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CANADIANS ON TOUR

April 5, 2004

This Week's News

Johnson rings up the BellSouth Classic

A trio of PGA TOUR rookies finished 1-2-3 at the BellSouth Classic in Dulluth, GA, on the weekend but it was only Zack Johnson for whom the bell tolled.

This was like a command performance for Johnson. A group of about 10 friends and business associates who had supported him financially during his early career days had chosen this particular event to attend and for some it was their first view of Johnson in a pro tournament. Johnson’s father was there, so too was his wife of just over a year. And when Johnson stroked his way to a three shot lead after three rounds, this was all too good to be true. Sunday however, with eight holes to play, the bogey barrage began. Four bogeys in five holes and suddenly a five shot lead had been whittled down to two. But Johnson maintained his composure well enough to claim his first TOUR title, a (69-66-68-72--275) 13-under par one-stroke margin ahead of Australian Mark Hensby and another in shot front of Scott Hend of Australia.

“It wasn’t me out there. I was under God’s influence. He made it happen,” said the soft spoken Iowa City resident, who was the Nationwide Tour’s Player Of The Year in 2003. “It was a roller coaster. I don’t even know what I shot.”

The victory was worth $810,000 to Johnson and puts his earnings for the season over the one million dollar mark after nine tournaments.

Top Canadian was Glen Hnatiuk, who was headed for a Top 10 finish until his control off the tee departed during the final round and he wound up (70-71-68-76--286) T-20 and earning $45,393. Dave Morland IV T-30 and finished at (72-70-72-74—288) even par for $27,945. Defending Masters Champion Mike Weir of Ontario had another dismal result. After missing last week’s cut, Weir T45 and earned just $12,612 for his (73-70-73-75—291) 3-over par outing in preparation for this week’s journey around Augusta National.

PGA TOUR NOTES: . . . . . Cambridge, Ontario’s Ian Leggatt, 38, scheduled for surgery Tuesday to correct a problem with his left wrist for an injury diagnosed as carpal tunnel syndrome, will miss up to three months of tournaments. Leggat had been experiencing numbness, incessant pain and aggravating tingling in the thumb and middle fingers, resulting in a weakend grip and diminishing hand strength. Leggatt finished 78th in his first tournament of the season, the Hope Chrysler Classic back in January, winning $8,280 but since then has missed three cuts and was forced to withdraw after one round of his last event in late February .... The 608-yard par-5 10th hole at the TPC at Sugarloaf yielded the three longest drives of the season at the BellSouth. Scott McCarron, Hend and Chris Couch launched crowd pleasing drives measuring 397, 396 and 393 yards, respectively. During the tournament no less than 31 drives measured longer than 367 yards. For Hend, whose previous best pro finish was a T-12 in last year’s Nationwide Alberta Open Classic, he made the first cut of his PGA TOUR career in just his sixth event.

SORENSTAM COLLECTS HER 50TH TITLE

There was a time when Hall of Fame member Kathy Whitworth’s 1985 record of 88 LPGA career victories seemed untouchable. However, since Annika Sorenstam has arrived on the scene it may now be only a matter of time before a new milestone faces the next generation

Sorenstam collected her 50th LPGA title at the Office Depot Championship hosted by Amy Alcott in Tarzana, California over the weekend with a sterling (68-70-69--207) 9-under par three shot victory over Ashli Bunch and Meg Mallon, becoming only the sixth player in LPGA history to reach the 50-win plateau.

“Fifty is a kind of magical number. I’ve thought about this for a little while. This is why I practice. This is why I’m here. I love to win.”

Sorenstam has won the Office Depot Championship three times in the past four years, giving her three tournaments (Mizuno Classic & Michelob Light Classic) that she’s won three times. This time she collected $262,500.

Lorie Kane of PEI birdied the final two holes to move into a tie for fourth at (72-73-67--212) four-under par, earning $81,529 for 13th place on the money-winning list at $119,621. Quebec-born Isabelle Beisiegel displayed her talents by tying the course record in the final round and moved up 47 spots into a T-11 and finished (74-77-65--216) at even par, earning $31,951, her biggest payday as a professional. BC’s Dawn Coe-Jones and A.J. Eathorne were cut

SPECTACULAR GOLF HIGHLIGHT FUTURE LINKS PACIFIC FINALS

If the four BC teenagers who captured championships at the 2004 BMO Financial Group Future Links Pacific Championships continue to play the way they did in Victoria April 2-4 then golf fans following their careers can expect to see some exciting tournaments in the future.

Adam Hadwin, 16, of Abbotsford, Kirby Dreher, 16, of Fort St. John, Richard Lee, 13, of Vancouver and Jessica Wallace, 13, of Langley each won their divisions in stunning fashion Sunday on a challenging and perfectly prepared Cordova Bay Golf Course.

Hadwin won the Junior Boys division by knocking 10 shots off his opening round with a 10-birdie performance followed by a final sub-par round that put him at (75-65-69--209) four under par and four ahead of runner-up Davis Poscentre of Calgary, AB, the first-round leader. Last year Hadwin finished 8th.

“I just went out there looking to make my pars and let the rest of the field try to catch me,” said Hadwin, the only player to finish the Future Links Pacific Championship under par. “My putting really came around the last two days and I just started finding the speed of the greens. With so many great players in the field, the win feels great and it’s an awesome way to end the weekend.”

Ryan Lidkea, Delta, BC, warming up for an upcoming tournament in San Jose, Costa Rico later this week, closed with strong 4-under par to claim fourth place at (76-71-67--214) one-over par. His RCGA teammate, Jordon Mason of Delta, didn’t fare as well finishing (79-75-72—226) T-19.

Junior Boys - - course par 71 - - 6,524 yards
1 - Adam Hadwin, Abbotsford, BC - - 75-65-69--209
2 - Davis Poscente, Calgary, AB - - 71-73-69--213
3 - Ryan Lidkea, Delta, BC - - 76-71-67--214
4 - Corey Steger, North Vancouver, BC - - 75-72-68--215
5 - David Stewart, Prince Albert, SK - - 72-72-72--216
T-6 - Cory Renfrew, Victoria, BC - - 71-70-78--219
T-6 - Rafael Lee, Burnaby, BC- - 73-71-75--219
8 - Christopher Schofield, Parksville, BC - - 74-71-75--220
T-9 - Taylor Willms, Victoria, BC - - 74-76-71--221
T-9 - Christopher Ross, Dundas, ON - - 74-73-74--221
T-9 - Todd Bissenden, Duncan, BC - - 72-74-75--221

Dreher improved dramatically each round during the Junior Girls divison, cutting three strokes off her opening score and four more from her second round to wind up (79-76-72--227) four shots in front of Susan Nam of Edmonton, AB and Lindsay Caljouw of Ladysmith, BC

“My putting was really working today, especially on the back,” said Dreher. “I hit a lot of long par putts on some tough greens so to come back and pull out the win feels really great.”

Last year’s BC Junior Champion, Jessica Potter of Coquitlam, was five shots back of Dreher in fourth place. Dreher has come into her own as a player. Two years ago she placed seventh, 24 shots off the lead. Last season Dreher was fifth, 21 shots back of the winner.

Junior Girls - - course par 71 - - 5,765 yards
1 - Kirby Dreher, Fort St. John, BC - - 79-76-72--227
T-2 - Susan Nam, Edmonton, AB - - 76-75-80--231
T-2 - Lindsay Caljouw, Lady Smith, BC - - 79-76-76--231
4 - Jessica Potter, Coquitlam, BC - - 82-74-76--232
5 - Kira Meixner, Richmond, BC - - 79-79-82--240
6 - Dominique Pytlewski, North Vancouver, BC - - 81-80-80--241
7 - Chelsey Lollar, Rosedale, BC - - 87-77-82--246
T-8 - Whitney Cox, Edmonton, AB - - 85-85-81--251
T-8 - Lindi Moryson, Langley, BC - - 87-84-80--251
T-8 - Laurenne Picard, White Rock, BC - - 84-82-85--251

The Bantam Boys division provided the most dramatic finish Sunday as Lee drained a 15-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole to force a playoff with Jonnie Motomochi of White Rock, BC. Motomochi trailed Lee by three shots going into the final round and threatened to win it all until Lee’s clutch 15-footer forced extra holes, the fourth time these two young competitors have met in a playoff to decide a championship. Lee ended this one with a birdie on the first extra hole for his first Junior Links title. In 2003 Motomochi finished second, a stroke behind the winner, while Lee was another shot back in third.

Bantam Boys - - course at par 71 - - 6,524 yards
T-1 - Richard Lee, Vancouver, BC - - 76-74-72--222* won P/O
T-1 - Jonnie Motomochi, White Rock, BC - - 76-77-69--222
3 - Eugene Wong, North Vancouver, BC - - 78-74-76--228
4 - Riley Wheeldon, Cornox, BC - - 81-73-79--233
5 - Brendon Lewis, Victoria, BC - - 91-89-88--268

Wallace, the two-time defending Bantam Girls division champion, made Future Links history with a playoff victory over Pamela Burneski of Surrey, becoming the first three-time BC Bantam champion and one of only four players to capture at least three BMO Future Links Championships in Canada.

Bantam Girls - - course par 71 - - 5,765 yards
T-1 - Jessica Wallace, Langley, BC - - 86-79-84—249* P/O
T-1 - Pamela Burneski, Surrey, BC - - 83-81-85--249
3 - Nicole Zhang, Calgary, AB - - 92-92-89--273

THE DRAMBUIE WORLD ICE GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP

Perhaps it was only fitting that a top curling champion was Canada’s representative in a golf tournament played on a course carved out of snow and ice.

Along with 35 other invited golfers from around the world, Moncton NB’s curling star Russ Howard (left, teeing off) spent this past weekend golfing on the remote island of Svalbard in a Fiord near the Arctic town of Longyearbyen in Spitsbergen, Norway where polar bears outnumber citizens 2-1, where natural hazards include seal holes, -30 degree Celsius temperatures and the potential for snow blindness, and where the North Pole is less than a day’s walk away.This is where the 5th Drambuie World Ice Golf championship was staged, a tournament that might easily be described as the most uniquely challenging and extreme test of golf on the planet.

British Golfer John Wells scraped his way to a chilling (78-78--156) 12-over par and a one-shot victory over Denmark’s Brian Akstrup (80-77--157. Howard, who set a course record 64 on his favorite layout in New Brunswick a few years ago, was only two shots off the pace following the first round but after a heavy overnight snowfall presented another degree of toughness to the all-white layout the former Canadian curling champion recorded a couple of snowmen on his card and finished alone in ninth place at (78-89--167) 23-over par.

“Finishing 9th overall was beyond my wildest expectations,” said Howard. “Unfortunately half way round the course (in Saturday’s final round) the crampons I was wearing broke, which hindered my swing a little and I had a few unlucky bounces along the way. However, it was a lot of fun playing ice golf in the arctic and experiencing some of the toughest weather conditions out there. In all – an outstanding experience.”

Polar Putting: . . . . . Howard was invited to play in the World Ice Golf Championship because Drambuie is one of his curling sponsors . . . . . there was never a fear of playing in the dark since the area received 16 hours of sunlight each day . . . . . cold temperatures reduce driving distances by about 20% so the course was only 75% the length of a normal 18-hole course . . . . . all players use orange colored golf balls . . . . . putting is a special art form since the frozen balls don’t always roll on the ice surfaces, they slide . . . . . the Drambuie Championship began in Greenland in 1999 but the 2003 event had to be cancelled due to - - what else - - bad weather . . . . . the World Ice Golf Championship is the only mixed tournament where a woman, golf pro Annika Ostberg of Denmark in 2000-2001, has triumphed over male competitors . . . . . Most of the regular rules of golf prevail with a couple of exceptions, one being that golfers are allowed to scrape the surface of the snow/ice between their ball and the flag stick when putting on the ‘white’.

http://www.drambuie.com/icegolf.shtml

BC Juniors playing for Canada in Costa Rico

Two BC boys represent Canada this week when a foursome of talented Canadian juniors chosen by the RCGA tee-off Wednesday in San Jose, Costa Rico in hopes of qualifying for the 2004 Toyota Junior Golf World Cup.

Ryan Lidkea and Jordan Mason of Delta will join with Dale Vallely, Medicine Hat, AB and Keven Fortin-Simard, Roberval, PQ in competing against teams from Mexico, Costa Rico and Puerto Rico. The top two countries this week advance to the world final in June where 14 teams will face off at the Bearspaw Country Club in Kyota, Japan. Accompanying the Canadian boys is RCGA regional coach Derek Ingram of Winnipeg, Manitoba.

ARNOLD PALMER’S FINAL MASTERS

The game of golf has a lot to be grateful to Arnold Palmer for, especially those who make a more than comfortable living playing professionally.

This week Arnie will gather up his Army for their last march around Augusta National. For 50 years the troops have assembled at this same pristine location where the ‘King of Golf’ has claimed four magnificent victories but hasn’t made the cut to play on a Sunday for 20 years. Friday, April 9 will be his final walk to the famed 18th green at Augusta. And as Mike Weir prepares to defend the title he captured on the first extra hole of a playoff last spring, perhaps he can also be grateful to Arnold Palmer for taking some of the pressure and attention off of Weir’s shoulders during the first two rounds. This will give Weir an opportunity to focus in on his game. This year, like no other year at the Masters, Canadian golf fans will be glued to TV sets and watching history in the making - - the first defense of a major golf title by a Canadian golfer.

For the history of Arnold at the Masters:

http://www.masters.org/en_US/history/jacket/palmer.html

HANDICAP SEMINARS FOR BC & UPCOMING EVENTS

Presented by the BC Men’s & Ladies Golf Associations

For complete information on each of the remaining seminars log on to: http://www.bcga.org/events2.cfm

April 6-8

April 8-11

April 10-11

April 15-17

April 15-18

April 16-18

April 22-25

April 23-25