It is with great sadness to announce the sudden passing of long-time Golf Manitoba volunteer, colleague and friend, Barry Hooke.  He was 68 years old.

Barry had been involved with the Manitoba golf community for many years where he had taken his passion for the game and devoted his personal time in an effort to promote, govern and grow the sport of golf especially in the rural communities. Specifically with Golf Manitoba, Barry competed in numerous events, served on volunteer committees, was a member of the Board for 10 years and was also a rules official. Barry and his gentle presence will be greatly missed…

For his obituary, please follow the link below:

https://www.mckenziesportagefuneralchapel.com/notices/Barry-Hooke

A celebration of Barry’s life will take place on Saturday, October 5, 2019 from 2:30-4:30pm at the Victoria Inn, 3550 Victoria Avenue in Brandon, Manitoba. In lieu of flowers, donations in memory of Barry can be be directed to the Heart & Stroke Foundation, Golf Manitoba Scholarship Fund Inc. or to a charity of your choice.

• Heart and Stroke Foundation of Manitoba 1379 Kenaston Boulevard, Winnipeg MB R3P 2T5
  Web: http://www.heartandstroke.ca
• Golf Manitoba Scholarship Fund Inc. 420-145 Pacific Ave, Winnipeg MB R3B 2Z6

A new junior program recently completed it’s second season this past August at the Gilbert Plains Country Club in Gilbert Plains, Manitoba. The program is run by local club members and program founder Ryan Rauliuk and Ron Chapen with the goal to introduce young people ages 8-14 to the sport of golf in a relaxed and fun environment.

Every Wednesday afternoon in July, juniors are offered the opportunity to play 9 or 18-holes and parents and grandparents are encouraged to walk the course with their children. The program follows a relaxed structure and mimics a “house league” format similar to minor hockey with desired outcomes such as getting boys and girls to play together, learning how to play the game, learning golf etiquette and of course to have lots of fun. Juniors receive a golf shirt for participating and also a snack during each play day.

The program is fortunate to have received support from Scott McCallum, General Manager of the Gilbert Plains Country Club. The course ensures tee-times are available and also helps to encourage junior participation by offering lessons and club memberships for only $100 per junior.

Program coordinator Ron Chapen also notes that this program is a way to help stimulate interest in the golf club. “If we continue to get more people out and show the parents and grandparents what a golf course is all about, the better it will be,” said Chapen who is also the former general manager of the Dauphin Lake Golf Club,  “Adults bring their kids out, go to the pro shop, and then to the restaurant. All this helps keep our golf courses going.”

Chapen says the program grew in 2019 with 32 participants up from 28 in 2018. He says plans are in the works to expand the program in 2020 by encouraging participation in juniors 7 years of age and younger.

The 2019 season concluded with a wind-up event including a fun team game along with dinner and prizes for all participants.

Do you know of  a special interest golf story happening in your area or at your local golf club?  If so, please send your story to us at jared@golfmb.ca.

Team Manitoba finished in 5th place at the 2019 Golf Canada Canadian Senior Men’s Championship that was held September 10-13 at the Ceder Brae Golf Club in Scarborough, Ontario. The team of Garth Collings (Breezy Bend Country Club), 2019 Senior Men’s Champion Mike Walker (St. Boniface Golf Club) and Bruce North (Carman Golf & Curling Club) posted a two-day team score of 297 to put them at +13 for the event and 15 shots back of the winning team from Alberta in the inter-provincial team competition.

Final team results >>

Individually, both Garth Collings and Bruce North made the cut and finished T15th and T38th respectively. Ken Warwick of Niakwa Country Club also made the 36-hole cut finishing in 66th place.

Final individual results >>

Shilo Country Club and Elmhurst Golf & Country Club are the 2019 Men’s Provincial Inter-club Champions.

The championship was conducted September 3 at the Glendale Golf & Country Club. Teams of four competed in the stroke play event where the best three of four counted toward to overall team total.  The event included both a City and Rural Division.

In the Rural Division, the Shilo team (pictured above) of Austin Dobrescu, Drew Jones, Brad Pardy and Dale Coulter posted the lowest score of the day with a 228 total. In the runner-up position was Minnewasta Golf & Country Club (Spencer Norrie, Kelly Friesen, Dale Giesbrecht and Duke Wiebe) with a 235.

Full Rural Division results >>

In the City Division, the Elmhurst team of Ben Bandura, Jordy Lutz, Jack Werhun and John Multan shot 230 to take top spot. Finishing in second was the team from across the street at Pine Ridge Golf Club of Tyler Hall, Riley Hall, Que Doan and Ryan Terdik shooting 235.

Full City Division results >>

The low score of the day goes to Pine Ridge member Ryan Terdik who carded a 2-under par 70 in very windy and wet condtions.

Full individual results >>

The Men’s Provincial Inter-club was the last official Golf Manitoba event on the 2019 championship schedule. On behalf of the Board of Directors, staff and volunteers of Golf Manitoba, we want to express our sincere gratitude to all our members who competed this past year as well to our host clubs who helped make this another great championship season!  We will see you again in 2020.

The teams from the St. Boniface Golf Club (pictured above) and the Carman Golf & Curling Club took the city and rural division titles respectively at the 2019 Golf Manitoba Senior Inter-club Championship that was held August 27 at the Links at the Lake Golf Club in Gimli, Manitoba.

In the city division, the team of Mike Walker, John Butler, Bill French and Dave Weseen shot a team total of 232, good enough for a four shot victory over the teams from Niakwa Country Club and Breezy Bend Country Club who tied at 236.

City division results >>

In the rural division, Bruce North, Wayne Giesbrecht, Bill North and Lionel Walz of Carman posted 234 for a 16 shot victory over Selkirk Golf & Country Club and Larters at St. Andrews Golf & Country Club who also tied at 250.

Rural division results >>

Individually, the low round of the day went the Dan Scanlon of Kildonan Park who shot a +1 score of 73 in rainy and windy conditions. Bruce North of Carman was next at 74 and Bill French of St. Boniface rounded out the top three with a 75.

Individual scores >> 

Next on the Golf Manitoba championship calendar, and the last event of the 2019 season, is the Men’s Provincial Inter-club Championship being held September 3 at the Glendale Golf & Country Club.

The Golf Manitoba Women’s Inter-club A & B Championships were held August 26 at the Carman Golf and Curling Club with 15 teams competing in the A event and 11 competing in the B event. Teams of four played with the low three of four scores counting toward the overall team total.

In the women’s A gross event, the team of Charmaine Mackid, Shelley Muir, Lynn Smith and Jen Finch from Breezy Bend Country Club (pictured above) took low gross honours shooting a score of 253. Southwood Golf & Country Club (Heather Shayna, Matty Leung, Fran Povoledo & Trish Jordan) finished second at 258.

In the women’s A net event, Glendale Golf & Country Club (Shannon Wales, Christine Scalena, April Calderon-Roy & Kathy Issac) took the top spot shooting a team score of 214. Finishing in a close second was the home team of the Carman Golf & Curling Club (Kathy Wikdahl, Liliane Fargey, Linda Revel & Kathy Adams) at 219.

Full inter-club A results >>

In the women’s B gross event, Southwood Golf & Country Club (Pat Harding, Drin Jones, Pam Kok & Janet Driver) took top spot with a score of 305. In the runner-up position was Larters at St. Andrews Golf & Country Club (Terry Bowles, Karen Kearny, Rina LaClaire & Kim Ward) shooting 310.

In the women’s B net event, the Kildonan Ladies club (Maureen Vos, Heather Glaser, Bev Letvak and Lillian Haas) shot 225 to take the title with the team from Selkirk Golf & Country Club (Stephanie Cole, Kathy Bird, Martha Cinch and Dot Dmyterko) finishing second, and on a countback, at 227.

Full inter-club B results >>

Next up on the inter-club schedule is the Men’s Senior Championship, August 27 at Links at the Lake in Gimli and the Men’s Provincial Championship, September 3 at the Glendale Golf & Country Club.

Golf Manitoba is pleased to announce that Golf Canada has provided a $2,500 coaching grant to the association for 2019. Golf Canada is working cooperatively with the provincial golf associations across the country and the grant is designed to assist the provinces in helping to offset the costs associated with high-performance coaching and player development.

Golf Manitoba understands and believes in a strong player/coach relationship. Therefore, the association employs a full time Director of Player Development who is active in the field working with players. The goal of the Director of Player Development is to identify and work with athletes who show interest and promise in developing their sport and golf skills; ultimately this will lead to more high-performance players coming up through the various programs within Manitoba and North Western Ontario.

Garth Goodbrandson is the Director of Player Development for Golf Manitoba. Garth is a Class “A” PGA of Canada Professional; respect in sport certified, trained as a Coaching of Development Competitor (CDC) and completed the Level IV Teaching & Coaching Certification Program through the PGA of Canada.

Golf Manitoba Player Development Objectives:

• To support the Canadian Sport Policy of enhanced participation, excellence, capacity and interaction
• To develop golf within the province against each of these four goals
• To address physical fitness and health for the population under the umbrella of the Canadian Sport for Life (CS4L) philosophy
• To optimize talent identification and athlete preparation for individuals wishing to participate at the highest level
• To develop our youth to be physically literate, active for life or to reach the podium
• To make a more focused approach to all areas within the Player Development Program, specifically with respect to the High-Performance programs for junior boys & girls
• To identify specific needs in specific areas of the region covered by Golf Manitoba
• To develop and implement a training program for the 2019 Western Canada Summer Games (girls and boys)
• To utilize educational materials provided by Golf Canada and to promote the source of this material
• To increase the time players spend with the coach in competitive and non-competitive environment
• To enhance the competitive calendar for the high-performance juniors
• To involve the players in structured preparation camps lead by the coach and Sport Science consultants
• To involve the players in Sport Science & Medicine Programs to develop their knowledge, skills and abilities in the areas of strength & conditioning, nutrition, mental training, biomechanics and physiotherapy/athletic training

For more information:

Garth Goodbrandson, PGA of Canada
Director of Player Development
Golf Manitoba
204-925-5730
garth@golfmb.ca

Team Manitoba has captured medals in golf at the 2019 Western Canada Summer Games that were held August 13-18 in Swift Current, Saskatchewan.

On the men’s side, the team of Braxton Kuntz, Noak Fiks, Adam Ingram, Carter Johnson and Trey Ross took home silver in the 54-hole team competition. Team Manitoba battled hard during the event was unable to catch Team Alberta who took the gold by a slim 7-stroke margin.

In the individual competition, Braxton Kuntz took home silver and missing out on the gold by a single shot. Kuntz did a great job of applying pressure on the last day by posting a solid round of 69. Noak Fiks finished in 5th, Trey Ross and Carter Johnson T10 and Adam Ingram finished in 13th position.

In the female event, the Manitoba team of Cala Korman, Crystal Zamsow, Armaan Dhillon, Jeri Lafleche and Sarah Farmer took home the bronze. The young Manitoba squad was unable to keep up with Team Alberta but did a great job of staying with Team Saskatchewan in the battle for second place. Despite a solid third round performance, Team Manitoba missed out on silver by a slim 5-shot margin.

Individually, Cala Korman finished alone in 6th place, Jeri Lafleche in 10th, Aramaan Dhillon in 11th and Sarah Farmer in 12th.

Final results >> 

Both teams were led by PGA of Canada members Garth Goodbrandson (Head Coach) and Bri-ann Tokariski (Manager).

Winnipeg, MB – The Board of Directors of the Golf Manitoba Scholarship Fund are pleased to announce the award recipients for 2019. These outstanding individuals have participated in the Manitoba golf community, demonstrated academic excellence and are pursuing their post-secondary studies at Canadian universities and colleges.

Golf Manitoba Scholarship Fund awards are available to all Golf Manitoba members in addition to those young people who are currently involved with golf either through employment or participation. Scholarships are awarded based largely on academic achievement, however golf ability and community involvement are also considered. For 2019, seven scholarships were awarded based on academic, golf and community involvement and achievement as of June 30, 2019.

Dr. Dwight Parkinson Award – Ryan Young

The Dr. Dwight Parkinson Award is a $3,500 scholarship that has been made possible by Mr. Dave Hill of the St. Charles Country Club.  The award recognizes Dr. Parkinson’s long time commitment to the game of golf. This award is available to a student entering their first year of studies at a post-secondary institution.

Ryan Young graduated from St. Paul’s Collegiate in Elie, Manitoba in June of 2019 and will be entering his first year of studies at Western University in pursuit of a degree in business administration. Ryan was the recipient of the 2019 Governor General’s Academic Medal for academic achievement in high school. Ryan was also very active in his high school where he played volleyball, basketball, badminton and competed in track & field; Ryan also served as student council president in his senior year. In 2018, Ryan achieved a top 30 finish in the Manitoba Junior Championship and is currently a member at St. Charles Country Club.

Brian Gilhuly Award – Anthony Leicht

The Brian Gilhuly Memorial Scholarship is a $2,000 award that was made possible by the generous donation from the estate of the long-time Golf Manitoba volunteer, Mr. Brian Gilhuly. Brian started his volunteerism with Golf Manitoba in 1986 where he served in a variety of capacities for over 30 years until his passing in late 2017. This award is available to students who are currently in the process of continuing on with post-secondary studies.

Anthony Leicht is currently enrolled at the University of Manitoba where he is pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree and is also a member of the Bison Men’s Golf Team. Anthony’s recent golf accomplishments include a T6th in the 2017 Nott Autcorp Men’s Amateur and playing in the 2017 Canadian Junior and Amateur Championships. In 2018, Anthony placed T34th in the Nott Autocorp Men’s Amateur and also played in the Canadian Junior Championship. In the spring of 2019, Anthony also competed in the 2019 Canadian University & Colleges Golf Championship. Anthony is currently a member at St. Charles Country Club.

Craig Yahiro Memorial Scholarship Award – Kate Gregoire & Brett Aseltine

The Craig Yahiro Memorial Scholarship provides two $1,000 awards that is made possible through the generosity of the Yahiro Family and by a charitable golf day and social that is held annually at the Rossmere Country Club and in memory of the late Craig Yahiro. Craig Yahiro was a long-time member of the PGA of Canada where his skillful instruction and great sense of humour helped many improve their game. This award is available for students who are either Golf Manitoba members or who are currently involved with golf either through employment or participation.

Kate Gregoire graduated from St. Mary’s Academy in June of 2019. She will be attending the University of Manitoba in pursuit of a Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in Criminal Justice. Kate will be one of few dual athletes at the University of Manitoba where she will compete for the Bison Women in both Golf and Hockey. Kate’s recent golf highlights include winning the 2018 high school individual and team championships, a runner-up finish in the 2018 Golf Manitoba Junior Women’s Championship, playing for Team Manitoba in the 2017 and 2018 Golf Canada Junior Women’s Championships. Kate currently carries a 6.9 handicap factor and plays out of the Quarry Oaks Golf Course in Steinbach, Manitoba.

Brett Aseltine recently completed his second year of studies at the University of Manitoba where he is majoring in Science. Brett’s golf accomplishments include playing to a 10.0 handicap factor as well competing in the 2018 Nott Autocorp Amateur Championship. Brett is also active with the University volunteer community where he currently serves as a coordinator for the 5 Days for the Homeless campaign. Brett currently plays out of and is employed in golf services at the Niakwa Country Club.

Open Scholarship Awards – Jacob Armstrong, Josh Shuster & Marissa Naylor

The Open Scholarship Awards are made possible each year by the Scholarship Fund. These awards are made available to both high school and post-secondary students who are pursuing studies in Canada. Scholarships are awarded based largely on academic achievement; however golf ability and community involvement are also considered. The number and size of the awards are determined each year by the Scholarship Fund Board of Directors. For 2019, three $1,000 awards were made possible.

Jacob Armstrong graduated high school in June of 2019. In the fall, Jacob will be attending the University of the Fraser Valley where he will enter his first year of studies in the business administration program and play for the men’s golf team. Jacob’s recent golf achievements include a win at the 2018 MLJT PGA of Manitoba Jr. Championship, T4 in the Golf Canada Prairie Future Links Championship, T3 in the Manitoba Junior, T7 in the Nott Autocorp Men’s Amateur and also playing in the 2018 Canadian Junior and Men’s Amateur Championships. In 2017, Jacob placed T7 in the Manitoba Junior Championship and T49 in the Nott Autocorp Men’s Amateur. Jacob currently plays out of the St. Boniface Golf Club.

Josh Shuster recently completed his first year of studies at the University of Victoria where he is enrolled in the commerce program and also competes on the men’s golf team. Josh carried an A grade average in 2018/19. Recent golf accomplishments in 2018 include a 63rd place finish in the Canadian Junior Men’s Championship, T41 in the Nott Autocorp Men’s Amateur Championship, a T3 in the Manitoba Junior Championship and a T46 in the Golf Canada Future Links Pacific Championship. Josh currently plays out of the Pine Ridge Golf Club.

Marissa Naylor is entering her final year of studies at the University of Manitoba where she is majoring in Recreation Management and Community Development. Marissa is also the captain of the Bison Women’s Golf Team. Marissa’s recent golf achievements include competing in the 2019 Canadian University & College Championship, a T4th in the 2018 Manitoba Women’s Amateur and playing in the 2018 Canadian University & College Championship. Marissa won the 2017 Manitoba Women’s Amateur and went on to represent Manitoba in the 2017 Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship as a member of Team Manitoba. Marissa plays out of Pine Ridge Golf Club where she carries a 3.0 handicap factor.

About the Golf Manitoba Scholarship Fund

The Golf Manitoba Scholarship Fund (GMSF), formerly known as the Manitoba Golf Scholarship Fund, is a registered charity, the object of which is to provide financial assistance to young golfers entering or continuing in a post-secondary educational institution in Canada. Since 1986, the Fund has awarded over 180 scholarships totalling over $205,000 to students associated with 36 different golf clubs throughout Manitoba and Northwestern Ontario.

For more information about the Scholarship Fund including information on how to apply and donation information, please visit the Fund’s website at golfmb.ca/scholarship.

For more information:

Jared Ladobruk
Executive Director
Golf Manitoba
204-925-5729
jared@golfmb.ca

Jamie Roy is the 2019 Manitoba Rural Champion. Roy, who plays out of Quarry Oaks Golf Course in Steinbach, shot a two day total of 148 on rounds of 75-73. Ryan Hargreaves of Shilo Country Club, was just three shots off the pace on rounds of 78-73. Wade Wetelanien (Eagles Landing Golf Course) rounded out the top three finishing four shots behind Roy on rounds of 79-73.

Division winners:

12 & under Junior Men – Spence Mott, Shilo Country Club

Junior Men – Ryan Hargreaves, Shilo Country Club

Senior Men – Keith Fawcett, Clear Lake Golf Course

Full leaderboard >>

The 2019 Rural Championship was held August 10 & 11 at the Neepawa Golf & Country Club.