MEN’S TOP 10

Austin Connelly made the biggest move among the Top 10, picking up 172 spots in the world ranking following his impressive showing at The Open Championship. The 20-year-old, who holds dual citizenship, finished in a tie for 14th in his first appearance at a golf major. At one point in the weekend, he was sitting in a tie for third. The former Golf Canada National Squad member just missed automatically qualifying for next year’s championship by two strokes. The result was worth 8.75 world ranking points, the biggest points-paying of his career to date. Connelly also moves up to No. 6 in the Canadian rankings.

Roger Sloan made a 37 place gain in the world rankings but it was not enough to stop the surging Connelly from moving past him. Sloan posted his third top 10 finish of the year, finishing in a tie for seventh at the Web.com Tour Pinnacle Bank Championship. The result was worth 2.21 world ranking points and marked his first points-paying finish in his last 10 events.

Graham DeLaet and Mackenzie Hughes continued their flip-flop atop the rankings with the Saskatchewan golfer reclaiming the No. 2 Canadian ranking after climbing one spot in the world rankings.

Other notable results: No. 1 Adam Hadwin missed the cut at The Open Championship; No. 5 David Hearn finished tied for 27th at PGA Barbasol Championship; No. 8 Brad Fritsch missed the cut at the PGA Barbasol Championship; No. 9 Corey Conners missed the cut at Web.com Tour Pinnacle Bank Championship; No. 10 Adam Svensson finished tied for 31st at Web.com Tour Pinnacle Bank Championship;

Click here for Men’s Official World Golf Rankings.

WOMEN’S TOP 10

Top ranked Brooke Henderson slipped two places in the world rankings, down to No. 10 after she missed the cut at the LPGA’s Marathon Classic. It was only the second time she missed the cut this year in 19 events.

Alena Sharp maintained her No. 77 world ranking with her third top 15 result of the season, finishing in a tie for 13th at the Marathon Classic.

Other Notable Results: No. 5 Augusta James, No. 7 Samantha Richdale and No. 9 Jennifer Ha missed the cut at LPGA Marathon Classic; No. 4 Anne-Catherine Tanguay finished tied for 33rd at Symetra Tour event in Rochester; No. 6 Brittany Marchand missed the cut at Symetra Tour event in Rochester; No. 10 Elizabeth Tong finished tied for 51st at Symetra Tour event in Rochester;

Click here for full Women’s Rolex World Rankings.

MEN’S AMATEUR TOP 10

Matt Williams made the biggest move among the Top-10, gaining 50 places in the world ranking which enabled him to climb up from No. 9 up to No. 7 in Canadian rankings.

Golf Canada National Team member Hugo Bernard made the second biggest gain over the past week, picking up 23 places in the world rankings after finishing in a tie for seventh in his debut event on the Mackenzie Tour-PGA Tour Canada.

Top ranked Garrett Rank climbed three places up to No. 62 in the world rankings after finishing in a tie for fifth at the Porter Cup.

Chris Crisologo moved up six spots in the world rankings after finishing fourth at the B.C. Amateur Championship.

Joey Savoie climbs up to No. 4 in Canadian rankings, moving past Lawren Rowe.

Biggest move:  Max Sekulic gained 1,339 spots in the world rankings after finishing runner-up at the Sun Life Financial Alberta Men’s Amateur Championship, losing on the second playoff hole to 2015 champion Brett Hogan.

Complete World Amateur Golf Rankings can be found here.

WOMEN’S AMATEUR TOP 10

Only significant movement inside the Top-10 was Selena Costabile gaining 28 places to move up one spot from No. 11 to take over the No. 10 ranking in Canada.

Golf Canada National Team members Jaclyn Lee and Naomi Ko took part in the Pacific Northwest Amateur Championship. Lee, seeded 13th, made it all the way to the Round of 16 before running into eventual champion Julianne Alvarez. Ko, the No. 8 seed, got as far as the semi-finals before losing to Alvarez.

Biggest Move: Christina Proteau gained 212 places in the world rankings after winning the PNGA Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship. The Port Alberni, B.C.  golfer, who was seeded No. 1 entering the match-play portion of the event, defeated Gretchen Johnson 3 and 2 in the final. A three-time PNGA Women’s Mid-Amateur Player of the Year, Proteau is five months pregnant with her second child.

Complete World Amateur Golf Rankings can be found here.

ZINCK, Robert Brenton; CWO, CD2, SSM Retired – age 86 of Greenwood. Bob passed away peacefully Monday, July 24, 2017 at Valley Regional Hospital, Kentville, with his wife Shirley and loved ones by his side. Born in Halifax, he was the youngest son of Harry C and Ethel (Bremner) Zinck.  He was the last surviving member of his immediate family. He served in the RCAF/CF for 37 years from 1949 – 1986. Bob was an ardent golfer and bowler. He was past president of NSGA; president of Greenwood Golf Club and Annapolis Valley Senior Golf Association. He coached NS 5 pin teams in National Championships on three occasions; winning 2 bronze medals. Bob is survived by his loving wife, Shirley (Mercer); sons, Ronald, Peterborough, ON; Clifford (Yvonne), Ottawa, ON; Robert D.(Louise), Kingston, NS; William (Vicki) Coldbrook, NS; daughters Cheryl (Kevin) Thurston, Saskatoon, SK; Dianne (Clancy) Keoughan, Victoria BC; step-son Curtis (Vanessa) Donnahee, Guelph, ON; step-daughters Angela (Maurice) Bennette, Moncton, NB; Bonita (Anthony) Sturgeon, Kentville, NS; Pamela Archibald, Lake Echo, Halifax, NS. Also surviving are several grandchildren and great grandchildren. Bob was predeceased by his first wife, Joyce (Clarke) son Gregory; brother Clyde and sister, Doris. Cremation has already taken place. There will be no visitation or service by request. A private family graveside service will be held at a later date. Shirley and family will be receiving friends at their home on Carol Street, Greenwood on Saturday, July 29, 2017 between 2:00 PM and 4:00 PM to share memories. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to a charity of choice. Arrangements have been entrusted to Middleton Funeral Home, 398 Main St., toll free 1-855-825-3448 Online condolences may be made and guestbook signed by visiting: www.middletonfuneralhome.com

Jordan Spieth is one round away from the third leg of the career Grand Slam, and one year removed from a reminder that it won’t be easy.

On the horizon is a chance to join Jack Nicklaus as the only players to win three different majors at age 23. In the past was his last time leading a major, when he let a five-shot lead get away from him on the back nine a year ago at Augusta National.

All that mattered to him was the present.

Spieth did his part on an extraordinary day of scoring in the British Open, capping off his 5-under 65 by seizing on a good break and making a 20-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole for a three-shot lead over Matt Kuchar, who did his best to keep pace with a 66.

Catch up with all of the action from a record breaking day at Royal Birkdale. #TheOpen pic.twitter.com/rD5g73y1g7

— The Open (@TheOpen) July 22, 2017

Spieth had one of seven rounds at 65 or lower at Royal Birkdale, which was never more vulnerable with a light breeze and a clear sky until the final hour. He was warming up on the range when Branden Grace shot 62, the lowest 18-hole score over 157 years of major championships. Spieth then delivered his second bogey-free round of the week in which he never came seriously close to a bogey.

“Pretty stress-free,” Spieth said. “On a Saturday with a lead in a major, that’s as good as I can ask for.”

He was at 11-under 199, breaking by six shots the 54-hole record at Royal Birkdale that Tom Watson set in 1983. Not only did that last birdie give him a three-shot lead, no one else was closer than six shots.

This will be Spieth’s third time taking the lead into the final round of a major. He led by four at the Masters two years ago and won by that margin. More recent was a one-shot lead at Augusta to start the final round, a five-shot lead at the turn and a quadruple-bogey on the 12th hole that cost him another green jacket.

Spieth was embracing both memories.

“I think I’m in a position where it can be very advantageous, just everything I’ve gone through – the good, the bad and everything in the middle,” he said. “I understand that leads can be squandered quickly. And I also understand how you can keep on rolling on one.”

Vote for your @DoosanEquipment Shot of the Day for Round 3 at https://t.co/6mH0pNJX5D #TheOpen pic.twitter.com/mXfUP4ZSBJ

— The Open (@TheOpen) July 22, 2017

He described the Masters last year as a humbling experience that he thought would serve him well down the road.

“If I don’t win tomorrow, it has nothing to do with that,” he said. “And if I win tomorrow, it has nothing to do with that, either.”

Kuchar never quite caught up to Spieth. He twice made birdies that momentarily tied him for the lead, only for Spieth to pour in birdie putts on top of him to stay in front. Kuchar’s one slip was a drive into the pot bunker on No. 16 when the rain finally arrived, and a three-putt that led to double bogey.

He will be playing in the final group of the fourth round at a major for the first time, and the 39-year-old Kuchar sounded up for the occasion.

“It’s not that I ever felt like I was playing Jordan today,” Kuchar said. “We certainly had a great round of golf. I never felt like I was out there trying to beat Jordan. It’s trying to go up against Royal Birkdale and put on the best show you can against the golf course.”

No one put on a show quite like Grace, the 29-year-old South African who had a chance to win the U.S. Open two years ago. He went out in 29, then added two long birdie putts on the 14th and 16th holes, and a two-putt birdie on the 17th to reach 8 under. From 60 feet behind the 18th green, he lagged it to 2 feet and tapped in for a 62.

The scorecard of @BrandenGrace‘s historic 62 from Round 3 of #TheOpen. pic.twitter.com/FdI0bBjnDp

— The Open (@TheOpen) July 22, 2017

“Look at that number! That is sweet,” Johnny Miller, now a golf analyst, said as NBC flashed a 62 on the screen. Miller was the first to shoot 63 in a major at the 1973 U.S. Open at Oakmont. It took 44 years for someone to top it.

Spieth and Kuchar lit it up, too. They combined for 12 birdies, such impressive golf that Kuchar said a couple of times they forgot who had honours on the tee box. Along the way, they created a little separation from the rest of the field.

Austin Connelly, a dual Canadian-American citizen who grew up in Dallas and shares a swing coach with Spieth, extended his remarkable run with birdies on his last two holes for a 66. The 20-year-old who plays under the Canadian flag was six shots behind at 5-under 205, tied with U.S. Open champion Brooks Koepka, who had a 68.

A phenomenal performance so far from 20 year old @Austinconnelly9 who goes into Round 4 joint third at -5. pic.twitter.com/xT0yAKX4kU

— The Open (@TheOpen) July 22, 2017

Grace wound up seven shots behind even after his 62.

Missing from the mix was Rory McIlroy, who looked to be a big threat when he began with three birdies in five holes, driving the green on the shortened par-4 fifth hole. He lost it around the turn, making back-to-back bogeys, and then a double bogey at No. 10 when he blasted out of one pot bunker left of the fairway and it spun toward another, resting in the thick collar.

McIlroy had a 69, rarely a bad score in the third round of a major. This one left him nine shots behind.

“If you keep it in play, it’s almost hard to make a bogey out there, you know?” McIlroy said. “I’ve always been good when I get off to fast starts, being able to keep it going, and I didn’t today. And I needed to – that’s the disappointing thing.”

Ian Poulter felt even worse. Still lurking, he ran off three straight bogeys early on the back nine and shot 71 to fall nine back.

What a day of golf at @RoyalBirkdale_. See you tomorrow for the grandstand finish. #TheOpen pic.twitter.com/ozKgeJTOKN

— The Open (@TheOpen) July 22, 2017

The tone for Sunday was set over the final three holes, when Kuchar made his double bogey. Kuchar got one back with a birdie from the pot bunker short of the green at the par-5 17th. And then Spieth stole a birdie at the end when his approach narrowly missed the bunker right of the green and had enough spin to stay on the putting surface for his final birdie. Kuchar missed his birdie attempt from 12 feet.

“I played well today,” Kuchar said. “Certainly, I’m not out of it. I’m playing some good golf. I’m very excited for tomorrow.”

Both took time to stop and soak in the best walk in golf, a full grandstand surrounding both sides of the 18th. Kuchar stopped and said to Spieth, “This is pretty cool to be here, walking up the last hole of a British Open.”

They get to do it again Sunday, with a lot more at stake than warm applause.

Click here for the full leaderboard.

Jordan Spieth expected a rough time at the British Open before he even got to the golf course.

He spent Friday morning at his rented house in front of the television, watching players battle a relentless wind at Royal Birkdale, all the while checking a forecast that was even worse for when he played in the afternoon.

“It wasn’t a great feeling knowing we were coming into something harder than what we were watching,” he said.

Spieth did more than just survive.

With a short game as sharp as it has been all year, and a 3-wood that turned out a lot better than it looked and led to an eagle, Spieth seized control with a 1-under 69 that gave him a two-shot lead over Matt Kuchar going into the weekend.

“It was a really solid day.” @JordanSpieth, the clubhouse leader (-6) speaks to the media. #TheOpen pic.twitter.com/FIg8zxEo78

— The Open (@TheOpen) July 21, 2017

Spieth turned a bogey or worse into an unlikely par by chipping in from just short of the 10th green. And he learned enough from watching TV to know that going a little long on the par-5 15th would give him a better birdie chance than playing short. So he switched from a 3-iron to a 3-wood, hit it a little off the neck and watched it run hot and fast some 100 yards along the wet turf to about 18 feet away.

“I mishit the shot, which is probably why it looked so gross,” Spieth said. “I hit it low off the heel, which is easy to do when you’re trying to carve a cut. And it just … one hop, scooted around the group of bunkers there, and then it was obviously fortunate to get all the way to the green.”

The flight of that 3-wood looked as ugly as the weather. The outcome was as bright as his chances of getting his name on another major championship trophy.

Spieth was at 6-under 134. It was the 12th time he has been atop the leaderboard at a major, including the fourth rounds of the Masters and U.S. Open that he won in 2015. Spieth is the sole leader at a major for the first time since the third round of the Masters last year, when he was runner-up to Danny Willett.

“Anytime you’re in the last group on a weekend in a major … you get nervous. And I’ll be feeling it this weekend a bit,” he said. “But I enjoy it. As long as I approach it positively and recognize that this is what you want to feel because you’re in the position you want to be in, then the easier it is to hit solid shots and to create solid rounds.”

Austin Connelly, a dual Canadian-American citizen who was born in Irving, Texas, is five shots back after a 72. He’s in a tie for sixth at 1 under. Adam Hadwin of Abbotsford, B.C., struggled in his second round and missed the cut at 13 over.

“Today was very similar to @Jones_Cup weather. It’s usually a bit colder than that there.” – Austin Connelly, 2015 Jones Cup champ

— Sean Martin (@PGATOURSMartin) July 21, 2017

Kuchar played in the morning in steadily strong wind, but without rain, and pieced together a solid round until a few mistakes at the end for a 71. He was at 4-under 136, and it would have been a good bet that he would be leading with the nasty weather that arrived.

“I think that’s what people enjoy about the British Open is watching the hard wind, the rain, the guys just trying to survive out there,” Kuchar said. “Today is my day. I get to kick back in the afternoon and watch the guys just try to survive.”

He wound up watching another short-game clinic from Spieth.

The key to his round came in the middle, starting with a 10-foot par putt on No. 8 after he drove into a pot bunker. The biggest break came at No. 10, when the rain was pounding Royal Birkdale. Spieth hit into another pot bunker off the tee, could only advance it out sideways, and came up short of the green in light rough.

“Massive,” he said about the chip-in par. “Nothing said ‘4’ about this hole. I feel a little guilty about taking 4 on the card.”

And he wasn’t through just yet. Spieth rolled in a 35-foot birdie putt across the 11th green, and then after watching Henrik Stenson’s tee shot on the par-3 12th land softly, Spieth realized he could take on the flag. He hit 7-iron to 2 feet for another birdie, and followed that with a beautiful pitch to tap-in range for par on the 13th.

Eagle! @jordanspieth goes three clear #TheOpen pic.twitter.com/Z4KLc77Hke

— The Open (@TheOpen) July 21, 2017

Even so, his work is far from over.

The chasing pack features U.S. Open champion Brooks Koepka, who failed to make a birdie but stayed in the hunt with 16 pars in a 72, and Ian Poulter with his newfound confidence, which is growing even higher with the support of the English crowd. Poulter shot 70.

Not to be overlooked was Rory McIlroy, who recovered from a horrific start Thursday to salvage a 71, and then kept right on rolling. McIlroy, who was 5 over through the opening six holes of the tournament, ran off three birdies with full control of every shot on the front nine.

And much like Spieth, he kept his round together with crucial par saves early on the back nine when the wind was at its worse. McIlroy posted a 68 and was at 1-under 139, only five shots behind with only five players in front of him.

“To be in after two days and be under par for this championship after the way I started, I’m ecstatic with that,” McIlroy said.

Not everyone got off so easy.

Justin Thomas, who started the second round just two shots behind, drove into the gorse on the first hole and took double bogey. That wasn’t nearly as bad as the sixth hole, where he tried three times to hammer out of the thick native grass well right of the fairway. He couldn’t find the ball after the third one, and he wound up taking a quintuple-bogey 9. Thomas made another double bogey on the 13th hole and shot 80.

Spieth never looked as if he was under any stress, except for his tee shot into the bunker on No. 8. A British writer suggested a lip-reader could have detected some choice words coming out of his mouth. Spieth smiled and replied, “I speak American. You probably didn’t understand me.”

The language of his clubs – especially the wedge and the putter – was all too familiar.

Click here for the full leaderboard.

CHURCH POINT, N.S. – Calvin Ross defended his 2015 and 2016 title while Meghan McLean completed her wire-to-wire victory at the Future Links, driven by Acura Atlantic Championship at Clare Golf & Country Club on Thursday.

Ross shot a 3-under-par 68, his second sub-70 round of the competition. The 18-year-old from Fredericton, N.B., went bogey-free during his final round and finished with a two-stroke lead.

“The win feels great,” he said, after the award ceremony. “I didn’t get off to the best of starts this summer. I lost a few that could have had and it feels good to win here at the Atlantic championship again.”

Aubrey Farrell finished in second after starting the day tied with Ross at the top of the leaderboard. The 18-year-old from Sydney Forks, N.S., fell three strokes behind Ross by the sixth hole, and his two birdies the rest of the way were not enough to catch back up. He finished at 3 under for the tournament.

Finishing in third place, well back from the top two, was Andrew Bruce from Corner Brooke, N.L. The 18-year-old carded seven bogeys and just one birdie during his final round and finished the competition at 6 over par.

Rounding out the top six finishers in the boys division who earned exemptions into the 2017 Canadian Junior Boys Championship on July 31-Aug. 3 at Cataraqui Golf and Country Club in Kingston, Ont., are: Benjamin Chassé (Fall River, N.S.), Matthew Chandler (Chester, N.S.) and Jack Anderson (Halifax, N.S.).

In the girls division, McLean shot a 3-over-par 74 – the same score she shot in round one – to finish at 12 over par for the tournament. The 18-year-old from Port Williams, N.S., played a strong round throughout the day with the only troublesome spot coming on the par-5 13th hole where she registered a double bogey.

“It feels awesome to win,” said McLean. “I’ve never won this tournament before and it feels really good to say that I’m the Atlantic champion. It gives me a lot of confidence going into the next couple of weeks with Nationals and Canada Games coming up so I’m just hoping to carry the momentum over and continue to play well.”

Finishing in second place, five strokes behind McLean, was 18-year-old Laura Jones from Moncton, N.B. She earned solo-second place honours after recovering from a double bogey on hole 16 with a birdie on the following hole.

One stroke back from Jones was Toronto’s Catherine Zhang who carded a 74, her lowest round of the competition. The 15-year-old got off to good starts on the front and back nine with birdies to start them both off, but they were her only two holes under par during the final day.

Rounding out the top six earning exemptions to the 2017 Canadian Junior Girls Champions held Aug. 1-4 at Camelot Golf & Country Club in Cumberland, Ont., are: Kiley Rodrigues (Kingston, Ont.), Raesa Sheikh (Markham, Ont.) and Sandee Park (West Vancouver, B.C.).

Full results.

Jordan Spieth might be the most famous golfer from Texas right now, and a favourite to win the British Open, but he thinks another Texan has a chance at surprising some people at Royal Birkdale this week.

Austin Connelly, who is a dual Canadian-American citizen, has known Spieth for several years through swing Coach Cameron McCormick. Connelly, 20, will be making his major debut at the British Open this week. He and Spieth played a practice round on Monday.

“This is the type of golf where he (Austin) can really, really make a move and prevail. He really works the ball extremely well. He hits his long clubs dead straight,” Spieth told TSN’s Bob Weekes. “And he’s got a killer instinct on the greens.”

Nice practice round at The Open for Canadian Austin Connelly yesterday, who pegged it with good friend Jordan Spieth

— Adam Stanley (@adam_stanley) July 18, 2017

Connelly, a graduate of the Team Canada Amateur Squad, is playing on the European Tour this year and has already notched two top-10s in his rookie season on the circuit.

He qualified for the British Open by winning a four-man playoff at the Royal Cinque Ports Qualifier – demonstrating the killer instinct Spieth spoke about by sinking a 15-foot birdie putt on the first playoff hole.

Adam Hadwin – the other Canadian in the field this week – is also making his British Open debut. Hadwin, 29, comes to Royal Birkdale ranked No. 54 in the world.

A little bump and run practice for @ahadwingolf ahead of @TheOpen at Birkdale. pic.twitter.com/5k4X9l1RoD

— Bob Weeks (@BobWeeksTSN) July 18, 2017

The Abbotsford, B.C., native notched his first career PGA TOUR win earlier this year at the Valspar Championship in March and shot a 59 at the CareerBuilder Challenge in January.

Hadwin will tee off Thursday with Andrew “Beef” Johnston and Todd Hamilton at 11:36 a.m. local time. Connelly will go at 12:09 p.m. with Matthew Griffin and Matthew Southgate.

Click here for the full Thursday tee times at the British Open.