Local boy living the dream

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This article was published 19/08/2022 (1458 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

As he stood on the first tee box Friday afternoon, having just ripped a perfect drive down the fairway, the smile was inescapable. So, too, was the cheer from the hometown crowd, one that included plenty of family, friends and fellow members at Southwood.

Colwyn Abgrall had finally arrived. And the kid who grew up in Niverville dreaming of making a living playing professional golf was competing in the biggest tournament of his life, in his own backyard to boot.

“I get to live the dream,” Abgrall told the Free Press about his PGA Tour Canada debut in the Manitoba Open, which was pushed back a day due to saturated conditions on Thursday.

Unlike the majority of competitors in the field of 156, Abgrall is not a tour member. It’s not for a lack of trying, but he’s been unable to crack various qualifying schools over the years. But a major breakthrough came Monday, when he fired a sizzling 67 in qualifying to grab one of the last eight spots available for the event.

“I’m just trying to tell myself that I belong out here,” he said.

He didn’t look totally out of place, shooting a solid opening round 74 during tougher scoring conditions on Friday afternoon, when the wind picked up and the greens began to firm up. His round included 12 pars, four bogeys and two birdies. He enters today’s second round tied for 114th, 10 strokes back of the lead but certainly with a chance at making the cut. (The top 60 and ties will play rounds three and four on Sunday.)

Now 25, Abgrall has learned the hard way what many from our little neck of the woods have previously discovered — it’s hard to become a full-time pro from Manitoba. There was Glen Hnatiuk in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Aaron Cockerill over the past couple years. And a whole lot of nothing in between.

“It’s a matter of resources and timing and things like that,” he said of trying to compete from a province that is covered with snow for half the year. “We just don’t have the climate, and we unfortunately lack resources, especially throughout the winter. It’s starting to get a little bit better here and there, but we’re still behind other provinces in regards to national competition, sending guys to juniors and amateurs and stuff like that.”

Abgrall certainly seemed to have as good a shot as anyone, especially during his peak in 2019 when he was named the provincial Male Golfer of the Year after a stellar season which included winning the Manitoba Amateur and even qualifying to compete in the prestigious U.S. Amateur. But plenty of setbacks and disappointment followed.

Life has now taken him in a slightly different direction, with a full-time job at GOLFTEC in Winnipeg meaning he isn’t on the course as much as he’d like.

“(Playing golf) is certainly on the back burner. Now I’m helping other players with their game more so than myself,” said Abgrall.

But that doesn’t mean the fire has stopped burning entirely.

“Certainly, if I could choose something to do for the rest of my life, it would be travelling and competing and playing,” he said. “But it’s going to have to be one of those things where I have to go out there and prove to myself that I can do it, prove to others that I can do it. Hopefully I can be one of those guys that kind of proves that I’m able to belong.”

Abgrall was always going to have plenty of people watching him this week, but the gallery grew even larger when he was paired for the first two rounds with Winnipeg Jets star centre Mark Scheifele, who is playing on a sponsor’s exemption.

“Certainly a memorable experience,” he said.

In one of those funny “it’s a small world” coincidences, Scheifele’s caddy is former Jets teammate Adam Brooks. The Winnipegger, who signed a free agent deal earlier this summer with the Philadelphia Flyers, used to play minor hockey against Abgrall.

Although it was three years ago, Abgrall is leaning on his U.S. Amateur experience at Pinehurst to try to handle the inevitable ups and downs that occur on any big stage such as this.

“Emotion wise, there were a lot of nerves there,” he said. “I think this event will be a much better opportunity for me to compare myself against some of these other pros and see if I can do the ultimate thing. Try and make the cut, for sure.”

Abgrall had a sponsor’s invite into the 2019 Manitoba Open (then known as the Players Cup), but was unable to make it due to a scheduling conflict. He’s planning to savour every shot, every moment of this experience, not knowing if or when he’ll get another one like it.

“I know I can hit shots. I know I can put the scores together,” he said. “It’s a matter of how well I compose myself mentally and manage my emotions and stuff like that on the course.”

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @mikemcintyrewpg