CAMBRIDGE— The second round of the Ontario Peewee Championship looked like it was going to be a repeat of the first with more beautiful conditions at Puslinch Lake Golf Course on Aug. 1. However, early in the afternoon a storm moved in and what was originally predicted to be a short delay, brought the players in for two hours. When the round did resume it was Cambridge’s Andreas Diogenous and Ottawa’s Isabella Ferguson who were crowned champions.

The hometown advantage proved to be enough for Diogenous. The Whistle Bear Golf Club member entered the final round with a share of the lead after posting a one-under (71) in the first round. He would better himself on the second day with an impressive five-under (67) to drop to six-under (138) for the tournament.

After the win, Diogenous spoke about what part of his game helped to lift him to his impressive final round. “I would have to say my putting. I probably made half of the putts I had on the front nine and made a few 30-footers. All of my putts under 10-feet went straight in, so that was good.”

Second spot went to the other co-leader from round one, Markham’s Kevin Lee. Lee, from Station Creek Golf Club, also had a solid second round. He was two-under at the turn and after an even back nine he finished the day two-under (70). That brought Lee to three-under (141) for the championship.

Rounding out the podium was Renfrew’s Carter Jarrett. The Renfrew Golf Club member also had an under-par second round finishing at one-under (71). That, combined with his three-over (75) opening round, moved him to two-over (146) for the tournament.

Ferguson, from eQuinelle Golf Club, entered the day with a share of the lead thanks to her opening round of four-over (76). Ferguson began the round well with four straight pars. She went on to make the turn at three-over. After a bogey on 11, Ferguson would drain her only birdie of the round on the 12^th. That turned out to be critical, as she would finish the round at seven-over (79) to bring her tournament total to 11-over (155), which gave her the title by a single stroke.

Afterwards, Ferguson spoke about what was running through her mind as she clung to the lead with one hole to go. “Coming down 18, I knew I just had to maintain the lead. I knew I just had to make a par, bogey, or even a birdie would have been nice. I just wanted to play it safe and have a solid finish.”

One-shot back was Hornby’s Annika Naumovski. Naumovski, a Brampton Golf Club member, started the day with a share of first thanks to her opening round of four-over (76). She had a good start to the day with a birdie on the third hole but the difference was a double bogey on the ninth. She was even with Ferguson at the turn at three-over but finished the back nine five-over and ended the day eight-over (80). That brought her to 12-over (156) for the championship and earned her the silver medal.

Picking up the bronze was Nepean’s Lauren Gervais. Gervais began the day in fourth after a 12-over (84) opening round. Her second round was highlighted by an eagle on the third hole. She went on to finish six-over (78) bringing her to 18-over (162) for the two days.

For complete tournament information, including the final leaderboards, see the tournament sites at: https://gao.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/gao17/event/gao1724/index.htm for the Boys’ Championship and https://gao.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/gao17/event/gao1725/index.htm for the Girls’ Championship.

Golf Ontario would like to thank Puslinch Lake Golf Course, along with their staff and volunteers for hosting the event. Thanks also to the Golf Ontario volunteers for their continued support of golf in the province.

About the Ontario Peewee Championship

The Ontario Peewee Championship made its debut in 2015. The championship is hosted by the Puslinch Lake Golf Course, which has a history with Golf Ontario, hosting the Ontario Bantam Championship from 1999 to 2012. The tournament is open to males and females who are younger than 13 years of age as of Aug. 1.

UXBRIDGE— The Golf Association of Ontario (GAO) continues to encourage more kids to pick up the game of golf at an early age. Building on the success of 2014 and the introduction of the NXTee Program, funded in part by the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport, the GAO is pleased to offer a pair of events on the 2015 championship calendar aimed at golfers under 13 years of age. This summer, young golfers will have the opportunity to compete in the NXTee Pee Wee Preview, May 2, at Puslinch Lake Golf Course in Cambridge, and the inaugural Ontario Pee Wee Championship, Aug. 6-7, also at Puslinch Lake Golf Course.

“The GAO is thrilled with the success of our new NXTee initiative which furthers our commitment to providing quality golf experiences for Ontario’s youth and their parents while attracting new participants to the sport for the first time,” said Mike Kelly, GAO Sport Development Director.

The enhanced programming for golfers under 13-years-old began this past fall with the introduction of the NXTee initiative. A pilot project, NXTee aimed to increase the development and engagement of junior golfers (aged 8-13) in York Region, providing them with an opportunity to continue to practice and increase their skills throughout the winter months in preparation for the golf season in a fun and friendly environment. The program also aimed to educate and provide information to parents to help their junior golfers take the next steps.

The first season of NXTee was greatly successful and will conclude on May 2 with the Pee Wee Preview. The event is designed for not only players in the program but other Pee Wee aged players who would like to take the opportunity to play the championship site and experience on-course play with other golfers. It is also a great practice for those who are thinking about competing in the Pee Wee Championship.

The Pee Wee Preview is part of the launch of the inaugural Pee Wee Championship. This two-round tournament is open to both boys and girls in the age group and is sure to galvanize more young players to pick up the game. “We are excited about the implementation of the Pee Wee events into the 2015 competitive schedule and look forward to hosting and engaging with all of the U13 participants,” said Matt Gauld, NXTee Coordinator.

Registration for both the NXTee Pee Wee Preview and the Ontario Pee Wee Championship are now open at the GAO’s tournament page: http://gao.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/gao15/schedule/index.htm