For Markham, dad made Amateur special

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 25/07/2009 (6224 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Cleaning out a notebook after two intense weeks of tournament action on the home front:

This week’s Manitoba Amateur championship had lots of things to like, even if Garth Collings’ winning score was the highest for an amateur field in 13 years.

In particular, the essence of the game came not only from the perseverance of the winner, but also from one of those who shared third place.

Niakwa’s Scott Markham, 23, had a brush with the title four years ago at Links at the Lake in Gimli, finishing second when his final-day 66 was eclipsed only by a 65 from eventual champion Jordan Krantz, the winner by one.

Thursday at Elmhurst, he and most of the rest of the field had no such scorecard fun. Markham finished with a 78, leaving him two shots from a playoff.

“Four years ago I was in the groove and I just felt it and I knew I’d make the team and I was trying to win,” Markham said. “Today, we were all bunched up and there were bogeys and it was really hard; definitely the most nerve-racking round of golf I’ve ever played.”

He was nonetheless positive about getting into the hunt once again and is eager to represent Manitoba at the Canadian Amateur in Quebec next month.

“Hopefully, the employer (Thompson Dorfman Sweatman) will be OK with that,” he grinned. “They’ve been so great this summer, real encouraging, even some texts from partners and all of it.”

Even though he was beaten by two players this week, Markham said he was feeling like a winner because he had his father, David, as his caddy all week.

David Markham has just finished a stiff bout with throat cancer and said this week he’s one or two doctors’ appointments away from being declared cancer-free.

“The best part is I got to spend four days with my dad,” Scott said. “A few years ago, he struggled and fought through it.

“We’ve struggled on the golf course, too, with him walking off because we just haven’t been able to get along. More than anything, we had a blast this week.

“I’m going to be really happy to look back on these four days and the time we spent together. I can’t complain about a thing this week.”

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Other things to like about the 2009 Amateur:

“ö For those concerned with the same old same old results, note the debut of Selkirk’s Scott Borsa on the provincial Willingdon Cup team.

“ö The reaffirmation of Pinawa (despite this week’s road construction and flying insects) as one of the province’s true championship tests.

Things we weren’t so fussy about:

“ö Same old whine about slow play. Amateur competitors need to be more responsible in this area; those competing in the Mid-Amateur next week are in for a clock shock.

“ö Debate among yourselves (which means no outraged emails, please), but it’s possible Elmhurst was simply set up too tough for this week’s Amateur.

It’s a prime championship layout and when the greens are fast, more than one or two difficult pins per day are not required. Too much of that caused most of the Amateur field to go backwards on the final two days, which does not enhance the competition.

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The frenzy of Players Cup week forced one interesting detail between the cracks.

Considering the hefty amount of rain received in the week before the Canadian Tour event — some 120 millimetres fell on Pine Ridge in that span — the course was a picture of condition and not spongy or sloppy in any real way.

Of course, much of the credit, as usual, goes to superintendent Derrick Chlopecki, but he pointed out one great assist the Ridge received just recently, namely that the RM of Springfield had recently cleaned out a good distance of ditches near the course, and that clearly it has helped take the excess water away from the course in a much more efficient fashion.

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Also of note after the Players Cup, remember Brazilian-born Lucas Lee, who led after three rounds?

He eventually finished tied for second, one shot behind Graham DeLaet, messing up his Sunday and a chance for a first tour win by putting terribly.

His troubles included a four-putt from eight feet at No. 8, and missing a two-footer on No. 12.

Lee recovered in time for an important outing less than 24 hours later. He qualified with a great performance in the Monday qualifier for this week’s RBC Canadian Open at Glen Abbey, shooting 4-under 67 at Heron Point in nearby Alberton, Ont., then making it through a four-man, five-hole playoff.

Lee birdied four of the last six holes in regulation, proving that his putter still works, and he gets to join DeLaet in the field this week.

tim.campbell@freepress.mb.ca