SYRACUSE— It was an exciting day for four Ontario junior golfers on Aug. 8 at the 53^rd annual Williamson Cup, hosted by the Bellevue Country Club in Syracuse, New York. The team shot a combined two-round total of 11-over (437) to capture the 2016 title, the 12^th for Ontario.

The event, started in 1964 by A. Fred Williamson, in memory of his father, one of the original founders of the famed Winged Foot Golf Club and a long-time member of the USGA Executive Committee, is a two-round, 36-hole, team competition for male junior golfers. Teams from golf association in the northeast United States and Canada send squads of four to compete for the title. After each round, the lowest three scores from the team are counted towards the team total.

Ontario’s 2016 team was comprised of Caledon’s Cougar Collins (Rocky Crest Golf Club), Long Sault’s Ty Celone (Upper Canada Golf Club), Georgetown’s Thomas Giroux (The Club at North Halton) and Mississauga’s Robbie Latter (Credit Valley G&CC).

After the opening round, Ontario held the lead at nine-over (222). Leading the way was Celone who carded a one-over (72). Also counting towards the team total were Giroux at three-over (74) and Latter at five-over (76).

Ontario took that lead to the afternoon round and managed to improve on it. They finished the afternoon as a team at two-over (215). This time they were led by Collins who rebounded nicely from the morning round and shot a one-under (70). Also factoring into the team score were Celone who carded his second consecutive round of one-over (72) and Latter who finished two-over (73).

When all was tallied up, Ontario won the 2016 competition by six shots, over the Metropolitan Golf Association, from New York. Celone also finished in a tie for the low individual at two-over (72-72-144).

The 2016 Championship marks the first title for Ontario since 2013. With the 12^th win for the province, Ontario now holds the record for most Williamson Cup titles. Coaches for the team were Head Provincial Coach Reggie Millage and Golf Ontario Director of Handicapping and Course Rating Craig Loughry.

For complete scoring from the 2016 Williamson Cup, visit: http://www.ghintpp.com/nysga/TPPOnlineScoring/ResultsStroke.aspx?id=612

KANATA — 2016 will go down as the year of Pickering’s Christopher Kertsos in the Ontario Senior Men’s division. Kertsos began the season by winning the Senior Men’s Champion of Champions and on Aug. 6, he added the 2016 Investors Group Ontario Senior Men’s Championship to his accomplishments.

Kertsos, 60-years-old from the York Downs Golf & Country Club, mastered The Marshes Golf Club in Kanata, along with the elements, as he capped off his week at two-under (71-72-71-214). Kertsos headed into the final round with a two-shot lead thanks to consistent play in the opening two rounds. He continued to be steady during the final round carding a bogey-free, four-under front nine. He went to the turn with a six-shot lead and would not be denied the title. He finished the back nine three-over to card a final round of one-under (71). In addition, Kertsos also claimed the 60+ Division title.

Afterwards, Kertsos talked about the win and how special this season has been. “This one feels great! It has been a special season. I’ve played well these last three days, I hit the ball really well. If I had putted well, then who knows what I could have shot. I didn’t know how I would feel today, if I would be nervous or calm, but I turned out to be pretty calm and just focused on not making any mistakes. I think I only made one during the entire round.”

Kertsos also spoke about how he was able to master the conditions that made for tough rounds throughout the week. “I didn’t let the conditions affect me. I just played the wind, played my shots and stuck to my game plan. I hit my driver and irons really well all week, which helped.”

Claiming the silver medal was local favorite, Ottawa’s Randy Blondin. Blondin, who is not only a member at the host club of The Marshes, but lives just off the 16th hole, started the day two-shots back in second place. He played a consistent round and finished the day one-over (73). That brought his tournament total to two-over (71-74-73-218).

Rounding out the podium, with the bronze, was Toronto’s Robert Gibson. Gibson, from the Cedar Brae Golf & Country Club, entered the day with a share of third. He would finish the day two-over (74) bringing him to four-over (72-74-74-220) for the championship.

In the 70+ Division, Collingwood’s Brian Jeffery took home the title. Jeffery, from Batteaux Creek Golf Club, held the lead in the division after the first two rounds and capped off the tournament with a five-over (77) during the final round to complete the event at 13-over (80-72-77-229).

In addition to the championships, the top 34 players earned a quota spot for the Canadian Senior Men’s Championship, Sept. 6-9, at Grand Niagara Golf Club. The top three also earn the right to represent Ontario in the team competition at the Canadian Senior Men’s Championship.

In total, 137 players began the competition. For complete tournament information visit the tournament site at: https://gao.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/gao16/event/gao1612/index.htm

Golf Ontario would like to thank The Marshes Golf Club, along with their staff and volunteers for hosting the event. Thanks also to title sponsor Investors Group along with the Golf Ontario volunteers for their continued support of golf in the province.

Highlights from the 2016 Investors Group Ontario Women’s Amateur Championship, July 12-15, at Ambassador Golf Club in Windsor. Ottawa’s Grace St-Germain won the title at -2.

At the end of the day Windsor’s Alek Mauro and Maple’s Alyssa DiMarcantonio finished at the top of their leaderboards to capture the 2016 titles.

Beginning the day, Mauro sat in a four-way tie for fourth after a one-over (72) opening round. The 14-year-old quickly began to make his way up the leaderboard thanks to a trio of birdies on the third, fourth and sixth holes. He settled for a bogey on the ninth but made up for it with a three-under back nine to finish the day at five-under (66). That proved to be enough as he captured the championship at four-under (72-66-138).

“It is great to win this title,” said Mauro. “The first day wasn’t as good as I had hoped. The par fives weren’t very good for me, as I played them one-over. Today I took advantage of the par fives and played them four-under. I had an idea of what I needed to shoot coming into the day. I just played my own game and managed to hits some putts.”

The round of the day belonged to Courtice’s Ethan Cardwell. The Oshawa Golf & Curling Club member started par, birdie, birdie, eagle and was six-under at the turn. He moved to seven-under after a birdie on the 10^th, but finished his round with a bogey on 18. He still ended the day six-under (65). That, combined with his four-over (75) during round one, helped get him to two-under for the tournament and capture the silver medal.

Rounding out the top three was a three-way tie for the bronze at two-over (144). The players sharing the medal were: Kanata’s Zachary Wylie (76-68), Iroquois Falls’ Connor Danis (68-76) and Newmarket’s Jeffery Fang (70-74).

In the girls’ championship, DiMarcantonio, a Team Ontario and Station Creek Golf Club member, began the round with a five-shot lead after a three-under (68) during the opening round. The 13-year-old started the final round well with a birdie on the first hole to drop to four-under. She would add two bogeys on front and was one-over at the turn. She went on to par every hole on the back nine to complete the round at one-over (72). That was good enough to secure her the title as she finished the tournament two-under (68-72-140).

“I played pretty well this week and I feel pretty good about the win,” said DiMarcantonio. “I set this championship as a goal for myself before the season. I came close last year, so I am happy and proud to have won it. Today, I tried my best and didn’t worry about my score or anyone else’s. I just focused on my game.”

Finishing second was Markham ‘s Victoria Zheng. Zheng, from Station Creek Golf Club, won the Ontario Peewee Championship just last week and entered the day in a tie for second after finishing round one at two-over (73). Zheng was two-over at the turn but rebounded nicely with a two-under on the back nine to end the day even par (71). That kept her at two-over (73-71-144) for the tournament, earning her the silver.

Rounding out the podium was Brampton’s Vaijayanti Bharkhada. Bharkhada, from Caledon Woods Golf Club, was four-over (75) after the first round. She followed it up with and even par (71) during round two to finish the tournament four-over (75-71-146) and win the bronze.

For full tournament information, including the final leaderboards, see the tournament sites at: https://gao.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/gao16/event/gao1622/index.htm for the boys’ championship and

https://gao.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/gao16/event/gao1623/index.htm for the girls’ championship.

About the Investors Group Ontario Bantam Championship

The Investors Group Ontario Bantam Boys’ Championship was first contested in 1923 at the Summit Golf & Country Club. The first Ontario Bantam Girls’ Championship was held in 2003. The event is open to players 14-years-old and younger as of Aug. 1. Participants on the boys’ side qualified through one of four qualifiers held earlier this summer. Notable past boys champions include: Tony Gil, Matt LeMay, Bill Hutcheson, Kelly Roberts and Tim McCutcheon. As for past girls champions, the list includes: Jennifer Kirby, Augusta James and Christina Foster.

Highlights from the 2016 Investors Group Ontario Junior Girls’ Championship, July 4-7 at Loyalist Country Club in Bath. Port Credit’s Chloe Currie ended the week, -2 to claim the title.

Golf Ontario, the Provincial Sport Organization for Golf is currently seeking applicants for the Board of Directors for a three-year term commencing April 2017.

With over 80 years of history and tradition, serving 100,000 members, Golf Ontario is one of the largest golf associations in the world. With the launch of a new strategic plan in the spring of 2016, the revised, refined and refocused vision and mission, along with the newly developed strategies and tactics, position the Golf Ontario brand in its leadership role for golf across Ontario.

We strive to align with all golf stakeholders through a connected golf community which will drive more people to play more golf, more often and most importantly while starting at a younger age. All strategic pillars point to Golf Ontario becoming refocused on leading and supporting our industry partners to the benefit of golfers across the province.

The Board is responsible for determining GO policy; for protecting the long term growth and health of the Association; for developing, monitoring and evaluating the strategic goals of the Association, for approving the Association’s annual budget and for authorizing and taking responsibility for the funding of the Association.

If you are a Strategic Thinker with experience in some of the areas of: Business Administration; Finance and Accounting; Media and Public Relations; Brand Management; Fundraising; Human Resources; Governance; Not For Profit Association Law; how to make golf more accessible and welcoming to diverse populations and have a strong understanding of the Sport of Golf, we would like to hear from you.

Please click here for further information about the roles and responsibilities of the Board of Directors.

Application packages must include all of the following:

• Online application form
• Current CV (Instructions for uploading your documents are included on the application form

Deadline for application is: Wednesday, August 31, 2016

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO APPLY

Golf Ontario is an equal opportunity organization. We thank all applicants for their interest, however, only those selected for an interview will be contacted. All applications will be kept in confidence.

Highlights from the 2016 Investors Group Ontario Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship, June 21-23, at Lambton Golf & Country Club in Toronto. Oakville’s Matthew Sim won the title in a playoff.

CAMBRIDGE— It was a pair of wire-to-wire wins at the 2016 Ontario Peewee Championship, July 26 at Puslinch Lake Golf Course, as both opening-round leaders saw their advantage through to the final hole. Little Britain’s Justin Matthews and Markham’s Victoria Zheng each raised their respective trophies, as they were crowned champions.

Matthews, 12-years-old and a member at the Lindsay Golf & Country Club, entered the day with a one-shot advantage, in the Boys’ Championship, after an opening round of one-under (69). He quickly separated himself from his competitors thanks to birdies on the fifth and seventh holes to get to the turn at two-under. On the back nine, he did settle for a pair of bogeys and a double, but also knocked down two more birdies to complete the round at even par (70) and finish with a tournament total of one-under (69-70-139).

“This is probably the biggest tournament I have ever won,” said Matthews. “I had a lot of fun the past two days. My putting was probably the strongest part of my game, along with my shots off the tee and wedge play. All of that really helped me this week.”

Matthews admitted that playing with the lead was a new experience for him. “I had never had a lead heading into the final round of a tournament. I have always had to comeback from a couple strokes.”

Playing with the lead didn’t seem to affect Matthews, as he becomes just the second champion in the tournament’s young history. Behind Matthews there was a tie for the silver medal between Mississauga’s Thomas Latter and Toronto’s Alex Long at four-over (144). Latter, from Credit Valley Golf & Country Club, was three-over (73) in his opening round and followed it up with a one-over (71) in the second round. Long, from The Country Club, was even (70) after the first day and finished round two four-over (74).

In the Girls’ Championship, Zheng, 12-years-old from Station Creek Golf Club, began the round with a two-shot lead after her two-over (72) in the first round. A birdie on hole five helped her get to the turn at one-over. She went on to play the back nine three-over to end the day four-over (74) and finished the tournament at six-over (72-74-146).

“It feels good to win the Ontario Peewee Championship. I had a lot of fun playing in this event,” said Zheng. “Entering the day with the lead, I just wanted to work on keeping it and not be too greedy out there. I worked on getting in the fairways and onto the greens. Form there, my putting and chipping really helped me.”

Finishing three-shots back of Zheng and capturing the silver medal was Brampton’s Brooke Rivers. The Brampton Golf Club member began the round two-back of Zheng after an opening round of four-over (74). While she attempted to chase down the leader, it was not to be. Rivers finished the day five-over (75) to end the tournament at nine-over (74-75-149).

Rounding out the podium with the bronze medal was Oshawa’s Madelin Boyd. Boyd, from Lakeridge Links Golf Club, shot an eight-over (78) during round one and followed it up with a four-over (74) during round two to finish the tournament 12-over (78-74-152).

Golf Ontario would like to thank Puslinch Lake Golf Course, along with their staff and volunteers for hosting the event. Thanks also to the Golf Ontario volunteers for their continued support of golf in the province.

For complete tournament information, including the final leaderboards, see the tournament sites at: https://gao.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/gao16/event/gao1611/index.htm for the Boys’ Championship and https://gao.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/gao16/event/gao16118/index.htm for the Girls’ Championship.

About the Ontario Peewee Championship

The Ontario Peewee Championship made its debut in 2015. The championship is hosted by the Puslinch Lake Golf Course, which has a history with Golf Ontario, hosting the Ontario Bantam Championship from 1999 to 2012. The tournament is open to males and females who are younger than 13 years of age as of Aug. 1.

LISTOWEL— Make it a junior stoke-play championship sweep for Langton’s Peyton Callens. Callens, who won the Investors Group Junior Boys’ Spring Classic earlier this year, capped off the feat on July 22 as he added the 2016 Investors Group Ontario Junior Boys’ Championship to his resume.

Callens, 16-years-old and from the Delhi Golf & Country Club, entered the final round, at Listowel Golf Club, in a three-way tie for fourth place at four-under. Playing in the second last group, Callens, a Team Ontario member, birdied the opening hole. He added a second on the par-four sixth hole but bogeyed the eighth to make the turn at one-under. On the back nine he made back-to-back birdies on 10 and 11 to get into a share of the lead. While he did bogey the 16^th, he made par on the 18^th, which was good enough to earn him the championship at two-under (70) for the day and six-under (71-67-74-70-282) for the tournament.

Afterwards, Callens spoke about what winning the championship meant to him. “Winning this event feels pretty good, it is one of the bigger events I have won. Winning both this and the Spring Classic means a lot to me, it has been a good Golf Ontario season, now I have to continue this play at the Canadian Junior.”

Callens admitted he wasn’t sure where he stood coming into the final few holes. “I hadn’t looked at the leaderboard. I thought I probably needed to get to eight-under to win. I was seven-under coming into 16 but I bogeyed so I thought I needed to birdie one of the last two holes. I got in with two pars and it turned out to be enough to win.”

For Callens, the strength of his game this week was his iron play. He talked about how it set him up on the greens. “I probably had at least 20 birdie putts inside 10 feet this week and that was all thanks to my iron play and ball striking.”

Now Callens will turn his attention to the Canadian Junior Championship. “My goal is always to win but this is the first time that I have played this event. I know it will be hard in Newfoundland, so I’m just looking to post good scores each day.”

Joining Callens on the tournament podium were Ancaster’s Ryan Murphy and Mono’s Isaac Maxwell who shared the silver medal at five-under for the tournament. Maxwell, from the Shelburne Golf and Country Club, began the day in sole possession of top spot and looked to be in good shape on the front nine. He birdied the first and fifth holes before a bogey on the seventh. He got that right back with a birdie on the eighth and was two-under at the turn. However, it was the back nine where he faltered. A bogey on 11, followed by a double on 12 and another bogey on 14 created a swing that saw him give up the lead. Still, he managed to limit any further damage, finishing the day two-over (74) capping off the tournament at five-under (75-66-68-74-283).

As for Murphy, he entered the day in a tie for second at five-under. He found himself two-under early in the round thanks to birdies on holes one, three, and five, with a bogey on four. After making the turn at two-under, Murphy would bogey the 14^th and 18^th to finish the round at even par (72). That kept his tournament total at five-under (75-66-70-72-283).

In addition to playing for the title, the top 34 golfers received a quota spot to play in the Canadian Junior Boys’ Championship, Aug. 1-4 at Clovelly Golf Course in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Team Ontario was also named for the team competition at the Canadian Junior Boys’ Championship. Representing Ontario will be Callens, Murphy and Sudbury’s Tristan Renaud who earned the spot thanks to a playoff win.

For complete tournament information, including the final leaderboard, see the tournament site at: https://gao.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/gao16/event/gao169/index.htm

Golf Ontario would like to thank Listowel Golf Club, along with their staff and volunteers for hosting the event. Thanks also to title sponsor Investors Group and the Golf Ontario volunteers for their continued support of golf in the province.

About the Investors Group Ontario Junior Boys’ Championship

The Investors Group Ontario Junior Boys’ Championship is open to male golfers 18 years of age and under, who have qualified through one of nine qualifiers held across the province in June and early July. The Ontario Junior Boys’ Championship was first contested in 1923 at the Summit Golf & Country Club. Past winners of the event include: Gerry Kesselring, Gary Cowan, Stu Hamilton, Mike Weir, Jon Mills and Albin Choi.

THORNHILL— After coming close to the title a year ago, finishing in a tie for third, Unionville’s Max Sear came into the 2016 Investors Group Ontario Men’s Amateur Championship, at the Thornhill Club, with unfinished business. Sear, a York Downs Golf & Country Club member, took care of that business with an impressive week that was capped off by hoisting the trophy on July 15.

Entering the final round, Sear, 19-years-old, sat alone in top spot at 11-under for the tournament with a three-shot lead. He began his round well with birdies on third and fourth holes. He would settle for a pair of bogeys on five and nine and was even at the turn. Meanwhile, Kitchener’s Keaton Jones, who entered the day in second, was one-over at the turn giving Sear a four-shot lead with nine to play.

After Sear birdied the 11^th and Jones, a Whistle Bear Golf Club member, bogeyed the 13th, Sear had a six-stroke lead with five holes to play. That turned out to be more than enough as Sear ended the round at even par (71) to finish the tournament at 11-under (69-68-65-71-273).

Afterwards, Sear spoke about how his experience last year helped him claim the 2016 title. “It felt really good to come out on top this year. I think the big difference was my third round. Last year I had the lead after the second round, but shot four-over in the third round. This year I knew I had to keep my foot on the gas pedal, which I did. It was frustrating last year, but I learned a lot and I guess it paid off this year.”

Conditions were a factor this week, but Sear managed to keep them at bay. He talked about his week and the key moments on his march to the championship. “I felt like my game was in a good spot and had a lot of momentum coming off the first round. I think the real turning point for me was the final four holes during the second round. I went five-under on those four holes and that just sparked me. I came into the third round with a lot of confidence and went low. Everything seemed to work out for me after that.”

Picking up the silver medal was Jones. Jones ended the day with a one-over (72) and finished the tournament seven-under (70-67-68-72-277).

Earning the bronze medal was Cayuga’s Charles Corner. Corner began the day at one-under in a tie for third. He separated himself from the rest of the players in that tie thanks to the low round of the day, three-under (68). That brought him to four-under (69-72-71-68-280) for the tournament.

The three will represent Ontario in the team competition at the Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship, Aug. 8-11, at The Royal Ottawa Golf Club & Eagle Creek Golf Club in Ottawa-Gatineau.

For full tournament information, including the final leaderboard, see the tournament site at: https://gao.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/gao16/event/gao168/index.htm

Golf Ontario would like to thank the Thornhill Club, along with their staff and volunteers for hosting the event. Thanks also to title sponsor Investors Group and the Golf Ontario volunteers for their continued support of golf in the province.

About the Investors Group Ontario Men’s Amateur

The Investors Group Ontario Men’s Amateur Championship was first played in 1923 at Lakeview Golf and Country Club, and has a rich history of former champions. Past winners include: 2003 Masters Champion Mike Weir (1990 & 1992), Gerry Kesselring (1949, 1951, 1952, 1953), professional players Jon Mills (2001), Corey Conners (2010), Albin Choi (2012), Chris Hemmerich (2014) and Gary Cowan, who holds the record for the most Ontario Amateur Championships with nine (1964, 1968, 1971, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1981 & 1984). This is the fourth time Thornhill has hosted the Ontario Men’s Amateur Championship. 155 players began the four-day, 72-hole tournament.