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It couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy.
Kelowna’s Matt Hopley not only has earned a berth in the 2018 Mackenzie Tour’s GolfBC Championship tournament on his home course at Gallagher’s Canyon Golf and Country Club this week but has also been named the most sportsmanlike player on the Zone 2 Junior Golf Tour.
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Hopley, 15, finished second by a stroke to Adam Niles of Kamloops in the Zone 2 (Thompson-Okanagan) championship tournament on the past weekend at Gallagher’s with a 36-hole total of 74-73—147. And with the points accumulated, clinched the season’s order of merit title for the 13-tournament season.
With the order of merit championship goes an automatic spot in the Golf BC tournament that gets under way on Thursday.
Hopley will tee off at 2:25 p.m. in the final threesome while 155 other golfers, also including Conner Kozak of the Okanagan Golf Club and Kelowna’s Garrett Kucher (also at 2:25 p.m.), will test the 6,802-yard-yard layout on opening day, gunning for a portion of the $200,000 purse.
Firing a 2-over 74 and trailing only Kelowna's Justin Towill (72) and with a one-stroke lead on Niles after the first day of play in the Zone 2 championship, Hopley carded a 1-over 73 on Sunday. But he couldn’t hold off Niles, a fellow juvenile-aged (15-16) golfer who tied Lake Country’s Brandon Frechette for the best round of the weekend (71) to claim the tournament crown.
Frechette, a member at the Okanagan GC, led all juniors (17-18) and finished third overall with a 148 total that included a 77 on the first round of the final tournament of the season.
Jaden Steinke of the Vernon GCC placed fourth overall and second among the juniors with rounds of 75 and 77 for a 152 total, two better than Towill (Kelowna GCC), who slipped to an 82 on Sunday after leading with his par round on Saturday. The Okanagan GC’s Cole Wilson finished fourth overall in the junior category with a 155 (81-74) total and Philipp Kaiser (Okanagan GC) rounded out the top five in the junior category by carding rounds of 78 and 79.
Hopley, one of 12 players nominated for the most sportsmanlike award on the Zone 2 tour, will be joined by Niles, Steinke and Towill as zone representatives at the B.C. junior championship tournament being held at the Kamloops Golf and Country Club July 3-6. Hopley and Niles will also play for the Thompson-Okanagan zone at the B.C. juvenile championship at Gallagher’s Aug. 21-23. They’ll be joined on the Zone 2 team by Kyle Mayner (78-82—160) and Kaden Miles (84-82 — 166), both of the Kelowna GCC.
The bantam-division (14 and under) crown went to the Okanagan GC's Cooper Humphreys, who turned in rounds of 80 and 76 for a 156 total. He edged Ryan Vest of Predator Ridge by two strokes (78-80) while Heming Sola of Summerland finished in third place with a 164 total. Braxton McDonald (165) of Vernon and Kelowna's Graysen Lesiuk (166) rounded out the top five.
Meanwhile, Emma Sabbagh of Gallagher’s led the girls at the Zone 2 championship on her home course, shooting a pair of 83s for a 166 total and edging Rivershore GCC’s Georgia Miller by three strokes (84-85— 169). The two will represent the zone at the B.C. junior girls championship tournament in Kimberley July 3-6.
Photo Gallery (85 photos) on KelownaNowSports Facebook page
Photo Gallery (85 photos) on KelownaNowSports Facebook page
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