Hosting seniors’ golf nationals an honour for Connaught, says club pro

Oliphant praised the superintendent and grounds crew for getting the course in tremendous shape and the volunteers and membership for stepping up to help.

Trevor Ellerman is also playing in the national championship. He is currently general manager and part owner at Desert Blume, and from 2014 to 2019 was GM and head pro at Connaught.

He said it’s a feather in his old courses cap to be chosen for a national championship.

“To have some of the players that are playing here, guys that have played on the PGA Tour to come through and come into the city … I think in a sense it’s like a privilege for sure,” he said.

Ellerman adds the best part about the tournament being at Connaught is seeing some of the old members, and he remembers well the pride they have in their course. He says seeing that first-hand on the national stage makes the whole week worthwhile.

Two local golfers in the tournament may not seem like much.

But Brendan Stasiewich, the PGA of Canada’s communications manager, says it’s a lot in a field of fewer than 50.

“We have 3,800 members across the country so, you know, for two of them to be from Medicine Hat and playing in this event right here is fantastic for the community and just shows our reach as a PGA,” he says.

To have some of the players that are playing here, guys that have played on the PGA Tour to come through and come into the city … I think in a sense it’s like a privilege for sure. _{Trevor Ellerman}

Playing in their hometown gives Oliphant and Ellerman a little bigger cheering section than the rest of the field.

But neither was getting any advantage from their vast experience playing the course itself.

“I don’t know, we’ve played some pins I haven’t seen out here before so…,” Oliphant said.

Ellerman said there’s good and bad to having so much familiarity with the course.

“There’s certain holes where it’s good it’s like, ‘OK I know I can hit it right’ but then there’s other holes it’s like, ‘I know I can’t miss it,’ and the other guys all they see is maybe fairway,” he said. “You play it enough where I get to hole six and I’ve hit it right enough where it’s like ‘I don’t want to go right on six’ so I need to make sure I hit it straight or go left and then it’s like ‘oh I shouldn’t be thinking that way.'”

After three days, Jim Rutledge won his seventh PGA Seniors’ Championship of Canada title, finishing at 16-under par. He was four shots ahead of Philip Jonas and Scott Allred.

Oliphant finished at 15-over par and Ellerman at 12-over

Two former Hatters were also in the field. Don Graham ended up at even par, good enough to tie for seventh, and Blair McDowell finished at 23-over.

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by Chris Brown

Hosting seniors’ golf nationals an honour for Connaught, says club pro

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