Emma Yang (Pictured) Of Langley Leads The Girls’ Race With Surrey’s Kyle Chang Leading The Boys Division In The B.C. Juvenile Boys & Girls Championships At Kelowna's Gallagher’s Canyon - File Image

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

Gallagher’s Canyon Golf Club played tough for nearly everyone in Tuesday’s opening round of the B.C. Juvenile Boys & Girls Championships. The Kelowna course yielded only two sub-par rounds on the first day of the 54-hole championship for players 16 years old and younger. 

Kyle Changof Surrey was the only player to really have his way with Gallagher’s, as he opened with a four-under 68 that gave him a three-shot lead heading into Wednesday’s second round. Chang, who plays out of Meadow Gardens Golf Club, had six birdies and two bogeys in his round. Cooper Humphries of Kelowna had the only other round below par. Humphries, who plays out of Okanagan Golf Club, opened with a one-under 71.

From L-R: Joan Probert (Vancouver Park Board Supervisor/Commercial Operations), Michael Wiebe (Vancouver Park Board Commissioner), Fraser Mulholland (VGT Commissioner), Dennis Luick (Fraserview GC Head Superintendent) And Defending Vancouver Open Champion James Allenby, Welcomed The Vancouver Open's Return To The Three City Of Vancouver Courses, Langara, McCleery And Fraserview - Image Credit Bryan Outram/BC Golf 

By Brad Ziemer, Vancouver Sun

The Vancouver Open is returning home and everyone seems delighted about that.

Vancouver Golf Tour commissioner Fraser Mullholland is pleased to see his flagship tournament return to the three City of Vancouver courses. And the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation is also happy to have the tournament back at its Fraserview, Langara and McCleery courses.

“The Vancouver Open should be in Vancouver, right,” says Joan Probert, the park board’s supervisor of commercial operations.

No argument there, but for the last four years the Vancouver Open has not been held in Vancouver. The VGT and park board went their separate ways after the 2013 event, but both sides certainly sounded happy to be partners once again at a media event earlier this week at Langara to promote the tournament.

Golf Canada, the governing body for the sport in our country, is looking for interested applicants for volunteer positions for 2019 with the deadline coming up soon on September 14, 2018.

They are seeking to engage a more diverse volunteer workforce, and will be looking for opportunities to do so in 2019.

Golf Canada’s Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Policy is part of the information letter/package in Golf Canada President Leslie Dunning's letter below along with how to apply.

They are also seeking to expand their Duty Roster volunteers through the Provincial Golf Associations and other referrals.

An Aerial View Of The Victoria Golf Club Which Celebrates Its 125th Anniversary This Year - Image Courtesy Wikipedia

By Brad Ziemer

When you get to be 125 years old, one birthday party just won’t do. So Victoria Golf Club, which was founded back in 1893, is having a year-long celebration of sorts to mark its notable anniversary. The Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship, which will be played Aug. 21-24 on Victoria Golf Club’s spectacular seaside links, is a big part of that celebration.

“Our actual birthday is Nov. 7,” says Head Professional Lindsay Bernakevitch. “We are hosting a bit of a member’s tournament on that day or right around there, but that was the impetus behind us trying to get this national championship that we could host and celebrate our 125th with.”

In July, an outdoor gala was held with about 650 people in attendance. And earlier this month, Victoria’s putting green was the site of a special afternoon high tea. Victoria Golf Club is the oldest 18-hole golf course still on its original site in Canada. It is also among the most beautiful anywhere.

Few Golf Movie Scenes Are Better Than The Bob Barker Fight Scene In "Happy Gilmore." - Photo/YouTube

Recently T.J. Auclair from the PGA of America paid homage to one of the most popular and oft-quoted golf movies of all time on the occasion of its 38th birthday on July 25th. In so doing he also provided us with his version of the top-5 golf movies ever made. Lists of this sort are always great fodder for debate and certainly for entertainment. That said, here is Auclair's ranking. - ed

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

The PGA TOUR’s regular season ends with this week’s Wyndham Championship in Greensboro, N.C., where Abbotsford’s Nick Taylor needs a big finish to retain his exempt status for next year.

Taylor enters the Wyndham at No. 129 on the FedEx Cup points list. He must move inside the top 125 to remain fully exempt for the 2018-19 season that begins this fall. Taylor currently has 340 FedEx Cup points. Tyron Van Aswegen currently sits at No. 125 with 364 points. Martin Piller, presently No. 124, has 371 points, and Seamus Power, at No. 123, has 377 points.

Taylor must finish no worse than 32nd this week -- which would be worth 25 points -- just to pass Aswegen. But in reality he likely needs a top-20 finish to have a chance of cracking the top 125. A 20th-place finish is worth 45 points, which would move Taylor to 395 points.

British Columbians Sy Lovan (Surrey) (L) And Chris Crisologo (Richmond) (R) Will Be Teeing It Up In The U.S. Amateur At Pebble Beach Starting Monday, August 13th - BC Golf File Images 

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. – The United States Golf Association (USGA) announced tee times for the first two rounds of the 118th U.S. Amateur Championship, Monday (Aug. 13) and Tuesday (Aug. 14), at 7,075-yard, par-71 Pebble Beach (Calif.) Golf Links and at 6,995-yard, par-72 Spyglass Hill Golf Course, in Pebble Beach, Calif.

The U.S. Amateur consists of 36 holes of stroke play on Aug. 13 and 14, after which the 312-player field will be reduced to the low 64 scorers. There will be six rounds of match play, starting Aug. 15. The quarterfinals and semifinals are slated for Friday, Aug. 17 and Saturday, Aug. 18, respectively. The championship is scheduled to conclude with a 36-hole final on Sunday, Aug. 19, starting at 7:30 a.m. PDT.

Virginia Native Zach Bauchou Beat Florida’s Philip Knowles By Three Shots To Win His Second Consecutive Canadian Men's Amateur Title - Image Credit Golf Canada

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

DUNCAN -- The Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship is no longer decided via match play, but apparently no one told Zach Bauchou and Philip Knowles.

There were 69 other competitors on the course, but right from the start of Thursday’s final round at Duncan Meadows Golf Course it was Bauchou versus Knowles. Everyone else, it seemed, was playing for third place. Bauchou ultimately prevailed and became the 13th player to win back to back Canadian Amateur titles. 

“I think the feelings are a lot different for me this year because last year I kind of came up here to try and get into the U.S. Amateur and I felt a lot of pressure to win coming down the stretch,” said the 22-year-old Bauchou. “Today I was kind of playing to defend and I was a lot less nervous today than I was last year.”

Smithers Native Kaleb Gorbahn (L), Whose Father Dana Is Caddying For Him This Week, Is Tied For Third Place After Shooting A Six-Under 65 On Thursday - Image Credit Brad Ziemer/BC Golf

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

DUNCAN -- There’s a lot of red and white on the leaderboard at the Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship at Duncan Meadows Golf Club. And blue. The stars and stripes outnumber the Maple Leafs by a considerable margin through three rounds of the 114th playing of the Canadian Amateur.

Defending champion Zach Bauchou of Forest, Va., leads the way at 13-under par after shooting a four-under 67 in Thursday’s third round. Philip Knowles of Jacksonville, Fla., moved into second place thanks to a seven-under 64 that left him at 11-under.

The top Canadian -- and proud to be that -- is Kaleb Gorbahn of Smithers, who is in a three-way tie for third at eight-under par.

Oklahoma State University Senior Zach Baucho Has A Three-Shot Lead At The Halfway Mark Of The 2018 Canadian Men's Amateur - Image Credit Golf Canada

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

QUALICUM -- They are trying to catch a cowboy at the Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship. Zach Bauchou is halfway to defending his title after a three-under 68 in Tuesday’s second round moved him to nine-under par. Bauchou, a Virginia native who is heading into his senior year with the Oklahoma State University Cowboys, has a three-shot lead on Julien Sale of Gatineau, Que.

After opening with a six-under 65 at Duncan Meadows, Bauchou moved 45 minutes north and played his second round at Pheasant Glen Golf Resort in Qualicum. The tight Pheasant Glen layout reminded him of his home track, Karsten Creek, at Oklahoma State. It seems like there is trouble everywhere at both courses.

The 114th Canadian Men's Amateur is underway on Vancouver Island at Duncan Meadows GC and Pheasant Glen GR. 

The championship was first held in 1895, making it one of the most storied sporting events in Canada and third oldest amateur championship in the world.

Duncan Meadows will play host to 252 players from nine countries over four stroke play rounds, while Pheasant Glen will co-host for the first two rounds prior to the 36-hole cut.

Defending Champion Zach Bauchou Has The First Round Lead In The 2018 Canadian Men's Amateur - Image Courtesy Golf Canada

DUNCAN, B.C. – Reigning champion Zach Bauchou fired a 65 in Monday’s opening round of the 114th Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship at Duncan Meadows Golf Course to tie the course record and lead by two strokes.

The Forest, Va., native thrived in the sweltering B.C. weather, going 7-under through his first 10 holes thanks to two eagles—one that included a hole-out from the bunker on No. 17. Bauchou cooled off on his final eight holes, giving one back with a bogey on the par-3 7th.

Victoria Golf Club Head Professional Lindsay Bernakevitch Entertained A Special Guest At The Venerable Layout This Past Weekend When Country Music Star Eric Church Paid A Visit For A Round Before Playing The Sunfest Country Music Festival on Sunday night in the Cowichan Valley - Image Courtesy Lindsay Bernakevitch Twitter

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

Chris Crisologo of Richmond anchors a strong B.C. Team that has high hopes of bringing the Willingdon Cup back to the West Coast.

Crisologo, Victoria’s Kevin Carrigan and Kaleb Gorbahn of Smithers will represent B.C. in the inter-provincial team competition that is held the first two days of this week’s Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship at Duncan Meadows Golf Course and Pheasant Glen Golf Resort.

Crisologo, who has to be considered one of the favourites to win the 114th playing of the Canadian Amateur, is excited about the prospects of winning the Willingdon Cup team competition. “It seems those two guys (Carrigan and Gorbahn) have always been top five in the province the last few years, so to finally have all of us together is exciting,” Crisologo said. “We are definitely excited as a team to hopefully play well and bring home the trophy.”

Comox, B.C. Native Kolten Almgren Was The Medallist In The Canadian Amateur Qualifying Event Held Friday At Duncan Meadows GC - Image Courtesy UBC TBirds Golf Twitter

Courtesy Golf Canada

DUNCAN, B.C. – Canadians Kolten Almgren, Zach Ryujin, Mike Aizawa, Ethan Bennett and Brent Wilson earned exemptions into the 2018 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship on Friday in the 18-hole qualifying event at Duncan Meadows Golf Course.

Almgren, a University of B.C. sophomore from Comox, B.C., posted the low score of the day with a 4-under par 68, highlighted by an eagle on the par-5 12th hole.

Ryujin of North Vancouver, B.C., was next in line with a 3-under-par 69, good for sole possession of runner-up honours. Aizawa (Richmond, B.C.), Bennett (Stoney Creek, Ont.), and Wilson (Cobble Hill, B.C.) rounded out the top five that punched their tickets to the third-oldest amateur event in the world.

17-Year-Old Quebec Resident Celeste Dao, Shown Here With Golf Canada's Pat Thompson And One Of Canada's Finest, Erased A Three-Shot Deficit On The Back Nine To Beat 14-Year-Old Emily Zhu Of Ontario - Image Credit Bryan Outram/BC Golf

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

In about a year’s time, Celeste Dao will become a University of Georgia Bulldog. On Friday, the 17-year-old from Notre-Dame Ile Perrot, Que., played like that Georgia namesake at Beach Grove Golf Club in the final round of the Canadian Junior Girls Championship.

Tenacious, resolute, stubborn, persistent. Dao was all those things and more as she dug down deep to rebound from a three-stroke deficit early on the back nine and win the title.

Quebec Native Celeste Dao Has A One-Shot Lead Heading Into The Final Round Of The Canadian Junior Girls Championship At Beach Grove Golf Club In Tsawwassen - Image Credit Bryan Outram/BC Golf

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

Play golf, see the world. That kind of describes what has been a whirlwind 2018 for Celeste Dao. The 17-year-old from Notre-Dame Ile Perrot, Que., who has the lead heading into Friday’s final round of the Canadian Junior Girls Championship at Beach Grove Golf Club in Tsawwassen, has used her passport almost as much as her pitching wedge in what has been a busy year.

So far this year, she has visited Argentina, where she finished tied for eighth in the South American Amateur Championship, Mexico, where she won the Mexican Junior Girls Championship, and Japan, where she finished fifth at the Toyota Junior World Cup.

SFU's Head Golf Coach Matthew Steinbach Is One Of Several College/University Coaches Out Recruiting At This Week's Canadian Junior Girls Championship At Beach Grove GC Where Celeste Dao Has The Lead After Two Rounds - Image Credit Bryan Outram/BC Golf

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

Recruiting is never an easy job for collegiate golf coaches, who must try to use any edge they have to convince promising players to choose them. This week’s Canadian Junior Girls Championship at Beach Grove Golf Club in Tsawwassen has attracted several college coaches from the United States and Canada.

Among them is Simon Fraser University golf coach Matthew Steinbach, who thinks his job has just become a little easier. For that, he can thank Chris Crisologo.

Lauren Kim, A Surrey Resident Who Just Finished Grade 7, Opened The Canadian Junior Girls Championship Tournament With A 3-under Par 69 - Image Courtesy Sarah Magyar/Golf Canada

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

Lauren Kim apparently hasn’t learned about respecting her elders. The 12-year-old has the audacity to be leading the Canadian Junior Girls Championship at Beach Grove Golf Club in Tsawwassen. 

And you know what, the Surrey resident thinks she can win. “Yeah, I'm going to try,” she said after posting a three-under par 69 that gave her a two-shot lead. “I feel confident after doing well today.”

The Indigenous Sport, Physical Activity and Recreation Council (ISPARC) is pleased to present the provincial tournament for Indigenous youth in partnership with Little Shuswap Band and Talking Rock Golf Course and with the support of the Province of BC. 

The tournament is scheduled for August 21-22 at Talking Rock GC in Chase, British Columbia in both male and female under 14 & under 17 categories. See the information poster below or contact Alissa Assu (aassu@isparc.ca) to find out more details and how to register for this exciting event

The 2018 Canadian Junior Girls Championship is underway at Tsawwassen's Beach Grove Golf Course. Below is an excerpt from a tournament preview done by Brad Ziemer.

By Brad Ziemer/British Columbia Golf

TSAWWASSEN, B.C. -- British Columbia has a little streak going at the Canadian Junior Girls Championship, one its players hope to extend at Beach Grove Golf Club.

The last three Canadian Junior Girls Championships have been won by B.C. players. Susan Xiao of Surrey won it last year, Naomi Ko of Victoria was the 2016 champion and Michelle Kim of Surreycaptured the title in 2015.

Doing well at Beach Grove starts with keeping the ball in play off the tee. The course is tight in spots and missing fairways makes it difficult to hit the course’s small greens in regulation. “What the players will have to do especially well is position the ball off the tee,” says longtime Beach Grove Head Professional Brent Derrheim. “You can’t be overly aggressive, you need to be patient. And also putting. If you make the putts, you are going to score well.”