Canada's #1 Junior Golf Tour

August 13-14, 2016
Regina, SK

Playoff and hole-in-one highlight MJT at Wascana

Regina, SK – August 15, 2016 – A full field of junior golfers on the Boston Pizza-presented Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour competed in the two-day MJT-Golf Saskatchewan Order of Merit (OOM) Series at the fantastic Wascana Country Club in Regina, SK, over the August 13 and 14 weekend, where spots on MJT Team Prairies to the International Team Challenge (ITC) presented by Freedom 55 Financial near Niagara Falls, ON, September 23-25, were up for grabs, as well as individual titles in six age divisions. The great scoring weather yielded some amazing results including a 66 on day one from Noah Kozack and a hole-in-one by Cole Obrigewitsch.

Noah Kozack, 17, of Regina, followed up his opening round of six-under-par with a 79 on day two to end up tied for the lead in MJT Junior Boys with Carson Harcourt, 18, of Kipling SK, who shot rock solid rounds of 73, 72 (145), forcing a playoff in which Harcourt  triumphed. “I feel good about my win – it was due to my wedge play and putting,” Harcourt said. “This was my last chance to play one more junior golf tournament before college – I’m going to Minot State University this fall. I hope to play one or two more MJT’s next year.” Third place in the division went to another MJT veteran, Kade Johnson, 18, of Yorkton, SK (76, 72=148).

Cole Obrigewitsch, a 16-year-old from Deer Valley, SK, aced the 11th hole on day one, winning the Miura Golf Gift Certificate for his perfect shot. He finished second in the MJT Juvenile Boys Division with scores of 78, 74 (152), three strokes behind division champion, Josh Nagy, 15, of Saskatoon, SK, who shot 77, 72 (149). “I love to play competitive golf at the highest level,” said Nagy afterwards. “I won because of my putting and ball striking – coming down the stretch I was thinking to just keep my composure and stay focused.”  The division’s third place was taken by Jacob Kydd, 16, of Regina, SK, who shot 75, 78 (153).

MJT Bantam Boys winner was Colby Friedrich, 14, of Battleford, SK, who shot great scores of 74, 72 (146) from the white tees for a three stroke victory over runner-up Jayden Dudas, 14, of Estevan, SK, (74, 75=149). Friedrich said, “It felt really good (to win) – I was six-under from holes nine to 16 and was determined to not flake drives and give up my lead.” Adam Kydd, 14, of Regina, placed third in this division with scores of 73, 84 (157). 

Winning his first MJT Peewee Boys title was Will Blake, 12, of Regina, who shot 79, 77 (156) and stated, “I feel very happy and satisfied – I’ve been practicing lots and playing about every single day. I chose to play here because I knew that the MJT was a good tour and that I would have lots of fun.” Second and third place went to Jackson Wingert, 12, of Saskatoon, SK, (83, 81=164) and Cort Tunall, 12, of Kindersley, SK (83, 82=165), respectively.

In the MJT 15-19 Girls Division, it was Marissa Naylor, 18, who travelled from Winnipeg, MB, who took home top prize with solid scores of 76, 77 (153). “I feel incredible about the win!” she said. “I wanted to experience this tour out of my province. My future plans are to head to Niagara Falls in September and to the Nationals in Arizona if I qualify.”   Chloe Sies, 17, of Melville, SK, shot 83, 85 (168) which gave her the runner up position, and Hallie Burke, 15, of Rocanville, SK, shot 94, 98 (192) for third.

In the younger MJT Girls U15 division, first-time title winner was Brooklin Fry, 11, of Shell Lake, SK, who shot a 94, 87 (181), who said she ‘took it one shot at a time and stayed positive’ throughout the tournament. Raylyn Schmidt, 14, of Moose Jaw, SK, (90, 93=183) was runner-up and third spot went to Carey McLean, 14, of Deer Valley, (101, 96=197).

The players who qualified for MJT Team Prairies to the ITC were Carson Harcourt, Josh Nagy and Chloe Sies (as Marissa Naylor is already qualified). A total of 18 additional prizes were also awarded to the Longball Long Drive, MJT Closest-to-the-Pin, and Golf Town Comeback Winners in the tournament, whose names are all listed on the tournament page on the MJT website. 

The final Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour stop in the province is the MJT Golf Saskatchewan OOM Championship presented by Ilta Grain at The Willows Golf and Country Club in Saskatoon on August 27 and 28, which is the last chance for members to earn major MJT points for qualification into the MJT Boston Pizza National Championship in Phoenix this November.  For more information or to register, please visit www.maplejt.com or call 1-877-859-4653.

About the MJT:

The non-profit Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour presented by Boston Pizza is Canada’s number-one played Junior Golf Tour as well as the only national junior tour run exclusively by PGA of Canada Professionals and the ‘Road to College Golf’ in Canada. The organization is generously supported by Boston Pizza and Premier Partners Ford of Canada, TuGo, Cleveland Golf, Srixon and Aquafina, in addition to valued Tournament and Product Partners. The MJT hosts more than 60 events across Canada, including free Ford Go Golf Junior Clinics, the MJT Mini Tour for 7-12 year olds, and multi-day events for competitive players which also qualify juniors for international competitions. The program offers annual awards, scholarships, and frequent player incentives to help reward player's performance and participation throughout each season. MJT alumni include many Professional Tour players and PGA of Canada Professionals, as well as Canadian Amateur, National and Provincial Junior Champions. The MJT aims to develop champions, in golf and in life, promoting the game from grassroots through to provincial, national, university and professional level.

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MEDIA CONTACT: Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour - Elaine Denton, Director of Marketing and Administration edenton@maplejt.com 1-877-859-GOLF