Due to interprovincial travel restrictions and other complexities related to COVID-19, Golf Canada has announced additional changes to its championship schedule for the 2021 season. 

Provincial restrictions had previously forced the cancellation of U.S. Open Local and Final Qualifiers, in addition to the NextGen Pacific, NextGen Western, and NextGen Ontario Championships. With continued pandemic-related uncertainty, the remaining NextGen Championships – NextGen Prairie (Quarry Oaks, June 10-13), NextGen Quebec (Club de Golf Hemmingford, June 27-30), and NextGen Atlantic (Dundarave Golf Course, July 12-15) – will also be cancelled and the 2021 NextGen National Junior Orders of Merit will not be awarded. In some cases, these NextGen events would have conflicted with provincial junior championships around Canada that are being delayed and rescheduled.

The two NextGen Fall Series Championships in September will proceed as scheduled. Each field will feature 99 junior boys and girls and exemptions into the 2022 Canadian Junior Championships will be awarded.

• NextGen Fall Series East | September 16-19 | Hollinger Golf Club, Timmins, Ont.
• NextGen Fall Series West | September 23-26 | Myrtle Point Golf Club, Powell River, BC

Golf Canada National Amateur Championships are still scheduled to proceed but will only move forward after approval from regional and provincial health authorities. Operational plans for amateur competitions have been adjusted to incorporate rigorous health and safety protocols. Final decisions about the feasibility of conducting national championships will be made approximately four to six weeks prior to the start of each championship. The safety of championship competitors, tournament staff, volunteers, and host site members will remain the top priority guiding these decisions.

At this time, Golf Canada is able to announce the following changes to its National Amateur Championship schedule:

• Interprovincial team competitions that are usually played concurrently with national championships will not be contested in 2021. The increased complexity associated with team competitions – including group travel and the involvement of non-playing team captains – will not allow for them to proceed this year.

• The Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship will move one week later in July and is now scheduled to be hosted by Edmonton Petroleum Golf & Country Club in Edmonton, Alta. from July 26-30. The Canadian Women’s Amateur was last held in Edmonton in 1993. The previously scheduled host, The Royal Montreal Golf Club, has agreed to welcome this national championship in 2025 or 2026, after hosting the Presidents Cup in 2024. 
• The Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship will remain in its current date and is now scheduled to be hosted at the Ambassador Golf Club in Windsor, Ont. from August 1-5.  The championship—which was previously contested at two courses with a 264-player field—will be reduced to a 156-player field and be contested at one course.  The previously scheduled hosts, Le Club Laval-sur-le-Lac and Club de Golf Saint-Raphaël, will explore the possibility of hosting the championship in a future year. 
• The Canadian Junior Girls Championship will move one week earlier and is now scheduled to be played at Leduc Golf Club in Leduc, Alta. from July 19-23. The previously scheduled host, Club de Golf Sainte-Marie will play host to this championship in 2025 or 2026. 
• The Canadian Men’s Senior Championship is now scheduled to be contested at Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu in La Malbaie, Qué. from September 20-24. The previously scheduled host, Ken-Wo Golf Club in New Minas, N.S. will host in 2025. 
• The Canadian University/College Championship has been postponed to October. A host course and date will be confirmed in the near future. 
• The Canadian Junior Boys Championship will remain at Club de Golf La Vallée du Richelieu in Sainte-Julie, Qué. from August 8-12.  The Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship and the Canadian Women’s Mid-Amateur & Senior Championship will also remain as scheduled. Fort McMurray Golf Club will host the men from August 23-27 and Golf Château-Bromont will host the women from August 30-September 2. 

The rules of golf were substantially revised effective January 1, 2019. There have already been a few highly-publicized incidents on the professional tours regarding application of the new rules.

Golf Manitoba wants to assist any golfer who may play in one of its event to have a practical understanding of how the new Rules affect competitive play. We invite all competitive players to join us for a free Player’s Rule Session at the Glendale Golf & Country Club on April 16, from 7 – 8:30 pm.

The objectives are to provide you with the key changes to the rules, how to avoid problems, and to answer any of your questions. We will have Golf Manitoba “referees” (that is the new name for “rules officials”) conducting the session.

Please email the Golf Manitoba office at info@golfmb.ca or call 204-925-5730 to RSVP your attendance.

Golf Manitoba is making some changes to select events for its 2019 championship season. These changes are being introduced in response to a variety of factors including current trends in event participation and venue acquisition while still adhering to competition guidelines as per long-term athlete development.  Additionally, these changes hope to improve the overall competitor experience while at the same time maintaining the integrity and history of conducting high-level events and provincial championships.

The following events will see changes effective for the 2019 season:

• The Alternate Shot event will be discontinued with the intent of replacing this event with a new format at a date to be announced.
• The Ladies Interclub A and Interclub B events have been amalgamated into a single day event. Both events will run concurrently with a shotgun start.
• The Women’s City & District Championship will run concurrently with the Bantam Championship.
• A 54-hole cut will be introduced to the Manitoba Junior Boy’s Championship. The final day of play will see the field reduced to the top 16 players and ties and those within 10 shots of the lead.
• The Junior Interclub event will be replaced with a 36-hole team event that will run concurrently during the first two days of the Manitoba Junior Championship. The new format will see teams of 3 compete in inter-club competition.
• The Nott Autocorp Men’s Manitoba Amateur Championship will have both a 36-hole and a 54-hole cut. After 36-holes, the field will be reduced to the top 50 players and ties. After 54-holes, the field will be reduced to the top 24 players and ties and those within 10 shots of the lead.

Online registration for all Golf Manitoba events opens on April 1, 2019. For details about the Golf Manitoba 2019 championship schedule including dates and venues and to register, please visit  http://golfmb.ca/2019-championship-schedule/.

About Golf Manitoba:  Golf Manitoba is the governing body for golf in the province of Manitoba and North West Ontario. Its mission is to develop, promote, govern and service the game of golf in Manitoba and North West Ontario for the benefit of all participants.