By Dunc Mills:

After Wednesday’s disappointing washout in Ponoka, 40 eager youngsters from as far away as Grande Prairie were chomping at the bit for some junior golf competition this morning at the beautifully groomed Barrhead Golf and Country Club an hour northwest of Edmonton. Barrhead has been on the McLennan Ross Alberta Junior Tour presented by Crowe MacKay for over 20 years and the course is always in immaculate condition, which was especially remarkable considering all the recent rain.  Kudos to Superintendent Alex Luciuk and his hard-working team for getting the course in fantastic shape for the kids today.

Play moved along at a brisk pace, with rounds being completed in just over four hours. When the scorecards had all been returned,  14-year-old Peter Hlushak of Windermere GCC and 17 year-old Nathan Piers of the Edmonton Petroleum Golf and Country Club had tied for first overall with fine scores of 1-over par 73.  We had an exciting ‘playoff’ to determine an overall champion, but more on that in a moment.

Nathan Piers

Peter Hlushak

Hlushak led the way in the U15 Flight, with Harrison Kiziak of Belvedere (81) and Grande Prairie’s Grayson Hnydyk in third with an 84. Hnydyk also took home a nice $50 pro shop gift card as one of two Wildcard winners chosen at random.

In the boys’ U17 division, Jared Van Hecke of Fort Saskatchewan Golf and Curling Club took top honours with a 75, closely followed by his clubmate Harley Mohr on 77. Van Hecke was the other Wildcard random winner, with Ben Sinclair of Sturgeon Valley GCC completing the podium with an 83.

Jared Van Hecke

In the boys’ U19 flight, Piers’ 73 took home the lion’s share of the prize money, with Angelo Amendola (76) three shots back and Kanon Murdoch of Stony Plain in third place with his 79.

Three junior girls were on hand today, and they were the only kids who got a little wet as they ran for cover after completing the 18th hole.  Nicole Rohr of Camrose came out on top with an 88, followed by Shylee Kostiuk (97) of Glendale GCC and the Derrick’s Sabrina Lau another shot back in third with a 98.

Nicole Rohr

FULL RESULTS IN ALL DIVISIONS

Now, the PLAYOFF!!!

We didn’t have time to conduct an on-course playoff for bragging rights, and it was pouring rain at the time, so what better way to break the tie than a spirited bout of Rock, Paper, Scissors!!  Rather than subject the kids to the pressures of sudden-death, we went with a Best-of-Three, and after splitting the first two decisions, Piers’ rock broke Hlushak’s scissors to earn chirping rights until next year’s tournament!

The Tour picks up again on Monday afternoon at the sold-out McKenzie Meadows Junior Open in Calgary, and then moves back north on Wednesday, July 13th to Whitetail Crossing GC in Mundare.  Spots MAY still be available at Whitetail Crossing.  Please contact Tour Coordinator Jackson Meier at the Alberta Golf office to inquire about openings in Mundare next Wednesday.