Ziemer's B.C. Golf Notes: Crisologo Gets Canadian Open Exemption; Sloan Top-10s On Web.com Tour; Wong Third In China; Niles, Li Strike Gold At B.C. Summer Games
The 2018 BC Amateur Champion, Richmond's Chris Crisologo, Will Be Teeing It Up At Glen Abbey In The RBC Canadian Open Next Week Due To A Sponsor's Exemption - Image Credit Bryan Outram/BC Golf
By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf
Chris Crisologo thought he would be playing the Olympic Club in San Francisco this week as part of the prestigious Pacific Coast Amateur tourney.
But Crisologo, the new B.C. Amateur champion from Richmond, got an offer he couldn’t refuse. The 22-year-old received a sponsor’s exemption into this week’s RBC Canadian Open at Glen Abbey Golf Club. It will be the first PGA TOUR appearance for Crisologo, a member of Canada’s National Amateur team who just finished a standout collegiate golf career at Simon Fraser University.
Crisologo won’t be the only former B.C. Amateur champion in the field at Glen Abbey. Kimberley’s Jared du Toit, the 2015 champion, has also received a sponsor’s exemption, and so has 2010 champion Adam Svensson of Surrey. Other British Columbians in the field include Abbotsford products Adam Hadwin and Nick Taylor, as well as Roger Sloan of Merritt.
Hadwin tied for 35th place at the Open Championship, closing with a even-par 71on Sunday. Taylor was tied for 25th at the Barbasol Championship in Kentucky when final-round play was suspended Sunday night. Play was scheduled to be completed on Monday.
Sloan tied for 10th at the Web.com Tour’s Pinnacle Bank Championship in Omaha, Neb. It was the third top 10 of the year for Sloan, who now stands 48th on the Web.com Tour money list. Svensson tied for 31st in Omaha and is now eighth on the money list.
LEE STEPS IN: Henry Lee of Coquitlam is replacing Crisologo on the three-man B.C. Team at the Pacific Coast Amateur. He’ll join Victoria residents Lawren Rowe and Nolan Thoroughgood in competing for B.C. in the tournament’s Morse Cup competition.
WONG THIRD: North Vancouver’s Eugene Wong finished in a three-way tie for third at the PGA Tour China circuit’s Qingdao Championship. Wong finished at four-under par, two shots behind the winner, Chinese amateur Yuan Yechun.
GOLD MEDALLISTS: Adam Niles of Kamloops and Emily Li of Coquitlam won gold medals at the B.C. Summer Games golf competition in Cowichan. Li finished the 36-hole competition at eight-over par and beat the field by 15 shots at Cowichan Golf & Country Club. Ye Ji Kwon of Port Coquitlam took the silver medal, while Malaina Sidu of Burnaby won the bronze.
Niles completed the boys’ competition at four-over par. That was good for a two-shot win over John Paul Kahlert of Maple Ridge. William Bishop of Victoria finished at seven-over to earn the bronze medal.
GAME, SET, MATCH: B.C. Junior Boys champion Ilirian Zalli of Vancouver finished tied for 10th in the stroke play portion of the U.S. Junior Amateur Championship at Baltusrol Golf Club in New Jersey. Zalli was eliminated in the Round of 64 in match play.
HELPING HAND: Doug Roxburgh, who won his fourth B.C. Senior Men’s Championship at Big Sky Golf Club in Pemberton last week, will be spending lots of time this week at his home course, Marine Drive Golf Club. But he won’t be playing. Roxburgh and his wife Lorna both have key volunteer roles at this week’s Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship at Marine Drive.
AMERICA’S CUP: The 46th annual Junior America’s Cup goes this week at the Fairmont Hot Springs Resort Golf Course in Anaconda, Mont. The competition features 18 four-man teams. British Columbia is being represented by Michael Crisologo of Richmond, Andy Kim of Langley, Dylan Bercan of Vancouver and Joel Veenstra of Smithers.
The Girls Junior America’s Cup also goes this week at Hiwan Golf Course in Evergreen, Colo. B.C. is being represented by Chaewon Beck of Langley, Akari Hayashi of Victoria, Phoebe Yue of West Vancouver and Karen Zhang of Richmond.
BY GEORGE: George Thirkill of Langley won the overall championship at the recent Western Canadian Blind Golf Championship in Winnipeg. The 79-year-old Thirkill shot rounds of 92 and 86 to win by two shots. Thirkill and Darren Douma of Creston will be heading to Rome later this year to represent Canada in the World Blind matches and team play competition.
ALBERTA CHAMP: Kat Kennedy, who won the 2017 Canadian University/College Championship while playing for the UBC Thunderbirds, won the recent Alberta Ladies Amateur Championship. Kennedy, an Okotoks, Alta., native who now works at Point Grey Golf Club in Vancouver, was UBC’s female athlete of the year in 2017.
CHIP SHOT: Oliver Tubb of University Golf Club in Vancouver carded a three-under 68 to win a G&G PGA of B.C. Tour event at Whistler Golf Club. Tubb, who earned $500 for the win, edged Bryn Parry of Point Grey Golf Club by one shot.