TORONTO (September 26, 2023) – Golf Canada and the Canadian Olympic Committee have announced Canada’s golf team nominated to compete at the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games.

The Team Canada golf team for the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games is:

Athletes

• Selena Costabile (Thornhill, Ont.)
• Myles Creighton (Digby, N.S.)
• Étienne Papineau (St-Jean-Sur-Richelieu, Que.)
• Alena Sharp (Hamilton, Ont.)

The four athletes qualified for Team Canada based on their standing through their respective World Golf Ranking, with considerations for 2023 performance as well competition schedules on the global golf calendar. Santiago 2023 will mark the Pan American Games debut for all four athletes.

Sharp, a two-time Olympian (Rio 2016 & Tokyo 2020) and long-time LPGA Tour member, recently made her 18^th appearance at the CPKC Women’s Open where she finished tied for 36^th. Sharp won the 2023 ORORO PGA Women’s Championship of Canada and is ranked 12^th on the 2023 Epson Tour points list in a season that features a victory and four other top-10 finishes.

“I am honoured to represent Canada at the Pan Am Games and take great pride in representing my country,” said Sharp. “In recent years I’ve tried to help and mentor younger Canadians coming up through the professional ranks and I’m looking forward to competing in Santiago alongside Selena. We’ve spent time together this year, I know we will have a great time, and we hope to bring a medal home for Canada.” 

Costabile, a member of Golf Canada’s national team, currently sits 65^th on the 2023 Epson Tour points list where she has three top-10 finishes. The 25-year-old turned professional in 2018 and will be competing in a major multi-sport Games for the first time ever.

Creighton, 27, turned professional in 2018 and will go into Chile riding a stellar 2023 season on PGA TOUR Latinoamérica with nine cuts made in 12 events played, including a win, two third-place finishes, and five top-10s overall. A member of Golf Canada’s national team program, Creighton finished second on the PGA TOUR Latinoamérica ranking to earn conditional 2024 Korn Ferry Tour membership. He also made the cut in three of five events played on PGA TOUR Canada, including two top-10 finishes.

Papineau, 27, who turned professional in 2022, is coming off a great season on PGA TOUR Canada that included a victory, five top-10 finishes, and 16 of 21 event cuts made. The National Team member finished fourth on PGA TOUR Canada’s Fortinet Cup standings to earn conditional status on the 2024 Korn Ferry Tour. 

Golf joined the Pan American Games program at Toronto 2015. At Lima 2019, Team Canada won its first and only Pan Am Games medal in golf — a bronze – by Austin Connelly, Mary Parsons, Joey Savoie and Brigitte Thibeault in the mixed team event. At Santiago 2023, golf will have individual events only.

Golf Canada’s Manager of High Performance Sport, Emily Phoenix, believes the Canadian squad brings a strong balance of global competitive experience and a collective passion to represent Canada in the multi-sport Pan American Games. 

“Our team is well constructed with athletes who bring strong experiences and are playing well on the global golf stage in what has been one of the most successful seasons in Canadian professional golf history,” said Phoenix. “Selena will lean on Alena’s veteran presence as a two-time Olympian, and both Étienne and Myles have played great on their respective tours this season, especially Myles with a great comfort competing in Latin America. In Santiago, I’m confident that they will be up to the moment in representing Canadian golf.”

Golf will take place November 2-5 (Day 18 to 21) at the Prince of Wales Country Club in Santiago, Chile.

“Welcome, Team Canada golfers! In a sea of swings and putts, you’ve brought the perfect balance of precision and patience to the Pan Am Games,” said Christine Girard, Team Canada’s Santiago 2023 Chef de Mission. “Let’s tee off with enthusiasm and enjoy every moment on the green.” 

Team Canada’s golf coaching and support staff for the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games are:

Jennifer Greggain (Vancouver, B.C.) – Associate Coach, Team Canada – Women
Matthew Scanzano (Oakville, Ont.) – Golf Canada High Performance Coordinator

*Each of the participating athletes will be supported by a local club caddie.

Prior to being named to Team Canada, all nominations are subject to approval by the Canadian Olympic Committee’s Team Selection Committee following its receipt of nominations by all National Sport Organisations.

The latest Team Canada Santiago 2023 roster can be found here.

Vanessa Borovilos and Matthew Javier earn spots on
2024 Team Canada – NextGen

Cambridge, Ont. – Anna Huang, Miranda Lu, Luna Lu and Vanessa Zhang have earned their spots on Team Canada for the 2023 World Junior Girls Golf Championship following a 54-hole qualifying tournament at Whistle Bear Golf Club in Cambridge, Ont.

Anna Huang of Vancouver, B.C. finished the tournament at 11-under to secure the first of four spots. Huang shot rounds of 71-69-65 = 205 to finish five shots clear of Miranda Lu. Huang was part of Team Canada 2 in the 2022 World Junior Girls Golf Championship.

Miranda Lu of Vancouver, B.C. earned the second spot after finishing 6-under with rounds of 73-70-67 = 210. The 14-year-old recently won the UHY Albany Junior tournament last month, the tournament is part of the American Junior Golf Association.

Luna Lu of Burnaby, B.C. earned the third spot after finishing 5-under following rounds of 70-71-70 = 211. Lu has been part of Team Canada – NextGen for the past two years and will make her first appearance at the World Junior Girls Golf Championship. The 16-year-old finished as runner-up in the 2023 Canadian Junior Girls Championship and qualified for the 2023 CPKC Women’s Open through the final Monday qualifier.

Vanessa Zhang earned the fourth spot following a playoff win over Swetha Sathish and Joline Truong with a birdie on the first hole. Zhang finished the tournament at 3-under, following rounds of 73-71-69 = 213. The 16-year-old from Vancouver, B.C. won the 2023 K.J. Choi Foundation Texas Junior Championship in March.

The four will join Vanessa Borovilos and Eileen Park who earned exemptions to Team Canada for the 2023 World Junior Girls Championship. The official rosters for the two Canadian teams will be decided at a later date.

In addition to the qualifying tournament, players were competing for places on their respective Team Canada – NextGen teams for 2024.

Vanessa Borovilos of Etobicoke, Ont. won the Junior Girls division and has confirmed her place on Team Canada – NextGen for 2024, which marks her second consecutive year on the team.

Borovilos led through all three rounds of the selection camp, finishing at 14-under with scores of 67-69-66 = 202 to top Huang by three strokes. Last month, the 17-year-old competed in the 2023 CPKC Women’s Open and finished fourth at the 2023 Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship, presented by BDO. Borovilos will play on one of the two Team Canada sides competing at the 2023 World Junior Girls Golf Championship.

Matthew Javier, of North York, Ont. won the Junior Boys division and has earned his place on Team Canada – NextGen for 2024. Javier finished the tournament at 7-under posting rounds of 70-69-70 = 209. This will mark the first time that Javier will be part of Team Canada – NextGen. Last month, Javier was part of Team Ontario’s Inter-Provincial Junior Boys Team Championship win and finished T4 individually at the 2023 Canadian Junior Boys Championship.

The remaining places for the 2024 Team Canada – NextGen squad will be decided by Golf Canada’s selection committee by early October. When making final decisions for player selection, the committee will consider player results from the 2023 season along with selection camp results including information gathered during skills testing. The full selection criteria for Team Canada – NextGen can be found here.

The 2023 World Junior Girls Golf Championship will take place at Brampton Golf Club from October 2-7. For more information on the tournament, please click here.

For the final standings of the Team Canada World Junior Girls Championship qualifier and Team Canada – NextGen selection camp, please click here.

This week on Road to the Tour, presented by Hilton, we follow Alissa Xu and Michelle Xing, two rising stars from Richmond Hill, Ontario. Today the two golfers are on Team Canada NextGen, but don’t be surprised if one day both are playing pro golf on the top tours in the world.

Rest and Relax like a Pro, start planning your next stay with Hilton today.

VANCOUVER _ The CPKC Women’s Open isn’t just a showcase for some of the LPGA Tour’s top players it’s an opportunity for Canada’s youngest professional golfers to see how they measure up.

Although Brigitte Thibault and Sarah-Eve Rheaume both missed the cut at the Canadian women’s golf championship on Friday, they agreed that they learned a lot from the experience. The 24-year-old Thibault has been playing on the Women’s All-Pro Tour this season, a third-tier circuit that has most of its tournaments in Texas.

She said that playing in an LPGA Tour event was a good way of seeing how her golf is progressing.

“I felt very comfortable. I know I belong,” said Thibault after a 3-over 75 second round put her at 8 over. “I’m hitting shots that I know are super tough, and I’m kind of pulling them away and giving away shots on easier shots.”

“So just cleaning up and fine tuning the easier shots and I’ll be right up there.”

Likewise, the 22-year-old Rheaume saw that she can play at the highest levels of women’s golf. She has been playing on the second-tier Epson Tour this season, and sits 150th on its money list.

“You see that you’re pretty close,” said Rheaume about her second-ever appearance in an LPGA Tour event. “Once you’re at the Epson Tour level the difference to step up to the LPGA isn’t that big.”

“It’s a good confidence booster, because you see, you can really compete out here.”

Rheaume had a 2-over 74 round on Friday to finish the tournament at 7-over par. The projected cutline was set at 2 over.

Thibault is from Rosemere, Que., and Rheaume is a native of Quebec City. As the only two Quebecois players in the field they were proud to represent la Belle Province.

“I’ve seen a lot of Quebecois out here,” said Thibault of the large galleries at Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club. “It’s been nice to just feel the support and the warmth of them, just following you and cheering for you.”

Rheaume, who played two groups behind Thibault, also felt the love.

“It’s important to have some representation,” said Rheaume, who played in the CP Women’s Open in Ottawa last year. “We had four girls play (in 2022) and this year we only had two.”

“It’s very nice to represent Quebec and we’re really proud of our province and our country.”

This week on Road to the Tour, presented by Hilton, we focus on the Canadian Men’s Amateur event. This is an important event on the calendar for all amateur players in Canada, and something they prepare all summer for.

Rest and Relax like a Pro, start planning your next stay with Hilton today.

This week on Road to the Tour presented by Hilton, all eyes are on Johnny Travale as he takes his game to the next level. Tune in to see how Johnny has official turned professional, and what lead him to achieve this goal.

Rest and Relax like a Pro, start planning your next stay with Hilton today.

This week on Road to the Tour, presented by Hilton, the spotlight is placed on Team Canada coaches and the impact they have on players’ growth. These coaches are committed to the performance of Team Canada athletes and play a key part in the development of all players.

Rest and Relax like a Pro, start planning your next stay with Hilton today.

This week on Road to the Tour, presented by Hilton, we take you inside the Glencoe Invitational, located in Calgary. Originally established in 1992, the Glencoe Invitational has grown into a staple event for Golf Canada athletes.

Rest and Relax like a Pro, start planning your next stay with Hilton today.

This week on Road to the Tour, presented by Hilton, viewers will have the opportunity to learn more about Katie Cranston and Nicole Gal, Team Canada’s best friends on the path to pro golf.

Rest and Relax like a Pro, start planning your next stay with Hilton today.

This week on Road to the Tour, presented by Hilton, viewers are taken behind the scenes of the RBC Canadian Open, where select Team Canada athletes have the opportunity to get a taste of competition at the highest level.

Rest and Relax like a Pro, start planning your next stay with Hilton today.