Canada’s National Open Championship returns to Jack Nicklaus-designed Oakville course for 27th time

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Oakville, Ont. (Golf Canada) – Steeped in history and tradition, Oakville’s Glen Abbey Golf Club has once again been named to host the 2015 RBC Canadian Open, as announced by Golf Canada and RBC today. The world-class event, which is part of the Triple Crown of national golf championships, will host many of the best golfers in the world July 20 – 26, 2015.

Renowned as the longtime home of the Canadian Open, Glen Abbey will play host to Canada’s National Open Championship for a record 27th time. The announcement marks the return of the RBC Canadian Open to the ClubLink-owned facility where it was last held in 2013, an event won by PGA TOUR star and Team RBC member Brandt Snedeker.

“Glen Abbey has challenged the world’s best on 26 occasions and played host to many of the most memorable finishes in Canadian Open history, including Brandt Snedeker’s exciting victory last summer,” said Golf Canada Executive Director and CEO Scott Simmons. “The Abbey’ and Canada’s National Open Golf Championship share a special connection and we are pleased to continue that legacy in 2015.”

“It’s very exciting to see the tournament return to Glen Abbey, where it was selected as the PGA Tour’s ‘Most Fan-Friendly Event’ in 2013,” noted Jane Broderick, Chief Brand and Communications Officer, RBC. “Along with Golf Canada, we look forward to welcoming the world’s top golfers and our dedicated fans back to this prestigious golf course next year.”

“We are very pleased to welcome the RBC Canadian Open back to Glen Abbey,” said Rai Sahi, ClubLink President and CEO. “It is only fitting that Canada’s most famous course plays host to our National Open Championship. Since the Canadian Open was first played on this Jack Nicklaus Signature course in 1977, Glen Abbey has produced many worthy champions including Tiger Woods, Vijay Singh, Greg Norman, Lee Trevino, Curtis Strange and Brandt Snedeker. We look forward to a great tournament week and another outstanding champion in 2015.”

Glen Abbey was owned and operated by Golf Canada from 1982 – 1998 before selling the property to ClubLink in the fall of 1998. As the longtime host of Canada’s National Open Championship, ‘The Abbey’ hosted 22 Canadian Opens between 1977 and 2000 as well as 2004, 2008, 2009 and 2013.

The 2014 RBC Canadian Open will take place July 21-27 at The Royal Montreal Golf Club in Île-Bizard, Que. For information about tickets, volunteer opportunities or corporate hospitality for either the 2014 RBC Canadian Open at The Royal Montreal Golf Club or the 2015 RBC Canadian Open at Glen Abbey Golf Club, please visit www.rbccanadianopen.com.

TORONTO— Light on and off showers throughout the day could not dampen the Golf Association of Ontario’s (GAO) first championship of the season: the Men’s Better Ball, an event that has been running since 1959. On May 15, Oakdale Golf and Country Club played host to 61 teams (112 golfers) all looking to become this year’s champions.

In the end, it was the team of Brad Newman, from Beacon Hall Golf Club, and Jud Whiteside, Thornhill Golf & Country Club, who shot a seven-under 65 on the day.

They edged out the duo of Rob Cowan, Westmount Golf & Country Club, and Dave Bunker, Brampton Golf Course, who finished with a six-under 66. Bunker came into the tournament after a strong performance in late April in Lima, Peru at the Manuel Prado and Carlos Raffo Cups.

There was a five-way tie for third at five-under 67. 2013 Mid-Am Champion Tyler McDannold, Brampton Golf Club, who also had a hole-in-one on the 11^th hole, and Brett Saunders, The Club at Bond Head; Nic Powell and Harris Bundy, both from Scarboro Golf & Country Club; Ryan Tsang and Truman Tai, both from Cedar Brae Golf & Country Club; Christian McCullough, Meadowbrook Golf & Country Club, and Alex Dumais, Caledon Woods Golf Club; and Geoff Goodwin and Walt Spivak, both from The Oaks Golf Club, all took home bronze medals.

There was no doubt that the weather was a factor during the round, but Whiteside explained that they were prepared for worse. “In general we thought it was going to rain more than it did, so I think we lucked out. We just kept it hole-by-hole and shot-by-shot and didn’t think about it too much.”After the round the winners were thrilled with their victory. “It is a great feeling to win. This is my first time playing in the event and it is awesome to win the first time playing here,” explained Newman.

The team got out to a strong start during the event and never looked back. “We were three-under through four and just continued to play well throughout the rest of the day but it certainly was good to get off to a strong start like that,” said Newman.“We kept saying to ourselves let’s just focus on the next shot and not get too far ahead of ourselves. You never know what the score will be in events like this so if you just keep plugging away and hit your shots well, the score looks after itself,” added Whiteside.

The win was the first GAO championship for either Newman or Whiteside.

2014 Men’s Better Ball Full Results:  

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Mother Nature hasn’t been kind this winter, causing many golf courses to have less than ideal conditions to start the season.

Problems that have arose because of unfavourable winter weather include: tree destruction, turf issues (especially on greens and fairways) and bunker deterioration. The result for many courses is having a few to the majority of their greens out of play – likely well into June.

At Golf Canada, we’ve been receiving many concerned calls from courses, clubs, leagues and golfers about how this impacts them and their golf season. Here’s a look at some of the concerns facing golfers, clubs and courses:

Score posting for golfers:

Golfers are wondering if their scores can be posted for handicapping purposes if less than 18 holes are completely played.

In such cases where holes are completely out of play or temporary greens are in use, our trusty Golf Canada Handicap Manual describes a procedure often referred to as Par Plus. This means the player would count the PAR of the hole, plus any handicap strokes that he/she is entitled to receive on that hole.

For example: A player with a Course Handicap of 15 receives ONE handicap stroke on the first 15 allocated handicap-stroke holes. If the player does not play the sixth allocated handicap-stroke hole which is a par-4 because of construction on the green, the player must record a score of par plus one for handicap purposes, or a 5 in this case. If at least seven holes are in play on one nine, a nine-hole score must be posted, and if 13 or more holes are fully in play (no temporary greens, etc.) an 18 hole score is to be posted, with the remaining holes posted using the par plus procedure.

How clubs/courses can run events and score them on a course with temporary greens or holes out of play:

Questions I’ve received from courses and clubs have predominantly revolved around their events and how to score them equitably if less than 18 holes are played.

Each situation is a little different in terms of the number of holes which may be out of play or under temporary setup, but the procedure in dealing with the situation is the same. For example, we have a course that only has 12 holes in play and they have severe damage on the other six holes. They were wondering if it is possible to conduct their annual match play competition because all 18 holes cannot be played until August.

If we reference the definition of “Stipulated Round” from the Rules of Golf, we would find “stipulated round: consists of playing the holes of the course in their correct sequence, unless otherwise authorized by the Committee. The number of holes in a stipulated round is 18 unless a smaller number is authorized by the Committee.”

That definition is designed to help in just such cases where conditions will not allow 18 holes to be played. Should a club/league decide to proceed using less than 18 holes for their events, some adjustments must be made to handicaps of participants. As handicaps in this situation would normally be for 18 holes, we need to reduce handicaps by an appropriate number of holes that are to actually be played, in this case 12. We would need to take 12/18 of handicaps (or 2/3 if we reduce our fraction to lowest terms, don’t be alarmed this will not turn into a high school math class).

The last step to have an equitable event/match is to modify your stroke hole table (Handicap Stroke Holes). As there are six holes out of play, we need to reduce our stroke hole table by six as well (to a total of 12). To modify the stroke hole table equitably, it will depend on which holes are actually taken out of play and what number the stroke hole is. If one of the holes out of play in our example was stroke hole #2, stroke hole #4 would now become stroke hole #2 for the event, and so on.

I hope these explanations have helped to clear up some of the looming questions about handicapping and temporary greens or closed holes. If you have any questions, please contact our Golf Canada membership team at members@golfcanada.ca or 1-800-263-0009 ext. 399.

Additionally, you can check out our Handicapping section online here.

TORONTO, ON – Members at Markland Wood Golf Club are coming to appreciate the calm after the storm as they prepare to celebrate the club’s 50^th anniversary throughout 2014.

The storm first blasted many Toronto area clubs and homes last summer with torrential rains and flooding. Markland Wood’s 18 low-lying fairways and bunkers were flooded in July by an overflowing Etobicoke Creek. The course remained closed for nearly two weeks for clean-up before fully opening a month later with rebuilt bunkers.

Green 13, in March of 2014 after severe ice damage.

If that wasn’t enough, Mother Nature’s fury struck Toronto in December with a devastating ice storm, followed by the Polar Vortex’s flash freeze in early January that hit clubs across Ontario, Quebec and the North Eastern United States. Many courses in the Greater Toronto Area with poa annua (annual bluegrass) greens, including Markland Wood, were especially hard hit by a four to eight inch blanket of ice over much of the course that severely damaged thousands of greens.

“You could say that Mother Nature has not been very kind to us, but the membership has really pulled together and turned these natural disasters into a positive outcome,” says Superintendent Owen Russell who has been dealing with the aftermath on a daily basis. Both private and public clubs across the GTA, and Ontario for that matter, continue to deal with the aftermath of the harshest winter in at least 25 years.

Since last summer’s storm, the club has spent close to $2 million to repair damage including; rebuilding all 65 bunkers with assistance from architect Cam Tyers, sodding 11 acres of fairway, installing a new irrigation system, cleaning up trees damaged by the ice storm and sodding 14 greens with 72,000 square-feet, or 8,550 rolls of Aggressor bentgrass. The remaining five greens will be re-surfaced at the end of season to ensure consistency for putting areas.

“I think the resiliency of the membership is quite remarkable and inspiring because they have been able to accept the circumstances and move forward very quickly,” he adds. Now there is sod shortage in Ontario and clubs are looking outside of the province and the country to try and make repairs. “When we fully open the course in June with the new greens our members are essentially going to have a new golf course to play on and that’s something they should be very proud of,” Russell says.

“While it was initially hard to see the silver lining through the devastation incurred, that dejection quickly turned to the realization of the opportunity to revitalize the golf course,” says Markland Wood GC President, Scott Peart. “We won’t be playing on the new greens for a few weeks, but I can already feel the anticipation building within the membership.  It’s going to be an exciting 50^th anniversary celebration with several member events in the works, a few great charity tournaments and the club is hosting the 15^th annual Toronto Star Women’s Amateur from June 23 to 26^th.”

The club is also publishing a book “50 Years of Fellowship” to commemorate the 50^th anniversary. If you have a chance to read it you’ll learn that the Markland Wood area goes back as far as 1810, when John Silverthorn and his family settled here along the Etobicoke River. They established a saw and gristmill that operated until 1870 when the flow of water diminished to the extent that there was insufficient power to drive the mill. The Silverthorn family then turned to farming, before selling it to developer Marc Cavotti in 1958. His associates lightheartedly referred to the property as “Marc’s Land”, which was the preamble to the area’s final moniker of Markland Wood.

After the initial plans for the Markland Wood community were prepared, it was discovered that the land adjoining the Etobicoke River was situated on a floodplain established by Hurricane Hazel, and not suitable for residential development. Being the avid golfers that they were, Cavotti and his associates decided this land would be an ideal place to put a golf course. The project was then turned over to architect Eric Hanson, who transformed the unique crescent shaped parcel of land into an 18-hole golf course. The Club officially opened with Bob Hope as special guest of Head Professional Al Balding, a member of both the Canadian and the Ontario Golf Halls of Fame.

The course plays from 4,763 yards to 6,285 yards, par-70 from five sets of tee blocks, but it is the narrow fairways, fast greens, strategically placed bunkers, mature trees and the ever present, Etobicoke Creek, that define its character and challenges players of every level.

Despite the steep repair bill, Peart says the club of 700 members remains in an excellent financial position having now completed a significant portion of capital work on the course without any assessments to the members. It’s a place where denim can be worn year-round in the lounge of a modern full-service clubhouse where families are encouraged to become friends with other families. The club’s slogan for this year is “Celebrating 50 years of Fellowship.”

“The Markland Wood residential community has the motto “a circle of friends”. This holds true for Markland Wood Golf Club as well,” Peart says.  “It is a tightly knit group of golfers who are proud of their golf course and support their fellow members.  As we turn the corner and prepare for the journey for the next 50 years I believe the club is well positioned for growth and prosperity.”

UXBRIDGE— The Golf Association of Ontario (GAO) was pleased to hold it’s annual Ontario Hall of Fame induction ceremony on May 7 at Wooden Sticks Golf Course. Earl Fritz, John Henrick, Dorothy Campbell Hurd Howe and Bob Weeks were inducted as the class of 2014, while Ken McKee was the recipient of the Lorne Rubenstein Media Award.

GAO president Jim King summed up the importance of the evening for golf in the province. “Tonight is about honouring our past. I think it is very important that we recognize the accomplishments, contributions and the inspiration that these people have provided for the other side of the equation: the up and coming. So it is really nice to honour them.”

Maxwell McKee delivering his grandfather Ken’s speech.

The ceremony began with the presentation of the Lorne Rubenstein Media Award to Ken McKee. McKee was unable to attend the ceremony, however his grandson Maxwell, delivered his acceptance speech that was written by McKee and members of his family. “Mostly we just wanted this speech to convey sentiments and how much he enjoyed covering the game. From high school to the Masters, he just loved getting there to tell the story in his own way. My grandfather is truly humbled and thankful to have been chosen as the 2014 Lorne Rubenstein Award recipient, my grandfather has the utmost respect for his work.” Maxwell closed with a word of thanks directly from McKee. “I want to thank the Golf Association of Ontario for this award and to all the players, past and present, I could not have done my job without you.”

The first inductee to be recognized was Dorothy Campbell Hurd Howe. In acceptance of the award for Hurd Howe, the Ladies President of the Hamilton Golf and Country Club, Nancy Rundle, where Hurd Howe was a member while she lived in Canada, sent a letter of thanks for the recognition of one of their own. It was delivered by emcee Rod Black. “The Ladies Executive of the Hamilton Golf and Country Club was pleased to hear that Dorothy Campbell Hurd Howe was to be inducted into the Ontario Golf Hall of Fame. While her stay in Canada was only three years, she sure had an impact on the game of golf.”

Jim King presents Earl Fritz with his induction award.

Next, Earl Fritz took to the stage to receive his award. “I never understood how excited one could be until I was called by Dave Mills (retired GAO Executive Director) and told that I would be inducted into the Hall of Fame by the Golf Association of Ontario. I was excited and honoured. I was on a cruise in the Mediterranean at the time. The excitement got to me so much that I had to phone Dave and thank him all the way from Barcelona. I’d like to thank all of the other inductees for all of the work they have done to develop the game of golf. Thanks to everyone who is here and to the GAO for such a big honour.”

John Henrick accepts his induction award from Jim King.

John Henrick then was presented his recognition and shared some of the thought he had before heading out for his Hall of Fame round of golf earlier in the day.  “I can’t thank you enough for this honour. I am so proud to be a member of the golf scene, still as a player. My last competitive round was played in 2008 at Royal Woodbine and I shot a 70 on a par 72 course. My first competitive round I went to caddie but then herd my name called by the pro shop. Our pro told me I was to fill in for one of the pros. I shot a 74. Ladies and gentlemen 61 years later, I’m getting better!”

Kim Locke speaks on behalf of Bob Weeks.

Only earlier in the day the final inductee Bob Weeks notified the GAO that he had a family emergency to tend to and would be unable to attend. However, his friend and colleague from SCOREGolf Kim Locke stepped in to say a few words. “The last thing I wanted to do was to be here speaking for Bob. I know how honoured and excited he was to have the opportunity to be here tonight. The SCOREGolf brand and its success over the years, without Weeksy, would not have grown and might not even exist today.”

Locke closed with the speech that Weeks had sent to him just hours before the ceremony. “I have been so fortunate to be able to travel far and wide, meet people and enjoy this wonderful game of golf on so many levels. The best part of it all is just how many friends I have made, for that I am blessed. Not a day goes by that I don’t realize how lucky I am to do what I do. To be honoured here tonight is humbling and extremely exciting.”

With that the 2014 class entered the hall capping off an excellent Hall of Fame Day celebration.

OAKVILLE – Golf Canada is pleased to announce the names of the athletes who have been selected to the new Team Canada Young Pro program.

In all, five athletes – three female and two male – have been chosen to the inaugural Team Canada Young Pro Squad, with four of the members coming from Ontario. Developed in partnership with the PGA of Canada and supported in large part by the Golf Canada Foundation, the Young Pro program was created to bridge the gap between amateur and professional performance on the international golfing stage.

“There has been a critical gap for our top amateur golfers making the difficult jump to professional golf and the launch of the Team Canada Young Pro initiative is designed to bridge that gap,” said Golf Canada CEO Scott Simmons. “We have seen tremendous results for Team Canada amateur athletes at national, international and collegiate competitions. With the launch of Young Pro, we expect those strong results to carry over to the professional ranks including the PGA and LPGA Tours, the various developmental tours and ultimately the Olympic Games beginning in 2016.”

A trio of LPGA players including Rebecca Lee-Bentham of Toronto, Jennifer Kirby of Paris, Ont., and Sue Kim of Langley, B.C., will join the new Young Pro squad. All three players are graduates of Golf Canada’s National Amateur Squad and have secured full playing status for the LPGA Tour’s 2014 season. Bentham, 22, was the top-earning Canadian on the LPGA Tour last season after finishing a personal best T-11 at the Evian Championship. Kirby, 23, earned her spot after a fifth place finish at the LPGA’s Final Qualifying in December. Kim, 23, secured her full card by finishing in sixth on the LPGA’s Symetra Tour’s Volvik Race to the Card.

“I feel so fortunate to once again, have the opportunity to be a part of a program that is so dedicated to developing players,” said Rebecca Lee-Bentham. “Golf Canada, without a doubt, has helped me tremendously throughout my amateur career and has led me to where I am today. It is an honour to represent Canada each week on the LPGA tour and having the opportunity to play for Canada at the Olympics would mean more than words can describe.”

“I am incredibly grateful to have been selected for the Young Pro program,” said Jennifer Kirby. “Golf Canada has always been supportive of my career and I am proud to be an ambassador of this important program in my inaugural season on the LPGA Tour.”

On the men’s side, Web.com Tour players Mackenzie Hughes of Dundas, Ont., and Toronto’s Albin Choi debut as the first two male members of the Team Canada Young Pro program. A two-time Canada Amateur champion, Hughes, 23, finished the 2013 season atop PGA TOUR Canada’s Order of Merit after capturing the Cape Breton Celtic Classic. Choi, 22, is also a former Canadian Amateur champion who earned his ticket to the Web.com Tour after a 15th place finish at final qualifying in December.

“I feel very fortunate to have the opportunity to be a part of Team Canada and the new young pro squad,” said Mackenzie Hughes. “The coaching and support staff has played a big role in my development and my transition to pro golf. I also want to thank the Golf Canada Foundation as well as all the sponsors and donors that have made this program possible.”

“I am very excited to be back with the national team and part of the program,” added Albin Choi. “I have been with Team Canada for over six years and have always appreciated the support and having a team around me. Most pros lose that support structure from a national or college team as soon as they turn pro and it’s easy to get lost. It’s great to have an opportunity to have a team behind me with my best interests in mind.”

Each member of the Young Pro squad will receive funding as well as access to Team Canada’s coaching staff and sport science experts. Men’s National Squad coach Derek Ingram and Women’s National Team coach Tristan Mullally will provide coaching to their respective Young Pro players. In addition, the athletes will have access to Team Canada’s sport science staff that includes psychologist, Dr. Adrienne Leslie-Toogood, strength and conditioning coach, Jason Glass, nutritionist, Nicole Springle and physiotherapist Greg Redman.

“I congratulate Golf Canada on the launch of this exceptional program,” said PGA of Canada CEO Gary Bernard. “The commitment Golf Canada has shown in collaborating with the PGA of Canada in our world class teaching and coaching certification programs is commendable.”

The Team Canada Young Pro initiative has been in the works for more than a year as an extension of Golf Canada’s National Amateur Team program. The 2014 launch is a direct result of the fundraising support of the Golf Canada Foundation.

“On behalf of the board of the Golf Canada Foundation, we’re proud to help support these talented young golfers in their pursuit of competitive golfing excellence,” said Golf Canada Foundation CEO Martin Barnard. “In the coming months, we look forward to announcing more fundraising activities as well as donors and corporate partners to extend the program to more Canadian athletes.”

The new Member Club Schedule is up and running. You can find it by clicking here or under the membership tab in the menu above.

UXBRIDGE, ON— The Golf Association of Ontario’s (GAO) Team Ontario wrapped up their preseason exercises, April 25-27, with one final team camp at the Legends on the Niagara Battlefield golf course, site of the 2014 Canadian Junior Boys’ Championship. The camp was designed as a jumpstart for the athletes as they begin their competitive seasons. The camp featured a three-round tournament, the Team Ontario Cup, along with daily training sessions with strength and conditioning coach Andrew Hoermann.

Max Sear

“The big thing was really to jump start the team for the season,” said coach Reggie Millage. “The Team Ontario Cup was a great way to get them in that competitive mode, shake off the rust and fine tune technical issues, especially with the late start to the season this spring.”

This was the second time the GAO held a cup competition for the team that simulated an official tournament. On the boys’ side of the competition, it was a two-horse race with Max Sear and Sam McNulty putting distance between them and the rest of the team. Heading into the final round, Sear held a three shot lead, but McNulty shot an impressive 4-under par on the final round and with Sear 1-under for the day, a playoff was needed. Sear birdied the first playoff hole to take the boys side in a thriller. Both finished the tournament at 1-under par for the three rounds.

As for the girls, Monet Chun came up with a great final round finishing even for the day (14-over for the competition) and was able to hold off Annika Haynes to capture the title.

Sam McNulty

“Some of the players were very good throughout the three rounds,” added Millage. “Sam’s 68 on the final round really stood out as well as Max’s whole competition, which was very consistent. As for the girls, I think Monet’s game is really rounding into form. It is nice to see her put everything together. I felt Annika really hit and drove the ball well and pushed Monet in that final round.”

In addition to what was seen on the course, Millage reported that across the board, the teams’ strength and conditioning test results were up. “We really saw an increase in speed that translated to the course, even though they battled some tough weather conditions.”

With many players beginning their competitive schedule in the coming weeks, Millage said the camp was a great opportunity for the players to see what they needed to work on individually. “We used the launch monitor and ShotByShot to get feedback and statistics on what they need to work on.”

Monet Chun

Heading into the first major event, the Spring Classic May 17-19, Millage says he just hopes all of the team members can play to their potential. “I think they all left with something to work on. We are now in the process of transferring to our in-season facility Granite Golf Club. I will still see them regularly whether they stop in or at tournaments, but I think that now they are truly better prepared for this season.”

UXBRIDGE, ON— It was a top 10 finish for the Golf Association of Ontario’s (GAO) team at the Manuel Prado Cup in Lima, Peru. The team of Dave Bunker and Mike Rutgers combined for a four round total of +20 leading them to a tie for eighth spot.

On the individual side, the Carlos Raffo Cup (play simultaneously), it was Bunker finishing in a tie for 11^th at +8 and Rutgers ending in a tie for 18^th at +12.

Dave Bunker

The team, which was selected by their 2013 Men’s Mid Amateur Ranking, got out to a rocky start on the first day, but was able to settle down and gain consistency as the tournament progressed.

“Our team result was not too bad considering the scores we shot in the first round. From then on, we managed to jump up the leaderboard each day,” said Bunker.

“I feel that we played pretty solid overall, finishing strong in the last three rounds,” added Rutgers.  “We just struggled with the short game. We both hit it very well, overall, and took a lot of positives going forward for the 2014 golf season.”

Bunker (81-72-72-71) really found his stride after the first round and continued to charge up the leaderboard, ultimately finishing just outside the top ten. “Overall I think that I played fairly well, other than the first round. I hit the ball solidly and managed the course well,” said Bunker. “The greens are very tricky, the biggest progression through the week was putting and chipping. Each day you get a better feel for breaks and speed.”

As for Rutgers (77-73-75-75), his first round too was his highest score but he found consistency throughout the event. He also pointed to the tough greens as the major influence on his scores. “I feel like I hit the ball really well other than a few bad swings each round.  The only thing that really frustrated me during the whole tournament was the greens, the grain was going so many ways, so I had difficulty with the speed and line.”

Mike Rutgers

The individual competition was won by Chile’s Guillermo Pereira who shot an amazing -11 under for the tournament. He was followed by countryman Rodrigo Rivas at -4 and the team captured the Manuel Prado Cup at -15 (21 strokes better than second place).

“The competition was great. The champions from Chile played incredibly well on a difficult golf course,” said Bunker.

“The competition itself was first class. I travelled, played and represented Team Ontario with my father-in-law which was a great experience for me, I had a great time,” added Rutgers.

Both players felt that the tournament helped give them a jumpstart for the season. They both said they were able to outline areas to work on and can now turn their attention to this summer’s events.