BETTER LATE THAN NEVER
Holmes Alberta Amateur champ
This must be the last step to putting an agonizing defeat in your rear-view mirror, finally filling that same spot on your mantle.
Three years after letting a ninestroke lead slip away in the final round of the 2013 Sun Life Financial Alberta Men’s Amateur Championship in Sundre, Calgary’s Evan Holmes added that particular title to his trophy collection with a well-deserved victory last week at Innisfail.
“It’s easy to say that Sundre was a learning experience to build off, but days like those stick with golfers for a long time and you don’t know if that will be your only chance at a provincial championship, so you keep working to make sure that’s not the case,” said Holmes, a member of the UBC Thunderbirds golf squad and a regular at Earl Grey during the summer months.
“This fall, I tried to make my swing more consistent for pressure and tournament situations and I’m glad to see that the hard work is showing. During the final round this year, I was much more confident in my swing and abilities. Even though I had lost the lead during the round, I still felt that I was playing too well not to win.
Holmes, 21, has triumphed since Sundre, but an Alberta Amateur crown was a biggie on his wish-list.
He was the only guy to fire four consecutive rounds in the sixties at Innisfail, finishing three shots clear of the field with a total tally of 15-under 273 on the tree-lined test.
Matt Williams (Glencoe) was the runner-up, while Scott Secord (Country Hills) claimed the final spot on Team Alberta.
“I’ve been close every year since 2013 and felt like I was due for a good run this time around,” Holmes said.
“I dropped the trophy off at Earl Grey and String (head professional Richard Stringer) told me the last guy to win it from Earl Grey did it in the ’40s or ’50s, so it means a lot to bring the trophy back home to the club.”
AROUND THE GREENS
Calgary’s Jennifer Ha (Country Hills) finished in a tie for seventh at the Symetra Tour’s weathershortened FireKeepers Casino Hotel Championship in Michigan, her best showing as a rookie on the LPGA Tour’s feeder loop … Alberta Golf’s trophy season continues this week with the Guardian Capital Senior Men’s Championship, a three-round showdown at Stony Plain … Dustin Risdon (National Golf Academy at McCall Lake) brought an eraser to the PGA of Alberta’s Professional Series stop at Country Side in Sherwood Park, finishing five shots better than any of his buds with a course-record rip of 8-under 64. Risdon will be among the favourites in a stellar field this week for the 2016 PGA of Alberta Assistants’ Championship at Mill Woods in Edmonton … John Festival (Glencoe) rolled to a three-stroke victory at the Calgary Golf Association’s Prudential Toole Peet Real Estate City Senior, signing for an even-par 71 at the single-day shootout at Wintergreen.
HOLE-IN- ONE REPORT
Calgary’s Cayden Murray, 10, celebrated a hole-in-one in B.C.’s Columbia Valley. He cranked his 3-wood on No. 15 at Windermere Valley and then watched from 155 yards away as his tee-shot found the 4.25-inch target.
Robyn Button, No. 6 at River’s Edge — 150 yards, 7-iron.
Blane Charles, No. 7 at Sirocco — 130 yards, pitching wedge.
Jeff Clark, No. 6 at D’Arcy Ranch — 189 yards, 5-iron.
Kay Dickieson, No. 5 at Shaganappi Point — 116 yards, sevenwood.
Bruce Falk, No. 14 at Shaganappi Point — 113 yards, pitching wedge.
Paul Gremell, No. 13 at Fox Hollow — 140 yards, 8-iron.
Peter Huggard, No. 8 on Lakes at Glencoe — 172 yards, 4-iron.
Steve Kindred, No. 5 at Sirocco — 155 yards, 6-iron.
Robin Landes, No. 17 on Forest at Glencoe — 144 yards.
Gord Larmour, No. 17 at Tooth of the DogPound Creek — 170 yards, 7-iron.
Steve Meloche, No. 5 at Hamptons — 149 yards, 7-iron.
Trevor Mitchell, No. 5 on Forest at Glencoe — 162 yards.
Malcolm Munro, No. 17 on Hawk at Priddis Greens — 189 yards, 5-iron.
Denis Murphy, No. 9 at Calgary Elks — 161 yards, 7-iron.
Ken Poole, No. 12 at Shaganappi Point — 88 yards, hybrid.
Matt Sutton, No. 4 at Richmond Green — 118 yards, pitching wedge.
Danielle West, No. 12 at Shaganappi Point — 87 yards, 8-iron.
Thomas Williamson No. 5 at Lakeview — 141 yards, 8-iron.
Ethan Wytrychowski, No. 6 at McCall Lake Par-3 — 73 yards, 7-iron.