NIAGARA FALLS, Ont. – 42 players across ten provinces and one territory will compete for gold at the Niagara 2022 Canada Summer Games this week at The Niagara Park’s Commission’s Legends-on-the-Niagara (Battlefield Course) in Niagara Falls, Ont.
The Canada Summer Games, returning for the first time since 2017, opened on August 6. The golf portion will run from August 17-20, with gold, silver and bronze medallists being presented at the awards ceremony following Saturday’s final round.
“We’re very excited to be involved in the Canada Summer Games and to be here in the beautiful city of Niagara Falls,” said Tournament Director Josée Matte. “The opportunity to be part of a multi-sport games is such a valuable experience for young athletes, and we know that on and off the golf course, the Games deliver a first-class experience for athletes to create memories that will last a lifetime.”
Québec comes to Niagara as the defending champions across the board. In 2017, Céleste Dao and Christopher Vandette – now both members of Team Canada – won their respective divisions in the individual competition, while also contributing to Quebec’s gold medal in the male and female team events. Anne-Léa Lavoie (Québec, Qué), Malik Dao (Notre-Dame-Île-Perrot, Qué), Léonie Tavares (St-Jérôme, Qué) and Guillaume Paquette (La Minerve, Qué) will look to defend for La Belle Province.
This year, the male and female team divisions will be replaced by a mixed gender division, where two males and two females from each of Canada’s ten provinces will team up in their bid for the gold medal. In each of the four rounds, the low male and the low female scores will count toward that province’s score for the day. The team with the lowest total score after four rounds will be awarded the gold medal.
Prior to Québec’s sweep in 2017, British Columbia owned the top step on the podium. At the inaugural golf tournament in 2009, B.C. won all four gold medals in golf and did it again with a repeat performance in 2013 in Sherbrooke, Qué. The squad from the west coast will once again be sending a strong contingent to the Games, headlined by Lauren Kim (Surrey, B.C.), who played in the U.S. Women’s Open earlier this summer, and Cooper Humphreys (Vernon, B.C.), who won a gold medal with Team Canada at the 2022 Toyota Junior Golf World Cup.
Yukon will be the lone territory represented at Legends-on-the-Niagara at this year’s Games. 15-year-old’s Drake Cooper and Jase Johnstone, both out of Whitehorse, will tee it up tomorrow.
Notable alumni include this year’s Canadian Women’s Amateur champion and recent U.S. Women’s Amateur runner-up Monet Chun; 2018 and 2019 Canadian Junior Boys champion Christopher Vandette; 2017 Canadian Junior Girls champion Céleste Dao; 2016 Canadian Men’s Amateur champion and NCAA DII Individual National Champion Hugo Bernard; 2011 Canadian Women’s Amateur champion and former LPGA Tour member Rebecca Lee-Bentham; and 2010 Canadian Junior Boys champion and 6-time RBC Canadian Open participant Albin Choi.
Doug Carrick was responsible for the design of Legends’ Battlefield Course, which is situated next to the historic site of the War of 1812’s Battle of Chippawa. It includes four signature holes, all wrapped around a beautiful 7 hectares (19 acre) man-made lake. The centrepiece of the facility, which links everything together, is a spectacular clubhouse designed by Canadian Architect Peter Berton. This building truly captures the spirit of the Niagara area, and it embodies NPC’s vision of a world-class golfing venue that exists in concert with Niagara’s natural and historic setting.
In July of 2004, the Battlefield Course played host to the best women golfers in the world when the Canadian Women’s Open was held at Legends. The course continues to host prestigious golf championships, including the Canadian Women’s Tour Ontario stop in both 2012 and 2014 and the Canadian Junior Boys Championship in 2014.
Niagara 2022 marks the 28th edition of the Canada Summer Games and only the third time in its history that it’s been hosted in Ontario. The last running of the national event was in 2019 in Red Deer, Alta., while the most recent summer edition was held in Winnipeg, Man.
For tee times and results click here. For other information on the 2022 Niagara Games click here.
CHAMPIONSHIP FAST FACTS
- B.C. has won eight gold medals since golf became part of the Canada Summer Games in 2009 and has the most medals overall with 14 (eight gold, five silver, one bronze).
- In 2013, British Columbia dominated the team competitions in Sherbrooke, Que., winning the girls’ event by 17 strokes and the boys by 12.
- Maple Ridge, B.C.’s Kevin Kwon won the 2013 men’s individual event finishing 13 strokes clear of silver medallist Etienne Papineau (Bromont, Qué.) en route to establishing a new Canada Games record with a four-round score of 279 (-13).
- In 2017, Kade David John Johnson set the low single-round score at the Canada Summer Games on the 66; that same year Sarah-Eve Rhéaume set the low single-round score on the female side with a 68.
- Only four provinces have medalled in golf at the Canada Summer Game: British Columbia, Alberta, Quebec, and Ontario.
- The lowest single day team score is 138 for male and 140 for female, both set by Québec at the 2017 Canada Summer Games in Winnipeg, Man.