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PGA of Canada

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Together with the PGA of Canada, Golf Canada is excited to announce the continuation of the Women in Coaching program and formally open applications for the 2023 cohort.

The Women in Coaching program is an initiative that launched in 2021 with nine inaugural participants, that strives to deliver a stronger gender balance among high-performance coaches.

Each participant receives in-depth career development support focused on four main areas: individualized learning plans, virtual and in-person coaching education, and hands-on training experiences with coaches and top players.

By Terry Lenyk/Golf Canada

They are some of Canada’s most renowned golf legends, a list amassed of professional and amateur players, course architects and administrators. They have all contributed to the growth of the game of golf in this country. However, their contributions to golf pale in comparison to their contributions to the fabric of our nation.

November 11th is Remembrance Day. A day we remember and pay tribute to the brave men and women who have served in our armed forces. What better day to remember Canadian golfers of the past who helped our nation during its greatest times of need.

The following are just some of the contributions Canadian golf legends made to the Allied forces during the First and Second World Wars.

Click HERE for complete story...

Campbell River's Dana Smith - Image Courtesy SFU Athletics

By Steve Frost - Associate Director Marketing & Communications (sfrost@sfu.ca)

BURNABY – Dana Smith of Campbell River, one of the top junior golfers in British Columbia, has signed National Letters of Intent to join the Simon Fraser University women's golf program in fall 2023, head coach Matt Steinbach announced today.

Smith has a resume full of accomplishments. She's competed in the Canadian Women's Amateur and Canadian Junior Girls tournaments, and she's recorded multiple top 10 finishes in provincial tournaments. Smith has been crowned the North Island (zone 6) Junior Golfer of the Year four years in a row (2017-2021) after winning the tournament championship each year.

Click HERE for complete story...

BC's Chris Crisologo - Image Courtesy Bernard Brault/Golf Canada

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

The final stage of Korn Ferry Tour qualifying school is as much a test of players’ nerves as their golf games, a place where one mistake can make the difference between a passing and failing grade.

Richmond’s Chris Crisologo learned that the hard way at the recently completed Q-school in Savannah, Ga. Crisologo missed finishing inside the top 40 and ties and earning guaranteed starts on the 2023 Korn Ferry Tour by six shots.

While that may make it sound like Crisologo wasn’t particularly close, the 26-year-old Simon Fraser University graduate will look back at one hole of the 72 he played as being the difference.

Tacoma, Wash. – The Pacific Northwest Golf Association (PNGA) has announced the region’s Players of the Year for 2022. Those honored include Men’s Player of the Year, AJ Ewart of Coquitlam, B.C.; Women’s, Lauryn Nguyen of Seattle, Wash.; Men’s Mid-Amateur, Andrew Von Lossow of Spokane, Wash.; Women’s Mid-Amateur, Krissy Carman of Eugene, Ore.; Senior Men’s, Erik Hanson of Kirkland, Wash.; Senior Women’s, Shelly Stouffer of Nanoose Bay, B.C.; Junior Boys’, Max Herendeen of Bellevue, Wash.; and Junior Girls’, Lauren Kim of Surrey, B.C.

The PNGA Player of the Year candidates are nominated by the state and provincial golf associations that comprise the PNGA (British Columbia, Idaho, Oregon and Washington), and are selected by a vote of the PNGA Championship Committee.

Click here for a list of playing accomplishments of this year’s recipients and for a complete history of all past PNGA Player of the Year recipients.

The BC Golf Industry Lost A Special Friend With The Passing Of Trisha Larsen

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

The British Columbia golf industry and tourism sector lost a great champion and friend with the recent passing of Trisha Larsen. 

Larsen, who was 54, died after a battle with pancreatic cancer. She founded The Web Advisors marketing agency in 2011, but Larsen’s involvement with and promotion of the British Columbia golf industry goes back nearly three decades.

For Immediate Release – October 24, 2022 – (Vancouver, BC) ProMOTION Plus is excited to recognize three deserving women that will be celebrated at the 55th Sport BC Athlete of the Year Awards on Thursday, March 9, 2023 at the Vancouver Convention Centre East.

Two women will be honoured with the prestigious In Her Footsteps, including British Columbia Golf Managing Director of Player Development, Debbie Pyne . . . Celebrating BC Women in Sport recognition program and one recipient will receive the Bobbie Steen Legacy Foundation Award.

Stuart Macdonald Is Shown Here Competing In The RBC Canadian Open - Image Credit BBrault/Golf Canada

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

Stuart Macdonald made it look easy as he sailed through the second stage of Korn Ferry Tour qualifying school in Murrieta, Calif.

But the 27-year-old Vancouver native will tell you it was anything but. Q-school, Macdonald says, is never easy. 

“Obviously, it felt good to get through and just be able to battle through everything that comes along with Q-school,” Macdonald told British Columbia Golf in a telephone interview.

“It feels like you are playing for your life, like your life is literally on the line. That’s what it feels like. I couldn’t eat for four hours after I played because your stomach is just in knots and it’s not very fun at all.”

The PNGA Player of the Year candidates are nominated by the various state and provincial golf associations that comprise the PNGA (Alaska, Alberta, British Columbia, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington), and are selected by a vote of the PNGA Championship Committee.

Awards are given annually in eight different categories: Men’s, Women’s, Senior Men’s, Senior Women’s, Men’s Mid-Amateur, Women’s Mid-Amateur, Junior Boys’ and Junior Girls’.

In advance of the Pacific Northwest Golf Association (PNGA) announcement acknowledging the recipients of the 2022 Player of the Year awards, British Columbia Golf is proud to share the names and playing accomplishments of those who are being nominated from our province for the awards. 

Richmond, BC's Chris Crisologo Wears Vancouver Canuck Colours At The Canadian Open In 2019 - Golf Canada Photo/Marcus Oleniuk

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

At the beginning of this year, Chris Crisologo sat down and made a list of things he wanted to accomplish during 2022 in his journey as a young professional golfer. 

He just crossed off one very important goal from that list. 

By surviving the second stage of the Korn Ferry Tour qualifying school last week in Albuquerque, N.M., the Richmond resident has earned himself Korn Ferry Tour membership for 2023.

Courtesy PGA of Canada

Teams from Canada, USA, Australia, Great Britain & Ireland, South Africa, and Sweden are set to head to Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico next week for the second PGA Women’s Cup, where Canada will look to build on their runner-up finish from the 2019 event in Texas.

Two new players, Caroline Ciot and Katy Rutherford, will join second-time competitors Emma de Groot, Casey Ward and Christine Wong at Twin Warriors Golf Club. Wong was the top player on the Canadian squad in 2019, firing the team’s low score two out of three days in the form of a 70 and 71.

If you are, or know a young competitive golfer, you may well be interested in knowing that the Zone Golf Academy is holding a university ID Camp at Lake Las Vegas, Nevada, USA on December 3 & December 4, 2022

Led by Coach Taronne (TJ) Atley, Zone Golf Academy is a leading elite junior golf academy working out of multiple facilities in the Lower Mainland and specializing in USA and Canadian university placement.

As per their Mission Statement:

"Zone Golf Academy is designed to equip the player in all aspects of the game, from the technical fundamentals, short game, on course management, to physical and mental conditioning. The result is ultimately an improved game which is coupled with scholastic readiness. Finally, the player would gain entrance to their top North American University of their choice, ideally on scholarship."

Richmond, BC's Chris Crisologo Wears Vancouver Canuck Colours At The Canadian Open In 2019 - Golf Canada Photo/Marcus Oleniuk

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

At the beginning of this year, Chris Crisologo sat down and made a list of things he wanted to accomplish during 2022 in his journey as a young professional golfer. 

He just crossed off one very important goal from that list. 

By surviving the second stage of the Korn Ferry Tour qualifying school last week in Albuquerque, N.M., the Richmond resident has earned himself Korn Ferry Tour membership for 2023.

Talking Rock Golf Course Head Professional Nathan Grieve Is The PGA of BC's 2022 Dick Munn Golf Professional Of The Year - PGA of BC Photo

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

OCTOBER 13, 2022 - RICHMOND, BC (PGA of British Columbia) - The PGA of BC proudly named the provincial recipients of its annual honours for 2022 during the Association's Awards Celebration presented by Replay Golf Supplies & Tribal on Wednesday evening at the River Rock Casino Resort.

BC Junior Girls Representing Canada In The World Junior Girls Championship Clockwise From Left: Yeji Kwon, Michelle Liu, Angela Arora, Anna Huang & Lauren Kim - Images Courtesy Golf Canada

MARKHAM, Ont. – Canada is set to host a global showcase of the world’s best junior golfers as the seventh edition of the World Junior Girls Championship, presented by Sargent Farms will be contested October 10-15, 2022 at Angus Glen Golf Club in Markham, Ont.

In total, 54 athletes on 18 teams representing 17 countries—including two teams from host nation Canada—will compete for the team and individual titles. The event marks the celebrated return of the prestigious global competition after two years of cancellation due to the pandemic.

For Immediate Release

RICHMOND, BC (PGA of British Columbia) -- The PGA of BC is proud to name four recipients of the Association's 2022 Awards, as well as this year's PGA of BC Community Leadership Bursary and Jim Gibson Scholarship beneficiaries. These awards are designed to recognize leaders in the golf community exhibiting qualities such as volunteerism, selflessness, passion, and dedication to the game.

These honourees, along with the recipients of 11 other Association awards, will be recognized during the 2022 PGA of BC Awards Celebration presented by Replay Golf Supplies & Tribal, which will take place October 12th at the River Rock Casino Resort in Richmond, BC.

The CP Women’s Open is back! Golf Canada is proud to partner with Shaughnessy Golf & Country Club in Vancouver, BC to host the 2023 CP Women’s Open.

We are excited to bring the world’s best golfers to Canada to compete in the 49th playing of our National Open, hosted at a club with plenty of history and a passionate community.

Each year, over 1,200 people dedicate their time and hard work to make the CP Women’s Open possible.

VIASPORT BRITISH COLUMBIA - On September 30, individuals and communities will be honouring Orange Shirt Day, as well as the second National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in Canada.

Collectively, we are marking this important occasion by encouraging members of the sport, physical activity, and recreation sectors to actively participate in this day of Truth and Reconciliation.

The individual and collective journeys of Truth and Reconciliation are enduring. It isn’t a destination, but rather a lifelong path of reflection, learning, and understanding.

Accordingly, we are inviting everyone within the sport, physical activity, and recreation sector to make a personal and/or organizational commitment to reconciliation.

It's time to rally together through programs and activities that encourage all British Columbians to get moving!

Spread the word!

The vast majority of British Columbians believe that sport contributes to healthy communities and individuals. Over the last two years, it was clear that sport connects us and helps us thrive.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

SEPTEMBER 27, 2022 - RICHMOND, BC (PGA of British Columbia) -- The PGA of British Columbia is pleased to announce regional award recipients in 11 categories of the 2022 PGA of BC Awards Program.

The individuals and facilities listed below for the Lower Mainland, Interior, Vancouver Island and Kootenays/Northern BC, respectively, were selected as regional recipients following an open nomination period and extensive deliberations by regional nomination committees.

Each of the recipients are now provincial finalists for this year's PGA of BC Awards, with the honourees to be announced next month.