Golf Saskatchewan supporting provincial winners

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Kye Fisher won the Saskatchewan amateur men’s golf title by four strokes but needs some help getting into the Canadian championship.

Only nine quota spots have been set aside for Saskatchewan players at Golf Canada’s 119th men’s championship, slated for Aug. 3-8 at Saskatoon Golf and Country Club and the nearby Riverside Country Club. Because Fisher is from Leduc, as an Alberta golfer he doesn’t automatically get a spot from either province.

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“I wish I could get a quota spot from Saskatchewan,” Fisher said Friday after carding a five-under par 66 at the Royal Regina Golf Club to go with earlier rounds of 66, 71 and 70 to finish with an 11-under total of 273, four strokes ahead of second-place finishers Luke Cote (64-73-69-71—277) of Regina and Chase Pochylko (71-72-64-70—277) of Saskatoon.

“It’s interesting that you can win a provincial championship and not get in. I’ve reached out to (Golf Canada) and sent numerous emails. They haven’t responded.”

Golf Saskatchewan plans to make a formal request to exempt Fisher and Calgary’s Sela Ogada, the 14-year-old phenom who won the three-round women’s championship with rounds of 74, 80 and 78. Her 54-hole total of 232 was 13 over par.

“They’ve earned at least a requirement, but it’s one of those things that doesn’t meet a quota box system,” said Brian Lee, Golf Saskatchewan’s executive director. “I can see it from a player’s perspective, that they’ve made it out here, but our quota box is for Saskatchewan players.

“We won’t ask for an extra quota spot, but Golf Canada may have a few spots available. We’ll simply ask if they could consider adding (Fisher and Ogada).”

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The 110th Canadian women’s championship starts July 29 in Victoria. Regina’s Alexandra Smith (78-76-81—235) placed second, three strokes back of Ogada, and as Saskatchewan’s top finisher has been offered one of the province’s three women’s quota spots.

Fisher has registered for the Canadian championship and hopes to hear soon from Golf Canada if he’s going to be accepted. He didn’t enter the Alberta amateur championship because he qualified for a PGA Tour Canada event, the ATB Classic at Northern Bear Golf Course in June. He was three-over par in two rounds and missed the cut.

Fisher, who attends Wright State University in Ohio on a golf scholarship, last year won the NextGen Prairie Championship in Nipawin.

“I’m two-for-two, so I love Saskatchewan,” said Fisher, who started the final round trailing Cote by one stroke. “I felt a big turn was on holes eight and nine; back-to-back birdies kind of bolted me into the lead.

“I was fortunate enough to roll in about a 15-footer (putt on the ninth hole) and it matched Luke’s birdie, so it felt like I was getting ahead a little bit there.”

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Playing on his home course, Cote had supporters following him as the sweltering heat from earlier in the week turned into a wind-blown round for the final day’ back nine.

“The wind was tough, but this is Saskatchewan so we’re used to it,” said Cote, who is two years into a golf scholarship at Southern Arkansas University. “Props to Kye, he played really, really good golf.

“It was a good week and it was a battle, but I didn’t have it all day. This is my home course, so it stings a little bit not to win.”

Cote and Pochylko had to replay the 18th hole as a playoff to determine Saskatchewan’s top qualifier. After Cote won and earned Saskatchewan’s first quota spot, he said he plans to accept his invitation and attend the Canadian championship.

There were 136 golfers registered for the amateur and mid-amateur (over-25) events, which the Royal Regina was hosting to celebrate its 125th anniversary.

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