Calgary hosts Champions Tour

CALGARY Davis Love III got a good glimpse of the Canyon Meadows Golf and Country Club on Thursday, a day in advance of competing at the Shaw Charity Classic for the first time.

The 54-year-old World Golf Hall of Fame member liked what he saw from the par-70, 7,086-yard layout.

“I learned the course pretty well today,” said Love, who will make his 13th PGA Tour Champions start of the season. “The greens are great and the course is in really great shape, so I’m excited to get playing.”

In order to win his first PGA Tour Champions event, Love will have to fend off challenges from the likes of defending Shaw Charity Classic champion Scott McCarron as well as fellow World Golf Hall of Fame members Bernhard Langer, Colin Montgomerie, Mark O’Meara and Vijay Singh.

In order to become the first champion to defend his title in the six-year history of the event, McCarron said he’ll have to continue to shoot low scores like he did last year when he carded rounds of 63, 64 and 67.

Eight of the top 10 golfers in the Charles Schwab Cup standings will compete at Canyon Meadows from Friday to Sunday.

The field also includes three Canadians in Rod Spittle, of Niagara Falls, Ont., Vancouver’s Stephen Ames, and Calgary’s Steve Blake, who received a sponsor exemption after qualifying for the U.S. Senior Open in June.