HEADINGLEY, Man. – The summer of Shelly Stouffer rolled on at the Canadian Women’s Mid-Amateur & Senior Championship, presented by BDO, at Breezy Bend Country Club in Headingley, Man.
After winning the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur Championship in early August, the Nanoose, B.C., native added a Canadian Women’s Mid-Amateur title and a second consecutive Canadian Women’s Senior Championship to her trophy case. The hardware didn’t end there, though. Stouffer was crowned champion of the Mid-Master division, to boot.
“That’s the first time I won the Mid-Am, so [I’m] pretty excited about that,” said Stouffer. “Last year I won just the Mid-Master and the Senior, so, yeah, it was exciting.”
Stouffer says this win is “right up there” with the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur Championship and so is the Ada Mackenzie Trophy.
“This gives Big Bertha a run,” Stouffer laughed as she hoisted one of three trophies she was awarded on Thursday, bringing her week total to five after winning both the Katherine Holleur and Crockett trophies as part of Team British Columbia in the Interprovincial Team competitions.
Opposite to the 52-year-old’s triumph in Anchorage, AK., the odds were against Stouffer coming down the stretch in Thursday’s final round. Terrill Samuel and Christina Spence Proteau lead by one over the former professional golfer with just five holes to play, but in came the wind that blew Stouffer into the lead.
With a one-stroke advantage on No. 18, Stouffer guided an iron onto the green and two-putted for par to secure the one stroke victory over Samuel.
“I’m just kind of going with the flow here,” admitted Stouffer. “I was hitting the ball well down in, well, everywhere, but the last place I was at was Dayton at the U.S. Open, so I just kind of kept that going and my ball striking was actually really, really good this week. I can’t even express how awesome it is.”
Stouffer becomes only the second Canadian in history to win both the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur Championship and the Canadian Women’s Senior Championship in the same year, joining World Golf Hall of Famer, Marlene Streit, who accomplished the feat in 1995.
“It’s amazing; it’s so great,” said Stouffer on being in the same company as Streit. “She sent me messages when I was over in Anchorage, being encouraging and everything like that and, you know, it’s phenomenal – it’s awesome.”
With the win, Stouffer earns an exemption into the 2023 Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship at Ashburn Golf Club in Halifax, N.S. The B.C. native’s win in the Senior division earns her direct entry into the 2023 U.S. Senior Women’s Open and 2023 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur Championship, where she will look to defend her title.
Samuel, the 2022 British Senior Women’s Amateur Champion, carded a final round 73 to win the Super Senior division. The Etobocoke, Ont., native also finished as the runner-up in the Mid-Amateur, Mid-Master and Senior divisions.
In the Mid-Amateur section, six-time champion, Christina Spence Proteau, earned the bronze medal, finishing just two strokes back of Stouffer. Helene Chartrand of Sallabery-de-Valleyfield, Que.; 2017 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur Champion, Judith Kyrinis; and Canadian Golf Hall of Famer, Mary-Ann Hayward all posted T4 results at 8-over-par for the tournament.
On Thursday, Golf Canada announced the Canadian Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship would act as a stand-alone event in 2023 and beyond. The national championship will be held at Mad River Golf Club in Creemore, Ont., July 24-27.
The 2023 Canadian Senior Women’s Championship is moving to the Maritimes. It will take place at Mill River Golf Course in O’Leary, P.E.I.
For full results of the 2022 Canadian Women’s Mid-Amateur and Senior Championship click here.