Canada Bread B.C. Match Play Final Results

36-HOLE FINALS Sunday, April 19th
NORTHVIEW RIDGE GOLF COURSESurrey, BC
6900 yards, Par 72

(Winning team listed first)
Mark Burke - Mewail Kidane (14)
2 up
Yves Bisson – Stu Dunaway (9)

Morning Match – 7:30am
This BC Match Play Finals pairing was relatively unexpected as both teams fought through some of the best Professional pairings on route to this Championship Final. Having watched a few of the earlier matches both these teams were deserving finalists having out-played their opponents with some excellent shot-making and countless birdies between them.

The morning 18 holes was no different for both teams and this match see-sawed back and forth with a flurry of birdies from both teams. It was Dunaway-Bisson (the amateur duo from Misson) who charged out of the gate early when Dunaway’s 8 iron finished 2-feet from the pin to go one-up after one. However, their lead was short-lived when they both made bogeys on the challenging 3rd hole on the Northview Ridge course. After halved holes on #4 & #5, the match took a swing the other way when Burke’s 9-iron to 5 feet was sunk for birdie to go 1-up through 6. Birdies on #7 & 8 by both teams and pars on #9 kept the match 1-up thru 9. When Kidane’s chip found the hole on #10 for his team’s 5th birdie in 7 holes, his team led 2-up through 10.

No sooner did this 2-up lead get squandered when Dunaway fired back-to-back birdies on 11 and 12 to go all square. A costly team bogey on #14 by Kidane - Burke and this match was back to 1-up Dunaway – Bisson. What a battle this 36-hole match would turn out to be as two holes later, Kidane drained yet another team birdie from 10 feet on the downhill 16th and return the match to all square. With his partner out of the hole on 17, Bisson made a clutch par to keep the match all square, then hit a super 3-hybrid approach to 20 feet for eagle from 200 yards over the water. Narrowly missing his eagle chance gave their team the only birdie on the hole after Kidane failed to get up-and down from behind the green and at the conclusion of the morning matches, Dunaway-Bisson held a 1-up lead.

Afternoon Match – 1:30pm
The complexion of the afternoon matches changed completely as both teams seemed to put on the defence and birdies did not come by nearly as frequently. Only to be expected when this was the first time both teams had reached the BC Match Play finals. It was Burke-Kidane who drew blood first in the afternoon with solid teams pars on holes 19 and 20 and when Dunaway and Bisson made team pars after missing some very makeable putts, the match swung once again to 1-up Burke-Kidane. More tentative play from both teams through the next few holes meant the match remained 1-up to the Professional team from Fraserview. On the par 5- 25th, Burke-Kidane extended their lead to 2-up when Kidane’s fairway wood got to the front of the green and he got up-and-down for the only birdie of the foursome. The downhill driveable 26th hole made for an exciting hole again as Burke turned it up a notch and smashed his driver from 290 yards to 15 feet from the hole. Bisson’s drive left him with a pitch from the front of the green which he hit to 6 feet. When Burke’s eagle putt slid down to within 2 inches his birdie was conceded and Bisson’s 6-footer now looked about 20 feet in size! When it failed to find the hole, Burke-Kidane led 3-up.

This match could have been all but over had it not been for Dunaway’s chip-in for par on the 27th hole and Burke and Kidane’s missed 5 footers for par. When it looked like it would be 4-up now turned the other way and with 9 holes to go, Dunaway and Bisson had a fighting chance! On the 30th hole of the day, and his partner in around 6 feet for birdie, Burke drained a 30 footer himself, putting the pressure directly on Dunaway with his own 12-footer. When it missed, Burke-Kidane once again led 3-up and only 6 to play.

With holes winding down and the pressure heating up, Dunaway clutched up on the 31st with a birdie from 8 feet to bring this match back to 2-down with 5 to go. Momentum shifted even more when Burke’s drive found the water on the 32nd hole and his partner’s ball kicked off the greenside bank into the pond as well. Dunaway lagged his 20 footer for a tap-in par and this match was getting tight. Burke-Kidane 1-up with 4 to go. Some missed opportunities for birdies from both teams on the 33rd and 34th holes meant a 1-up match coming down 17 – a great par 4, second shot over bunkers and water to this tucked pin. After all approaches were made, it was down to Bisson and Burke’s putting to decide the fate of this match – All square, 1-up or end of match. Bisson had the first crack from 20 feet – the identical putt he had in the morning match. His putt looked great right up until it jumped off line at the last second and it was now Burke’s turn to seal the fate of this match if his birdie found the hole. He stepped up from 18 feet and stroked it with enough speed, but just under-read the putt and this match was going the stretch!

An errant tee-shot from Bisson on the last and a bunker shot that failed to exit, and the match rested squarely on the shoulders of his partner to win the hole to go extra holes. Burke laid his up down the left side of this par-5 hole for his 3rd shot from 90 yards out. Dunaway was next from 230 yards out and this had to find the green or game over! Although the shot looked good in the air, Dunaway’s bid to take this extra holes fell a few feet short and splashed in the water. Kidane’s fairway wood from 225 landed safely on the island green to within 25 feet and Dunaway made one last attempt to hole-out from 150 yards (which he nearly did!), but when his ball missed, the match was conceded by Dunaway and Bisson and Mark Burke and Mewail Kidane were crowned 2009 BC Match Play Champions 2-up!!!

Reported by Fraser Mulholland and Brian Small

Congratulations to both teams for making it to the finals of this prestigious event and creating such great drama in this match. Special thanks must go out to all the fabulous golf courses that played host to the 2009 CANADA BREAD BC MATCH PLAY this year. Without your support, this event would not have such a great history of 60 + years!

Thanks very much to our Title Sponsor CANADA BREAD for their tremendous support of this great event and to all our staff and volunteers who assisted in refereeing or scoring all the matches through the tournament. It really does give an exciting start to the golf season in Vancouver!!

Congratulations once again to our 2009 Champions Mark Burke and Mewail Kidane of Fraserview Golf Course!!