The guys out here are unbelievable: Comrie

Eric Comrie was quick to find a silver lining moments after his 184th and final shot of the Manitoba Open dropped into the cup.

“First Jets player to play the weekend,” he told the Free Press on Sunday with a sheepish grin.

True, even if that accolade is going to come with a giant asterisk we suspect all of his teammates will be quick to point out. The club’s backup goaltender only got to tee it up on Saturday and Sunday at Breezy Bend because play on Thursday and Friday was washed out by heavy rain, turning the 72-hole event into a 36-hole affair with no cut.

Comrie, 29, fired rounds of 96-88, finishing dead last in the field of 156 players at 42-over par.

“It was fantastic. I had a lot of fun. You get an appreciation for how good the guys are out here,” he said. “They’re unbelievable. They hit it right where they want every single time.”

Not so much for a hockey pro who carries a five handicap but admits he’s in the middle of a rough summer on the golf course. The main reason: less time following the birth of his second child this spring.

“It’s harder to get out and practice like I used to, it’s harder to work on chipping and tough shots like that,” he said. “It’s a game where if you don’t play it a lot it’s hard to get good. I did the best I could.”

Comrie is the fifth Winnipeg player to compete in the Manitoba Open, which has True North as its charitable partner. Defenceman Dylan Samberg remains the clubhouse leader after shooting 10-over last year. The Minnesota product was at Breezy Bend on Sunday, following Comrie’s round and cheering him on.

Centre Mark Scheifele sits second with an 18-over showing in 2022, while winger Morgan Barron finished 22-over in 2023. Scheifele also played in 2018, when he shot 29-over.

Comrie boasted that he wasn’t the “highest-scoring Jet” to tee it up. Technically true: sniper Kyle Connor also needed 184 strokes to complete his two rounds at the 2019 event. But Connor played Southwood, a par-72, while Breezy Bend is a par-71. We’ll let those two settle it.

“This course played hard for two days. It was windy, the rough is thick,” said Comrie. “Kudos to the staff here, they did an amazing job making sure this course was ready to go. They gotta be proud of the product they put in front of us.”

The lowlight for Comrie was an ugly 10 he made on the par-four 14th hole in Saturday’s opening round. The highlight was his lone birdie, which came on the 10th hole Sunday as a result of an 80-yard chip-in from the rough. He joked that his caddy — Jets director of communications Scott Brown — “gave me a good number for once” on the distance.

“I kind of went into this without knowing what it was going to be like. Honestly, I got less and less nervous as the days went on,” said Comrie, who signed plenty of autographs and posed for numerous photographs for the large gallery following him around.

Comrie was paired both days with Braxton Kuntz, a four-time Manitoba Amateur champion making his professional debut after finishing his collegiate career at Ball State University in Indiana.

Kuntz, a Breezy Bend member, posted rounds of 73-70 to finish at one-over par, tying for 103rd — four shots shy of the top 60 and ties who would have collected a cheque.

“A little upset because I hit it incredibly well. My ball striking was great. The putter wasn’t co-operating but that’s the way it goes sometimes,” said the 22-year-old.

“(I’m) a little upset because I hit it incredibly well. My ball striking was great. The putter wasn’t co-operating but that’s the way it goes sometimes.”– four-time Manitoba Amateur champion Braxton Kuntz

“I have a lot to learn from this week again. I think I can take some positives from it.”

With school now behind him, Kuntz plans to chase spots on either the Asian Tour or Korn Ferry Tour through qualifying schools this fall. Breezy Bend pro Cory Johnson is organizing a fundraiser for him next month to help cover expenses.

“They’ve been so generous helping me out with pro golf, because it really takes a team to put this all together,” said Kuntz.

The other local entry in the field was reigning Manitoba Amateur champion Evan Nachtigall of Brandon. He shot 76-74 to finish at eight-over and in 153rd.

“It was a blast, but just played terrible,” said Nachtigall, who received the other sponsor’s exemption along with Comrie.

“There was a lot of good and bad. But when it’s windy like this, your bad just turns into really bad. Just can’t make some of those mistakes that I made, Struggled with my short game, and my pace was terrible on the green.”

Nachtigall’s opening round was a roller-coaster: six birdies, five bogeys, four pars and three doubles. His Sunday round was steadier, with 15 pars and three bogeys.

“These (pros) don’t hit it that much different than we (amateurs) do. It’s just the mistakes. They’re not three-putting from 20 feet.”– Manitoba Amateur champion Evan Nachtigall of Brandon

“At the end of the day a great experience and great to be out here with these guys,” he said.

“These (pros) don’t hit it that much different than we (amateurs) do. It’s just the mistakes. They’re not three-putting from 20 feet. They’re cosying everything up to the hole, everything looks like it’s going to go in. They’re missing it in all the right spots. And they basically always have a good chance of getting up and down. It was definitely a learning experience.”

Michigan’s Brett White — who we’ll describe as an honorary local as a result of being married to a Winnipeg woman — finished tied for 16th at six-under par after rounds of 67-69.

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

X and Bluesky: @mikemcintyrewpg

Mike McIntyre
Reporter

Mike McIntyre is a sports reporter whose primary role is covering the Winnipeg Jets. After graduating from the Creative Communications program at Red River College in 1995, he spent two years gaining experience at the Winnipeg Sun before joining the Free Press in 1997, where he served on the crime and justice beat until 2016. Read more about Mike.

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