Round of 16 Matches Set
For the second straight day the Victoria Golf Club played as billed with whipping breezes and firm conditions. However, several players managed to cobble together impressive scores for the second round of the PGA Championship of Canada sponsored by Mr. Lube and presented by TaylorMade-adidas Golf.
Brampton Golf Club’s Brian McCann posted a flawless second-round 5-under-par 65 Tuesday on the A.V. Macan-designed seaside links gem. The two-time PGA Assistants’ Championship of Canada winner admitted after his round he played picture perfect golf.
“It’s so nice to play a round of golf when you know everything is working,” McCann said. “I’m driving it perfectly, hitting crisp irons to the right quadrants and my speed control with the putter is amazing.”
McCann’s two-day total of 2-under-par 138 saw him finish a shot off low medalist honours, which was awarded to Marc-Etienne Bussieres of Club de Golf Longchamp.
Bussieres rounds of 71-66 means he’ll own the No. 1 seed come Wednesday’s first round of matches with the top 16 players squaring off in the four match play brackets—Stan Leonard, George Knudson, Al Balding and Moe Norman.
“Being medalist really doesn’t mean much, except for the fact that I’m playing really well,” Bussieres said. “However, you’ve got to have the mentality that the No. 1 seed should be the favourite heading into the match play part of the championship.”
Bussieres will square off against Oliver Tubb, who finished runner-up at last year’s PGA Championship of Canada, in the Stan Leonard Bracket. The other match their bracket features four-time PGA Seniors’ Championship of Canada winner Jim Rutledge versus Kevin Black of Alberta.
The Al Balding bracket features the matches of 2014 PGA Championship of Canada winner Dave Levesque versus Phil Jonas; and Nick Kenney up against James Harper.
McCann will square off against 2013 PGA Championship of Canada winner Bryn Parry, while Andrew Smeeth meets two-time PGA Assistants’ Championship of Canada winner Mike Belbin in the George Knudson bracket.
“Match play is a different beast now because sometimes it’s not about playing well, but just playing better than the guy you’re up against,” Parry said. “Also, if you have a bad hole it’s a lot easier to bounce back keep yourself in the round.”
In the Moe Norman bracket, the PGA of Canada’s No. 1-ranked player Billy Walsh plays Chris Barber, with Dustin Ridson going up against Gord Scutt.
For the complete match play bracket and full leaderboard, CLICK HERE.
The winners of the morning matches Wednesday qualify for the afternoon quarterfinal matches. The eventual champion will win four match play rounds, adding his name to the historic P.D. Ross Trophy.
The player who sits atop the PGA of Canada Player Rankings presented by RBC at the conclusion of this week earns an exemption into this year's RBC Canadian Open at Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville, Ont.
Currently, Walsh sits No. 1 on the player rankings with 286 points, ahead Levesque and ‘13 winner Bryn Parry
Attendance to the PGA Championship of Canada sponsored by Mr. Lube and presented by TaylorMade-adidas Golf is free and spectators are encouraged to attend during tournament play.