Due to interprovincial travel restrictions and other complexities related to COVID-19, Golf Canada has announced additional changes to its championship schedule for the 2021 season.
Provincial restrictions had previously forced the cancellation of U.S. Open Local and Final Qualifiers, in addition to the NextGen Pacific, NextGen Western, and NextGen Ontario Championships. With continued pandemic-related uncertainty, the remaining NextGen Championships – NextGen Prairie (Quarry Oaks, June 10-13), NextGen Quebec (Club de Golf Hemmingford, June 27-30), and NextGen Atlantic (Dundarave Golf Course, July 12-15) – will also be cancelled and the 2021 NextGen National Junior Orders of Merit will not be awarded. In some cases, these NextGen events would have conflicted with provincial junior championships around Canada that are being delayed and rescheduled.
The two NextGen Fall Series Championships in September will proceed as scheduled. Each field will feature 99 junior boys and girls and exemptions into the 2022 Canadian Junior Championships will be awarded.
NextGen Fall Series East | September 16-19 | Hollinger Golf Club, Timmins, Ont.
NextGen Fall Series West | September 23-26 | Myrtle Point Golf Club, Powell River, BC
Golf Canada National Amateur Championships are still scheduled to proceed but will only move forward after approval from regional and provincial health authorities. Operational plans for amateur competitions have been adjusted to incorporate rigorous health and safety protocols. Final decisions about the feasibility of conducting national championships will be made approximately four to six weeks prior to the start of each championship. The safety of championship competitors, tournament staff, volunteers, and host site members will remain the top priority guiding these decisions.
At this time, Golf Canada is able to announce the following changes to its National Amateur Championship schedule:
Interprovincial team competitions that are usually played concurrently with national championships will not be contested in 2021. The increased complexity associated with team competitions – including group travel and the involvement of non-playing team captains – will not allow for them to proceed this year.
The Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship will move one week later in July and is now scheduled to be hosted by Edmonton Petroleum Golf & Country Club in Edmonton, Alta. from July 26-30. The Canadian Women’s Amateur was last held in Edmonton in 1993. The previously scheduled host, The Royal Montreal Golf Club, has agreed to welcome this national championship in 2025 or 2026, after hosting the Presidents Cup in 2024.
The Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship will remain in its current date and is now scheduled to be hosted at the Ambassador Golf Club in Windsor, Ont. from August 1-5. The championship—which was previously contested at two courses with a 264-player field—will be reduced to a 156-player field and be contested at one course. The previously scheduled hosts, Le Club Laval-sur-le-Lac and Club de Golf Saint-Raphaël, will explore the possibility of hosting the championship in a future year.
The Canadian Junior Girls Championship will move one week earlier and is now scheduled to be played at Leduc Golf Club in Leduc, Alta. from July 19-23. The previously scheduled host, Club de Golf Sainte-Marie will play host to this championship in 2025 or 2026.
The Canadian Men’s Senior Championship is now scheduled to be contested at Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu in La Malbaie, Qué. from September 20-24. The previously scheduled host, Ken-Wo Golf Club in New Minas, N.S. will host in 2025.
The Canadian University/College Championship has been postponed to October. A host course and date will be confirmed in the near future.
The Canadian Junior Boys Championship will remain at Club de Golf La Vallée du Richelieu in Sainte-Julie, Qué. from August 8-12. The Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship and the Canadian Women’s Mid-Amateur & Senior Championship will also remain as scheduled. Fort McMurray Golf Club will host the men from August 23-27 and Golf Château-Bromont will host the women from August 30-September 2.
With the current province-wide restrictions in effect, Golf Canada has cancelled the 2021 NextGen Prairie Championship scheduled for June 10-13 at Quarry Oaks Golf Course in Ste. Anne, Manitoba.
This regional junior championship is not feasible given the current mandatory 14-day quarantine for all people entering the province of Manitoba.
Golf Canada will continue to evaluate provincial health and travel restrictions related to COVID-19 to make informed and responsible decisions related to our 2021 championship schedule. The safety and well-being of our championship competitors, tournament staff and volunteers along with event stakeholders and our host community at large is paramount to Golf Canada.
Golf Canada has dropped an app update that is sure to get golfers pumping their fists!
The latest version of Golf Canada’s app now features the ability to set up Match Play, Skins or Stroke Play games against friends using Gross or Net scoring.
Put the pencil down and forget about dotting the scorecard. You no longer need to worry about who gets strokes on what hole. The Golf Canada app has you covered.
Plus, users can discover new places to play using a revamped course finder tool. The new look-up functionality allows golfers to search for courses using criteria like number of holes, type of facility (private, public, semi-private) and ease of walking, among many others.
The app is also helping golfers get better connected with their favourite facilities – users can look up clubs who are specifically offering promotions.
These new Golf Canada App features are in addition to those users already enjoy, like real-time course GPS data and game tracking.
Canadians needing a social outlet and a sense of recreational normalcy during the uncertainty of the pandemic in 2020 turned to golf in a major way. Now Golf Canada, with the support of industry partners, will build on the excitement, increased interest, and elevated levels of play with a national golfer retention campaign to welcome new and returning players back to the golf course in 2021.
The campaign – GOLF IS CALLING – is a Canada-wide marketing initiative to speak to new, younger golfers as well as the community of avid players, each uniquely drawn to the game whether it be for exercise, the social experience or the challenge of the sport.
Nancy Spineti Delle Donne recognized by Golf Canada as 2020 Bruce Mitchell Volunteer of the Year
Oakville, Ont. (Golf Canada) – Golf Canada is pleased to announce that Nancy Spineti Delle Donne of Montreal has been named the 2020 recipient of the Bruce Mitchell Volunteer of the Year Award. A presentation of the award will take place on Thursday, March 4 as part of Golf Canada’s Virtual Annual Meeting.
For more than 20 years, Nancy has been a major contributor to Golf Quebec and Golf Canada as an expert in Handicapping and Course Rating.
In 2014, Nancy was named Chair of the Golf Canada Course Rating and Handicap Committee, a position she held proudly until the end of 2020. During this time, she played an integral role in the national launch of the new World Handicap System which was rolled globally in 2020.
“Volunteers are a driving force behind golf in this country and we are proud to recognize Nancy Spineti Delle Donne for her deep contributions to Handicapping and Course Rating this past year and over the last 20 years,” said Liz Hoffman, Golf Canada’s 1st Vice President who will sworn in as the Association’s 119th President during the Annual Meeting. “Nancy’s contribution to the game and her support in the execution of an important golf service has made and major impact. She has carried those responsibilities with excellence and is truly deserving of this recognition.”
Nancy was Chair of the Golf Québec Course Rating and Handicap Committee from 2008 to 2020 and served on the Golf Québec Board of Director from 2008 to 2015.
During her tenure with Golf Quebec, Nancy helped to train course rating teams across eight regional associations. She would visit 40+ member clubs a year and has rated nearly 90 courses. Her commitment to the craft included meticulous data collection and support documentation to ensure the highest standard of Golf Quebec’s course rating services.
Nancy has also served as Golf Quebec’s feature presenter for handicap seminars and played an instrumental role in training a province-wide network of club Handicap Committees who supported countless members in establishing a valid Handicap Index. From 2011 to 2014, she was also Chairperson of the Golf Québec Membership Committee.
A public player with provincial contributions dating back to 1997, Nancy was recognized for her exceptional service as Golf Quebec’s 2004 Volunteer of the Year, and in 2020, Golf Québec Board of Directors celebrated her retirement from the association by naming her an Honorary Governor.
Now in its 15th year, candidates for the Bruce Mitchell Volunteer of the Year Award are put forth to Golf Canada for consideration by the respective provincial golf associations in acknowledgment of significant contributions to the game of golf in their community.
The Bruce Mitchell Volunteer of the Year Award is named in recognition of Toronto native Bruce Mitchell who in 2017-18 was the first Canadian to serve as captain of the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews (R&A). Born in Victoria and raised in Edmonton, the former president of the Toronto Golf Club and R&A member since 1988 was just the ninth internationally appointed captain of the R&A, one of the most prestigious volunteer positions in the world of golf. Duties as captain included representing the R&A as a global ambassador and aiding in the R&A’s effort to develop golf around the world.
Congratulations to Nancy Spineti Delle Donne of Montreal, Que. on being named the 2020 Bruce Mitchell Volunteer of the Year!
Liz Hoffman
Captured at Hilton Airport Hotel on February, 29, 2020 by Tyler Costigan/ Golf Canada
Liz Hoffman has served on Golf Canada’s Board of Directors since 2012 and has been a recognized leader in Canadian sport as an athlete, coach, and administrator.
She honed her executive leadership skills over a 39-year career with the University of Toronto including 16 years as Director of Athletics and High-Performance. She has been active with many sport organizations, serving as a past president of Canadian USport and Ontario University Athletics and as an officer and board member of both Ontario and Field Hockey Canada. She also served on the Board of Directors of Coaches of Canada and as a member of the Sport Development Committee of Swim Canada.
During her time with Golf Canada, she has contributed across a multitude of committees, councils and working groups including most recently serving as Chair of the Compensation Committee, the World Junior Girls Steering Committee and as a member of the Ad Hoc Committee on Governance Renewal. She has previously chaired the Amateur Competitions, Sport Development and Human Resources Committees, as well as the Ad Hoc Committee to Review the COC Report. She has been a member of the Audit and Risk Committee, the Diversity Enhancement Working Group, and the Volunteer Services Working Group. Hoffman is also a member the Board of Directors of the Golf Canada Foundation, serving on the Executive Committee as Secretary and chairing both the Scholarships & Grants and the Women’s Fund Committees.
A past President of the Golf Association of Ontario, she was also the non-playing captain of Canada’s Women’s Team at the 2012, 2014 and 2016 World Amateur Team Championships and served as Golf Canada’s delegate to the Biennial meeting of the International Golf Federation in 2018. In 2020, she participated as a program mentor in the R&A’s Women in Golf Leadership Development Program and also joined the PGA of Canada’s Diversity and Inclusion Task Force. She has been active as a tournament chair and starting & scoring official at Golf Canada amateur, professional, and international competitions.
A former provincial, national, and international golfer who won both the Ontario Junior and Quebec Women’s Amateur Championship, Hoffman is a member of both the Thornhill Golf Club and the Mad River Golf Club and shares her passion for the game with her husband Rick and their sons Matt and Mark.
Team Manitoba finishes 5th at Canadian Senior Men’s Championship
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.
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.
Team Manitoba heads to Canadian Junior Championship
Tsawwassen, BC – 03 August 2018 – Canadian Junior Girls Championship at Beach Grove Golf Club in Tsawwassen, BC. (Chuck Russell/Golf Canada)
Next on the national stage, Team Manitoba heads out to the Covered Bridge Golf & Country Club in Hartland, New Brunswick for the 2019 Golf Canada Canadian Junior Men’s Championship. Jacob Armstrong (Southwood Golf & Country Club), Neel Soni (St. Charles Country Club) and Josh Shuster (Pine Ridge Golf Club) will represent the province in the inter-provincial team championship August 12-15.
Also playing in the event and from Manitoba and Northwestern Ontario include Jack Taylor (Elmhurst Golf & Country Club), Jack Moro (Chapples Golf Club, Thunder Bay) and Jordan McDonald (Breezy Bend).
Austin Dobrescu finishes T31st in Canadian Men’s Amateur
Tsawwassen, BC – 03 August 2018 – Canadian Junior Girls Championship at Beach Grove Golf Club in Tsawwassen, BC. (Chuck Russell/Golf Canada)
Austin Dobrescu of Shilo Country Club continued his hot play this season with a T31 finish at the Golf Canada Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship that was played August 5-8 at the Glen Arbour Golf Course and The Links at Brunello in Hammonds Plains, Nova Scotia. Dobrescu, a member of Team Manitoba that finished 5th in the Willingdon Cup inter-provincial team championship, was the lone Manitoban to make the cut in this year’s event shooting rounds of 76-74-72-71 for a 293 total. Equally impressive in his feat, Dobrescu was in a tie for 11th for Canadians who made the cut in what has now become a top international event on the world amateur golf circuit.
Upon his return to Manitoba, Dobrescu will have little time to rest as he was recently awarded a sponsor’s exemption into the 2019 Players Cup, the local stop on the PGA Tour Canada Mackenzie Tour, that will take place August 12-18 at the Southwood Golf & Country Club.
