Ziemer's B.C. Golf Notes: Lauren Kim goes on birdie binge at Liberty National; Q-school’s in session at Crown Isle; Plenty of B.C. content at RBC Canadian Open; Stouffer goes for fourth straight Seniors title
BC's Lauren Kim Warmed Up For Her U.S. Women's Open Start Next Month With Some Fine Play At Liberty National In New Jersey - Photo Credit Chuck Russell/Golf Canada
By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf
Rose Zhang didn’t make a birdie Sunday as she made history by winning in her LPGA Tour debut. Surrey teen Lauren Kim had eight of them as she played the same Liberty National course from most of the same tees.
The inaugural Mizuho Americas Open featured 24 of the top players from the American Junior Golf Association, who competed in their own tourney opposite the LPGA field. In the final two rounds, one AJGA player played with two LPGA players.
Kim was one of four B.C. juniors invited to the event, along with Luna Lu of Burnaby and Michelle Liu and Vanessa Zhang, both of Vancouver.
The 17-year-old Kim, who played in last year’s U.S. Women’s Open and has qualified to play again at next month’s tournament at Pebble Beach Golf Links, said she had the time of her life in New Jersey.
“It was unbelievable,” said Kim, a Grade 12 student at Earl Marriott secondary who will play for the University of Texas this fall.
“I think I had more fun here than the U.S. Open last year and I did have a lot of fun there. I just got to enjoy the moment here a little more, I think. I got to meet so many people. I got to meet and talk to Brooke (Henderson), see her in the locker room and say, good morning, things like that. It was crazy.”
So was Kim’s final round. She shot a four-under 68 on a difficult Liberty National course in tough conditions. The AJGA competed in a modified Stableford scoring format where points were awarded for each individual hole. Double-eagles were worth eight points, eagles five points, birdies three points, pars two points and bogeys one point. Double-bogeys or worse received zero points.
Kim’s Sunday round translated to 40 points, leaving her tied for ninth in the AJGA event with 135 points. That was 12 points behind winner Yana Wilson of Henderson, Nev. “I hit some really good approach shots into greens today and left myself with some short birdie putts,” Kim said.
Rose Zhang's Group Selfie After Her Win Included Lauren Kim (On Right In Titleist Hat)
The course was set up at just over 6,300 yards for the AJGA players. “The majority of the tees were the same ones the LPGA players were using,” Kim said. “There were only a select few where we were ahead. The course was wonderful and in great condition. And the views were amazing. On every hole you’d see a different angle of the New York City skyline.”
Kim was delighted to see Zhang win on Sunday. She has competed against her a few times at AJGA events and also at the World Amateur Team Championship. “She had such an amazing amateur career.”
Kim thinks her experience at Liberty National will help in her preparations for next month’s U.S. Women’s Open. “This was a great prep event for the Open. It would have been great to win, however, it was more about seeing what I needed to work on and get better at compared to the pros. I think today proved that I am close.”
The other three B.C. juniors also played well at the event. Liu tied for 12th with 132 points, Lu was 21st with 126 points and Zhang tied for 22nd with 124 points.
SCHOOL DAYS: A long list of British Columbians are in the field for this week’s sixth and final PGA Tour Canada qualifying school at Crown Isle Resort in Courtenay. Headlining that list is Coquitlam’s A.J. Ewart, who is turning pro after completing an outstanding collegiate career at Barry University in South Florida. The winner of the Crown Isle Q-school, which goes June 6-9, earns fully exempt status this season. The next nine top finishers earn exempt status for the first half of the season.
image courtesy Barry U Athletics
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Players finishing 11th through 30th (plus ties) earn conditional status. Other British Columbians in the field include Vernon’s Bryce Barker, Aidan Goodfellow of Parksville, Jake Lane of Fort St. John, Tristan Mandur of Duncan, Ziggy Nathu of Richmond, Ethan Posthumus of Coquitlam, Lawren Rowe of Squamish, Jeevan Sihota of Victoria, Trevor Yu of Vancouver and Ilirian Zalli of Vancouver. A total of 119 players from 12 different countries are scheduled to play at Crown Isle. The 10-event PGA Tour Canada schedule begins with the Royal Beach Victoria Open, which goes June 15-18 at Uplands Golf Club.
B.C. CONTENT: PGA TOUR regulars Nick Taylor, Adam Hadwin and Adam Svensson will have some British Columbia company at this week’s RBC Canadian Open. Merritt’s Roger Sloan, a regular on the Korn Ferry Tour, and Vancouver’s Stuart Macdonald, who is competing on the PGA Tour Latinoamerica circuit, both received sponsor’s exemptions to play this week at Oakdale Golf & Country Club in Toronto. North Vancouver amateur Taylor Durham rounds out the B.C. contingent this week.
Durham, a 29-year-old commercial realtor who is a member at Vancouver’s Marine Drive Golf Club, earned his spot in the field by winning a regional qualifier last month at Ledgeview Golf Club in Abbotsford. Several other British Columbians competed in Sunday’s final qualifier at Coppinwood Golf Club in Goodwood, Ont., but failed to earn spots. The four qualifying spots up for grabs went to Peter Kuest of Fresno, Calif., Drew Nesbitt of Horseshoe Valley, Ont., Ryan Hall of Knoxville, Tenn., and David Carey of Dublin, Ireland.
LOOKING TO REBOUND: Svensson and Hadwin are coming off missed cuts at last week’s Memorial Tournament in Dublin, Ohio. Sloan missed the cut at the Korn Ferry Tour’s UNC Health Championship in Raleigh, N.C. and Macdonald tied for 40th at the PGA Tour LA’s Inter Rapidisimo Golf Championship in Colombia, which was won by Nova Scotia native Myles Creighton.
SENIOR MOMENT: Nanoose Bay’s Shelly Stouffer will attempt to win her fourth straight B.C. Senior Women’s Championship this week at Christina Lake Golf Course. Stouffer enters the tournament having won both the B.C. Mid-Amateur and Mid-Master championships last month at Sandpiper Golf Course in Harrison Mills. Sixty-six women are competing this week at Christina Lake for the Senior (age 50 and over), Super Senior (age 60 and older) and Super-Super Senior (age 70 and over) championships.
THREE AND COUNTING: Part-time Vancouver resident Stephen Ames won for the third time this year on the Champions Tour, capturing the Principal Charity Classic in Des Moines, Iowa. Ames’ son, Ryan, is in the field for this week’s PGA Tour Canada Q school at Crown Isle in Courtenay.
JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT: Coquitlam’s Martina Yu has qualified to play in this summer’s U.S. Junior Girls Championship. Yu shot an even-par 72 at McCormick Woods Golf Club in Gig Harbor, Wash., to grab one of two spots into the U.S. Junior, which is being played July 17-22 at the Eisenhower Golf Club at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo. Victoria’s Rebecca Kim shot a one-over 73 at McCormick Woods to earn second alternate status.
ROWE PREVAILS: Former University of Victoria standout Lawren Rowe won the Vancouver Golf Tour’s BTM Lawyers LLP Open played at Pitt Meadows and Meadow Gardens golf courses. Rowe, who plays out of Squamish Valley Golf Club, finished the 54-hole event at eight-under par. That was three shots better than runner-up Isaac Lee of Vancouver Golf Club. Rowe earned $3,500 for the win, while Lee took home $2,200. Ethan Posthumus of Meadow Gardens tied for third at one-under and was the top amateur.