Shotmakers is Lecuyer’s new reality
Star of Golf Channel’s Big Break series tees up her game for new show in Vegas
Edmonton golfer Christina Lecuyer is taking another big swing on television.
The local star of the reality show Big Break will be one of the participants in Shotmakers, premiering Monday (7 p.m.) on the Golf Channel.
“It’s nine coed teams based upon the Topgolf game,” Lecuyer said from her home in Arkansas. “We’re taking Topgolf and modifying it, adding a little different spin. There are going to be a lot of shots made, great prizes, and yeah, it was a really cool experience. I think people who know and love golf are going to really love it.”
Topgolf is an entertainment complex with 42 venues in the United States and United Kingdom. Plans are in the works to bring a facility to Canada.
Shotmakers was filmed at the Topgolf facility in Las Vegas.
“I think people who have been to a Topgolf (facility) or are interested in Topgolf, who are not your traditional golfers, are going to really enjoy the show as well, because it kind of breaks out from your traditional game of golf,” Lecuyer said.
“There is no putting, so it’s all about making really great shots in a Topgolf, which is a super fun atmosphere. Edmonton doesn’t have a Topgolf, but I’m sure people have gone to a Topgolf and Topgolf is coming to Canada, so that’s really cool.”
Lecuyer, 35, will be teamed with Matt Cousens, 26, of London, England, a PGA teaching professional and the 2017 Topgolf Tour Championship runner up.
“It’s a brand new series, brand new concept,” Lecuyer said.
“Topgolf is becoming of the biggest things ever in golf. It’s incorporating golf, bowling, darts, in a family environment during the day and a nightclub environment in the evening. And like anything in Las Vegas, it’s always going to be bigger, better and more fun.
“The Topgolf in Las Vegas is absolutely spectacular. They have two swimming pools there, and slot machines, and all that fun stuff all within that Topgolf facility there.”
Lecuyer was raised in Edmonton. She came from a family of golfers, but didn’t take up the game until she was well into her teens. She quickly rose up the amateur ranks in the city before earning a scholarship to the University of Central Arkansas.
Following a successful college career, Lecuyer turned pro, playing in a number of mini tours and qualifying for the LPGA final stage in three consecutive years.
“I started when I was about 18,” she said. “I started working at the Derrick Golf and Country Club when I was 14 or 15, but my family name, the Lecuyer name, is very big in golf in Edmonton. I had grown up around golf. My brothers both played, my dad played, my dad’s brothers played.
“The first golf tournament I ever won was the Ladies Edmonton Amateur. I won that and it was the first tournament I ever played.
“Then I won the next two events I played and then the next year I was asked if I wanted to play college golf in Arkansas, so I came down here in 2003 and I’ve been here ever since.”
Along with her television work, Lecuyer also hosts corporate and charity golf events. She appeared on two seasons of Big Break and was part of the winning team in her second stint on the show.
“I’m so fortunate, this is the third time that I’ve been on a Golf Channel series and they like me, I love them, and it’s quite a match made in heaven,” she said.
“The Golf Channel is a great company and I’m so fortunate that I’ve been able to be a part of this Golf Channel family for so long. Who knows what I’ll do next, but I’m glad to be a part of it. They do a great job, the producers, the crew, the cast ... it was a really good experience, for sure.”
Shotmakers will run on Monday and Tuesday through April. Lecuyer hopes the show becomes as popular as Big Break.
“I think it’s such a fun series and I think people are really, really going to enjoy it,” Lecuyer said.
“The cast that was on this original series was an unbelievable cast, and I think they did a great job picking the people they did.
“I’m hoping that people will really tune in, especially with people getting super stoked over this weekend being the Masters, and I hope it kind of gets fuelled up during The Masters and goes straight into Shotmakers after.”