Craving Competition, Shelly Stouffer Returns To Provincial Golf Scene
Nanoose Bay Resident Shelly Stouffer Shares The Lead With Port Alberni’s Christina Proteau After The First Round Of The B.C. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship - Image Courtesy Parksville Qualicum Beach News
By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf
ABBOTSFORD -- In good times and in bad, golf has been a constant in Shelly Stouffer’s life. And even though we haven’t seen her on the provincial tournament scene the last three years, Stouffer never stopped playing.
“I have been playing more lately,” the Nanoose Bay resident said after Tuesday’s first round of the B.C. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship at Ledgeview Golf Club. “My two sons (aged 11 and 13) are getting into golf, so I am going out there with them a little bit.”
Finding the time to golf became more difficult when Stouffer lost her husband, Ward -- a highly respected club pro -- to a heart attack in early 2017.
Stouffer said she never really thought about taking a break from the game that meant so much to both her and Ward after his passing. “Not really,” she said. “I kept on playing. I played a lot of weekend tournaments because I work Monday to Friday. This is my first B.C, tournament in a while. I just wanted to come out and play. Golf is a great game, I love it. It is always going to be part of my life. It’s fun, I enjoy it.”
The last time Stouffer teed it up in a provincial tourney was in 2016 when the B.C. Mid-Amateur was held at Nanaimo Golf Club. Stouffer won both the Mid-Am and Mid-Master titles that year and likes to think she can do it again this year. “I have got a chance,” she said. “I am definitely thinking that, for sure. I've still got some game.”
Yes, she does. Stouffer shot a three-over 73 Tuesday on Ledgeview’s demanding layout. That left her tied for the lead with her longtime rival and friend, Christina Proteau of Port Alberni. Stouffer and Proteau, last year’s Mid-Amateur winner, played in the same group Tuesday. Proteau was delighted to see Stouffer back at a provincial championship.
“I think we are both good for each other’s games,” Proteau said. “We have played together since 2011. She got her amateur status back and started playing provincials that year in 2011. It’s good she is back. I want to play in the strongest field there is.”
Stouffer said she has discovered that as much as she enjoys golf, she loves competing even more. “When I play golf for fun, I hate it,” she said with a chuckle. “I can’t do it. I enjoy tournament golf way better. It keeps my interest, keeps you focused.”
Chances are, once this week’s tournament at Ledgeview is over, Stouffer and Proteau will sit down and watch some of the U.S. Women’s Open, which begins Thursday in Charleston, S.C. Both have fond memories of playing in the event. Stouffer qualified for the 2001 U.S. Women’s Open at Pine Needles Golf Club in North Carolina. It was a wonderful experience, except for one of her playing partners. “I remember playing with Natalie Gulbis and she was not a nice person,” Stouffer said. “She was an amateur at the time. She was brutal.”
Stouffer hopes to get another crack at Pine Needles. It plays host to next year’s U.S. Senior Women’s Open. “I turn 50 next year and am definitely going to try and qualify for that,” she said. Proteau made her U.S. Women’s Open appearance in 2011 at The Broadmoor Golf Club in Colorado Springs. “It was awesome and I am going to do it again,” Proteau said. “It’s going to happen.”
Stouffer and Proteau have a five-shot lead on the rest of the Mid-Amateur field heading into Wednesday’s second round of the 54-hole event. Nonie Marler of Vancouver is alone in third place at eight-over par.
The Mid-Amateur competition is open to players aged 25 and older. Stouffer leads the Mid-Master competition -- for players 40 and older -- by nine shots over Karen Kloske of Lake Cowichan. Kris Howes of Abbotsford leads the men’s side by one shot after opening with a one-over 71 on Tuesday.
Five players -- James Ivers of Surrey, Stewart Scott of Kelowna, Gordon Fisher of Victoria, Dean Huston of Abbotsford and Greg Trammell of North Vancouver -- are tied for second. Those same five players share the lead in the Mid-Master competition.
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