Sunday, April 25, 2010

Vancouver Sun/Province Golf Guide

In case you missed it this week the Vancouver Sun & Province released their annual golf guide. Click below to view the guide!

Thursday, April 22, 2010

Canadian PGA Announces Cleveland Golf/Srixon Canada as the Presenting Sponsor of the Mr. Lube - Canadian PGA Seniors’ Championship

(Acton, ON) – The Canadian PGA continues to add excitement to the prestigious Mr. Lube - Canadian PGA Seniors’ Championship announcing today that Cleveland Golf/Srixon Canada has been named the presenting sponsor of the event that will take place on July 5-8 at RattleSnake Point Golf Club in Milton, ON.


“The Canadian PGA is excited to welcome Cleveland Golf/Srixon Canada as the presenting sponsor of this great event,” stated Glenn Cundari, President of the Canadian PGA. “Cleveland Golf/Srixon Canada continues to strengthen its’ brand across the country and we are pleased to align ourselves with them for this National Championship.”

As part of the agreement Cleveland Golf/Srixon Canada will provide all the gifting in their category for the Mr. Lube – Tournament for Life Pro-Am that will kick off the Canadian PGA Seniors’ Championship.

“We are very excited to become a partner in this event as it is a fantastic fit for us,” said Dan Dodman, President of Cleveland Golf/Srixon Canada. “We’ve been a proud supporter of the Canadian PGA and its’ Members for many years and we know that the guests and clients of Mr. Lube will be thrilled with our product and gifting that they will receive.”

In 2009, Cleveland Golf/Srixon staff player Ray Stewart of Abbotsford, BC fired a final round 68 to finish the 54-hole championship at a ten-under-par total of 206 to beat Ken Tarling of Sandford, ON and Norm Jarvis of Surrey, BC by two shots.

One of the greatest fields in Canadian PGA Seniors’ history is expected for 2010 and player announcements will be made in the weeks leading up to the event.

The Canadian PGA Seniors Championship was first played in 1938 as a division of the Canadian PGA Championship. In 1973, the Seniors’ Championship became an independent event and has stayed that way ever since. Among the Canadian golf legends to win this championship are Stan Leonard, Moe Norman, Bob Panasik and Al Balding. Norman won this championship a record seven straight years from 1979 to 1985 while Balding stunned the golf world by winning the championship at age 76 in 2000.

About the Canadian PGA:

Established in 1911 and the second oldest professional golf association in the world, the Canadian Professional Golfers' Association is a non-profit Association comprised of 3,600 golf professionals across the country. The Association’s mandate is to develop, promote and support our Members as experts in the game and business of golf and, in so doing, serve both its Members’ needs and those of the golfing public through the Association’s varied programs and events.

The Association consists of the National Office located in Acton, Ontario and nine Zone Offices across the country. For more information please visit http://www.cpga.com/.

About Cleveland Golf/Srixon Canada:

Cleveland® Golf, Srixon®, Never Compromise® and Cleveland Classics™ apparel are brands owned by SRI Sports Limited. With corporate headquarters based in Kobe, Japan, SRI Sports is the fourth largest golf company in the world, as well as one of the world’s leading patent holders in golf ball technology. For more information, please visit us online at http://www.clevelandgolf.com/, http://www.srixon.com/, http://www.nevercompromise.com/ and http://www.clevelandclassicsapparel.com/

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Vancouver Golf Tour Kings Links Open in Review

MARKETPLACE IGA - VANCOUVER GOLF TOUR

2010 KINGS LINKS OPEN

Monday, April 19th
Kings Links by the Sea GC
Boundary Bay, BC
6,865 yards Par 72

‘SHIN AND BERNAKEVITCH SHARE THE CROWN’

VGT Professionals John Shin and Lindsay Bernakevitch prevailed at the 2010 VGT Kings Links Open today, both shooting rounds of 4-under par 68 for a shared victory at Vancouver Golf Tour’s fourth event of the year. Both Shin and Bernakevitch took home $1,025 each for their win and moved to 3rd place and 7th place respectively in the 2010 CLEVELAND GOLF/ SRIXON CANADA Order of Merit. Seymour Creek’s Bryn Parry was one shot back in a four way tie for 3rd, maintaining a solid lead in the Race for the $5,000 PGA Q-School Entry with 3,550 points.

Heading up the Championship Amateur field was 26-year old Marine Drive Member Geoff Butt with a fine score of 3-under par 69 and a one shot victory over Northview’s Derek Wray. Butt took home a Cleveland Launcher 3-wood and a $100 Marketplace IGA Gift Card for his victory.

Butt has been working hard on his game of late, attempting to acquire his Canadian Tour card last fall in Toronto and this spring in California. He has plans to make a 3rd visit to the Canadian Tour Q-school later in May at Morningstar Golf Club and with today’s amateur victory, he will no doubt take a more confidence going forward. Butt plans to stay local and sharpen his game in a few more VGT events this spring against some of BC’s top Amateurs and Professionals. Derek Wray’s 2nd place finish vaults him within 400 points of the Amateur Order of Merit Leader Adam Cornelson of Vancouver Golf Club.

The Amateur Flight A Title was won by Seong-Jin Min of Burnaby with a score of 75 and a one shot victory over Jesse Forster. Min won a Cleveland Golf carry bag and $100 Gift Card to Marketplace IGA. In Flight B action, Dave Woodsford of Greenacres Golf Club shot a gross score of 79 to win by won shot over 16 year-old North Vancouver golfer Aaron Tham. Woodsford also took home a Cleveland Bag and $100 gift card for Marketplace IGA.

Please find a copy of the Official Prize Results here http://www.vancouvergolftour.com/

Monday, April 19, 2010

2010 Canada Bread BC Match Play Final Results

2010 CANADA BREAD

BC MATCH PLAY FINALS

36 Hole Match Results
Sunday, April 18th

Northview Golf Club
(seedings in brackets)
Winning Team Listed First

Dave Zibrik/ Kevin Hogg (19)
9 & 8
Mark Burke/Mewail Kidane (1)

Congratulations to 2010 CANADA BREAD BC MATCH PLAY CHAMPIONS DAVE ZIBRIK and KEVIN HOGG for their fine play at today’s 36 Hole Finals at Northview’s Ridge Course. Westwood Plateau Academy’s New Head Professional (Zibrik) and Swan-e-set Amateur (Hogg) were too strong a force for the Defending Champions Mark Burke/Mewail Kidane of the Golf Institute at Fraserview, blazing a total of 12 birdies and one eagle on their card over the duration of the match (28 holes).

Hogg and Zibrik fed off each other nicely the whole day, first Hogg setting the tone with a 9 iron on the 1st hole to 4 inches for the tap-in birdie. An unforced bogey on #3 from Burke/Kidane and a routine up-and-down to 2 feet for bird on #4 and Zibrik/Hogg took a 3-up lead early in this match. A win from Burke/Kidane on the par-3 fifth put the match back to 2-up, but only momentarily. Zibrik/Hogg’s steady team play continued on the par 4 sixth, with partner Hogg in for a solid par, Zibrik knocked down his 8 foot birdie for another win to go back to 3-up after six. Back-to-back birdies on #7 (Kidane) & #8 (Burke) kept the defending champions in the match thru the turn as both teams took par on the 9th to keep the match 1 up Zibrik/Hogg at the turn.

The start of the back nine went much the same as the front with Hogg making the first charge with a 20 footer for birdie on #10 and then stiffing his tee-shot on #11 to 8 feet over the water, ultimately free-ing up Zibrik on his tee-shot, which he stuck to 4 feet and made yet another birdie. Burke had his own 7 footer to make the half, but failed to capitalize and the match was back to 3-up thru 11. With Zibrik’s putter the only one to catch fire from 15 feet on #12, the match became 4 up thru as many holes. And after two consecutive halves on holes 14 and 15, Zibrik nailed another iron shot to 8 feet on the downhill 16th and capitalized for the team’s 7th birdie on the day to go 5-up through 16.

After Burke and Kidane failed to get their pitches up and down for par on the 17th, Zibrik/Hogg took an even bigger lead in this match to 6-up through 17. Birdies on 18 from both Zibrik and Burk kept the match at 6-up thru 18 holes.

After the lunchtime break, the players convened for the second half of the match. And it didn’t take long for Zibrik and Hogg to show that they were not interested in relinquishing their lead whatsoever. First it was Zibrik who drained a 12 footer for his birdie to halve the hole after Burke followed him in for birdie from 7 feet. Then it was his partner who took the turn on the next hole, chipping in for birdie from 20 feet to extend the match to 7 up through 20 holes.

With a lengthy birdie on the 21st from Burke it looked like for a moment there might be a glimmer of a comeback in the making, but only one hole later it was Zibrik back to his tricks on the putting green, holing yet another 12 footer for birdie to solidify their lead to 7-up thru 22.

Some great up and downs were made on hole 23 for pars by Zibrik and Kidane and some even greater second shots on the 24th hole by Zibrik and Burke left some 6-8 feet for birdie, which both failed to capitalize on and halves were made. More fine drives and second shots on the par 5- 25th hole left Zibrik and Burke sitting 15 feet and 10 feet for eagle. Although both players missed their eagles, they did tap-in for their birdies, and the match remained 7-up Hogg/Zibrik thru 25.

As outstanding as Zibrik played the first 25 holes of the finals, the icing on this match came from his amateur partner Kevin Hogg when he eagled the short par-4 26th from 5 feet and ultimately sealing the fait of the match with his 15 footer for birdie on the 28th hole to close the match 9 and 8.

At the end of the day, the team of Zibrik and Hogg had too much fire-power for the 2009 BC Match Play Champions, something they had showcased to past opponents through the course of the match play draw. In their last four matches alone, Zibrik/Hogg amassed an amazing better-ball score of -41 and showed to everyone in the field that they were truly deserved Champions! For their victory, Zibrik cashed a $1,800 winner’s cheque and Hogg received a $1,000 gift card. Runners-up Burke and Kidane received $1,000 each for their fine play for reaching the finals. To see the detailed match play results, please click here: http://www.vancouvergolftour.com/index.html 

At the conclusion of the event, VGT Commissioner Fraser Mulholland paid tribute to some very important partners in the co-ordination of the 2010 BC Match Play event:

BC MATCH PLAY TITLE SPONSOR – CANADA BREAD. Special thanks to Roger Antoniazzi for his continued support of this event the past three years!

VGT’S TITLE SPONSOR – MARKETPLACE IGA. Thanks for supporting BC Golf Development for the fourth straight year!

BC MATCH PLAY VOLUNTEERS: Thanks to all of you who helped us organize and make this event a special tournament for the competitors who start their year with this as their first ‘MAJOR’ of the year.

ALL HOST GOLF COURSES – Special thanks to all the golf courses on our 2010 BC Match Play rotation. Once again, without your support, this 65 year storied event would not continue to live on each year!

VGT TEAM MEMBERS – Thanks for all your devoted work throughout this event and all the VGT events that were jammed in between the weekend matches. Great work team!!

We look forward to hosting the 2011 BC MATCH PLAY event for all competitors and would like to wish our 2010 Champions good luck in defending their title next year!!!
Fraser Mulholland
Commissioner
VGT

Sunday, April 18, 2010

Canadian PGA Announces Mr. Lube Canada as Title Sponsor of the Canadian PGA Seniors' Championship

Acton, ON – The Canadian PGA announced a new national partnership today with Mr. Lube Canada, Canada’s leading auto maintenance provider. As a result of this partnership, they have officially welcomed Mr. Lube Canada as the title sponsor of the prestigious Canadian PGA Seniors’ Championship.

“The Canadian PGA Seniors’ Championship is a fantastic event and one of our most competitive fields every year,” stated Gary Bernard, Executive Director of the Canadian PGA. “We are confident that the clients and guests of Mr. Lube Canada are going to enjoy every minute of this tournament with our professionals.”

The Mr. Lube Canadian PGA Seniors’ Championship will kick off with the Mr. Lube Tournament for Life for Pro-Am, an annual charity event in support of prostate cancer research. As a partner of both the Canadian PGA and Mr. Lube Canada, Prostate Cancer Canada helps to battle this disease by building awareness and generating funds for research.

“We are proud to be entering into two very important partnerships that will not only support the community, but also give back to a worthy cause, “ said Stuart Suls, President & Chief Operating Officer of Mr. Lube Canada. “Our goal is to ensure that this event is recognized as one of the greatest Pro-Am events in the country.”

Every group in the Mr. Lube Tournament for Life will be paired with a Canadian PGA Senior Professional. In addition to the ‘Legends of Golf Clinic’ and ‘Tournament for Life’ opening tee shot, a handful of Canada’s greatest senior players and Hall of Famers will entertain and educate guests prior to their round.

The Canadian PGA Seniors’ Championship will be held from July 5th to 8th at RattleSnake Point Golf Club on the Copperhead course in Milton, Ontario. Player announcements will be made in the weeks leading up to the Championship.

In 2009, Ray Stewart of Abbotsford, BC fired a final round 68 to finish the 54-hole championship at a ten-under-par total of 206 to beat Ken Tarling of Sandford, ON and Norm Jarvis of Surrey, BC by two shots.

About the Canadian PGA:
Established in 1911 and the second oldest professional golf association in the world, the Canadian Professional Golfers' Association is a non-profit Association comprised of 3,600 golf professionals across the country. The Association’s mandate is to develop, promote and support our Members as experts in the game and business of golf and, in so doing, serve both its Members’ needs and those of the golfing public through the Association’s varied programs and events. The Association consists of the National Office located in Acton, Ontario and nine Zone Offices across the country. For more information please visit http://www.cpga.com/

About Mr. Lube:
Mr. Lube Canada is Canada’s leading quick lube provider in the automotive routine maintenance category with 101 locations across Canada. Founded in 1976, Mr. Lube Canada has served over 34 million customers in its 34 year history. Headquartered in Delta, BC, the company also has a regional office in Mississauga, Ontario to support its national franchise network. For more information visit http://www.mrlube.com/

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Canada Heads to World Junior Golf Team Championship Zone Qualifier

Team Canada Developmental Team members Albin Choi, Corey Connors, Richard Jung and Adam Svensson will represent Canada

Oakville, Ont. (RCGA) –Top junior golfers from Canada, Mexico, Guatemala and the Domican Republic will gather at Club de Golf Chapultepec in Naucalpan, Mexico from April 14-16 to compete at the Zone Qualifier for the World Junior Golf Team Championship (WJGTC).

The four-player teams will compete over 54-holes with the top two teams advancing to the World Junior Golf Team Championship, which takes place this June at Chukyo Golf Club - Ishino Course outside of Toyota City in Japan.

This year’s Canadian contingent consists of Toronto’s Albin Choi and Richard Jung, as well as Listowel, Ont. native Corey Conners and Adam Svensson of Surrey, BC. All four players are members of the Canada’s Developmental golf team.

Henry Brunton, Canadian PGA master professional and men’s head coach for Team Canada will accompany the team.

Canada has been competing in the World Junior Golf Team Championship since its inception in 1992. Each year, more than 60 countries attempt to qualify for the event via regional qualifiers with only 14 teams earning the right to play in Japan.

Canada has showed well in the past earning seven top-10 finishes in the event’s 19 year history. There has only been two years (1992 and 2008) where Canada did not make it through regional qualifying.

Last year, Capilano Golf & Country Club in Vancouver, B.C. played host to the regional qualifier. Canada finished first at the qualifier and went on to a 12th place finish at the Toyota World Juniors.

For more information and daily results please visit www.cnij.net.

ABOUT THE RCGA NATIONAL TEAM PROGRAM

The RCGA National Team Program incorporates advanced coaching, sport science expertise, training camps and world-class competition. The RCGA allocates over $1 million of its resources annually to the National Team program, encompassing strength and conditioning, sports psychology, nutrition, biomechanics and technique development. Players who are selected to the National Amateur and National Developmental Teams represent Canada at six to 10 internationally-sanctioned golf competitions throughout the year. The intent of this comprehensive program is to aid Canada’s top up-and-coming amateur players in all areas of their development, helping Canada produce the best golfers in the world.

Team Canada, the pinnacle of the RCGA’s High Performance Program, provides access to world class resources including coaching, nutrition, sport science, mental management, equipment, elite competitive opportunities and builds on the support that team members have received in their development years from their family, member clubs, personal coaches, university programs and provincial golf associations.

The RCGA’s High Performance Program and Team Canada are proudly sponsored by RBC Dominion Securities, Titleist, Foot-Joy, Under Armour, and ClubLink.

For more information about Team Canada or to make a donation towards the development of Canada’s future golf stars, please visit www.rcga.org/teamcanada.

ABOUT THE ROYAL CANADIAN GOLF ASSOCIATION

The Royal Canadian Golf Association (RCGA) is the governing body of golf in Canada, representing 350,000 members at 1,600 clubs across the country. Recognized by Sport Canada as the National Sports Organization (NSO) for golf in this country, the RCGA’s mission is to grow participation in and passion for the sport while upholding the integrity and traditions of the game. The RCGA conducts programs and services to help shape the future of golf in Canada. High performance athlete development, CN Future Links, Canada’s national junior golf program, turfgrass and environmental research, the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame and Museum, Rules of Golf and amateur status, handicapping and course rating are only some of the initiatives the association leads for golf in Canada. In addition, the RCGA conducts Canada’s most prestigious golf championships. The RBC Canadian Open and CN Canadian Women’s Open attract the best professional golfers in the world, while regional junior and national amateur championships showcase the best in Canadian golf.

For further information on what the RCGA is doing to support golf in your community please visit http://www.rcga.org/.

Friday, April 16, 2010

2010 NICKEL HEATING Open Review

Ledgeview Golf & Country Club

Monday, April 12th

Tournament in Review
After losing to Chad McAdie in a playoff at last week’s VGT Sandpiper Classic, 23 year-old Seann Harlingten was determined to claim his first VGT Professional victory at the 2010 NICKEL HEATING OPEN. And on Monday, he did just that, shooting 67 and edging 38-year old veteran professional Bryn Parry of Seymour Creek by one shot. With his win, Harlingten won 1,500 valuable order of merit points to creep within 250 points of Bryn Parry in the CLEVELAND/SRIXON Order of Merit Race for the $5,000 paid entry to PGA Tour Qualifying School.

Harlingten’s winning score was also good enough to win $1,500 and capture his first Professional VGT title, it wasn’t quite good enough to capture the OVERALL CHAMPION TITLE of the 2010 NICKEL HEATING OPEN as 24 year old Amateur Adam Cornelson of Vancouver Golf Club stole the show, shooting an amazing score of 65. This was not Cornelson’s first time to the podium in a Vancouver Golf Tour event, as he captured Low Amateur honours at the 2009 Vancouver City Open. It was, however his first OVERALL victory against a strong field of 87 players including 30 VGT Professionals of which several were experienced Canadian Tour players.

Interviewed after the round, Cornelson agreed that to win against the Professionals in this field was a great accomplishment. “It’s a great feeling to beat the calibre of Professionals in today’s field. I’m going to take a lot of confidence away from this event into future VGT events and the remainder of my 2010 tournament schedule”. Cornelson set himself apart from his amateur competitors this week, winning by 7 shots over his next competitor Yves Bisson of Sandpiper Resort, who shot 72 for his second straight runner-up finish in the Championship Amateur Flight. With his win, Cornelson not only won a Cleveland Launcher Driver, but he also vaulted himself into top spot on the Cleveland/Srixon Championship Flight Order of Merit with 2,850 points, some 650 points ahead of Yves Bisson.

NICKEL HEATING & VENTILATION’S Steve Savage was on hand to play in the event and to award Cornelson his winner’s trophy after the round. “It’s great to be a part of the Vancouver Golf Tour again this year and help support our aspiring Professional and Amateur golfers in the Greater Vancouver region”. “I’m confident the tournament experiences VGT is providing for players like Adam will help prepare its players to become a winner on the PGA Tour someday real soon”.

In Flight A action, Northview’s Jim Zalusky took home Low Gross honours with a score of 82, collecting a Cleveland Launcher DST Hybrid and $100 Gift Card to Marketplace IGA. Zalusky moved himself into a tie for 5th on the Cleveland/Srixon Order of Merit with his victory. In flight B action, Port Coquitlam’s Murray Reed claimed the Low Gross prize of a Cleveland Bag and $100 Gift Card to Marketplace IGA with his winning score of 82. Coquitlam’s Rob Colquhoun remains in top spot in Flight B’s Order of Merit with 2,250 points.

Vancouver Golf Tour would like to thank our TITLE SPONSOR Steve Savage of NICKEL HEATING & VENTILATION who has been a Premier Sponsor of Vancouver Golf Tour since 2007. “NICKEL HEATING has been instrumental to the development of VGT since day one and we can’t thank Mr. Savage enough for continuing his support of the tour again this year” stated VGT Commissioner Fraser Mulholland. “NICKEL HEATING has elevated their sponsorship of VGT in 2010 to include a $2,500 “OUTSTANDING PLAYER AWARD”, once again stepping up their role in the development of golfers in our region. Official details of this award will be released shortly”.

VGT would also like to give special thanks to the Ledgeview Golf & Country Club for playing host to the NICKEL HEATING OPEN event for the 3rd straight year and for keeping their golf course in excellent shape for all of our Championship Players. Additional thanks to Director of Golf Jason Smith and his staff for their support throughout the event. Lastly, we need to give thanks to all of the hard-working VGT volunteers and team members who helped make this tournament a huge success. For full results of this event and 2010

CLEVELAND/SRIXON ORDER OF MERIT standings, click here: http://www.vancouvergolftour.com/2010/live_scoring.htm.

VGT looks forward to hosting its next two events – The 2010 KINGS LINKS OPEN on Monday, April 19th (8am shotgun start) and our first Amateur Only event of the season – The 2010 MTC NORTHVIEW OPEN on Sunday, April 25th (11am start). Registration for KINGS LINKS closes Wednesday at 6pm and we strongly suggest early registration for the MTC Northview Open as it SOLD OUT early in 2009!!!

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Cory Renfrew takes home Bobby Gaul Memorial Trophy

Renfrew is named UBC male athlete of the year

BC golfer, Cory Renfrew heard his named called for the second consecutive year, bringing home the prestigious Bobby Gaul Memorial Trophy as UBC's outstanding graduating male athlete after claiming the Bus Phillips Award (male athlete of the year) in 2009.

Winner of the 2009 Bus Phillips Award as UBC’s male athlete of the year, Renfrew capped off his four year T-Bird career in style last season with the individual title at the RCGA Championships as he led UBC to their second-straight Canadian crown. In three of his four years, he was UBC’s top finisher at the NAIA Championship and led the T-Birds to their first ever NAIA men’s golf title in 2008. He was twice named an NAIA All-American and in 2008 he earned a spot on the All-Nicklaus team as one of the top 20 collegiate golfers in North America.

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

CN Extends Title Sponsorship of CN Canadian Women’s Open Through 2013

North America’s Railroad to continue success story with Canada’s National Women’s Open Championship as well as CN Canadian Women’s Tour and CN Future Links

Oakville, Ont. – The Royal Canadian Golf Association (RCGA) is pleased to announce that CN will continue as title sponsor of the CN Canadian Women’s Open, as well as the CN Canadian Women’s Tour and CN Future Links. The extended three-year agreement will see CN continue its’ valued support of Canadian golf through 2013 with an additional two-year option through 2015.

"CN is delighted to announce that we will continue our title sponsorship of the CN Canadian Women’s Open, the CN Canadian Women’s Tour and CN Future Links," said CN President Claude Mongeau. "We at CN are very proud to be associated with the only LPGA tour stop in Canada - the CN Canadian Women's Open. Equally as important, our continued involvement with the event will provide a platform through the CN Miracle Match program to leave a lasting legacy at children’s hospitals in our event host communities. We are also committed to helping the RCGA ensure the future of the game of golf through our on-going support of the developmental CN Canadian Women's Tour as well as the CN Future Links program that helps junior golfers at the grass roots level learn to play and develop a passion for the game. Each of these tremendous properties is making an impact through golf in local communities across Canada.”

The partnership between CN and the RCGA dates back to an announcement made on October 29, 2005 that the inaugural CN Canadian Women’s Open would take place in 2006.

The CN Canadian Women’s Open, through the support of CN, has been elevated to become one of the premier tournaments in women’s professional golf. The $2.25 million (U.S.) purse for the 2010 CN Canadian Women’s Open to be held August 23-29 at St. Charles Country Club in Winnipeg will rank among the Top-5 purses on the LPGA Tour this season.

“CN represents the best in their business, so we’re thrilled to extend our relationship with a transportation company with such a rich history and bright future,” said LPGA Commissioner Michael Whan. “CN is the only railroad that crosses the continent east-west and north-south, serving the Atlantic, Pacific and Gulf coasts; the LPGA strives to satisfy its fans in the same fashion that CN clearly has done for its growing number of customers and partners. We thank both CN and RCGA for their long-time and on-going commitment to the LPGA, and we look forward not only to making our annual trip to Canada but also enhancing a relationship that extends well beyond the ropes into many facets of women’s golf development.”

The tremendously successful CN Miracle Match Program has continued to grow as the charitable component to Canada’s National Women’s Open Championship and further illustrate CN’s commitment as community champions. The program debuted in 2006 and to date has helped to raise just over $3.5 million for children’s hospitals in the host communities of the CN Canadian Women’s Open, including a record $1.6 million raised in 2009 for the Alberta Children’s Hospital in Calgary. More information about the program is available at http://www.cnmiraclematch.ca/.

“CN is playing a major role in supporting excellence in Canadian golf and we are thrilled to have them continue on as sponsor of the CN Canadian Women’s Open as well as the CN Canadian Women’s Tour and CN Future Links,” said Scott Simmons, RCGA Executive Director and CEO. “In addition to their commitment to raising money for children’s hospitals in the name of the event, they have elevated the status of the CN Canadian Women’s Open and women’s golf in this country, and are helping to support thousands of young golfers in communities across Canada. We are honoured to be continuing our partnership with CN and on behalf of the RCGA Board of Directors and staff, we thank them for continuing to invest in the future success of golf in Canada.”

ABOUT THE 2010 CN CANADIAN WOMEN’S OPEN
Stars of the LPGA Tour will challenge for the 2010 CN Canadian Women’s Open from August 23-29 at the St. Charles Country Club in Winnipeg. For more information about tickets, volunteer opportunities or corporate hospitality, please visit www.cncanadianwomensopen.com.

ABOUT THE CN CANADIAN WOMEN’S TOUR
One of the world’s premier developmental tours, the CN Canadian Women’s Tour continues to attract rising Canadian and international female golf professionals as well as top female amateurs. Many of Canada’s top professionals including Lorie Kane and Alena Sharp as well as 2010 LPGA Tour member Lisa Meldrum and Samantha Richdale have competed on the CN Canadian Women's Tour as a springboard to future success. The 2010 season will see events hosted Quilchena Golf and Country Club in Richmond B.C., Blue Springs Golf Club in Acton, Ont. and Club de golf Rivermead in Gatineau, Que. Total season prize money for 2010 is $180,000 (CDN); each championship purse will be $60,000 with the champion earning $10,000. As well, the top three players on the CN Canadian Women’s Tour Order of Merit will be awarded direct entry and entry fees paid into both LPGA Tour Sectional Qualifying Tournaments ($5,000 value each). For more information, visit http://www.cncanadianwomenstour.ca/.

ABOUT CN FUTURE LINKS
CN Future Links is Canada’s national junior golf program conducted by the RCGA, the Canadian Professional Golfers’ Association (CPGA) and Canada’s provincial golf associations. The program is designed to forge a link between Canada’s youth and golf to ensure the future of the game in Canada. Since the inception of the program in 1996, more than 845,000 young Canadians have taken part in CN Future Links. A number of new initiatives including the recently launched Learn to Play program have succeeded through CN’s sponsorship of the program. For more information visit www.cnfuturelinks.com.

NORTH AMERICA’S RAILROAD
CN – Canadian National Railway Company – spans Canada and mid-America, from the Atlantic and Pacific oceans to the Gulf of Mexico, serving the ports of Vancouver, Prince Rupert, B.C., Montreal, Halifax, New Orleans, and Mobile, Ala., and the key cities of Toronto, Buffalo, Chicago, Detroit, Duluth, Minn./Superior, Wis., Green Bay, Wis., Minneapolis/St. Paul, Memphis, St. Louis, and Jackson, Miss., with connections to all points in North America. For further information please visit www.cn.ca.

CN DELIVERS THE GREAT GAME OF GOLF
CN is proud to support golf in Canada and is pleased to bring the best of women’s professional golf to Canada with its title sponsorship of the CN Canadian Women’s Open and the CN Canadian Women’s Tour. In addition to supporting women’s golf, CN contributes to the development of golf among young people across the country through its sponsorship of the CN Future Links program. CN is pleased to work with the Royal Canadian Golf Association (RCGA) to help develop golf as a sport for women and juniors across Canada and to increase the accessibility of golf to recreational and competitive golfers. Visit http://www.cn.ca/.

ABOUT THE ROYAL CANADIAN GOLF ASSOCIATION
The Royal Canadian Golf Association (RCGA) is the governing body of golf in Canada, representing 377,000 members at 1,600 clubs across the country. Recognized by Sport Canada as the National Sports Organization (NSO) for golf in this country, the RCGA’s mission is to grow participation in and passion for the sport while upholding the integrity and traditions of the game. The RCGA conducts programs and services to help shape the future of golf in Canada. High performance athlete development, Rules of Golf and amateur status, handicapping and course rating, turfgrass and environmental research, the Canadian Golf Hall of Fame and Museum and CN Future Links, Canada’s national junior golf program, are only some of the initiatives the association leads for golf in Canada. In addition, the RCGA conducts Canada’s most prestigious golf championships. The RBC Canadian Open and CN Canadian Women’s Open attract the best professional golfers in the world, while regional junior and national amateur championships showcase the best in Canadian golf.

For further information on what the RCGA is doing to support golf in your community please visit http://www.rcga.org/.

Saturday, April 3, 2010

Chilean Alvarado takes top honours, Canadian Hadwin sixth at Q-School

Submitted by Canadian Tour Communications

SAN DIEGO, Calif. – It turned out to be a Good Friday indeed for the 24 latest members of the Canadian Tour as California Qualifying School closed out.
Chilean Benjamin Alvarado took medallist honours after a final-round 72 gave him a four-day total of 3-over 291, one shot in front of American David Dragoo. Californian Larry Correa finished two shots back.

Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, BC, who took a share of the lead into the final round, struggled on his back nine Friday, going 6-over on his way to a 77 that dropped him into a share of sixth. The top 11 finishers earned exempt status for the 2010 season while 13 others including Josh Nelson, the son of ten-time PGA Tour winner Larry Nelson, were awarded non-exempt status.

Hadwin was the only Canadian to secure a card.

For Alvarado, Friday’s outcome signalled a comeback of sorts. It was just seven months ago that Alvarado underwent surgery on both knees as the result of a lifelong tendon problem. He began working out again a month and a half ago, and returned to the competitive scene this week.

The 2003 South American Amateur champion, who also won the prestigious Orange Bowl title in 2002, is regarded as one of the best amateur golfers in Chile’s history.

“This means the world to me right now,” said Alvarado. “I wasn’t sure what to expect this week. I just wanted to come out, do my best and try to get a card.

“This feels very good,” he added “It’s been a difficult year.”

Federico Cabrera, the son of reigning Masters champion Angel Cabrera, closed with a 73 to finish at 13-over 301, one shot shy of earning non-exempt status.

Two weeks from now, the Canadian Tour will move into Mexico for a pair of events. The B.C. qualifying school will be held in May just prior to the start of the $250,000 Times Colonist Open in Victoria, which will kick off the summer-long Canadian swing.

2010 Canadian Tour California School Qualifiers:
Exempt Status
1 - Benjamin Alvarado - 291
2 - David Dragoo - 292
3 - Larry Correa - 293
4 - Matt Richardson - 294
5 - Michael Jensen - 294
6 - Adam Hadwin - 295
7 - Eduardo Kim - 295
8 - Brian Prouty - 296
9 - Matthew Rosen - 296
10 - Reid Scarff - 296
11 - Mike McRae - 297

Non Exempt Status
1 - Timothy Cha - 298
2 - Cole Nondorf - 298
3 - Erik Olson - 298
4 - Creighton Honeck - 298
5 - Phil Telliard - 298
6 - Kyle Yonke - 298
7 - Jae An - 299
8 - Josh Nelson - 299
9 - Daniel Lim - 299
10 - Tom Glissmeyer - 299
11 - Kyle Warren  - 300
12 - Eugene Choe - 300
13 - Steve Saunders - 300