Golf Canada – Bauchou goes wire-to-wire to become the 14th back-to-back champion

Garrett Rank shoots 65 to finish in 3rd place as low Canadian

DUNCAN B.C. – American Zach Bauchou held on in Thursday’s final round of the 114th Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship at Duncan Meadows to become the 14th back-to-back champion in history.

Bauchou, a Forest, Va., native, fired a 5-under 66 in the final round to finish with a three-stroke victory at 18 under par—tying the tournament record set in 1970 by Allen Miller.

“It’s truly an honour to be a back-to-back champion at the Canadian Men’s Amateur—words can’t really express how much it means to me to come up here and defend and play as well as I did,” said the 22-year-old. “I’m truly honoured to win this tournament again.”

In 2017, Bauchou became the 22nd American to hoist the Earl Grey Cup, and now becomes the third American to win back-to-back championships (Han Lee, Frank Stranahan, Albert Campbell). 

For the first time since Monday, Bauchou relinquished the lead to momentarily sit tied at 14 under par with fellow American Philip Knowles, who surged up the leaderboard early with birdies on three of his first four holes.

Bauchou pulled away on the back nine, with a momentum swing on the 15th hole where he sunk a winding birdie putt, while Knowles slipped with a three-putt from inside 10 feet.

“He [Philip] played really well, especially on the front nine, he really putted good,” said Bauchou. “My putt was right in the middle which was really nice – sometimes you need those putts to go in in order to win.”

With the victory, Bauchou receives an exemption into the 2019 RBC Canadian Open at Hamilton Golf and Country Club in Hamilton, Ont., from June 3-9. Having already received an exemption into the U.S. Amateur via World Amateur Ranking (No. 21), Bauchou had his mind set this year on defending.

“I think the feelings are a lot different for me this year,” said Bauchou. “Today I was playing to defend, and you have a little difference in responses and I was a lot less nervous today than I was last year, which was the different this year.”

Knowles closed in solo second at 15 under par. The Jacksonville, Fla., native also shot a 64 in Wednesday’s third round to set the course record at Duncan Meadows.

“Just like that you go from walking up the green, thinking you might get back to all-square to being three down with three to play,” said Knowles, who is entering his senior year at the University of North Florida. “I shot 15 under. You can’t shake your head at that, there’s a lot of circles on the scorecard.”

Elmira, Ont., native Garrett Rank finished in third place at 13 under par, also taking home low Canadian honours in the process. The 30-year-old will return to B.C. from Aug. 21-24 to compete in the Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur at Victoria Golf Club, where he’ll look to collect his fourth title in five years.

“You’d like to add this one to the resume for sure,” said Rank. “Without sounding arrogant I have won a lot of Golf Canada championships so it would be nice at one point to get one of these.” 

Earlier in the week, Team Quebec captured the inter-provincial title to win their second consecutive Willingdon Cup. Julien Sale (Gatineau, Que.) and Team Canada members Joey Savoie (La Prairie, Que.) and Hugo Bernard (Mont-Saint-Hilaire, Que.) helped Quebec to a 10-under-par score and a seven-stroke win—their eighth victory all-time.

Duncan Meadows Golf Course played host to the 114th Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship alongside Pheasant Glen Golf Resort, who co-hosted the 246-player field during the first 36 holes.

Click here for full results and final round pairings.

NOTE TO MEDIA: Click here to download images from Thursday’s final round (credit: Chuck Russell/Golf Canada).

2018 CANADIAN MEN’S AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIP LEADERS

GOLF CANADA AMATEUR CHAMPIONSHIPS
Golf Canada annually conducts more than 20 championships nation-wide which play host to more than 3,000 domestic and international athletes from all corners of the world. In partnership with our host clubs, thousands of volunteers, provincial golf associations and our proud sponsors, Golf Canada is dedicated to supporting player development through world-class competition since our inception in 1895. Officiated by certified Canadian Rules of Golf officials, Golf Canada’s amateur competitions are fully compliant with golf’s international governing bodies and include marquee events such as the Canadian Men’s and Women’s Amateur Championships as well as the Canadian Junior Girls and Junior Boys Championships. Golf Canada’s amateur championships are proudly supported by RBC, Canadian Pacific, Sport Canada, Levelwear, Titleist and FootJoy and Destination B.C. For more information and scheduling visit www.golfcanada.ca/competitions.

GOLF CANADA
Golf Canada is the National Sports Federation and governing body for golf in Canada representing 319,000 golfers and 1,400 member clubs across the country. A proud member of the Canadian Olympic Committee, Golf Canada’s mission is to grow participation, excellence and passion in the sport while upholding the integrity and traditions of the game. By investing in the growth of the sport and introducing more participants of all ages to the game, our goal is to be relevant to and respected by all Canadian golf enthusiasts from coast to coast. For more information about what Golf Canada is doing to support golf in your community, visit www.golfcanada.ca.

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Golf Canada
(t) 416-300-4860
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