Manitoba’s most popular golf tournament

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 26/06/2024 (780 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The Grey Owl, which is always held on the second weekend of June at Clear Lake Golf Course, has to be Manitoba’s most popular golf tournament. Held for the first time in 1961, it was billed as the Clear Lake First Annual Spring Golf Tournament, but the Grey Owl name was adopted just before the first event. Laurie Artiss, sports editor of the Brandon Sun, and Bill Bell, the owner of cabins in Riding Mountain National Park, were the brains behind the idea.

The first tournament received 126 advance entries, but no-shows dropped the final number to just over 100. Ron Fiddler from Elmhurst, the 1959 Manitoba Amateur champion, won with scores of 78 and 76. Don Wittman of the CBC was the first media champion, shooting 82 and 91.

Nowadays, 288 golfers of every calibre presently play 36 holes of medal play golf over three days. With the exception of the championship flight, golfers are placed in nine flights based on their handicaps. There is even a Greyer Owl flight for players age 60 and over, as well as a media flight.

Several of our province’s best golfers dominated the Grey Owl in the early years. Wally Keep of Rossmere, often described in the media as the “old cross-hander,” won in 1962 and clubmate Ted Homenuik was the winner in 1963. Pro hockey player Nick Mickoski of Elmhurst topped the field in 1964. Jim Scissons, a five-time Saskatchewan amateur champion from Saskatoon, won his first of seven Grey Owls in 1965. Elmhurst’s Jumbo Jimmy Doyle his first of four the next June. Mickoski was back on the podium in 1967 after beating Bobby Dunbar of Niakwa in a playoff.

The Greyer Owl competition was introduced in 1974 with Keep coming out on top with rounds of 78 and 83. Bill Pinniger of Elmhurst won the next four. In the 10-year span from 1983 to 1992, Carman’s Barrie Sanders won the Greyer Owl six times.

Garth Collings is without question the greatest Grey Owl champion. Playing out of Bel Acres, he won his first title in 1997 with scores of 70 and 74. Breezy Bend was his home club when he went on to capture 10 more championships between 1998 and 2016. In 2006 and again in 2009, he shot 133 for the best two-round scores in Grey Owl history. To add to his laurels, Collings was the Greyer Owl winner in 2018 and 2019, plus the past two summers.

In 2012, Jay Thiesen of Russell beat Collings in a two-hole playoff for his first of four titles. He won again in 2019 and was back on top again in 20023 and 2024 with scores of 139 and 144. Owing to the COVID-19 pandemic, no tournaments were held in 2020 and 2021. Jared Jacobson of Brandon was the 2022 champion.

In looking at the list of champions, other names jump out: Dale Goehring of Breezy Bend, who won the Canadian Amateur championship in 1997, was a two-time Grey Owl winner in 1992 and 1994, and clubmate Bill Parker, a three-time Manitoba Amateur champion, won in 1993. In 1985, Terry Hashimoto of St. Charles won both the Grey Owl and the Manitoba Amateur.

The Grey Owl Memorial Plaque was established by the Grey Owl directors in 1992 to pay tribute to those who believed in the ideals and spirit of the tournament and who should always be remembered for their efforts in making it a very special sports event. Recognition in 2024 went to Ed Dearden, 96, who died on March 29 and whose celebration of life was held at the St. Charles Country Club on June 19. The man they called Steady Eddie was the assistant sports editor and golf columnist for the Winnipeg Tribune until it folded in 1980 and covered golf for CJOB radio. His son Craig was both the Grey Owl and Manitoba Amateur champion in 1980.