The PGA Championship of Canada sponsored by Mr. Lube and presented by TaylorMade-adidas Golf takes place next week at the superb Deer Ridge GC in Kitchener, Ont.
Sixty-nine of the of the PGA of Canada’s best players tee it up June 12-15 all vying for the association’s most prestigious championship and the historic P.D. Ross trophy.
“It’s quite the understatement, but the field for this year’s PGA Championship of Canada sponsored byMr.Lube and presented by TaylorMade-adidas Golf is unbelievably deep,” said PGA of Canada president Steve Wood. “With the entire top 10 and 42 of the top 50 teeing it up at Deer Ridge, we’re bound to see a compelling championship.”
- Dave Levesque, Golf Chateau Bromont
- Bill Walsh, Fairtree Golf Centre
- Oliver Tubb, University GC
- Marc-Etienne Bussieres, Club de Golf Longchamp
- Bryn Parry, Point Grey G&CC
- Danny King, The Performance Academy at Magna
- Brian McCann, Brampton G&CC
- Lee Curry, Ottawa Athletic Club Golf School
- Mike Belbin, Royal Mayfair GC
- Brad Kerfoot, Maple Downs GC
Additionally, 16 players in the field at Deer Ridge have won at least one PGA of Canada national title. This impressive list includes Levesque, Bussieres, Parry, King and Eric Laporte, all of whom are past winners of PGA Championship of Canada sponsored by Mr. Lube and presented by TaylorMade-adidas Golf.
For the full field and first round tee times, click here..
Designed by Canada’s Thomas McBroom, a designer known for his indelible golfing concepts that have resonated with players the world over, Deer Ridge is unlike any other creation in the architect’s canon. Opened in 1990, Deer Ridge was ranked the 69th best golf course in Canada by SCOREGolf in its 2016 rankings.
“The board of directors and management team at Deer Ridge are thrilled and honoured to host one of Canada’s most storied championships, the PGA Championship of Canada,” said Deer Ridge Golf Club’s head PGA professional Rich Morel. “This is a great opportunity to showcase our fantastic facility to many who are unfamiliar with it both locally and nationally.”
Deer Ridge is also home to a piece of Canadian golfing lore. Brian Hadley of Thames Valley GC shot 59 at Deer Ridge in the first round of the 2013 PGA of Ontario Championship. Hadley is in the field for this year’s PGA Championship of Canada.
Re-launched in 2011, the PGA Championship of Canada was contested strictly as a match play event thru 2014 with players from the four brackets—Stan Leonard, George Knudson, Al Balding and Moe Norman—looking to advance through the six rounds to capture the P.D. Ross trophy. However, the 2015 championship at Cabot Links saw a format change, with 64 top-ranked players from the PGA of Canada Player Rankings presented by RBC playing two rounds of stroke play. The top-16 players from the 36-hole stroke play portion of the event filled out the four match play brackets with the eventual champion winning four match play rounds.
This year’s championship at Deer Ridge will follow the same format.
Marc-Etienne Bussieres looks to become the first back-to-back winner of the championship since Knudson won in 1976 and 1977. In 2016 at the Victoria GC, the 29-year-old from Club de Golf Longchamp bested Billy Walsh 3 and 1 on the 1893 A.V. Macan-designed seaside links gem in the championship’s final match.
It’s an honour and a privilege to have your name on a trophy that’s as historic as the P.D. Ross,” Bussieres said. “To be beside names like Arnold Palmer, Lee Trevino and George Knudson is really something.”
In addition to Bussieres, past champions of the PGA Championship of Canada include Moe Norman, George Knudson, King, Levesque, Laporte, Parry, Al Balding, Bob Panasik, Tim Clark, Lanny Wadkins, Jim Rutledge, Wilf Homenuik, Stan Leonard, Lee Trevino and Arnold Palmer. For the full list click here.
The player who sits atop the PGA of Canada Player Rankings presented by RBC at the conclusion of the PGA Championship of Canada earns an exemption into the RBC Canadian Open at Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville, Ont., from July 24-30.
Attendance to the PGA Championship of Canada sponsored by Mr. Lube and presented by TaylorMade-adidas Golf is free and spectators are encouraged to attend during championship play.
To follow the PGA Championship of Canada sponsored by Mr. Lube and presented by TaylorMade-adidas Golf online throughout tournament week, visit pgaofcanada.com, or follow the PGA of Canada on twitter, instagram and facebook.