PGA TOUR

Hideki Matsuyama erased a three-shot deficit and made a two-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole to defeat Alex Noren and win the Hero World Challenge. It is the second time he has won the Tiger Woods-hosted event, and it is his second win of the year – the first coming almost exactly 12 months ago in the season-opening The Sentry in Hawaii. Noren, who led the field with 27 birdies, made an 18-footer on the final hole to force the playoff. Third round leader Sepp Straka birdied the final hole to finish solo third for his second top-five finish at this event. J.J. Spaun and two-time defending champion Scottie Scheffler finished tied for fourth. …Corey Conners, making his inaugural debut at the event, recorded his eighth top-10 result of the year

NEXT EVENT: PGA Tour Q-School (Dec. 11)
CANADIANS ENTERED: Peyton Callens, Myles Creighton, A.J. Ewart, Adam Hadwin, Stuart Macdonald, Drew Nesbitt, Ben Silverman, Roger Sloan, Adam Svensson

NEXT EVENT: Grant Thornton Invitational (Dec. 12)
CANADIANS ENTERED: Corey Conners, Brooke Henderson

EUROPEAN TOUR

Kristoffer Reitan watched a five-stroke lead evaporate as the Norwegian held off two other golfers to complete a wire-to-wire victory at the Nedbank Golf Challenge. It is his second European Tour title of the year, and it also assured him of an invitation to the 2026 Masters as he moves up to No. 30 in the world rankings with one tournament left in the year. The top 50 qualify for a trip to Augusta. Jayden Schaper of South Africa and Dan Bradbury of England both finished one stroke back. Schaper had four birdies through the first 12 holes but could not make another the rest of the way, while Bradbury had six birdies through 14 holes but pars over the final four. …This was Nick Taylor‘s best finish at a European Tour-sanctioned event since 2018.

Rasmus Neergaard-Petersen scrambled to make par on the final hole and win the Crown Australian Open by a single stroke. It is his first European Tour win, and it also earned him an invitation to the 2026 Masters. The Dane was tied with hometown favourite Cam Smith as they played the 18th hole. After missing the green, Neergaard-Petersen flopped his third shot to within 10 feet and made the par putt. Smith had a five-footer for par to force a playoff but missed it to the left, ending his chances of snapping his two-year winless drought. Si Woo Kim finished third, with Michael Hollick fourth and former Masters champion Adam Scott in fifth. All three earned a spot in next year’s British Open. …Aaron Cockerill notched his first top-25 European Tour finish since June.

NEXT EVENT: Alfred Dunhill Championship (Dec. 11)
CANADIANS ENTERED: Aaron Cockerill (alternate)

PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS

Team Europe captured the Skechers World Champions Cup over the International and American teams. After two days of nine-hole matches in modified alternate shot and better ball, Europe led by a slim 1.5 points entering the final day. Colin Montgomerie kicked things off by winning 10.5 points in his Sunday singles match to pace the attack as European players were the leading scorers in four of the six morning groupings. The International team’s Steven Alker was the leading scorer in the morning session, collecting 13.5 points. In the afternoon session, Team International captain Mike Weir led the way with 12 points, but it was not enough to blunt the European surge, which was led by Bernhard Langer and Soren Kjeldsen, who each scored 12 points. Europe finished with 230 points to win the title by 16.5 points over the defending champion United States. The Internationals finished with 204.5 points. Team USA’s Jason Caron was the leading point scorer for the event with 60.5 points, scoring double-digit points in each of the last four sessions.

NEXT EVENT: PNC Championship (Dec. 20)

Canada’s Sudarshan Yellamaraju is heading to the top tour in men’s golf.

The 24-year-old Yellamaraju, from Mississauga, Ont., earned his PGA TOUR card for next season by finishing 19th in the Korn Ferry Tour season standings after Sunday’s final round of the KFT Championship in French Lick, Ind. The top 20 in the season standings go to the PGA TOUR.

Yellamaraju entered the week ranked 20th. He moved up to 19th by shooting his third consecutive round of 1-under 71 on Sunday to finish 2 under for the tournament, good for a tie for 24th.

The Canadian had to sweat it out, though. He was off to a great start before bogeying three consecutive holes from Nos. 14-16. Yellamaraju got pars on the final two holes to hang on to a top-20 spot after all the golfers finished their rounds.

Yellamaraju was in his second season on the Korn Ferry Tour. He won the Bahamas Great Abaco Classic in January to vault himself into PGA TOUR contention.

Yellamaraju has taken a unique path to the PGA TOUR. He was born in India, and his family immigrated to Winnipeg when he was four. He moved to the Greater Toronto Area when he was 11. Yellamaraju won the Ontario Amateur at 16 but did not go to college in the United States, saying earlier this year he didn’t get enough money via scholarships to make it work. He instead turned pro immediately after finishing high school. 

Yellamaraju played on the PGA TOUR Americas in 2022 and 2023 before earning Korn Ferry Tour status in 2024. He finished 99th in the season-long points list last year. 

Meanwhile, Stuart Macdonald of Vancouver tied for sixth at the KFT Championship at 8 under. Three back of the lead entering the final round, Macdonald needed to win to get into the top 20 for the season.

Myles Creighton of Digby, N.S., also fell short of the top 20 after tying for 43rd at this event.

Both players got entry into the final stage of PGA TOUR Qualifying School later this year for finishing in the top 50 on the Korn Ferry Tour.

American Chandler Blanchet won the season-ending event at 14 under.

Canada’s next wave of golf talent could qualify for the PGA Tour this week.

Sudarshan Yellamaraju of Mississauga, Ont., and Myles Creighton of Digby, N.S., are both within striking distance of earning membership on the top tour in men’s golf in 2026 when they tee it up at this week’s Korn Ferry Tour Championship. The top 20 players on the second-tier tour when play ends on Sunday will be promoted to the PGA Tour.

Yellamaraju is 20th and Creighton is 29th heading into play at The Pete Dye Course at French Lick Resort. 

“I need to have a very good week, but you really don’t want to do anything different to do that,” said Creighton on Wednesday, noting he’ll likely need to be in the top three to reach the PGA Tour. “It’s not like you just play more aggressive and that will lead to you having a better chance at playing better. 

“You think when you need to have a good week that you play very aggressive and go for it but it just doesn’t really work like that.”

They’ll be joined in French Lick, Ind., by Vancouver’s Stuart Macdonald (50th) and Matthew Anderson (67th), also from Mississauga.

Yellamaraju has hovered around the top of the Korn Ferry Tour’s points list for most of the year since he won The Bahamas Great Abaco Classic at The Abaco Club on Jan. 22. That’s one of his four top 10 finishes this season.

Creighton rocketed 52 points up the standings to 16th after he won the Wichita Open on June 22. That was his only top 10 finish this season, but he has been remarkably consistent, making 16 cuts in 24 events played.

“Most guys hate being on the cut line, but I don’t,” said Creighton. “I kind of enjoy it, weirdly. I enjoy that battle of making a cut. 

“I think that’s what kind of makes a pro a pro, giving yourself a chance to play the weekend. You never know. When I won, I made the cut by one.”

DP WORLD TOUR — Aaron Cockerill of Stony Mountain, Man., is the lone Canadian competing in the Open de Espana. He’s 119th on the Race to Dubai rankings heading into play at the Club de Campo Villa de Madrid.

CHAMPIONS TOUR — Calgary’s Stephen Ames and Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., are the only Canadians teeing it up at the SAS Championship on Friday. Ames is 41st in the Schwab Cup race and Weir is 71st. The tournament is at Prestonwood Country Club in Cary, N.C.

Fall is the last gasp before winter shuts golf down for recreational players, but it’s also when professional players have a chance to move up to the next level of the sport.

Drew Nesbitt was the lone Canadian to make the jump from the third-tier PGA Tour Americas to the second-tier Korn Ferry Tour at last week’s Fortinet Cup Championship. Nesbitt tied for 43rd in the season finale to maintain a top-10 ranking to earn promotion. 

Born in Toronto but playing out of Hockley Valley, Ont., Nesbitt finished the year with three top-five finishes, including a win at the Times Colonist Victoria Open on Sept. 21. 

“The title may say Korn Ferry Tour rookie, but I certainly don’t feel like one in the sense that I have experience at the higher levels,” said Nesbitt on Tuesday. “I have played in PGA Tour events, so I can again draw on those experiences and how to operate my schedule.

“I hold myself to a very high standard in terms of my routines and how I go and operate about my business. I’m proud of that but I can always improve.”

As the leading Canadian in the Fortinet Cup, Nesbitt earned an exemption and will make his fourth appearance at the RBC Canadian Open next year. He will join the Korn Ferry Tour for the first time in 2026, making him one of the older rookies on that tour at the age of 30.

“I’m a little bit older than a few guys, but somebody I’m really fond of is (PGA Tour player) Justin Rose. He’s 45 and he’s playing the best golf of his career,” said Nesbitt. “I think age is just a number. I try not to think of it as how many years I may potentially have left or this and that.

“I just think of it like I’m playing really great quality golf now and I don’t see it slowing down any time soon. I take care of my body, I’m in good shape, I hit it really hard.”

More Canadians might move up to the next tier of golf in the coming weeks.

Vancouver’s Leah John and Brooke Rivers of Brampton, Ont., are both within striking distance of earning an LPGA Tour card this week when they tee it up at the Epson Tour Championship. 

The top 15 players at the end of the second-tier Epson Tour’s season get promoted. John is 20th on the Race for the Card points list and Rivers is 25th.

John said that her goal when she tees it up on Thursday is to be focused on her process and if she earns her way up to the LPGA Tour, that’s just a bonus.

“You know, commitment to shots, commitment to tempo and a positive attitude and taking care of all my controllables as best as I can,” she said on Wednesday after finishing her pro-am rounds. “Those are my big goals. 

“Obviously, winning would change my career but at the end of the day, I just want to enjoy my time out here and see what I can bring out of myself. I’m feeling good, I’m excited. Usually that’s a recipe for some good things.”

John and Rivers will be joined at Indian Wells Golf Resort, Celebrity Course in Indian Wells, Calif., by Monet Chun (61st) of Richmond Hill, Ont., Maddie Szeryk (45th) of London, Ont., Josee Doyon (T101st) of Saint-Georges, Que., Mary Parsons (106th) of Delta, B.C., and Megan Osland (unranked) of Kelowna, B.C.

AROUND THE TOURS

PGA TOUR — Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., leads the Canadian contingent into this week’s Sanderson Farms Championship. He won the event back in 2022 and is currently ranked 60th in the FedEx Cup’s fall standings. Adam Hadwin (139th) of Abbotsford, B.C., Adam Svensson (162nd) of Surrey, B.C., and Ben Silverman (163rd) of Thornhill, Ont., are also in the field at the Country Club of Jackson in Jackson, Miss.

KORN FERRY TOUR — Sudarshan Yellamaraju of Mississauga, Ont., is the top Canadian on the Korn Ferry Tour headed into this week’s Compliance Solutions Championship. He’s 18th on the second-tier tour’s points list heading into the penultimate event of the season. He’ll be joined at The Patriot Golf Club in Owasso, Okla., by Myles Creighton (30th) of Digby, N.S., Vancouver’s Stuart MacDonald (46th), Matthew Anderson (66th) of Mississauga, and Etienne Papineau (121st) of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que.

CHAMPIONS TOUR — Calgary’s Stephen Ames and Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., are the only Canadians that will tee it up at Constellation FURYK & FRIENDS on Friday. Ames is 39th on the Schwab Cup points list and Weir is 69th.

LPGA TOUR — Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., was in one of the featured groups when the LOTTE Championship presented by Hoakalei teed off on Wednesday afternoon. She played with returning champion A Lim Kim of South Korea and 2002 winner Hyo Joo Kim, also of South Korea. Henderson is the only two-time champion in the event’s history, having emerged victorious in 2018 and 2019. Henderson is 28th in the Race to CME Globe standings with seven events left on the LPGA Tour calendar. Savannah Grewal (142nd) of Mississauga, Ont., Maude-Aimee Leblanc (144th) of Sherbrooke, Que., and Hamilton’s Alena Sharp (151st), are also in the field at Hoakalei Country Club at ‘Ewa Beach, Oahu, Hawaii.

Myles Creighton had such a good week he almost forgot about the hole-in-one.

Creighton, from Digby, N.S., had an ace on a par-3 hole in Friday’s second round, followed it up with an 11-under 59 in the third round, and then had a 2-under 68 on Sunday to win the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas Wichita Open. 

His first victory on the Korn Ferry Tour and catapulted him 58 spots up to 16th on the second-tier circuit’s points list.

“Just kind of processing it all still,” said Creighton as he travelled to the Memorial Health Championship in Springfield, Ill. “I think it’ll take a little while to set in but we another tournament and all so it kind of on to the next one, trying to prepare.

“But I am, you know, trying to enjoy this one, and we’ll do that for at least a couple weeks.”

Creighton wasn’t even sure he’d be able to play the weekend at Crestview Country Club in Wichita, but he had two eagles on Friday — the hole-in-one on the par-3 12th and a hole out on the par-4 15th as he shot 30 on the back nine  — to make the cut with a round of a 2-under 68.

That set up Creighton’s Saturday, where he had 12 birdies and one bogey to move to the top of the leaderboard. He then held on to that lead in the final round for the victory. 

Creighton became just the third player in Korn Ferry Tour history to win an event after carding a sub-60 round the same week.

“It was just such a crazy week,” Creighton said with a chuckle. “All the things that happened, just to give myself a chance to play on Saturday and then 59 on Saturday and then win the golf tournament.”

He is the second Canadian to win on the Korn Ferry Tour after Sudarshan Yellamaraju of Mississauga, Ont., was victorious at The Bahamas Great Abaco Classic on Jan. 22.

Derek Ingram, the head coach of Golf Canada’s men’s team, was at Crestview Country Club last week to support Creighton and the other Canadians in the field at the Wichita Open. He said Creighton’s impressive week was a result of consistent hard work.

“The message with Myles for the last two or three months has been to be patient, keep working the plan, and if you do the right things long enough, we will get rewarded,” said Ingram on Tuesday. “But it’s tough for a guy to be patient when they’re not getting rewarded but we knew good things were going to happen.

“I wasn’t expecting, you know, a hole-in-one, a 30 on the back nine on Friday to make the cut, a 59, and then to win the tournament. We were just expecting great results, whether it’s the top five or some consistent results coming down the pipeline, but that was fantastic and a dream come true for Myles.”

Creighton and Yellamaraju are both in the field at this week’s Memorial Health Championship. Yellamaraju is 18th on the points list.

They’ll be joined at Panther Creek Country Club by Vancouver’s Stuart Macdonald (34th), Matthew Anderson (55th) of Mississauga, Roger Sloan (130th) of Merritt, B.C., and Etienne Papineau (141st) of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que.

Other Canadian Golf News

PGA TOUR — Amateur Ashton McCulloch of Kingston, Ont., will be in the field at this week’s Rocket Classic on a sponsors exemption. He’ll be joining regular PGA Tour players Adam Hadwin (ranked 112th on the FedEx Cup standings) of Abbotsford, B.C., Ben Silverman (166th) of Thornhill, Ont., and Adam Svensson (167th) of Surrey, B.C., in the field at Detroit Golf Club.

DP WORLD TOUR — Aaron Cockerill of Stony Mountain, Man., is the lone Canadian teeing off at the Italian Open this week. He’s 116th on the European-based tour’s Race to Dubai points list heading into play at Argentario Golf Club in Monte Argentario, Italy.

CHAMPIONS TOUR — Calgary’s Stephen Ames, Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., and Dave Bunker of Richmond Hill, Ont., are in this week’s U.S. Senior Open Championship. Ames is 35th on the Schwab Cup points list and Weir is 70th heading into play at Broadmoor Golf Club in Colorado Springs, Colo. Bunker hasn’t played on the Champions Tour since 2016.

LPGA TOUR — Savannah Grewal of Mississauga, Ont., leads the Canadian contingent into this week’s Dow Championship. Grewal is 131st in the Race to CME Globe standings heading into play at Midland Country Club in Midland, Mich. Hamilton’s Alena Sharp (141st) and Maude-Aimee Leblanc (156th) of Sherbrooke, Que., are also in the field.

EPSON TOUR — Maddie Szeryk of London, Ont., is the top ranked Canadian on the second-tier Epson Tour heading into the Otter Creek Championship on Friday. She’s 40th in the Race for the Card standings heading into play at Otter Creek Golf Course in Columbus, Ind. There are nine Canadians in the field including Brooke Rivers (56th) of Brampton, Ont., Josee Doyon (63rd) of Saint-Georges, Que., Monet Chun (69th) of Richmond Hill, Ont., Mary Parsons (104th) of Delta, B.C., Yeji Kwon (126th) of Port Coquitlam, B.C., Vancouver’s Leah John (138th), Brigitte Thibault (146th) of Rosemere, Que., and Toronto’s Ashley Chow (unranked).

Myles Creighton of Digby, N.S., won the Wichita Open on Sunday, a day after shooting an 11-under 59, closing with a 2-under 68 for a one-stroke victory over Emilio Gonzalez of Mexico.

Creighton won his first Korn Ferry Tour title, finishing at 17-under 263 at Crestview Country Club.

On Saturday, he became the 15th player in PGA TOUR history to shoot a sub-60 round and the second of the week.

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Gonzalez finished with a 66.

Adrien Dumont de Chassart of Belgium opened with a 59. He closed with a 65 to tie for fifth at 13 under.

Creighton is the second Canadian to win on the Korn Ferry Tour this year, joining Sudarshan Yellamaraju of Mississauga, Ont. Both are now inside the top 20 on the points list, which would secure them a PGA TOUR card at the end of the season.

Creighton seemed like an unlikely winner after making the cut on the number after a second straight round of 68 on Friday, which included five bogeys but two eagles with a hole-in-one.

Stuart Macdonald notched his second top-10 finish of the season, both coming in his last five starts. The Vancouver native shot 68 Sunday to finish at 11 under.

Just five tournaments into the Korn Ferry Tour season, and Matthew Anderson has rocketed up the second-tier men’s golf circuit rankings. 

You wouldn’t be able to tell from his demeanour, however.

Anderson, from Mississauga, Ont., shot a 3-under 69 in Sunday’s final round of the 118 Visa Argentina Open to tie for seventh. That propelled the 24-year-old Anderson 72 spots up the rankings to sit 49th on the Korn Ferry Tour’s points list. 

Although Anderson was happy to have a strong showing after missing the cut in the first three tournaments of his rookie KFT season, he was reluctant to get too excited.

“I think that finite goals or long-term goals can make you judge your season based on simply success or failure, when the real goal is more short term,” said Anderson. “They’re more day to day In terms of just getting better, and not necessarily something finite like a finish line, per se.”

That day-by-day approach helped carry Anderson to a third-place finish on last year’s PGA Tour Americas rankings with one win and six top-10 finishes to graduate to the second-tier Korn Ferry Tour. 

He missed the cut at The Bahamas Golf Classic on Jan. 15, The Bahamas Great Abasco Classic on Jan. 22, and The Panama Championship on Feb. 2, but found his footing at the Astara Golf Championship where he tied for 49th on Feb. 9.

“Obviously, the goal, 100 per cent, is to make the PGA Tour this year, right?” said Anderson. “I know I can do it, and that is obviously something that I really want to do, but I can’t control it. 

“What I can do is focus on the process day to day, getting better, all that, y’know, somewhat cliché stuff, but it’s true.”

Anderson credited Adrienne Leslie-Toogood, a psychologist who works with Golf Canada’s men’s teams on their mental conditioning, with helping him stay grounded while playing against elite competition. He’s also an avid reader of performance-based books like “Greenlights” by A-list actor Matthew McConaughey, “Win in the Dark” by Joshua Medcalf, and “Atomic Habits” by James Clear.

Leslie-Toogood said that every athlete is different in terms of what they embrace to strengthen their mental conditioning.

“A lot of times what they do off the course will really impact how much ability they have to focus and stay composed on the course,” said Leslie-Toogood. “A lot of times it is finding ways to quiet your mind or do things to get your head out of the game when you’re on the road. 

“Some athletes love reading, some athletes love podcasts, some athletes like going to a local coffee shop. But that’s all part of the experience is figuring out how you want to focus.”

Sudarshan Yellamaraju, also from Mississauga, is the top-ranked Canadian on the Korn Ferry Tour after winning The Bahamas Great Abaco Classic, sitting sixth on the points list. But he’s not playing in this week’s Astara Chile Classic, meaning Anderson could gain ground on him.

Myles Creighton (54th) of Digby, N.S., Etienne Papineau (97th) of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., Roger Sloan (105th) of Merritt, B.C., Vancouver’s Stuart Macdonald (128th) and Toronto’s Sebastian Szirmak are also in the field at Prince of Wales Country Club in Santiago, Chile.

BAY HILL — Nick Taylor of Abbotsford, B.C., is the highest ranked Canadian at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, a signature event on the top men’s tour in the world. Taylor is fifth in the FedEx Cup standings heading into the reduced 72-player field event at Arnold Palmer’s Bay Hill Club & Lodge. Taylor Pendrith of Richmond Hill, Ont., is 29th, Corey Conners of Listowel, Ont., is 35th, Adam Hadwin, also from Abbotsford, is 83rd and Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., is 127th.

PR OPEN — David Hearn of Brantford, Ont., will play in his first PGA Tour event since last year’s RBC Canadian Open when he tees it up at the Puerto Rico Open on Thursday. He’ll be joined by Adam Svensson of Surrey, B.C., and Max Sear of Markham, Ont., in the opposite field event at Grand Reserve Golf Club in Rio Grande.

DP WORLD TOUR — Aaron Cockerill of Stony Mountain, Man., is the lone Canadian competing in the Joburg Open. He moved seven spots up to 109th in the European-based tour’s rankings heading into play at Houghton Golf Club in Johannesburg, South Africa. 

CHAMPIONS TOUR — Calgary’s Stephen Ames and Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., will tee it up on Friday at the Cologuard Classic. Ames is ranked 26th on the Schwab Cup’s points list and Weir is tied for 64th.

LPGA TOUR — Hamilton’s Alena Sharp and Savannah Grewal of Mississauga, Ont., are representing Canada in this week’s Blue Bay LPGA. Sharp is tied for 74th on the Race to CME Globe standings heading into play at Hainan Island in Hainan, China. Grewal is tied for 103rd.

EPSON TOUR — Maddie Szeryk of London, Ont., leads the Canadian contingent into the Atlantic Beach Classic. She’s ranked 62nd on the Race for the Card standings heading into play on Friday. Monet Chun of Richmond Hill, Ont., is 68th. They’ll be joined by Vancouver’s Leah John, Yeji Kwon of Port Coquitlam, B.C., Josee Doyon of Saint-Georges, Que., and Brooke Rivers of Brampton, Ont., at Atlantic Beach Country Club in Atlantic Beach, Fla.

Sudarshan Yellamaraju, of Mississauga, Ont., took a major step toward his PGA Tour dream on Wednesday by winning the second event of the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour, golf’s premier feeder circuit.

The 23-year-old won The Bahamas Great Abaco Classic at The Abaco Club by five shots over runners-up Russell Knox and Kensei Hirata. Yellamaraju fired a final-round 64 — the lowest score of the day — and shattered the tournament scoring record by seven shots.

He became the third Canadian to win the event, following Adam Svensson of Surrey, B.C., in 2018 and Ben Silverman of Thornhill, Ont., in 2023. Starting the final round with a one-shot lead, Yellamaraju pulled away to secure the biggest win of his career.

“It feels great. It feels good that the hard work and all the hours I’ve put in, me and my parents, has paid off,” Yellamaraju told reporters in the Bahamas. 

Yellamaraju was born in India and his family immigrated to Winnipeg when he was four. He moved to the Greater Toronto Area when he was 11. Yellamaraju won the Ontario Amateur at 16 but did not go to college in the United States, saying Wednesday he didn’t get enough money via scholarships to make it work. He instead turned pro immediately after finishing high school. 

Yellamaraju, part of Golf Canada’s National Team, is the second Canadian in three weeks to capture a men’s golf title after Nick Taylor won the Sony Open in Hawaii, the second event of the 2025 PGA Tour season. Taylor took to social media to congratulate his countryman, while fellow Canadian Korn Ferry Tour pros Matthew Anderson and Etienne Papineau were greenside in the Bahamas for a big celebration. 

Golf Canada men’s national team head coach Derek Ingram describes Yellamaraju’s game as “really consistent” from tee to green. Coupled with a solid short game, a deep passion for golf, and a “tremendous work ethic,” Ingram believes Yellamaraju has the makings of another Canadian PGA Tour star.

Yellamaraju played on PGA Tour Americas in 2022 and 2023 before earning Korn Ferry Tour status in 2024. He finished 99th in the season-long points list last year. 

He had to return to the first stage of the tour’s qualifying school in the fall after falling short in the season-long points race. However, he battled his way to the final stage, where he finished tied for 36th. Placing inside the top 40 earned him eight guaranteed starts on the Korn Ferry Tour this year.

It only took him two to take full advantage. 

“There’s tension, there’s pressure, but I just kept my head down, kept playing. One shot at a time. I wanted to play good shots,” Yellamaraju said. “I wasn’t completely calm obviously. Once I saw the scoreboard and I saw I had a five-shot lead heading into the last hole I knew I was fine.” 

Yellamaraju didn’t miss a green or fairway in his tidy final-round effort, going 5-under on his first nine holes before settling into a groove and bringing the trophy home.

“I just wanted to play good shots. I just wanted to shoot as low as possible and I think I did a pretty good job,” Yellamaraju said with a laugh. 

With only 20 PGA Tour cards on the line this year — there were 30 available the last two seasons — Yellamaraju knows that every shot counts this year more than ever. 

It’s been a non-traditional journey for Yellamaraju, who is largely self-taught. He learned the game by watching YouTube and golf on TV, with his father, Suresh, serving as his watchful second set of eyes.

Wednesday, Yellamaraju said, was his father’s birthday. 

“It’s rare to have a tournament, in January, where we play a final round, on his birthday. It just all fell into place,” Yellamaraju said.

“I guess it was just all meant to be.”    

About Sudarshan Yellamaraju

• Captures first career Korn Ferry Tour victory in his 29th start on Tour
• Fourth time the 54-hole leader/co-leader has gone on to win the Bahamas Great Abaco Classic at The Abaco Club
• Becomes the 20th Canadian to win on the Korn Ferry Tour; third to win The Bahamas Great Abaco Classic at The Abaco Club (Adam Svensson/2018; Ben Silverman/2023)
• At 25-under 263, breaks the previous 72-hole tournament scoring record of 270; shared by Jared Wolfe (2020), Brandon Harkins (2022) and Zecheng Dou (2022)
• Moves to No. 2 on the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour Points List
• Sixth winner under the age of 24 years old to win on the Korn Ferry Tour since the start of the 2023 season
• Secured guaranteed starts in the first eight events of the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour season with a T36 finish at Final Stage of 2024 PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry
• As a rookie, finished No. 99 on the 2024 Korn Ferry Tour Points List, logging 13 made cuts and one top-10 finish (T7/NV5 Invitational) in 25 starts
• Finished T14 at Final Stage of 2023 PGA TOUR Q-School to earn Korn Ferry Tour membership for the first time
• Previously competed on PGA TOUR Canada (2022, 2023); where he made 12 cuts in 18 total starts with four top-10s
• Turned professional in 2021 and plays from Mississauga, Ontario
• Born in Visakhapatnam, India

Edmonton’s Wil Bateman has learned to ride the waves of being a professional golfer in his second season on the Korn Ferry Tour.

Bateman is one of three Canadians competing in this week’s Korn Ferry Tour Championship, the finale of the second-tier circuit’s season. He’s 54th on the tour’s points list with a card for next year all but assured.

He said that’s in large part to his steady approach to golf, seeing the larger picture of his career.

“I’m just trying to stay positive throughout the weeks and throughout the year,” said Bateman. “Just conserving my energy, especially in those really long stretches, I think I’ve done really good job at that.

“Just mentally staying positive and realizing that there’s still lots of opportunity in front of me. Obviously you want to get a tour card, you want to be on the PGA Tour, but everybody’s path is different.”

Bateman was the overall winner of the PGA Tour Canada — now PGA Tour Americas — in 2022, winning two events after making all 10 cuts on the third-tier circuit. That moved him up to the Korn Ferry Tour, where he finished 68th overall last year.

This year, Bateman’s more balanced approach, including taking some events off, has paid off.

Bateman tied for 62nd at this year’s RBC Canadian Open at Hamilton Golf and Country Club on June 2, his only PGA Tour event of the year. 

He made 12 of 20 cuts on the Korn Ferry Tour, with one runner-up, two top 10s and five top 25s. His best stretch was six consecutive cuts made — five on the Korn Ferry Tour and the Canadian Open result — from the Club Car Championship on April 7 to the Compliance Solutions Championship on June 23.

“I feel like the game’s close and I’m there. It’s just a matter of a little bit of momentum going my way and then putting it together for four rounds,” said Bateman. “Some of those tournaments where I’m making the cut five straight weeks and not having a top 25. 

“You’re playing good golf, and you’re super close, you’re just kind of not putting it all together.”

Myles Creighton of Digby, N.S., is the top-ranked Canadian on the Korn Ferry Tour at No. 41 on the points list. He’ll join Bateman and Etienne Papineau (No. 65) of St-Jean-Sur-Richelieu, Que., at French Lick Golf Resort’s Pete Dye Course in French Lick, Ind., for the championship tournament.

Bateman, in good shape to return to the Korn Ferry Tour next year, will continue his steady approach at this week’s event.

“I knew coming into this week that I have to finish first or second to get a PGA Tour card,” he said. “I don’t really have much to lose, because I’m going to definitely finish inside the top 60, so I’ll be able to have another opportunity to get my PGA Tour card at Q-School final stage if I don’t finish first or second this week.”

PGA TOUR — Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., returns to play just four days after competing in the elite Presidents Cup. He’s one of three Canadians in the field at this weeks Sanderson Farms Championship, which he won in 2022. Hughes is 51st in the FedEx Cup Fall standings. He’ll be joined at the Country Club of Jackson in Jackson, Miss., by Adam Svensson (73rd) of Surrey, B.C., and Roger Sloan (168th) of Merritt, B.C.

DP WORLD TOUR — Toronto’s Richard T. Lee is the only Canadian in the field at this week’s Alfred Dunhill Links Championship at the storied Old Course in St. Andrews, Scotland. He’s unranked on the European-based DP World Tour, having played most of his golf on the Asian Tour this season. He’s 12th on the Asian Tour’s order of merit.

EPSON TOUR — Vancouver’s Leah John is the top-ranked Canadian heading into this week’s Epson Tour Championship in Indian Wells, Calif. She’s 55th on the second-tier women’s circuit. She’ll be joined at Indian Wells Golf Resort — Players Course by Maddie Szeryk (83rd) of London, Ont., and Brigitte Thibault (119th) of Rosemere, Que.

As Ellie Szeryk lined up her final putt to seal the win at the B.C. Women’s Open, she spied longtime friend Brooke Rivers lurking around the green with a bottle of water.

Sure enough, when Szeryk made the putt, the chase was on with Rivers trying to douse her with water.

“I ran as far as I could, but she still got me quite good,” Szeryk said with a laugh. “But it was fun. In golf you usually do that to your really good friends when they win. 

“So it was really sweet that she did that. It’s like an unspoken honour.”

Szeryk beat Rivers by four strokes at Pitt Meadows Golf Club on Sunday in their professional debuts. Both golfers also earned berths at the CPKC Women’s Open, July 25-28 at Calgary’s Earl Grey Golf Club.

“It was just really nice to be able to have followed through on something that I had been thinking about,” said Szeryk. “It’s not always easy to golf. It’s just three rounds and you have no idea what the course is like and how it’s going to play.”

Earning their way into the national women’s championship, rather than relying on a sponsor’s exemption, was a relief to both players.

“I knew that there’d be a good opportunity for that,” said Szeryk, from London, Ont. “It’s been on my mind the last couple of months, like since I signed up. 

“I knew I needed to make sure I had my game right so I could take advantage of it because I knew that they weren’t going to be a lot of sponsored exemptions for this Canadian Open.”

Rivers agreed.

“It does feel really good to earn the exemption spot on my own through good play,” said Rivers, from Brampton, Ont. “It also feels a little more rewarding while being there because you feel like you had done everything in order to put yourself there.”

Rivers added with a laugh: “It’s a little bit easier when booking travel that you don’t have to do it the week before.”

Both Szeryk and Rivers turned pro after the conclusion of the NCAA golf season. They’re both spending time with family and practising before the ORORO PGA Women’s Championship of Canada tees off at TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley in Caledon, Ont., on July 2.

“I’m really excited to turn pro, and it’s something that I’ve wanted to do my whole life,” said Rivers, who played one season at Wake Forest University. “It’s something I’ve been working toward my whole life. 

“I just felt that I was in a position where I was ready to turn pro and I was ready to start competing.”

Golf Canada announced the early commitments to the 50th playing of the Women’s Open on Monday, with eight of the current top-10 and 83 of the top-100 players on the Race to the CME Globe Standings entered in the national women’s championship.

The 156-player field will be competing at Earl Grey Golf Club for the first time in tournament history. It will be the seventh time that Alberta hosts the Women’s Open and first time since 2016.

LPGA TOUR — Hamilton’s Alena Sharp is in the Dow Championship three days after making Canada’s Olympic golf team for a third time. Maddie Szeryk, Ellie’s older sister, just missed out on beating Sharp to the Olympics by 1.41 points in the women’s world golf rankings. Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., No. 14 in the world, is also in the field at the Midland Country Club in Midland, Mich. They will be joined by Maude-Aimee Leblanc of Sherbrooke, Que., Savannah Grewal of Mississauga, Ont., and amateur Vanessa Borovilos of Toronto.

EPSON TOUR — Brigitte Thibault of Rosemere, Que., is the top-ranked Canadian playing in the Dream First Bank Charity Classic. She’s 120th on the second-tier Epson Tour’s points list. She’ll be joined at Buffalo Dunes Golf Course in Garden City, Kan., by Vancouver’s Leah John (160th), as well as Selena Costabile of Thornhill, Ont., and Kate Johnston of Ayr, Ont., who are unranked.

PGA TOUR — Taylor Pendrith of Richmond Hill, Ont., is the top ranked Canadian at No. 30 on the FedEx Cup standings. He will be in the field at the Rocket Mortgage Classic at Detroit Golf Club, where he finished tied for second in 2022. Adam Svensson (76th) of Surrey, B.C., Ben Silverman (113th) of Thornhill, Ont., and Roger Sloan (194th) of Merritt, B.C., are also in the field.

KORN FERRY TOUR — Myles Creighton of Digby, N.S., is No. 23 on the Tour’s points list heading into the Memorial Health Championship. Edmonton’s Wil Bateman (33rd), Etienne Papineau (50th) of St-Jean-Sur-Richelieu, Que., Sudarshan Yellamaraju (100th) of Mississauga, Ont., and Jared du Toit (118th) of Kimberley, B.C., are also in the field at Panther Creek Country Club in Springfield, Ill.

CHAMPIONS TOUR — Calgary’s Stephen Ames leads the Canadian contingent into the U.S. Senior Open Championship. He’s No. 1 on the Charles Schwab Cup money list with two victories so far this year. Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., is 25th on the list and also in the field at Newport Country Club in Newport, R.I. David Morland IV of Aurora, Ont., is also playing the event.

AMERICAS TOUR — Matthew Anderson of Mississauga, Ont., remains the atop the points list of the third-tier Americas Tour heading into this week’s ATB Classic. He’s one of 18 Canadians playing Northern Bear Golf Club in Strathcona County, Alta.