Manitoba beginning to produce ‘elite-level golfers’: Kuntz

It may not have ended the way everyone wanted, but make no mistake: this was a banner week for local golfers.

Let’s start with Braxton Kuntz, who managed to qualify his way into the Manitoba Open and then found himself lurking near the top of the leaderboard after an opening round five-under 65. Although he didn’t finish as strong as he started — rounds of 72, 70 and then 76 followed — the 22-year-old proved he can hang with the pros on PGA Tour Americas.

“I think over the last couple of years I’ve been continually getting better and that’s been great to see,” Kuntz told the Free Press.

“I’ve been fortunate to compete against some great players and hold my own. This was another good learning experience for me, and I’m just going to take it and run with it. I’m sure I’m one of the youngest, if not the youngest, in this field, so I’ve got a long road ahead of me.”

Kuntz finished tied for 56th among the 156 players who teed it up at Elmhurst. Sunday’s round included a costly quadruple bogey on the 15th hole as his drive sailed into the trees and he had to hack his way out.

“I tend to focus on the negative sometimes. I’m a bit of a perfectionist. So a little disappointed in how I finished,” said Kuntz.

“But at the same time I made it to the weekend and that’s great. if I look back a week ago and thought I’d be playing golf on Sunday I’d be pretty happy with that.”

Kuntz said his favourite part of the Manitoba Open was getting to play in front of big crowds which included plenty of family and friends.

“Knowing people are in my corner even if I’m not having a good day is always nice,” he said. “They stuck around and watched me to the end even though I was a million over par (on Sunday). That says something. I really appreciate the support.”

Next up for Kuntz is qualifying school for the DP World Tour, where fellow Manitoba Aaron Cockerill has become a regular in recent years. That will be held next month in Germany.

Kuntz wasn’t the only local golfer making waves.

Marco Trstenjak, who plays out of Elmhurst, finished tied for second at the North Dakota Open which was held in Fargo. He was 18-under over his 54-holes, two shots behind the winner, and cashed a cheque of US$6,150. This event is part of The Dakotas Tour, which attracts professionals from across North America.

Moving over to Ontario, the trio of Evan Nachtigall, Jordy Lutz and David Spurr led Manitoba to the Inter-Provincial Team title at the Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur. And Nachtigall nearly won the individual event, finishing alone in second, a stroke behind now four-time champion Garrett Rank.

“I think if you see the way golf in Manitoba is trending, the way the guys competed at the Mid-Am, Marco, I think it’s great,” said Kuntz.

“There’s a good handful of elite-level Canadian golfers coming out of Manitoba now and I’m excited what the province turns into in the next five, 10 years.”

Nachtigall, Lutz and Spurr are also Elmhurst members. Speaking of which, the course itself can take a bow after being front and centre by hosting the Manitoba Open for the first time since 1999.

There was plenty of praise from competitors, despite the fact overall scoring was relatively high compared to typical events on the tour including prevoius ones here held at other facilities.

The best single round of the week was just six-under, and the winning 72-hole score of 14-under speaks volumes about Elmhurst.

“It’s a tough course and the pins are just so difficult,” said Kuntz. “I’ve played a lot of tournaments and I don’t think I’ve seen pins this tough,. They did a great job making this a tough test.”

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