BC's Lauren Kim Is Off To The U.S. Women's Open At Pine Needles In North Carolina - BC Golf Photo

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

The email informing Lauren Kim she has a spot in next month’s U.S. Women’s Open came in the middle of the night. Her dad, an early-riser, saw it first.

“My dad woke up really early and just looked through his email and was like, ‘oh my gosh, Lauren just got into the U.S. Open,’ a delighted Kim said Tuesday.

“But he didn’t say anything because I was sleeping. Then my mom woke up around 6:30 and she came into my room screaming, ‘you just got in!’ It was a nice wake-up call.”

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

She’s a senior golfer now, but Shelly Stouffer likes her chances as she prepares to tee it up with the ‘kids’ at the B.C. Mid-Amateur Championship at Talking Rock Golf Course.

Stouffer, the reigning B.C. and Canadian Senior Women’s champion, has never laid eyes on Talking Rock. But these days, her golf game is travelling well. She’s never felt more confident about her swing.

“I am feeling pretty good,” Stouffer says. “I like my chances. I don’t know if I have ever hit it this well. I have hit it farther before, but not as consistently straight and in play all the time. I feel like my swing is a lot better than it has been. And I am putting well. It’s great. I love where my game is at. I am just much more consistent.”

Kim Cowburn Plays A Shot During The Official Opening Of The Back 9 At Hirsch Creek Golf Club in 1991 - Image Courtesy Kim Cowburn-Evans

By Kim Cowburn-Evans

I grew up in Kitimat, a small, isolated town in Northwestern British Columbia. Winters were exceedingly long and gargantuan snowfalls were the norm. Summer seemed to stop by for a short visit and then disappear as quickly as it arrived.

I wasn’t quite 11 in the spring of 1978 when golf was introduced to me. I most definitely did not display any natural talent for the game at all, but it would soon become the centre of my universe.

I've never been the sun worshipping type. The pursuit of a tan was not conducive to my pasty, fair skin and blue eyes. As it happens, chronic sun exposure and playing golf go hand-in-hand. I have burned, blistered and peeled so many times that it’s a wonder that I have any skin left.

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

Greg Moody has a rather simple explanation for why he spends considerable time giving back to the game of golf. “I just enjoy volunteering,” Moody says. “I think you’re either born with a volunteer gene or you’re not.”

Moody clearly has his. A highly respected rules official and a longtime champion of junior golf, Moody is the new president of British Columbia Golf. Moody was officially elected by the BC Golf board on April 3rd. He jokes that it is not a position he expected or coveted.

“I never aspired to this position,” says Moody, a North Vancouver resident who has been a member of Seymour Golf & Country Club since the mid-1980s. “I just like volunteering. This is something I started to do when I retired and I have especially enjoyed working with the kids.”

Two BC Amateur Champions, Tristan Mandur (L) & Nolan Thoroughgood (R) ReceiveTheir Team Silver Medals At The 2017 Canada Summer Games - Image Credit: 2017 Canada Summer Games/Anthony_Fernando-Golf-1715

The  British Columbia Golf selection committee will use the NextGen Pacific Championship, taking place at Nanaimo GC May 13 - 15, 2022, as a competition to start the process of selecting the top performance juniors for the 2022 Canada Summer Games to represent British Columbia in Niagara Falls in August. 

BC Golf File Photo

by Lindsay Knowlton, Iron Lady Golf (via SIRC)

I started playing golf for the hot dogs. As a 14-year-old girl, I wanted to make friends with the other kids at my golf club. My major motivation after 9 holes was celebrating with friends over a hot dog and a chocolate milkshake. Flash forward 25 years, and golf is my passion. I’ve played and competed around the world. I’ve also taught more than 10,000 women how to play golf.

Like me, these women are almost always interested in more than learning how to play golf. They learn to be included in their work events or to spend more time with their partners and families. They learn to find new friendships and travel companions, to exercise, spend time in nature or get some fresh air.

Now more than ever, golf is about much more than just the game. Community is the glue that makes golf stick. In this blog, I offer strategies and tips, based on research and my own experiences, to help golf clubs and organizations create inclusive, welcoming environments that help women say “yes” to golf.

Please click HERE to read complete story on SIRC....

About the Author(s)
Lindsay Knowlton is the founder of Iron Lady Golf and a member of the PGA of Canada. She’s passionate about helping more women say “yes” to golf and building communities. Lindsay was the Captain of the Ohio State Women’s Golf Team, a 3-year Member of Canada’s National Team and a Silver Medalist at the 2004 World Championships. She has also recorded 3 holes-in-1!

Hannah Lee At The 2018 Canadian Women's Amateur At Marine Drive GC - BC Golf Photo

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

For many years growing up, Northview Golf & Country Club was Hannah Lee’s home away from home. She pounded balls on its driving range, spent countless hours on its putting green and gained an intimate knowledge of the Ridge and Canal courses at the Surrey facility. 

Northview helped Lee develop into one of British Columbia’s top junior players. She became a member of Golf Canada’s national junior team and earned herself a scholarship to play collegiate golf at the University of Oklahoma.

And now she’s back at Northview, beginning a new kind of golf journey, not knowing quite where it will take her. Lee has just joined the PGA of Canada as an apprentice professional at Northview and is now seeing golf from a new perspective.

BC Golf Senior Contributor Brad Ziemer recently spoke with Michelle Collens who has sat on the British Columbia Golf's board since 2013, the last two years as President...

Victoria's Jeevan Sihota Has His Eyes On Turning Pro This Spring - Image Credit: Bernard Brault/Golf Canada

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

When a field of about 120 players gather at Crown Isle Golf Resort in Courtenay in late April for the seventh and final PGA Tour Canada spring qualifying school, the youngest competitor figures to get lots of attention. Highly regarded Victoria junior Jeevan Sihota, who turns 18 in March, has entered Q-school and will turn pro if he plays well enough to earn his card.

Sihota’s dad, Jas, confirmed his son’s plans in an interview this past weekend. The family has spent considerable time weighing the options. Jeevan has been inundated with offers from several top universities to play collegiate golf south of the border.

Marine Drive's Brian Knoetze  - BKnoetze Photo

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

All that stood in the way of Brian Knoetze completing his goal of playing the top 100 courses in the United States was one of the toughest tee times in golf.

In a journey that began eight years ago, the longtime Marine Drive Golf Club member had crossed 99 courses off Golf Digest’s top 100 list. All that remained was Augusta National.

Knoetze had spent a lot of time wondering whether he was ever going to make that trip down Magnolia Lane. It’s not like you can just call the club and ask for a tee time. If you’re a mere mortal, you need an invitation from an Augusta National member to play the course. “It’s just about the hardest place in the world to get on to,” Knoetze says.

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

A new golf shop is about to open in Coquitlam, but there won’t be any equipment from the likes of Callaway, TaylorMade, Titleist or Ping lining its walls. 

Instead, the GreenTee Golf Shop, located on the Lougheed Highway not far from Ikea, will feature names like Honma, Majesty, Fujimoto, Miura and Itobori. Golf Town this is not.

“It’s only 2,500 square feet so it’s minimal if we compare it to Golf Town, but what we carry is actually very top tier,” says Bo Wu, who is director of JK World Group’s golf division. “We don’t carry any of the North American brands.”

Photo credit: Chuck Russell/Golf Canada

The Pacific Northwest Golf Association announced their 2021 Players of the Year this past week and Victoria, BC's Jeevan Sihota has been named the PNGA's Junior Boys Amateur Player of the year. 

Sihota earned the PNGA Junior Boys’ Amateur Player of the Year award after a standout 2021 season. Competing against seasoned tour professionals, he finished runner-up at the Mackenzie Tour DC Bank Open, finished T6 at the Mackenzie Tour ATB Financial Classic, and finished T29 at the Mackenzie Tour Golf BC Championship.

He also finished T4 at the Canadian Junior Boys Championship and T23 at the Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship.

The Victoria Now has further details on Jeevan's win HERE.

To see the complete story on all the PNGA Players of the Year click HERE.

The Multimat™ Could Be A Real Game-Changer For Golf Courses And Golfers - Image Courtesy Multimat™

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

We are blessed in some parts of British Columbia to be able to play golf year-round. But let’s be honest about it, the courses we play on many of those dreary December and January days are often more than a little wet. 

Hands up everyone who hasn’t received a face full of mud after striking an iron a little fat off a soggy lie. The golf courses also take a beating during winter play as fairways become scarred with divots that won’t grow back.  Some Victoria-area courses have come up with a solution.

Cordova Bay and Olympic View are requiring players to play with specially designed mini mats on fairways. Players are guaranteed a perfect lie and the courses are saved the wear and tear of divots at a time of year when the grass doesn’t grow. It’s a win-win.

The BC Amateur Sport Fund is raising funds to give amateur sports organizations the vital support they need to survive and rebuild in the aftermath of the recent floods in British Columbia.

You can designate your donation to a specific community, sport or club, or make a general donation which will go to the greatest need selected by Sport BC. You cannot donate to support a specific individual.

Your donation can help community sport organizations across the province with costs including rebuilding facilities and replacing equipment, rental of temporary facilities and travel costs.

File Photo

Coquitlam's Henry Lee Has His First Official Pro Paycheque From The PGA Tour Latino-America circuit

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

Henry Lee will always remember that his pro golf journey started a long way from his Coquitlam home. About 11,000 kilometres to be exact. He’ll also recall that he cashed a cheque in that first event.

Not a big one, mind you, but he got paid nonetheless. Lee tied for 43rd at the Argentine Open in Buenos Aires, the season-opening event of the 2022 PGA Tour Latino-America circuit.

For that, Lee made $866.25 US from the $175,000 purse. That likely won’t cover airfare, but it’s a positive first step in his professional life.

No, It's Not An Island Green - It's The First Tee At Pheasant Glen GC On Vancouver Island - Photo Courtesy Michael Cunningham

(Reposted With Permission From The PGA of British Columbia)

NOVEMBER 16, 2021

RICHMOND, BC (PGA of British Columbia) -- Just two weeks into his new role as Chilliwack Golf Club’s Superintendent, Kaleb Fisher never could have expected a challenge like the one his facility is facing after the extreme weather events that have hit southern British Columbia in recent days.

Talking Rock (Shown Here) Along With Nk’Mip Canyon Desert And St. Eugene Are Just Three Of A Growing Number Of Indigenous Facilities In The Province - Image Credit Talking Rock

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

CHASE -- It opened quietly without much fanfare back in 2007, this golf course built by a small Indian band with big dreams. Initially, Talking Rock Golf Course seemed to almost get lost amid some of the more high-profile courses that were opening at the time in British Columbia.

“Talking Rock was one of those projects that was a bit under the radar because it was being developed at about the same time Tobiano (near Kamloops) was,” says golf architect Wayne Carleton, who along with Graham Cooke designed Talking Rock for the Little Shuswap Indian Band. “Tobiano was getting all the raves.”

But a funny thing has happened in the nearly 15 years since Talking Rock welcomed its first players. It has gone from being a course many had not heard of to being one nearly everyone wants to play. It is not a stretch to suggest that Talking Rock, located on the south shore of Little Shuswap Lake, is regarded by many as one of British Columbia’s top resort courses.

Image Courtesy: @vancouverbasketballfoundation / @victory

First Tee - British Columbia Manager Shayain Gustavsp Sets Up For Golf At The STRONGHER™ Camp

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

It’s getting crowded here on the First Tee. We’ve got honesty, integrity, sportsmanship, respect, confidence, responsibility, perseverance, courtesy and judgment all ready to play.

So that’s two foursomes and . . . judgment, I guess you’ll have to play as a single. Just kidding, of course. You may have heard of First Tee. If you have, you probably know about the program’s nine core principles that it uses to help instil good values in young golfers learning the game of golf. And if you aren’t familiar with First Tee, you soon will be as it is coming to a community near you.

viaSport is working with the Province of British Columbia and the amateur sport sector to support organizations to operate safely during the COVID-19 pandemic.

All sport activities in B.C. must follow B.C.'s Restart plan Step 3 and the PHO Order on Gatherings and Events.

Step 3 of B.C.’s Restart plan is in effect as of July 1st.

B.C.’s Restart is the Province’s step-by-step plan to bring us back together. Please remember, the intention of the Restart is to slowly return to activities. Organizations are asked to turn the dimmer slowly when planning sport programming.

Vancouver's Leah John Is The 2021 B.C. Women's Amateur Champion - image credit Jerome Goddard/BC Golf

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

SUMMERLAND -- A win is sometimes that much sweeter when it has been preceded by so much hard work and occasional setbacks. Perhaps that’s why Leah John seemed so delighted with her win Friday at the116th playing of the B.C. Women’s Amateur Championship at Summerland Golf Club.

Like that noted philosopher Ringo Starr, John knows better than most that moments like this one don’t come easy.

Perseverance paid off for the 21-year-old Vancouver resident, who plays out of Marine Drive Golf Club and collegiately at the University of Nevada. John had come oh so close on a couple of previous occasions at British Columbia Golf championships.