The course was as challenging as expected, and certain golfers met the challenge and became champions.
Kevin Carrigan, Shelly Stouffer and Greg Bismeyer were winners this week at B.C. Golf’s men’s and women’s mid-amateur and mid-masters championships at the Nanaimo Golf Club. Carrigan won the mid-amateur, Bismeyer won the mid-masters and Stouffer won both the mid-am and the mid-masters.
Carrigan, from Victoria, went into Thursday’s final round nine strokes ahead of the rest of the field.
“I guess the fact that there wasn’t anybody close after the two rounds, I guess maybe you get complacent or something…” said the 29-year-old. “I played, we’ll call it, nervy golf. I knew there was a lot of good players that needed me to come back a little bit.”
He started his day by bogeying three of the first four holes and also had a rough stretch after the turn.
“I always tell the juniors that I work with that no matter how bad it gets, it can always get worse, so just bear down and finish your round…” Carrigan said. “I was fortunately able to do that not playing my best golf.”
The win means a lot, he said.
“Oh man, it’s a provincial championship. It’s stuff like this that gets you into the hall of fame and that sort of stuff,” he said. “Not to mention a great course, tons of great competitors.”
Bismeyer, of Mission, shot a one-under final round to win the mid-masters and finish in a tie for second place in the mid-amateur with Victoria’s Scott Kral. Nanaimo’s Sandy Harper was one stroke behind Bismeyer in the mid-masters and tied for fourth in the mid-am with Craig Doell of Victoria and Brent Wilson of Cobble Hill.
Local golfer sweeps women’s championships
Stouffer, from Nanoose Bay, started her round trailing by two strokes and after a double bogey on two, wasn’t sure it would be her day. But she birdied the fifth, sixth and ninth holes to make the turn as the leader. On the fifth and the 11th, in particular, she made some great shots from tough lies.
“I was making birdies from the bush,” Stouffer said. “My putting kept me in it and I just hit some good recovery shots most of the time and just tried to keep my head in the game.”
The whole back nine she was nervous, she said.
“It’s been awhile since I’ve been in this position…” she said. “To be in this position and being able to hang on and hit some shots coming down the stretch, I was pretty happy with that.”
Stouffer shot a four-over par final round to win. Victoria’s Alison Murdoch, who had led after the first and second rounds, finished as runner-up in both the mid-amateur and the mid-masters divisions, two strokes back. Port Alberni’s Christina Proteau finished third in the mid-am and Nanaimo’s Kim Evans was fourth.
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