From One Canadian Champion At Augusta To Another, 2003 Masters Winner Mike Weir Presents The Trophy To Nicole Gal For Taking Her Age Division Title - Image Courtesy Augusta Media Hub

By Kris Jonasson/British Columbia Golf

Started in 2013, Drive Chip & Putt is a joint initiative of the Masters, PGA of America and the USGA. Boys and girls are organized into 4 categories, by age, and compete in driving, chipping and putting. Ages groups are 7-9, 10-11, 12-13, 14-15.

Qualifying takes place at over 250 local qualifying sites throughout the United States. Top finishers at each site advance through sectional, then regional qualifying, with the final 80 competitors representing 10 finalists, in 4 age divisions for both genders.

The 2019 Masters field is set. With Corey Conners' win at the Valero Texas Open, the field has moved from 86 to 87 to match last year's small field, with Patrick Reed eventually earning the Green Jacket.

The 87 golfers in each of the last two Masters represent the smallest field for the first major of the year since there were 86 golfers in the field when Tiger Woods won in 1997.

According to CBS Sports golf columnist Kyle Porter, "Conners is a nice late addition, but he's obviously not one of the favorites. This year's Masters favorite happens to also be the best golfer on the PGA TOUR this season and the man to whom a victory here would probably mean the most of any of the superstars in the game.

"Rory McIlroy is an 8-1 favorite to win his first Masters, and he's followed closely by Dustin Johnson at 10-1 and Justin Rose at 12-1. Combined, that trio has 10 top 10s in 11 Masters over the last four years."

Jennifer Kupcho Of The United States Poses With The Trophy On The No. 12 Hole After Winning The Augusta National Women's Amateur, Saturday, April 6, 2019 - Image Courtesy ANWA Images

By Kris Jonasson/British Columbia Golf

A Masters Champion arrives on the first tee, then stands respectfully to the side as four legends in women’s golf, all World Golf Hall of Fame members, stroll across the tee and stand beside their clubs.

Bubba Watson listens intently as Augusta National Chairman, Fred Ridley, welcomes everyone to the final round of the inaugural Augusta National Women’s Amateur.

Brigitte Thibault Was Canada's Only Representative At The Inaugural Augusta National Women's Amateur - Image Courtesy Fresno State/ Matt Burkholder / Director of Communications

By Kris Jonasson/British Columbia Golf

Tristan Mullally is the Golf Canada National Team Coach for Women. He reports directly to Jeff Thompson, Chief Sport Officer for Golf Canada. Derek Ingram coaches the men’s team while Robert Ratcliffe coaches the boys and Matt Wilson coaches the girls’ junior squad.

These individuals are not widely known by Canadian golfers but they, along with excellent support staff, are the reason Golf Canada is gaining significant notice for the quality of our national development program.

Courtesy Golf Canada

The idea for a new, unified system was conceived by the USGA and The R&A and developed following an extensive review of systems administered by six existing handicapping authorities, going into effect on January 1, 2020.

Team Canada Member Brigitte Thibault (R) With Her Fresno State Golf Coach Emily Loftin At The Augusta National Women’s Amateur - Image Credit Kris Jonasson/BC Golf

By Kris Jonasson/British Columbia Golf

Red is a powerful colour to wear. Brigitte Thibault from Rosemere, Quebec wears it well, whether as a member of Team Canada or playing on the Fresno State Bulldog Golf Team.

Thursday was day 2 of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur. It was also moving day. An opening round 79 saw Thibault sitting at 7-over but more importantly, 5 shots removed from reaching the goal of making the cut.

All 72 competitors in the inaugural event play Augusta National on Friday in what is billed as a practice round, but only the top 30 come back Saturday to finish the event.

Brigitte Thibault Is Canada's Lone Entry In The Inaugural Augusta National Women’s Amateur Championship - _{Image Courtesy Golf Canada}

Courtesy Golf Canada

AUGUSTA, GA – The field for the inaugural Augusta National Women’s Amateur Championship is taking shape as the tournament announced the first 66 players who accepted invitations into the 72-player field for the April 3-6 event.

Included in the field announcement is Team Canada member Brigitte Thibault. The 20-year-old, who is a native of Rosemère, Que., is currently the highest ranked Canadian (221) on the Women’s World Amateur Golf Rankings. Thibault, a sophomore at Fresno State, will tee it up at 11:12 a.m. ET in Wednesday’s opening round.

British Columbia Golf CEO Kris Jonasson And New President Of BC Golf Michelle Collens Hold The Signed 'Women In Golf Charter' Endorsed By The British Columbia Golf Board - BC Golf Image

By Brad Ziemer, British Columbia Golf

Kris Jonasson, the longtime Chief Executive Officer of British Columbia Golf, knows from personal experience about the challenges of bringing more women into the game.

At British Columbia Golf’s Annual General Meeting at Tsawwassen Springs Golf Club, Jonasson told a story about his daughter, who is not a golfer, and his granddaughter, who is on her way to becoming one. “It’s an easy statement to make, it’s not an easy thing to do,” Jonasson said of the challenge of welcoming more women to golf.

“In certain ways, I failed as a father because I didn’t get my daughter involved in golf. I am doing a much better job with my grandchildren. And I can say with a whole lot of pride I am doing a very good job with my granddaughter, who is 12, and likes to go out and play with me.”

The R&A unveiled a new Women in Golf Charter on May 29th, 2018 in London as part of the organization’s global drive to increase the number of women and girls participating in golf and to encourage more opportunities for women to work within the golf industry.

Adoption of the Charter requires national associations and other golf bodies to build on and develop initiatives which will focus on encouraging more women and girls to play golf and stay within the sport as members of clubs, while also empowering women to enjoy successful careers working within the golf industry.

First International Hemp Oil Company, Functional Remedies, To Sponsor PGA TOUR Champions Tournament The Rapiscan Systems Classic March 25-31 In Biloxi, Mississippi - Image Courtesy Functional Remedies

(DENVER) - Functional Remedies, the only award-winning, vertically integrated hemp oil company, announced its expanded reach into professional golf by becoming the first-ever hemp oil company to sponsor a PGA TOUR Champions Tournament, the Rapiscan Systems Classic on March 29-31 at Fallen Oak Golf Club in Saucier, north of Biloxi.

The Early Odds to win the Masters includes two winners from this season...

Angela Bowers Of Victoria Has Become The First Female Caddy From The Victoria Golf Club To Earn The Prestigious Evans Caddie Scholarship Award - Image Credit Alisa Kerr/Victoria GC

By Brad Ziemer/British Columbia Golf

In caddie parlance, they are called 'loops' and Angela Bowers has made more than 140 of them at Victoria Golf Club.

That’s a lot of walking, sometimes in the rain and wind, with a heavy bag slung over your shoulders, but Bowers never lost sight of the potential reward waiting at the end of her journey.

And now that she has officially earned that proverbial pot of gold at the end of her caddying rainbow -- a prestigious Chick Evans Caddie Scholarship that will take her to the University of Washington this fall -- Bowers is also proud of the fact she made a little history along the way.

For many of us trying to squeeze in the last few rounds of the season, or for those still planning on heading south this winter, it’s important to note the “active season” in the region, province or country you’re playing in.

Golf Canada’s Handicap System stipulates every player is responsible for returning all acceptable scores into one’s scoring record from rounds played on courses observing their active season, which is part of the golf season when courses have acceptable playing conditions.

Ultimately, it is the responsibility of authorized provincial golf associations to declare active and inactive periods, and it is the responsibility of the area club and golfers to observe these dates for posting purposes.

 See how Canadians fared in professional events around the world this past week.

As Friday, March 8th marks the celebration of International Women's Day, British Columbia Golf is pleased to take part in acknowledging and promoting the involvement of women of all ages and backgrounds in the game of golf.

Golf has made a concerted effort in recent years to bring more women into the game worldwide with events such as International Women's Golf Day being only one example. 

What can be stated without debate is that there have been many great female golfers over the years. Thirty-nine of them have earned enshrinement into the World Golf Hall of Fame including Canada's Marlene Stewart Streit

With all the recent controversy regarding the 'new rules' of golf, particularly due to some very publicized incidents on the PGA TOUR, Doug Ferguson of the Associated Press wrote a piece that puts the onus where it really should be, on the players, to learn, know, understand and play by the rules. He makes some excellent points here illustrating clearly why it should not be that difficult to accept and embrace the effort and intent of the new rules of golf. - ed

By Doug Ferguson/Associated Press

ORLANDO, Florida — The memo PGA TOUR commissioner Jay Monahan sent to players on the new Rules of Golf can be interpreted different ways based as much on the timing as the message.

One theme was to be patient. “We are committed to playing under these rules as we analyze their effectiveness... and it’s important to acknowledge that we are not at the finish line yet,” Monahan said in a memo.

Another was to look at the USGA as a partner instead of a villain.

“This is a collaborative process, one the PGA TOUR has been a part of from the beginning, along with all organizations in the world of golf,” he wrote.

The hope is that it will lead players to stop complaining about the rules and simply follow them.

Click HERE to read full story. 

This week host Colin Weston speaks to the USGA's Senior Director of Research, Science & Innovation Matthew Pringle.

Beginning in 2016, Matt has led a new team at the USGA called Research, Science, & Innovation with a mission to, "Create innovative tools that help golf facilities improve the golf experience and reduce the consumption of key resources".

In this episode Matt and Colin refer to the Lean Startup approach to quickly experiment with and validate ideas/products/services. The USGA has embraced Lean Startup's ability to, "Apply entrepreneurial management to drive innovation in any size organization or sector. We’re now up to a team of five and we like to think of ourselves as a scrappy startup within The USGA".

See how Canadians fared in professional events around the world this past week.

Tommy Morrissey was born with only one arm. That, however, has not stopped him from playing sports and playing them well. 

Morrissey, who has already achieved a degree of national fame in his native USA through his appearance at PGA TOUR events like the Shriner's Classic, also plays baseball and has hit his share of home runs for his team.

This particular video is from the PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando in 2017 when Morrissey was six years old, but young Tommy has continued to prove he not only belongs on the playing field with other 'able-bodied' youngsters, but that he can excel as well. And he has dreams and aspirations like most kids, including wanting to be a golf pro. Oh, and play in the NFL. And drive in NASCAR.

Here, we see him being interviewed by Matt Fisher of AmateurGolf.com and taking him on in a target challenge at the show's driving range.

The PGA TOUR and its affiliated Tours boasts a large roster of players from Canada as members. Here is the recap from this past week’s action and their performances.