Submitted by Canadian Tour Communications
VICTORIA, BC (June 6, 2010) – Brock Mackenzie, you may now exhale.
It didn’t come without drama, but the former U.S. amateur star is finally a Canadian Tour champion at last.
On a wet and wild closing day at the $250,000 Times Colonist Open, Mackenzie jarred a long birdie putt on the final hole to close with a 4-under 66 and end his four days at Uplands GC with a 14-under 266 total, one shot in front of freshman Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, BC (63) and California sophomore Aaron Goldberg (66).
Roger Sloan of Merritt, BC gave the leaders something to think about by lighting it up for a course-record 9-under 61 to post an early 11-under total. For a while, it looked like Sloan would flirt with the largest final-round come-from-behind victory in Canadian Tour history, set in 2001 when Brian Payne overcame a five-shot deficit to knock off Jason Bohn on a windswept afternoon at the Aliant Cup in St. John’s, Nfld.
Sloan would eventually settle for fourth with fellow British Columbian James Allenby (66).
After several achingly close calls, McKenzie will at last get his name etched on a Canadian Tour championship trophy. In 2006, the native of nearby Washington State had heartbreaking back-to-back runner-up losses, including a playoff defeat to Wes Heffernan at the Montreal Open. After spending two seasons on the Nationwide Tour, McKenzie returned north in 2009, finishing fourth at the Uplands last summer.
As an amateur, Mackenzie compiled a sterling resume that included NCAA All-American honours at the University of Washington, the 2002 Pacific Coast Amateur crown and a Walker Cup title as a member of the victorious U.S. team in 2003.
Now, finally, he can add another piece of hardware to the family trophy case.
“Oh man, you have no idea,” sighed Mackenzie when asked if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. “Aaron and I really put on a show on that back nine. If we had played another hole, he probably would have tied it. I’m just glad I was able to dig down and finally pull one of these out.”
“I guess if you put yourself in contention enough times, eventually it will happen.”
It turned out to be a dramatic final day on Vancouver Island. Mackenzie bogeyed two of his first three holes and fell off the top of the leaderboard for the first time since midway through the second round. Those vying for the top perch traded punches all afternoon, with Sloan sitting comfortably in the clubhouse watching to see if his 11-under total would be enough to get him into a playoff.
Trailing by two shots with five holes to go, McKenzie dug in his heels and, after a Goldberg bogey on 14, pulled even with a birdie on the par-4 15th. Seconds later, Hadwin, playing three groups ahead, drained a birdie putt on the par-3 17th to put the pressure on the final pairing. McKenzie answered with a birdie on 16 before Goldberg did the same on 17.
On the 72nd hole, with Hadwin looking on, Mackenzie rolled in a clutch 25-foot downhill putt and did a slow fist pump. Seconds later, Goldberg’s attempt from just inside where McKenzie was came up a foot short.
“That was probably about as much emotion as I’ve ever showed on the golf course,” Mackenzie said of the impromptu fist pump after his putt on 18. “More than anything, it makes all the hard work and struggles worth it. It’s a great way to start the Canadian swing, and hopefully this will be a stepping stone to get back to where I want to be.”
With the $40,000 winner's cheque, McKenzie moves into top spot on the Order of Merit.
Sloan’s record-setting afternoon included holing out for carbon-copy eagles on a pair of par-4 holes. Sloan was exactly 89 yards out on both the third and 16th holes, dunking them both for the unlikely deuces. Oddly enough, Sloan says he was working on that distance with his wedge in the days leading up to the tournament.
“As soon as I was finished, I looked up, saw I was tied for the lead and knew it wouldn’t be enough,” said Sloan. “But if someone had told me this morning I would shoot 61, I would have taken it. It was an exciting afternoon. Any time you can kick off the first event in Canada like that, it bodes well for the rest of the summer.”
The Canadian Tour will now take a little time off before resuming the Canadian swing in Edmonton with the ATB Financial Classic presented by TELUS later this month.
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