Canadian Golf Journalists Announce Winners

TORONTO, ON (January 3, 2011) – The Golf Journalists Association of Canada is pleased to announce the results of their 2010 Player of the Year awards. The year-end vote is conducted amongst golf journalists from across Canada and internationally who cover golf for a broad spectrum of media including newspapers, magazines, TV, radio and the internet.

Voting in three of the four categories was not even close as there were runaway consensus winners for Male and Female Professional of the Year and Female Amateur of the Year. The Male Amateur category yielded a very close decision from amongst a large list of nominees.

Following are the winners of the 2010 awards:

Male Professional of the Year
Graham DeLaet of Weyburn, Saskatchewan had an exceptional rookie year on the PGA Tour, recording three top ten finishes that earned him enough money to place 100th on the PGA Tour Money List, thereby retaining full playing privileges for 2011. DeLaet put together a strong finish to the 2010 season even though he was hampered by a bulging disk in his back. He will undergo surgery in the first week of January and won’t make his first start on the PGA Tour until early March.

Stephen Ames of Calgary was runner-up.

Female Professional of the Year
Hamilton’s Alena Sharp continues to improve with each passing year on the LPGA Tour. In 2010, Sharp finished 56th on the Tour’s Money List, making 15 of 20 cuts with one top ten finish. The Alena Sharp Charity Classic, which she hosts each year, is a major contributor to Alzheimer’s research in her local community of Hamilton and Brantford.

Jessica Shepley of Burlington, Ontario was runner-up.

Male Amateur of the Year
In the only close vote for this year’s award winners, Dave Bunker of Woodbridge came out on top for the top Male Amateur award. After winning the Ontario Match Play and the Ontario Mid Amateur Championships, Bunker played in his first RBC Canadian Open as a 43-year old rookie, nearly making the cut. In August, he repeated as Canadian Mid Amateur Champion thereby ensuring himself a return trip to the RBC Canadian Open at Shaughnessy in 2011. Bunker capped his season off with a repeat win at the Ontario Public Player’s Championship in September.

Toronto’s Albin Choi, who won the Canadian Amateur as a junior, was runner-up.

Female Amateur of the Year
After one of the best seasons ever by a junior golfer in 2009, Brantford’s Jennifer Kirby returned to claim the 2010 award again. Kirby, a 2010 Team Canada member and sophomore at the University of Alabama, was a semi-finalist at the U.S. Women’s Amateur and a quarterfinalist at the British Ladies Amateur Championship. The 19-year old also finished 7th at the Canadian Women’s Amateur and successfully defended her title at the Ontario Women’s Amateur Championship.

Stephanie Sherlock of Barrie, Ontario was runner-up. Stephanie turned professional late in the season and secured full playing privileges on the LPGA Tour for 2011.

About GJAC
The Golf Journalists Association of Canada was founded in 2006 to promote golf journalism in all media formats and to recognize excellence in Canadian golf and golf journalism through annual awards. Members include writers and broadcasters from across Canada and the United States as well as communications specialists from the golf industry including our own Pete Dalliday from On the Links here in Peterborough, Ontario.

Kawartha Pros In the Mix

Ponte Vedra Beach, Fl., November 25, 2010) - Defending Ontario PGA Pro Am Champions, lead by Canadian PGA Professional David Banks, have taken the early lead at the 2010 Ontario PGA Pro Am at TPC Sawgrass. Under beautiful conditions on U.S. Thanksgiving 26 Canadian PGA Professionals from Ontario are leading 78 amateurs in hopes of catching Banks' and winning the third annual Merit Golf Vacations Ontario PGA Pro Am.

Teams Banks shot 15-under-par in the two person best ball tournament on Dye's Valley course at TPC Sawgrass. Banks will take a four shot lead over Michael Farrugia heading into the second of the four round tournament.
"Our team played ok on the front at 4-under but we really came together on our back nine at 11-under," said Banks following his round. "Andy Pavletich played really well and Ric Wilson made some great birdies for the team," added Banks, who finished tied for 61st place at the Canadian PGA Club Professional Championship earlier this week in Port St. Lucie, Fl.

Kawartha Golf and Country Club's Dan Bathgate (above) and Cameron Thin (St. Catharines) share low professional honours after day one. Bathgate and Thin both shot 2-over-par 74 which is one shot better than Kawartha Head Pro Mark Ahrens and David Banks (Within Range).

Tomorrow teams will play Deer Creek Golf Club in Ponte Vedra Beach followed by a tour around the famed Stadium Course on Saturday and concluding Sunday on Dye's Valley Course.



Click here to view first round scores

Hughes Hits Pebble

On the Links co-host Wilf Hughes recently returned from a trip out west where he was able to tee it up at Pebble Beach among some other great courses on the coast.

Here's a shot of Wilf teeing off on the very short but very famous par 3 # 7. For the record Wilf just missed his par but tapped in for a bogey 4 but when you get a chance to play such a historic course, who's counting ?

All Aboard at Pristine Bay Resport

Pristine Bay Resort, one of the western Caribbean’s most-anticipated resort communities, announces its Black Pearl golf course will open for Carnival and Royal Caribbean cruise ship passengers visiting Roatan December 1.

Roatan, an idyllic tropical island 40 miles off the coast of Honduras, is a favorite of scuba divers and an increasingly popular destination on Caribbean cruise itineraries. Carnival and Royal Caribbean ships will dock several times per week from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. allowing plenty of time for passengers to play the par-72, 7,179-yard layout followed by lunch at the Sky Lounge or 19th Hole restaurants. The Black Pearl, designed by Pete and Perry Dye, will open to the public at large on January 1, 2011.

“After many months of hard work by the Dye Designs team, The Black Pearl is ready for golfers to tee-it-up in one of the most scenic locales in the Caribbean,” says Mario Toriello, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Pristine Bay Resort. “Our cruise ship visitors will be among the first to sample Roatan’s extraordinary introduction to world-class golf.”

Golf aficionados will be thoroughly impressed by the Dyes’ handiwork. The Black Pearl’s signature hole is the 157-yard (145 yards from the Blue tees), island-green, par-3 11th. From the tee, players enjoy an exceptional view of the golf course and Caribbean. The green sits in the middle of a lake and is ringed by a narrow bunker to give slightly awry shots a chance of remaining dry. Given the elevated tee and ever-present trade wins, proper club selection will be key to avoiding a big number on the scorecard.

“Pete and Perry Dye’s inspired vision and hard work in creating the dramatic Black Pearl has come to fruition,” says Toriello. “Pristine Bay and Roatan are now on the way to becoming one of the world’s spectacular golf destinations.”

Additional information about golf membership, real estate options and the coming-soon, 120-room, five-star Resort and Spa at Pristine Bay can be gleaned by visiting www.pristinebayresort.com, emailing information@pristinebayresort.com, or calling 323.203.0623 or 786.315.8657.

Former PGCC Pro Big Winner

Former Peterborough Golf and Country Club Head Pro Ian Webb, the Executive Professional / General Manager from Credit Valley Golf & Country Club is the 2010 Ontario PGA Golf Professional of the Year. Webb, who began his apprenticeship under Rocco D'Amelio at Bridgewater Country Club in the Niagara Peninsula, has worked at Credit Valley since 2000 as both the Head Professional and now the General Manager.

"It's a huge thrill for me to have my name added to a list of such decorated and celebrated Professionals," said a humbled Webb. "I've looked up to a number of the past winners my whole life so it's a huge honour to be included on the list," added Webb, a past president of the Ontario PGA.

After 'playing in' in 1984 Webb continued to work at Bridgewater until 1990 when he was recruited to join the staff at St. George's Golf & Country Club under the tutelage of Neil Verwey. Although Webb was only at St. George's for two years he learned a lot from Neil and cherishes his time spent on the hallowed grounds on one of Canada's premier courses.

Webb secured his first Head Professional position in 1993 at the Peterborough Golf & Country Club. At the ripe age of 26 Webb and his wife Helen, began a journey that has been both rewarding a memorable.

"We left Toronto with $15,000 in the ban k only to be $250,000 in debt in one week later. The best part about it is we jumped in smiling," remembers Webb.

Known for his charismatic charm and ability to get the job done, Webb is quick to share the credit with his past and current staff members.

"This award is really all about the people that have helped me throughout my career," added Webb. "I've had some great staff and without Evans Mahoney, Sarah Dombroskie (Boyce), Kevin Russell, Brian Mason, Taylor Kimura and Jon Hackett to name a few, this award couldn't have happened for me," reiterated Webb.

Wii Golf Trainer for holiday golf gift idea

Sarasota, Florida – This year, a unique golf gift idea has emerged: Data Design Interactive’s new “My Personal Golf Trainer” for the Nintendo Wii. “My Personal Golf Trainer” features swing analysis and personalized lessons from the world’s #1 golf instructor, David Leadbetter. With this golf gift idea, your golfer can improve his, or her, game in the off-season. Incorporating the Wii Balance Board and the new Wii MotionPlusTM Controller, this trainer is the first product to analyze the full golf swing in 3D space and give personalized feedback. Using Leadbetter’s best-selling 7 Steps to a Better Golf Swing, “My Personal Golf Trainer” offers instructional videos and suggests drills for swing improvement.

At only $99, the trainer makes for an affordable golf gift idea. “My Personal Golf Trainer” is available at golf shops and sporting goods retailers. To buy the trainer online, visit http://www.mypersonalgolftrainer.com/index.php/shop. To learn more about Data Design Interactive and its “My Personal Trainer” series,
“My Personal Golf Trainer” takes the Wii beyond a game console and transforms it into a training device – this isn’t your typical golf gift idea. “My Personal Golf Trainer” analyzes grip, posture, alignment, ball position, coil, swing shape and tempo. Instructional videos and drills within each of these seven basics allow players to improve their swing step-by-step. They will graduate from training mode to the practice range and then play a full 18-hole game.

“What you get from ‘My Personal Golf Trainer,’ more than anything else, is feedback,” says David Leadbetter, coach to countless PGA Tour, European PGA Tour, LPGA Tour and Champions Tour players. “One of the big problems in golf is that what we feel we do and what we actually do are two different things. With ‘My Personal Golf Trainer’ in hand, you are getting instant feedback and you know whether you are doing it right or wrong.”

To date, a few golf training devices have been available for the home, but have only given basic feedback limited to just the impact portion of a swing. “My Personal Golf Trainer” is comparable to professional golf training lessons, which cost thousands of dollars, and similarly, the trainer provides complete analysis of clubhead speed, angle and force through the entire swing process, including weight transfer, swing plane and tempo.

“As the saying goes, ‘Practice does not make perfect. Perfect practice makes perfect,’ and that’s what this golf trainer allows you to do,” says Leadbetter, namesake of 27 David Leadbetter Golf Academies located around the world.
This holiday season, don’t get stuck in a gift-giving rut. Take advantage of this new golf gift idea, “My Personal Golf Trainer.”