Preview: 2018 Alberta Match Play Championship
CALGARY – The 2018 Alberta Match Play is set to begin on Wednesday at Silver Springs Golf & Country Club. A field of 40 competitors will battle it out over an 18-hole stroke-play round for a lucrative spot in the match play bracket on Thursday morning.
“We are excited to conduct our first championship of 2018 at Silver Springs,” said Stephen Wigington, this week’s Tournament Director and Alberta Golf’s Manager of Competitions. “This is the first year that the Match Play is a stand-alone championship and we are pleased with the strength of the field. We know that we are in store for an exciting few days of match play competition with a 2019 Pacific Coast Amateur team position up for grabs. It will be exciting to see who is the last man standing come Friday afternoon.”
Alberta Golf hopes to expand the event to include a female bracket in 2019.
KEY INFO
Dates: June 6-8th
Course: Silver Springs Golf & Country Club
Yards/Par: 6,824 / 72
Field: 40
2017 champion: Brendan MacDougall (@thedooogs), 2UP over Emmett Oh
Format: 18 hole stroke play qualifying round for 16-player match play bracket
Results: Qualifying round leaderboard
Social: #abmatchplay
LOOKING BACK
The 2017 Alberta Match Play Championship saw Brendan MacDougall, the top seed by way of his low amateur finish in the Alberta Open, defeat four opponents in convincing fashion on the way to his eventual victory at the Sundre Golf Club. The victory helped propel him to a successful freshman year at High Point University where he became the first player in school history to compete in the NCAA Division 1 Men’s Golf Regional Championship.
.@thedooogs wins 4-2. @Emmett_oh 3-2. @svrlawyers #ABMatchPlay finals start at 1:40PM @SundreGolfClub 👏👏👏 pic.twitter.com/b0E3fRtgsg
— Alberta Golf (@Alberta_Golf) June 22, 2017
HISTORY
First contested in 2004, the Alberta Match Play Championship took a six year hiatus beginning in 2009. It was re-launched in 2015 and has a history of crowning worthy champions:
2004 – Ryan Swelin
2005 – Barrett Jarosch
2006 – Kris Wasylowich
2007 – Michael Knight
2008 – Darren Hupfer
2015 – Patrick Murphy
2016 – Jack Wood
2017 – Brendan MacDougall
NOTABLES
- Brendan MacDougall – 2017 Alberta Match Play champion
- Max Sekulic – 2017 Alberta Junior champion
- Carter Graf – 2017 Alberta Willingdon Cup team member
- Tom Mckinlay Jr – 2017 Alberta Mid Master (age 40+) champion
FAST FACTS
- The champion will earn the first team position for the 2019 Pacific Coast Amateur Championship. They will be joined by the low amateur at the 2018 SVR Alberta Open and the champion of the 2018 Sun Life Financial Alberta Men’s Amateur Championship.
- The 2017 Alberta Match Play and Alberta Junior champions (Brendan MacDougall and Max Sekulic) received exemptions into the 2018 Alberta Match Play. They will play in the stroke play qualifier for seeding within the eventual bracket.
- The field features a wide range of ages including three 17-year olds (Carter Graf, Brady McKinlay and William Holan) and veteran competitor Howard Broun at age 70.
- Four competitors from the host club will look to put their local knowledge to work as they vie for one of the fourteen available spots.
ABOUT THE COURSE
Silver Springs G&CC has a tradition of being a premier golf club only 15 minutes from the heart of downtown Calgary. With over 300 acres of rolling hills and valleys with dramatic elevation changes, Silver Springs offers a true test to golfers of all abilities. The stunning clubhouse offers a genuine refuge where you can enjoy sumptuous dinners and the bond of fellowship only a Country Club lifestyle can offer.
More information on Silver Springs G&CC can be found here
MEDIA
