Canadian varsity golf programs struggle for talent
Edmonton’s best juniors often do post-secondary years elsewhere
Kylie Barros, five-time consecutive winner of the Edmonton women’s amateur tournament, went to the University of British Columbia.
Tyler Saunders, the muchdecorated winner of last year’s Sun Life Financial Alberta Amateur and recent runner-up in the Alberta Open — against the pros — chose Texas State.
A.J. Armstrong, who shot a 6-under-66 to win a McLennan Ross Junior Golf Tour event at Stony Plain, finished third in last year’s Alberta Amateur and is ranked seventh in Canada on the CN Future Links’ Order of Merit. He opted for Washington State.
The quest for Robin Stewart is to get young golfers like those three to stay in Edmonton, where he heads up the University of Alberta’s men’s and women’s golf teams, which use the Edmonton Petroleum Golf & Country Club and RedTail Landing as their home bases.
“I’d love to get players like thattocometotheUofA.But it’s all about the money,” said Stewart. “Right now, we just can’t compete with schools like UBC when it comes to offering scholarships.
“Unless you are offering full tuition and books, you aren’t even in the ballpark,” he said of the U of A’s tuition fees, which cost around $7,500 a year.
Instead, as a non-funded varsity sport, the U of A golf program has to rely on donors, sponsors and fundraisers.
“We have some scholarship money to offer to female golfers, but the amount varies based on a number of factors,” Stewart said. “Edmonton has and has had a lot of good young golfers. Tyler Saunders is a special talent. So is A.J. Armstrong and Kylie Barros. We need to be able to keep some of these kids in town. But we simply didn’t have the finances in place to go after them.”
The U of A is hardly alone in that department.
“There are 41 universities and 40 colleges in Canada that offer golf programs. Of that, only half a dozen universities offer any type of scholarships,” Stewart said.
Stewart has, however, got one top Alberta junior to play at Alberta next year. Jason Martens said he was sold on the golf program, but it was the education he will be getting that tipped the scales.
“A good education is a top priority for me,” said Martens, 18, who has won close to 40 junior tournaments. “It’s hard to beat the U of A for schooling.”
Naturally, Stewart is pleased.
“I’m super excited about Jason coming to the U of A. I want to build our program around him,” Stewart said.
Martens had two secondplace finishes on the Future Collegiate World Tour earlier this year in California — losing one tournament in a playoff — and then won a Golf Channel amateur tour event.
Stewart said the best advice he can give young golfers is to make sure they make a “wise decision” and get a quality education when making a decision about where to go to college.
“It is unbelievably hard to make a living as a touring professional. There is so much talent out there from countries that can golf year round,” he said. “Having a quality education will set up a person for whatever eventuality comes in their life. Some degrees and institutions will prepare you for life better than others.”
Stewart pointed out that his men’s team grade-point average last year was 3.75 out of 4.
“Our program produces quality student-athletes who have an outstanding education that will allow them to be successful, regardless of what path they choose upon graduation,” he said.
With the Golden Bears golf alumni eligible to work at a casino as a fundraiser next spring, Stewart said the estimated $60-$80,000 generated will be a lure to get more golfers to stay in Edmonton.
“Hopefully, the casino money takes our program to a new level,” said Stewart, who wants Alberta to be the only choice local golfers have to make for post-secondary education. “I hope to have a number of guys like Martens on our team.”
Weather, not surprisingly, is another factor why Canada’s top junior golfers elect to go to the U.S.
“The U of A is a highly respected school, but my plans were always going south where it is warmer and where I could play golf year-round,” said Armstrong, who just returned from Japan, where he was part of the world junior competition. Canada’s team finished sixth among the 16 countries.
Stewart said he has plans to somewhat alleviate the weather problem with an indoor facility using golf simulators as well as a short game area on the south campus.
“The facility would not only be used for the Golden Bears and Pandas golf teams, but also be utilized to create a golf development centre for youth, for academic classes to occur, as well as a place for the general public to work on their games over the winter,” Stewart said.
As for the immediate future, Stewart is preparing for the July 3-14 Summer Universiade Games in Gwangju, South Korea, where he has been chosen as Canada’s team leader and the coach of the women’s team.
It’s the second time Stewart, who has worked at the U of A for 20 years, has a coached a Canadian golf team since the Bears/Pandas became a varsity program in 2007.
Last year, Stewart coached the Canadian men’s team at the World university championships in Switzerland, where the team finished tied for fifth after entering the final round in second place.
“It’s going to be an awesome trip. I wanted to get to the Universiade Games since I was a kid and watched the 1983 opening ceremonies when it was held in Edmonton, but I was never quite good enough make it,” he said.
“I’m very excited and humbled to coach Team Canada at the Universiade Games. It is always an honour to represent Canada on the international stage.”