Year in review 2023: Big year for golf in Nipawin

“I’m thrilled to be able to lead what I feel is a very strong group of individuals who care a lot about the game,” he said. “We have varying ages and experiences on the board that I think gives us a lot of different perspectives, similar to what our membership is like, so hopefully, we’re doing really good stuff in the future to promote the game.”

Duchscherer, who served the previous two years as vice-president, has been a member of the board since 2016.

“I started with the association around 2014, and I originally got involved when my daughter started competing as a junior, so I’d come and done some volunteer work with the organization first. Then, talking with some of the people I met, they encouraged me to run for the board, and now, they were willing to support me in becoming the new president.”

Duchscherer said golf has grown during the pandemic, and is hoping he is able to keep those numbers up during his time.

“My hope is that we can keep the interest in the game up amongst the public… I’m hoping the sport will be more and more inclusive as time goes along,” he added.

In June, the Nipawin Evergreen Golf Course played host to the prestigious 2023 NextGen Prairie Championships, as Canada’s best junior golfers competed for exemptions into nationals.

The 54-hole tournament was the club’s first-ever Golf Canada sanctioned event.

“I’m surprised this was their first,” said tournament director Sam Brown. “This is an absolute hidden gem and I definitely would not be surprised to see a Golf Canada event return here to Evergreen in Nipawin in the very near future. The members who have the pleasure of playing this place every day are very lucky.”

The three-day weekend saw a total of 65 juniors from B.C, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, and Saskatchewan compete.

Brown said the juniors loved every minute of playing the course.

“Above all, I think it was a fun course for the kids to play,” he told northeastNOW after the event. “Obviously a challenge, but a fair challenge. It sounds like they had a lot of fun playing the golf course, which is always nice to hear. Especially at junior events that can get a little stressful, it’s nice to hear that the kids actually enjoyed what was laid out in front of them.”

Kye Fisher and Cala Korman won their respective divisions to claim the titles and earn themselves, along with five others from each division, a trip to the upcoming Canadian Junior Golf National Championships.

Korman, from Killarney, Manitoba, shot a combined score of 226 (10 over par), with a one-under round of 71 on the closing day.

She explained that she comes into every event wanting to win, but knows that all she can control is just going out there and putting up some good rounds.

“[Having not played this course before], after the first day I changed my routine. I was a little too aggressive off the tee, so just adjusting that really helped. The course was really good, off the tee was a bit awkward being left-handed, but the greens were really nice and I could just see every put going in.”

Korman advanced to play in the 2023 Canadian Junior Girls Championship at Hampton Golf Course in Hampton, N.B., alongside second-place finisher Hallie Crozier (Regina, Sask.), third-place finisher Addison Kartusch (Winnipeg, Man.), fourth-place finisher Chloe Wills (Kyle, Sask.), fifth-place finisher Sela Ogada (Calgary, Alta.), and sixth-place finisher Jeri Lafleche (Winnipeg, Man.).

Fisher, of Leduc, Alta. shot a combined score of 210 (six-under par), which included a five-under 67 in the final round. He narrowly missed a putt on the 18th hole to tie the course record.

“I got off to a great start, I was four under through six early, I was playing well, making some puts, and then coming down the stretch wanted to make it on 18, but just left it a little right and it didn’t fall, but I’ll have plenty more chances, so it’ll be okay,” he said.

Fisher was joined at the 2023 Canadian Junior Boys Championship at North Bay Golf and Country Club Ltd. in North Bay, Ont. by second-place finisher Seth Mottershead-Yee (Spruce Grove, Alta.), third-place finisher Cayden Kwan (Unionville, Ont.), fourth-place finishers Tommy Danielson (Saskatoon, Sask.) and Kenny Taylor (Edmonton, Alta.), and sixth-place finisher Luke Cote (Regina, Sask).

The trio of Nipawin locals finished 23rd, 31st, and 44th in their divisions respectfully.

In September, it was announced that the Nipawin Evergreen Golf Course would host the 2024 Senior Women’s (50+) and Men’s (55+), as well as the Men’s Mid-Masters (40+) Provincial Championships.

The Golf Saskatchewan event will run from July 23-25, as the club gets set to host three separate tournaments all at the same time.

“Fully thrilled and excited to do the seniors tournament here where we actually run three different tournaments at once with the senior men’s, senior women’s and the men’s mid-masters. It’s a fantastic field with very competent golfers who are definitely strong enough to send on to Nationals and do very well there,” explained NEGC president Kevin Duchscherer.

“We as a club have always enjoyed having a great course to play on for many years now and we’ll be working to make our course the best that it absolutely can be. Having events like this definitely gives us an opportunity not only to participate in some pretty cool events but to take pride in what we actually are blessed with having.”

Golf Saskatchewan last hosted an event in Nipawin in 2019 when the Saskatchewan Junior Championships were held at Evergreen.

Registration for all the championships in 2024 will open on the first official day of the golf season, April 15.

Duchscherer, who is also a senior competitor who plays in the event every year, is hopeful to also put his name in the ring on his home course.

“I’m looking forward to being able to test myself against those golfers on my home track and just see how well I can do.”

– With files from Golf Saskatchewan

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cam.lee@pattisonmedia.com

by Cam Lee

Year in review 2023: Big year for golf in Nipawin

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