PGA Scramble Moves Forward with Alternative Finale Plans
The RBC PGA Scramble presented by The Lincoln Motor Company announced today the cancellation of its national final, originally scheduled from Oct. 4-6 at Cabot Cape Breton in Inverness, N.S.
The decision comes as a result of ongoing travel restrictions associated with the Atlantic bubble, the recent extension of Nova Scotia’s state of emergency and continued health concerns surrounding COVID-19 across the country.
The program announced its backup plans in June, committing to a decision on the national final’s fate prior to the start of regionals.
“The safety and well-being of everyone involved in the program continues to be our top priority,” said Mary DePaoli, Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer, RBC. “In conjunction with our partners, we have made the decision to move forward with our alternative plans given the information available at this time. While we share in the disappointment of players, we are pleased to proceed with an enhanced and unique regional experience for all participants.”
As a result of the cancellation, the RBC PGA Scramble presented by The Lincoln Motor Company will move forward with enhanced regional events featuring over $150,000 CAD worth of gifting and prizing including a draw prize for two nights’ accommodation and two rounds of golf at Cabot Cape Breton for one lucky team.
Players today put on a show resulting in some fantastic scores at Northern Bear GC for the annual Pro-Pro Best Ball sponsored by longtime partner G&G Golf Company.
Shooting a remarkable 10-under 62 in the team best ball format, our champions in the Overall Division this year are Jacob Manz and Mitchell Fox of Speargrass GC. The team made a statement early going 7-under after the first seven holes to quickly move to the top of the leaderboard. They continued their solid play for the rest of the round adding 3 more birdies and playing bogey free golf to win by 2 strokes over the defending champions. With the win, Mitchell Fox adds another trophy to his mantle after winning a 1-day event at the Edmonton Garrison Memorial G&CC earlier this month.
Winners of the Ladies’ Division this year was the team of Marsha Rogers (Derrick G&WC) & Shannon Werbicki (Royal Mayfair GC) after shooting a stellar 1-over 73 to easily win by 4 strokes over their nearest competitors (picture below).
Falling just short of going back-to-back at the Pro-Pro Best Ball was the team of Spencer (Edmonton Petroleum G&CC) and Nick Vandermey (Windermere G&CC). The team ended up in second place after their solid play on the course which included 9 birdies to finish at 8-under 64.
In a 4-way tie for third place finishing at 7-under 65 for the round was the teams of Kurtis Foote and Richard Stringer (Country Hills GC), Kent Fukushima (Redwood Meadows G&CC) and Dustin Risdon (Dustin Risdon School of Golf), Cullen Wanvig (The Winston GC) and Riley Fleming (Lynx Ridge GC), & Randy Robb (Edge Golf Academy) and Scott Stiles (Earl Grey GC).
Thank you to our host venue Northern Bear GC for an excellent event and making everyone feel welcome. We will see players next at Jasper Park Lodge GC for the annual Pro-Assistant.
PGA of Alberta Celebrates its 30th Annual Junior Masters Event
The PGA of Alberta Junior Masters sponsored by Sundog Eyewear & TourTee is a 36-Hole invitational Junior Golf event organized each year by the Professional Golfers’ Association of Alberta. Celebrating its 30th year in 2020, this event was initiated to provide elite level competition to a limited field of Alberta’s top junior golfers.
This year we have 57 of the top Junior Boys and Girls in the province with a highly competitive golf background competing at Wolf Creek GR in Ponoka next week on September 2nd & 3rd. The Girls Division Champion from 2019, Grace Bell (Glencoe G&CC), will be back to defend her title while the Boys Division will crown a new Champion this year!
G&G Golf Company Pro-Pro Best Ball - Northern Bear GC
The draw for the annual G&G Golf Company Pro-Pro Best Ball is now available. The event will see 54 teams of Professionals head to the Jack Nicklaus Signature Course Northern Bear GC in Sherwood Park on Monday, August 31st. Tee times will begin at 8am.
For the third year in a row, the Pro-Pro Best Ball will see a Ladies’ Division for the event. Female Professional teams will compete for a separate purse from the main field.
Today saw the last Pro-Am of the season hosted at the immaculate & superbly conditioned Mill Woods GC and sponsored by EFW Radiology, Dexim Golfwear, Pixel Army & Nespresso Professional & was hugely successful. The course was in outstanding shape and all the teams had an incredible experience.
This year saw the event switch to a Team Net Stableford scoring format which added a fun new dimension to the competition. The point allocation in this format is 4 points for Eagle, 3 points for Birdie, 2 points for Par & 1 point for Bogey.
Our Champions today were the team of Dustin Risdon (Dustin Risdon School of Golf) & his partner Wendy Ellacott who both fired scorching rounds to finish with 48 team points to win by 1! Dustin managed to knock in an incredible 9 birdies and Wendy chipped in with 3 timely net birdies herself.
In sole possession of second was the husband and wife team of Dale (The Winston GC) & Jaclyn Tomlinson who accumulated a superb 47 points today.
Finishing in third through retrogression at 42 points was the team of Scott Borsa (Devon G&CC) & Deb Wood. Also finishing with 42 points was the team of Marsha Rogers (The Derrick G&WC) & Carla Duncan.
Rounding out the Top-Five in fifth place through retrogression was the team of Joseph Busetto (Glendale G&CC) & Shaylin Sharpe at 41 points. Also finishing with 41 points was the team of Jacob Cartier (Sturgeon Valley G&CC) & Linda Mitchell.
The fourth Play Ability Test of the season hosted at Lacombe G&CC on August 26th saw 7 players pass and receive their Apprentice Professional status with the PGA of Canada! All players shot the target score or better (79 for men & 81 for women (49 & under)) in the hot conditions today to successfully pass. Congratulations to the following:
Today saw the last Golf Supply House event of the season which was hosted at the picturesque Lacombe G&CC. The competitors enjoyed a course in mint condition and some beautiful summer weather today which helped produce some great rounds.
Our Champion today is none other than Wes Heffernan (Dynamic Motion Golf Performance Centre) who carded an excellent 6-under par 65 with 2 eagles and 5 birdies on the scorecard today. With the win, Wes is our official overall Order of Merit Champion for the 2020 season!
In a two-way tie for second was Dustin Risdon (Dustin Risdon School of Golf) and hometown favourite Jamie Gerlitz (Picture Butte GC) who both carded great 5-under par 66’s today. Jamie started the day off on fire going eagle-eagle to start but was unable to keep the pedal to the floor and maintain his torrid pace.
In sole possession of fourth was Scott Stiles (Earl Grey GC) who carded a stellar 4-under par 67. Rounding out our top 5 today and all carding 2-under par 69’s was Host Professional Weston Gillett, Keith Whitecotton (The Quarry), Kent Fukushima (Redwood Meadows G&CC) & our other hometown favourite Todd Halpen (Golfuture).
Congratulations to all our Skins winners today who each take home $126 per skin! Chris Ward (Edmonton Petroleum G&CC) who won two skins today on #5 and #10. Wes Heffernan who won two skins today on #9 and #16. Jamie Gerlitz on #2 and Cullen Wanvig (Winston GC) on #13.
Thank you to our Sponsor Golf Supply House and our host course of Lacombe G&CC for helping put on another successful event!
The draw is now available for the fourth Play Ability Test of the season hosted at Lacombe G&CC in central Alberta on Wednesday, August 26th. Tee times begin at 12:20pm. Good luck to the 25 players going for their Apprentice Professional status with the PGA of Canada!
Winners of the last three Pro-Lady North events Dallas Cantera and partner Dani Perl from Cardiff G&CC have joined forces once again looking to make it four-in-a-row!
This year players will compete in the new Team Net Stableford format to determine the victors. Tee times will begin at 9am.
GSH Series Draw @ Lacombe G&CC - Final GSH Event of the Season!
The draw for the fifth and final Golf Supply House Series of the season is now posted. Players will head to central Alberta at Lacombe G&CC next week on Wednesday, August 26th to compete for the final GSH Series trophy of 2020. Tee times will begin at 10am.
The winner of the event will receive 20 Order of Merit points. After the event is concluded, we will have our official Order of Merit Champion for the 2020 season!
Today at round two of the PGA of Alberta Championship sponsored byClub Car, TaylorMade Golf & adidas golfand hosted at the tranquil & serene River Bend G&RA saw a continuation of the heat & stellar playing conditions for our competitors. The competitors continued with posting some stellar rounds’ on the course today which made for an extremely exciting and can’t-look-away day of watching the leaderboard & the players coming in on the 18th.
Our Champion this year is none other than Riley Fleming of Lynx Ridge GC who carded an absolutely scorching round of 7-under par 65 to take back the hardware from Wes Heffernan (Dynamic Motion Golf Performance Centre) after relinquishing the title last year. Riley played almost blemish free golf today and throughout the Championship with only one bogey in total and managed to pour in an unbelievable 8 birdies to win the Championship by 2 strokes. Riley finished the Championship with a two day total of 11-under and overall two-day score of 133.
Three other competitors finished tied for 2nd place today and were neck in neck with Riley throughout the day. Dustin Risdon (Dustin Risdon School of Golf), Jeremy Maher (Modern Golf) & last year’s Champion Wes Heffernan all carded stellar 9-under par two day totals and overall score of 135.
Rounding out our top 5 was Scott Stiles (Earl Grey GC) who carded an awesome 6-under par 66 today and finished with an overall two-day score of 136 (8-under). In sole possession of 6th was Todd Halpen (Golfuture) who played an incredible front-9 today carding a 6-under 30 but was unable to maintain his torrid pace on the back-9. Todd still carded a 66 and finished with an overall two-day score of 137 (7-under).
In a two-way tie for 7th was Adam Bruce (Glendale G&CC) & Mike Belbin (Royal Mayfair GC) who both had two solid rounds respectively to finish at 6-under par and with two-day totals of 138. Rounding out our Top 10 today and continuing the strong showing for their facility was Josh Fleming and Tyler LeBouthillier from GOLFTEC Calgary Beacon Heights who both finished the Championship at 5-under par 139.
Congratulations to our Day 2 skins winners who each won $600.00/person. Host Professional Phil McCluskey on hole #4, Sam Kirkness on #8 and Todd Halpen on #9. Big thank you to our Sponsors and host venue for helping us put on another successful Championship!
Four’s Company at the Top of the PGA of Alberta Championship Leaderboard
Today at the PGA of Alberta Championship sponsored by Club Car, TaylorMade Golf & adidas golf and hosted at the sprawling & beautiful River Bend G&RA saw some of the hottest but excellent playing conditions to date for our competitors to compete in this summer. With a packed field of 90 Professionals, the course saw some serious action and a significant number of low rounds which made for an exciting day on the course and watching on the leaderboard.
Four players managed to separate themselves from the loaded field today albeit by 1-stroke to sit in a 4-way tie for first! Carding scorching 5-under par 67’s today was former champion (2015 & 2016) Dustin Risdon (Dustin Risdon School of Golf), 2nd year Professional Jaxon Lynn (Alberta Springs GR), Jeremy Maher (Modern Golf) & former champion (2012) Tyler LeBouthillier (GOLFTEC Calgary Beacon Heights). Our final group tomorrow consists of Risdon, Lynn & LeBouthillier who will be teeing off at 12:20pm. Maher will be in the 12:10pm grouping and will have the opportunity to watch his competitors come in and try to match him.
We have a jammed packed and star studded leaderboard right behind our leaders with six other players carding superb 4-under par 68’s today. This group consists of former champion (2017) Adam Bruce (Glendale G&CC), Josh Fleming (GOLFTEC Calgary Beacon Heights) continuing the strong showing by his facility, former champion (2014) Mike Belbin (Royal Mayfair GC), Stefan Cox (Calgary G&CC) who is looking for his first championship victory, former champion (2018) Riley Fleming (Lynx Ridge GC) and last but not least, our defending Champion Wes Heffernan (Dynamic Motion Golf Performance Centre)!
We have six other competitors who carded stellar under-par rounds today and are nipping at our leaders & the pack right behind them. Three of the six carded 2-under par 70’s and this group consists of Jeff Cuthbertson (Stony Plain GC), Markus Clift (Coloniale GC) with a solid showing in his first season with the PGA of Alberta & Scott Stiles (Earl Grey GC) who has two victories this season already. The remaining three competitors at 1-under par 71’s respectively were David MacComb (Blackhawk GC), Gary Hartford (Highlands GC) & Todd Halpen (Golfuture).
Special congratulations to our two skins winners today Tyler LeBouthillier (hole #3) and Jerome Thorne Jr. (hole #8), each winning $900.
First tee time is at 7:30am sharp tomorrow! Be sure to follow the action tomorrow on our live leaderboard here >https://bit.ly/3g2kUcT
Association News
PGA of Alberta Championship Draw - River Bend G&RA
It’s that time of year again! The draw is now available for the first round of the PGA of Alberta Championship major sponsored by long-time partners TaylorMade - Club Car - adidas Golf.
Players will head to River Bend G&RA in Red Deer next week on August 17th & 18th to compete in the two-day stroke play major. The Championship this year will see a talented field of 91 players battling for the chance to bring home the title and claim their spot in the history books! Tee times for both rounds will begin at 7:30am.
Last year’s Champion Wes Heffernan (Dynamic Motion Golf Performance Centre) is back to defend the title and will be looking for his second win this season after taking home the GSH Series trophy at The Winston GC at the end of June.
Winner of the Championship will be awarded 50 Order of Merit points. Click here to view the current standings. Wes currently sits in first place with 95 points, a two point lead over Dustin Risdon (Dustin Risdon School of Golf) who is also playing in the Championship. More information on the event will be released shortly.
The PGA of Alberta has added a new Play Ability Test (PAT) to the schedule this season to give applicants going for their Professional status one additional opportunity if needed.
The new and final PAT will be hosted at Valley Ridge GC in Calgary on Monday, September 14th. Start time will be approximately 3:30pm.
The next PAT will be hosted at Lacombe G&CC on Wednesday, August 26th. Please pass this information on to anyone at your facility interested in becoming a member of the PGA of Alberta.
Today’s Pro-Senior was hosted at the serene Ranch G&CC and was sponsored by Golf Trends Inc. / Golf Pride. The course was in mint shape throughout the day for our competitors, we saw some blustery wind conditions which picked up for the later groups but overall, it was an excellent event!
This year saw the event switch to a Team Net Stableford scoring format which added an exciting new dimension to the competition. The point allocation in this format is 5 points for Double-Eagle, 4 points for Eagle, 3 points for Birdie, 2 points for Par & 1 point for Bogey.
Our Champions today hail from The Quarry and were comprised of Keith Whitecotton and Brian Samletzki who both fired excellent rounds to finish with 46 team points to win by 1!
Finishing in a close Second was the team of Michael McEachern & Norman Sigalet of Country Hills GC who both carded great rounds and finished at 45 team points. Finishing tied for Third at 44 team points was the team of Spencer Vandermey & Ted Asai from Edmonton Petroleum G&CC and Scott Borsa & Greg Wilkins from Devon G&CC.
Rounding out the top five in a three-way tie for Fifth were the teams of Kyle & Bruce Wade (PGA of Alberta Member), Todd Halpen & Keith Newton of Golfuture and Blaine Kruger & Doug Anderson of Northern Bear GC who all finished with 43 team points respectively.
Special thanks to our host course of The Ranch G&CC for putting on a stellar event and to our sponsor Golf Trends Inc / Golf Pride for helping make it a success!
Golf Canada and the Golf Canada Foundation have joined together to launch theCOVID-19 GOLF RELIEF FUND, to support golf courses in helping employees and golfers stay safe while also thanking front-line workers through encouraging additional play and welcoming juniors to further experience the game.
During the pandemic, golf has experienced a booming resurgence, emerging as one of the safest recreational activities for Canadians to enjoy and highlighting the physical and mental benefits that the sport provides.
Developed in consultation with key stakeholders, theRELIEF FUNDwill focus on two primary areas:
SAFETY: To help maintain the momentum of golf, theRELIEF FUNDwill subsidize non-medical PPE (personal protective equipment) for golf course employees, as well as sanitization, hygiene, and protective material expenses.
FUN: To thank front-line workers and help juniors increase social interactions and outdoor activity during the pandemic, theRELIEF FUND will subsidize rounds for both groups to enjoy playing golf.
“We find ourselves in a very surprising but special moment for golf and we wanted to show appreciation to the courses providing a safe golf experience and to all Canadians who are coming out and playing. We also wanted to thank our incredible front-line workers who are leading us through unprecedented adversity,” said Golf Canada CEO Laurence Applebaum. “We are sensitive to the ongoing pandemic and amongst the crushing impact, golf has been a bright spot. This has also been a difficult year for so many kids who have had their summers disrupted and we wanted to support our member clubs in providing youth a healthy outlet through golf.”
Golf Canada member clubs who apply for theRELIEF FUNDwill be eligible for subsidies up to a maximum of $1,000 per club, with applications opening on August 12 on a first-come, first-served basis.
We are saddened to announce the recent passing of PGA of Alberta Member Anthony (Tony) Griffi. Tony joined the PGA of Canada in 1988 and in 2019 reached his 25-Year milestone as a Class A Member. He was most recently the Head Golf Professional at Gilwood GC in Slave Lake, Alberta and before that was the Head Professional at Trestle Creek GR. He passed away at the age of 53.
Tony’s lifelong affair with golf began when he was 10 years old, in his hometown of Stratford, Ontario. As soon as he could, he went into an apprenticeship to be a Golf Professional, at the Stratford Country Club. He also attended University, studying electrical engineering, but didn’t like it and decided to drop it in favour of the Golf Pro option. He made the move out west to Alberta with his wife in 2014.
The draw is now available for the PGA of Alberta Pro-Senior presented by Golf Trends Inc. / Golf Pride and hosted at The Ranch G&CC located just outside of Edmonton.
This years event will see 46 teams of Professionals paired with a senior amateur (aged 50 & over) competing in the new Team Net Stableford format to determine the victors. Tee times begin bright and early on Monday, August 10th at 7:30am.
The third Play Ability Test of the season hosted at The Winston GC in Calgary on August 6th saw 11 players pass and receive their Apprentice Professional status with the PGA of Canada! All players shot the target score or better (79 for men & 85 for women) in the hot conditions today to successfully pass. Congratulations to the following:
Glencoe Takes Home the Pro-Junior Title at Sundre GC
Today’s Pro-Junior hosted at the idyllic Sundre GC and sponsored by Impact Canopy Canada & AHEAD Canadawas a resounding success. The course was in outstanding shape throughout the day and saw a continuation of the hot summer heat.
This year saw the event switch to a Team Net Stableford scoring format which added a little spice to the competition. The point allocation in this format is 4 points for Eagle, 3 points for Birdie, 2 points for Par & 1 point for Bogey.
Our Champions today hail from the Glencoe G&CC Teaching Centre and was comprised of Luke Workman & Annabelle Ackroyd who both fired scorching rounds to finish with 44 team points to win by 1!
Finishing in a tie for second at 43 points was the teams of Nick Vandermey & Cole Ruelling from Windermere G&CC and Corey Beaver & Karson Ong-Padilla from our host venue of Sundre GC.
Rounding out the top five in a tie for fourth was the teams of Stefan Cox & Hunter Thomson from Calgary G&CC and Dustin Risdon & Ryder Shields from Dustin Risdon School of Golf who both finished with 42 team points.
Special thanks to our host course of Sundre GC for putting on another top-notch event and to our sponsors Impact Canopy Canada & AHEAD Canada.
Mitchell Fox of Speargrass GC captured his first ever PGA of Alberta event shooting a 2-under 70 at the Golf Supply House Series today! Fox started out slow with a 38 on the front nine of a very challenging Edmonton Garrison Memorial G&CC, but turned it around quickly after getting birdies on 4 of the next 6 holes to propel him to the top of the leaderboard.
Jeremy Lavallee (Northern Bear GC) narrowly missed his birdie putt on the final hole to force a playoff with Fox after making a clutch eagle on #17 par 5. Lavallee finished alone in second at 1-under 71. Weston Gillett (Lacombe G&CC), Shaun Piercey (The Ranch G&CC), Shawn Proulx (River Ridge G&CC), Dustin Ranger (Edmonton Petroleum G&CC) and Dustin Risdon (Dustin Risdon School of Golf) all tied for third place with even par 72’s.
