KELOWNA, B.C. – Syracuse, New York’s Dan McCarthy holed out for eagle on the 18th hole to shoot an 8-under 63 on Saturday at Gallagher’s Canyon Golf and Country Club to take the 54-hole lead at the inaugural GolfBC Championship, the third event of the Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada season.

The current Mackenzie Tour Order of Merit leader holed out with a wedge from 103 yards to jump in front of Vancouver, British Columbia’s Ryan Williams with one round to go and will look for his second win in three starts to kick off the season on Sunday.

“That was an unbelievable finish certainly. It was a good number but you never expect to jar one,” said McCarthy, who captured his first Mackenzie Tour win two weeks ago at the Freedom 55 Financial Championship.

Already firmly in the No. 1 spot on the Order of Merit – and in position to earn exempt status on the Web.com Tour for 2017 – McCarthy refused to get ahead of himself and said he would try to finish strong on Sunday to build his Order of Merit lead.

“If I said I hadn’t thought about it, I’d be lying,” McCarthy noted about his strong play to start the season and Order of Merit position. “There’s a long way to go with 18 holes tomorrow. I’ve got a two shot lead and I’m going to need every one of them. Ryan’s a great player and there are a lot of guys behind me making birdies as well.”

Williams, who carded six birdies and no bogeys on the day for a 6-under 65, said he was looking forward to a chance to play in the final group with McCarthy. The twosome will tee off at 12:15 p.m. on Sunday.

“There’s always a little bit more pressure the last day, and always a lot more to play for, so I’m just going to go out and play the best I can and hopefully it’s good enough,” said Williams.

Two shots further behind Williams was 54-hole leader Caleb Sturgeon, who managed a 2-under 69 on Saturday to reach 14-under.

Victoria’s Cory Renfrew sits in fifth at 12-under.

KELOWNA, B.C. – Laurens, South Carolina’s Caleb Sturgeon reached 12-under par through nearly two rounds at Gallagher’s Canyon Golf and Country Club when play was suspended due to darkness at the inaugural GolfBC Championship. With back-to-back 66s, Vancouver’s Ryan Williams sits T2 at the third event of the 2016 Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada season.

“Today was a long trying day with the weather delay,” said the 35-year-old member of Freedom 55 Financial’s Team Freedom. “First off, everyone involved with the grounds crew did an unbelievable job. For the rain that came down, the greens are immaculate. My game is in a good place, and I have a real good caddie this week (past Mackenzie Tour member Kevin Stinson) and the putter feels real good in my hands. All in all, I’m very happy with the position I’ve put myself in.”

Sturgeon, a 23-year old University of South Carolina graduate, was 5-under par through 17 holes of his second round when play was called at 9:07 p.m. due to darkness. Second round play was initially suspended for 2 hours and 40 minutes due to dangerous weather in the area, and will resume at 8:00 a.m. Saturday morning.

“I bogeyed the first hole, and it actually kind of helped me to stop, hit some more balls, hit some more putts and get some good momentum going getting back out there,” said Sturgeon, who was 1-over on his round when play was suspended initially.

With a two stroke lead over Syracuse, New York’s Dan McCarthy, Vancouver, B.C.’s Ryan Williams and Orlando, Florida’s Ted Smith and the reachable par-5 ninth hole left to play in his second round, Sturgeon said he was confident heading into the weekend’s play.

“I’m looking forward to it as always. Any time you’re playing well, you’re always looking forward to the weekend,” said Sturgeon.

A shot further behind the group tied for second were Liverpool, England’s Mark Geddes and Chico, California’s Kurt Kitayama in a tie for fifth at 9-under.

Edmonton’s Wil Bateman was 3-under through 15 holes when play was suspended. At 7-under, he is currently part of a five-way tie for ninth.

KELOWNA, B.C. – Laurens, South Carolina’s Caleb Sturgeon shot a 7 under 64 on Thursday at Gallagher’s Canyon Golf and Country Club to take the first round lead at the inaugural GolfBC Championship, the third event of the 2016 Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada season.

The 23-year old University of South Carolina graduate holed a 30-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole to reach 7-under, one shot ahead of Victoria, B.C.’s Cory Renfrew, French Polynesia’s Vaita Guillaume and Cosa Mesa, California’s Jake Knapp.

“It was a good feeling,” said Sturgeon of the long birdie putt at the final hole. “I hadn’t made too many long putts today. Just to see that one go in to close out the day gave me some good momentum going into tomorrow.”

Sturgeon’s other notable highlight from the day came on the par-4 2nd hole, where he holed out from 121 yards. Beyond a few fireworks, however, the second-year pro said it was mostly consistency that led him to his solid opening round.

“I felt good over the golf ball. I just did everything solid. I did hole out, but other than that I felt like I had a good attitude, and kept it moving forward,” said Sturgeon.

Renfrew, a fifth-year Mackenzie Tour member, shot his first sub-70 round of the season to hold solo second place and credited a different approach than his first two events of the season (T50-CUT) for his round.

“I worked hard over the weekend and came into this week with a different attitude, trying to go get it instead of letting it come to me. I think I was just relaxed from the get-go, even though I started with a bogey on my second hole. I just stayed patient and had fun out there,” said Renfrew.

Guillaume, meanwhile, leveraged a stellar short game for his round 65, including a hole out for eagle from about 60 yards on the 18th (his ninth hole of the day) and a difficult up-and-down for birdie on the ninth.

“When you know that your short game can save you from bad situations, it takes a little bit of pressure off. Fortunately, I found a little swing though this morning that seems to have helped,” said Guillaume.

Knapp, who Monday qualified for the event, said he was appreciative of the opportunity to compete this week and took advantage with a solid opening round.

“I felt like this was all I really needed, to get through those Mondays,” said Knapp. “Those are really the hard part for me, and if I played well enough in those, I knew I had the game to play well in the actual tournament.”

Victoria, B.C. – Langley, B.C.’s Adam Cornelson shot a 6-under 65 on Saturday at Uplands Golf Club to capture the Bayview Place Island Savings Open presented by Times Colonist for his first Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada title in record-breaking fashion.

The 28-year set the new PGA TOUR-era scoring record on the Mackenzie Tour, finishing at 20-under par 260 for the week thanks to a chip-in birdie on the 72^nd hole, giving him a five shot lead over Edmond, Oklahoma’s Taylor Moore. The win moves Cornelson to second place on the Order of Merit, in position to earn Web.com Tour status for 2017.

“It’s the best week of my golfing life,” said Cornelson, finding a poetic ending in capturing his first win at his favourite tournament. “I’ve always felt like if and when I was going to win, it would be at this tournament. It suits my eye so well, and I love this city so much. The support this city, this crowd and the volunteers have showed me, it was chilling. I’ve never felt support like that in my life, and it gave me so much energy to continue on, it was phenomenal.”

Starting the day with a three-shot lead over Cibolo, Texas’ Jeff Rein, Cornelson took control of the tournament with birdies on the first and sixth holes and an eagle on the seventh, opening a lead that swelled to as many as six on the front nine.

“With the talent on this Tour, a three-shot lead is great, but just look at Moore there. If I shoot even-par I’m in a playoff, and I knew that would be the case, so that’s all the motivation I needed,” said Cornelson, who added birdies at the 12^th, 14^th and 18^th holes for a closing 65.

The win comes as validation for an offseason of hard work and self-reflection for Cornelson, who finished 94^th on the Order of Merit in 2015 to lose his card. After setting new goals and putting in hard work on his fitness and swing, the University of New Orleans grad came in to the year with new motivation, and it paid off on Sunday.

“At the end of last year, I didn’t know if I wanted to keep doing this. My family is so supportive, they egged me on and I worked harder than ever,” said Cornelson, adding that the success of his Mackenzie Tour alumni peers at the next level provided extra inspiration. “You see guys that win and finish in the top five on this Tour and go up through the pipeline, like Nick Taylor and Adam Hadwin and Roger Sloan and Joel Dahmen, they all started here and when you see them succeed, it’s motivating.”

Cornelson, who was surrounded after putting out by family and friends, including Mackenzie Tour players and British Columbia natives Brad Clapp, Thomas Hay and Seann Harlingten, added that he put some old demons to rest with his nearly-flawless final round.

“I’ve seen leads dwindle, and I’ve been in contention myself and I’ve failed. I slept on that last night, and I learned a lot from those failures. They helped me a lot today,” said Cornelson.

Moore, a former NCAA All-American at the University of Arkansas, finished second in his pro debut, while Rein finished solo third to record his first career Mackenzie Tour top-10.

Victoria, B.C. – Five players shot matching rounds of 6-under 64 on Thursday at Uplands Golf Club to share the first round lead at the Bayview Place Island Savings Open presented by Times Colonist, the second event of the 2016 Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada season.

Rockford, Illnois’ Brad Benjamin and Victoria, B.C.’s Ben Griffin – a PGA of Canada member and Assistant Pro at Uplands – both recorded albatrosses on the par-5 seventh hole to reach 6-under, tied with Langley, B.C.’s Adam Cornelson, Cibolo, Texas’ Jeff Rein and Shelton, Washington’s Chris Evans.

Griffin and Benjamin’s deuces mark the first time two albatrosses have been recorded in the same round in Mackenzie Tour history.

“It reminded me of when I made my first hole-in-one,” said Benjamin, a first-year Mackenzie Tour member. “You’re just kind of mentally out of it. I just tried to use that experience, because you’re just trying to stay focused for eight and nine. Those holes are just as important as any others.”

Griffin, a 36-year old Victoria native with more than 20 years’ worth of experience playing at Uplands, was treated to a hero’s welcome from fans at the 18^th hole.

“I just kept saying to myself, ‘Why not me? Someone’s got to play well.’ It was a little bit of a steer job on the last couple of holes just trying to get it into the clubhouse, but it was great to see people out here – it’s like a second family to me.”

Rein matched Benjamin’s 64 playing in the same group, while Cornelson and Evans posted their scores in windier conditions Thursday morning to take the early lead.

“It’s a nice, but we all know on this Tour how the guys can go low, so I’m focused on getting some rest and hitting that first tee shot and seeing how it goes,” said Cornelson.

One shot behind the group at 6-under were Seann Harlingten, Aaron Cockerill, Scott Vincent and Hank Lebioda with rounds of 5-under 65.

Edmonton – The Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada and Linx Marketing announced today the cancellation of the 2016 Syncrude Boreal Open presented by AECON due to effects on the Fort McMurray community following wildfires this spring.

“Having consulted with community leaders and sponsors, we felt it would be inappropriate to play the event this year as the Fort McMurray community embarks on recovering from this spring’s wildfires,” said Mackenzie Tour President Jeff Monday. “We wish the very best to everyone in Fort McMurray as the community makes its recovery.”

“Though we were hopeful for the possibility of the conducting the event in Fort McMurray, we did not feel it would be the right thing to do to hold the golf tournament while the city is focusing on recovery efforts,” said Tim Garbutt, Executive Director of the Syncrude Boreal Open presented by AECON and the ATB Financial Classic.

The ATB Financial Classic, which takes place at Calgary’s Country Hills Golf Club, will move up a week on the schedule to take place August 1-7, immediately following the inaugural Oil Country Championship July 25-31 at Glendale Golf and Country Club in Edmonton.

“Moving up the ATB Financial Classic a week to immediately follow our event in Edmonton allows us to provide the best possible schedule for our players,” said Monday. “Our gratitude goes out to Linx Marketing, ATB Financial and Country Hills Golf Club for accommodating the change in schedule.”

Earlier this spring, the Mackenzie Tour and Web.com Tour announced a joint donation of $20,000 towards Fort McMurray wildfire relief, along with per-birdie pledges from Mackenzie Tour and Web.com Tour players that fans can match at the PGA TOUR’s charity website, Together, Anything’s Possible. For more information on relief efforts or to make a donation, visit www.together.PGATOUR.com.

Vancouver – New York’s Dan McCarthy came up clutch with a birdie at the 72^nd hole to win the Freedom 55 Financial Open on Sunday, giving him his first Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada victory.

The 30-year old veteran in his fifth Mackenzie Tour season managed a tricky two-putt from more than 80 feet away at the par-5 18^th hole for birdie to finish at 15-under for the week at Point Grey Golf and Country Club, one stroke ahead of Florida’s Tyler McCumber.

“I’m extremely happy with the way I played this week,” said McCarthy. “I guess I can attribute this to knowing myself better and what happens to me under pressure. I’ve been in the hunt enough times to learn how to close it out, and things went my way today.”

Finishing up the rain-delayed third round on Sunday morning, the 30-year old capped off round three with a birdie-eagle finish to share the 54-hole lead with McCumber.

McCarthy trailed McCumber by two through 10 holes, but drew even after McCumber, a two-time PGA TOUR Latinoamérica winner and the son of 10-time PGA TOUR winner Mark McCumber, bogeyed the par-4 16^th.

Both players split the fairway at the reachable 18^th, but while McCumber was unable to convert a greenside up-and-down for birdie, McCarthy left his approach below the hole and lagged an approach putt from the fringe to tap-in range.

“I couldn’t have left it in a better spot. I was caught between putting it and chipping it with a 7-iron, and I left it in a perfect spot there. I was very fortunate,” said McCarthy.

The win puts McCarthy in the No. 1 spot on the Order of Merit, in position to earn Web.com Tour status for 2017. The Le Moyne college graduate said the win gives him momentum in his quest to leverage a good season on the Mackenzie Tour into a promotion for next year.

“This is a huge confidence builder for me going forward,” said McCarthy. “I’d love to finish number one and be exempt out there, but the goal is to stay in the top five or even the top 10 and advance to the next level.”

McCumber, who has conditional status on the Web.com Tour after finishing 90^th on the Money List last year and was in the field through a category for Web.com Tour members, said the second-place finish represents a stepping stone as he looks to get back up to the next level again.

“It’s definitely not the result that I was looking for, but I did everything that I could and I’ll try to look back and see where I could have saved a few shots,” said McCumber.

Two shots behind the winning score in a tie for third were Atlanta’s Wade Binfield and Oklahoma’s Talor Gooch.

Surrey, B.C.’s Ryan Williams finished at 10-under and was 7th, while former Golf Canada National Amateur team member Austin Connelly finished T8 at 8-under in his debut as a Mackenzie Tour member.

Florida’s Tyler McCumber and New York’s Dan McCarthy reached 10-under par through 36 holes at Point Grey Golf and Country Club on Friday to share the second round lead at the Freedom 55 Financial Open, the opening event of the 2016 Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada season.

McCumber, a two-time winner on PGA TOUR Latinoamérica in 2014, birdied the 18th hole for one of his six birdies in a round of 68 on Friday to match the lead set earlier by McCarthy, who was bogey-free with six birdies on the day.

“It was nice to get a shot back coming down the stretch. There were so many good shots today, but those are the ones to focus on for me,” said McCumber, a University of Florida graduate and the son of 10-time PGA TOUR winner Mark McCumber.

McCarthy, a veteran of 39 Mackenzie Tour starts, credited a more conservative approach to Point Grey’s tree-line layout than his last two starts in Vancouver, both of which resulted in missed cuts.

“I hit a ton of greens, so I wasn’t grinding out pars out there,” said McCarthy. “The pins are challenging, so you kind of have to make decisions to not go after them and play towards the fat part of the green, and that’s something I’ve learned over the years.”

One shot behind McCarthy and McCumber was Florida’s Taylor Hancock, a recent University of North Florida grad making his pro debut this week.

“Surprisingly, I was just really calm. I don’t know why. It was just fun to be able to say I’m a professional,” said Hancock. “A couple of holes down the stretch, I started to feel it a little bit, but you live for that and that’s what you enjoy.”

Devin Carrey of Burnaby, B.C., and Manitoba’s Aaron Cockerill lead the Canadian contingent at T10.

National Team member Eric Banks of Truro, N.S., is tied for 32nd at 2-under. Team Canada Development Squad members Tony Gil (Vaughan, Ont.) and A.J. Ewart (Coquitlam, B.C.), who finished 2-over and 8-over, respectively, will not head into weekend play.

VANCOUVER – California’s Ben Geyer opened with a 7-under 65 at Point Grey Golf and Country Club on Thursday to take the first round lead at the Freedom 55 Financial Open, the first event of the 2016 Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada season.

The 24-year old made seven birdies and was bogey-free on the day to lead by one over Florida’s Tyler McCumber and New Hamburg, Ont.’s Cam Burke.

“I drove it really well today and kept it in play. I didn’t have many stressful holes, and I was really happy with how I scored,” said Geyer, who earned exempt status on the Mackenzie Tour by the narrowest of margins last year.

After struggling on the Web.com Tour for the first half of 2015, the St. Mary’s College graduate earned the final spot in the field at last year’s season-ending Freedom 55 Financial Championship by placing 60th on the Order of Merit through the Cape Breton Open by a mere $373, thereby retaining status for this year.

“I struggled unfortunately on the Web.com Tour last year, and it was nice to be able to come up to Canada and get things figured out a bit. I have a good feel for this Tour now and I’m looking forward to competing up here this season,” said Geyer.

Burke, a two-time Canadian Amateur champion and former Team Canada member, was also bogey-free in his debut as a Mackenzie Tour member to share second place with McCumber after day one.

“I putted really well. I didn’t drive it that well, but I kept it in between the trees for the most part. I had an approach shot to all 18 holes, and I putted outstanding and my short game was really good today,” said Burke.

One shot further behind at 5-under were Mike Ballo, Jr., Vancouver-area native Devin Carrey and 19-year old Austin Connelly, also a first year Mackenzie Tour member.