesota Invitational and Nittany Lion Invitational. Ha also won the MAC Freshman of the Year for Kent State in 2012.

The 2013 Pacific Northwest Amateur champion was also listed on the All-Academic team for the MAC. Her intended major is communication studies.

Ha is a member at the 45-hole, Glencoe Golf & Country Club in Calgary.

After a two year hiatus from the program, Team Canada is pleased to welcome back Anne-Catherine Tanguay to the National Squad.

Entering her senior year at the University of Oklahoma, the Québec City native has built a strong foundation of golf skills over the years. Most notably, Tanguay has competed in all 34 collegiate team events, which include 11 top-10 finishes. The business major was also named to the 2013 All-Big 12 Conference Team as well as the All-Big 12 Academic Team. This past summer season, Tanguay finished runner-up at the Canadian Women`s Amateur.

In her earlier years, she was named the 2010 Athlete of the Year at St. Lawrence, a Cégep school in Québec City. Tanguay was a member of the National Team in 2011 and a member of the Development Squad in 2010 and 2009.

DEVELOPMENT SQUADS

The two-time Canadian Junior Boys champion is returning to the Development Squad for the third consecutive year. This year, he will be taking his talents south of the border as a freshman for the Division I University of Washington Huskies.

Kwon, the 2013 CN Future Links Pacific champion, will act as the one over-aged junior (18) eligible on the Development Squad. Hailing from Pitt Meadows, B.C., Kwon brings his elite skills back to the team, including the confidence gained from winning the gold medal at the 2013 Canada Summer Games.

Kwon plays out of the Swan-e-set Bay Resort & Country Club in Pitt Meadows, B.C.

Calgary’s Matt Williams returns to the Development Team for a second year. The 17-year-old Calgary native’s past season was highlighted by a runner-up finish at the CN Future Links Prairie Championship and a T9 finish at the Callaway World Junior Championship.

Williams has given a verbal agreement to play for the University of Houston in 2014, alongside fellow Canadians Blair Hamilton, Emmett Oh and Matthew Scobie.

Williams is a member at the Pinebrook Golf & Country Club in Calgary.

The smooth-swinging righty from Vaughan, Ont., makes his debut on the Development Squad after a very strong showing provincially this past season that saw Gil finished in a T5 at the Ontario Junior Boys Championships and T12 at the Ontario Amateur Championship. During that time, Gil was a part of the GAO Under-17 Provincial Squad.

Gil won the AJGA CourseMax/Philadelphia tournament this August and placed second at the AJGA Ravenwood event just two months earlier. The 15-year-old will look to keep things rolling in 2014, beginning with the Sprit International event in Texas at the end of October

Gil fine-tunes his skills in the offseason at the Glendale Golf & Country Club in Hamilton, Ont.

New to the Development Squad is Carter Simon, a 16-year-old from Sutton, Ont. This past May, Simon became the CN Future Links Ontario champion by winning a two-hole playoff at the Listowel Golf Club with an eagle. He followed that up with a third place finish at the CN Future Links Prairie championship and a fifth place finish on the individual leaderboard at the 2013 Canada Summer Games.

Simon was also a teammate of Gil’s on the GAO Under-17 Provincial Squad.

In 2014, Simon intends to join the NC State Golf program. He currently attends Bill Crothers Secondary School while playing golf out of Granite Golf Club.

The final new member to the Development Squad is Étienne Papineau of St-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Qué. Papineau’s list of accomplishments include, winning the 2013 CN Future Links Québec Championship in July. Just five days later, he took home hardware at the Québec Provincial Junior Championship, winning by a convincing 13 strokes.

Papineau also fared well against the country’s best junior talent, finishing T8 at the Canadian Junior Boys Championship. He will tee-it-up alongside his new Development Squad teammate Gil at the Spirit International in late October.

In the offseason, Papineau trains at the Royal Bromont Golf Club in Bromont, Qué.

Making her return for a fourth year with the program is Surrey, B.C., native, Taylor Kim. A recent transfer to Kent State, the 18-year-old sophomore has tallied a number of top-5 finishes while being a part of Golf Canada’s High Performance program. This year alone she finished in a third at the Canadian Junior Girls Championship, T13 at the Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship and picked up two T3 finishes at the both B.C. Women’s Amateur and the CN Future Links Pacific.

Kim plays out of the Surrey Golf Club in Surrey, B.C.

Naomi Ko, 16, makes her return for a second year with the Development Squad. The Victoria, B.C., native placed third at this year’s B.C. Junior Girls Championship and had a sixth place finish on the individual leaderboard at the 2013 Canada Summer Games. Other highlights include a runner-up finish at the CN Future Links Pacific Championship and a T11 finish at the Canadian Junior Girls Championship.

Ko currently attends Claremont Secondary School and plays out of the Royal Colwood Golf Course in Victoria.

A two-time Québec Junior Girls champion (2012, 2013), Valérie Tanguay, returns to the Development Squad for a second consecutive year. The 18-year-old St-Hyacinthe, Qué., native also placed third at the 2013 CN Future Links Ontario Championship and was runner-up at the 2013 Canada Summer Games.

Attending Champlain St-Lawrence in Québec City, Tanguay was crowned as the CCAA Girls Champion for a second straight year (2013, 2012). At this year’s event, Tanguay won by a dominating 14-stroke margin with a cumulative score of 5-under par through three rounds of play.

Tanguay golfs out of hometown St-Hyacinthe Golf Club in St-Hyacinthe, Qué.

New to the Development Squad in 2013 is the recently crowned Alberta Junior Girls champion, Jaclyn Lee of Calgary. Lee also added another title win at the CN Future Links Prairie Championship and went on to finish eighth at the Canadian Junior Girls Championship.

The 16-year-old Canuck is poised to build off an impressive 2013 season going forward that included a T4 finish at the 2013 Canada Summer Games.

Lee plays alongside Jennifer Ha out of the Glencoe Golf & Country Club in Calgary.

Team Canada is also thrilled to welcome Sabrine Garrison, the 2013 CN Future Links Western champion from Calgary to the Development Squad. The 17-year-old’s impressive 2013 season also featured a runner-up finish at the Alberta Girls Championship,a third place finish at the Canada Summer Games and a T5 finish at the Canadian Junior Girls Championship.

Garrison is a member at the Country Hills Golf Club in Calgary.