by Jeffrey Reed, Editor, LondonOntarioGolf.com
Photo (Above): Ontario Women’s Amateur champion Nobelle Park talks with West Haven G&CC head golf professional Scott Loosely about her wire-to-wire win. Photo by Jeffrey Reed/LondonOntarioGolf.com.

With a clutch putt at the 72nd hole of the Ontario Women’s Amateur Championship, 14-year-old Nobelle Park went wire-to-wire to win today at the 109th running of this tournament.

Ontario Women’s Amateur champion Nobelle Park. Photo: Jeffrey Reed/LondonOntarioGolf.com.

London’s West Haven Golf and Country Club’s 6,000-yard, par-72 layout provided a perfect setting for some of Canada’s elite female golfers, with a field of 79 competing for the Women’s Am and the Ontario Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship.

Yesterday, Golf Ontario’s own Junior Performance manager Alexandra Taylor captured her first Ontario Mid-Am title.

The field was cut to 50 after Tuesday’s second round. Team Ontario member Nobelle Park of Oakville who plays out of Rattlesnake Point Golf Club led after every round with a score of 70-69-68-72–279 (-9), one stroke better than Shauna Liu, a member of Golf Canada’s NextGen squad who today played in the next-to-last group.

With Liu in at 8-under, Park faced a difficult 20-foot putt at No. 18. With the poise and determination of a much older golfer, the top ranked amateur in the field (World No. 182) drained her putt for the one-stroke victory.

Her ’24 season has already seen her win the Ontario Junior Players Invitational, and the Junior Girls Spring Classic at Komoka’s FireRock Golf Club in late May. Now, she’s an Ontario Amateur champ.

“I didn’t focus on anyone else but myself,” said Park of a tight back-nine leaderboard. “I just played my own game and didn’t worry about (Liu). If she was to make a birdie (on No. 18), then, good for her. That would not have affected how I would play.”

“This is my first tournament at West Haven, and I really like the course,” said Park, who admitted to not putting well today. “The greens are definitely challenging – they’re fast! And you must pick good spots on the fairways. The rough is also challenging.”

As for entering the field as the top-ranked amateur, Park said there was no added pressure, since “anything can happen in golf. It doesn’t matter what rank you are. You can shoot any score on any day. But it is really cool.”

London’s Isabella Portokalis of Sunningdale Golf and Country Club was the top local finisher at +3, good for 12th.

The youngest competitor, 11-year-old Riviera Lindholm of St. George’s Golf and Country Club, finished a respectable T16 at +8.

Wednesday’s Mid-Am finish was also exciting, with Taylor beating rounds one and two leader Judith Kyrinis on the first playoff hole at No. 18.

Propelled by a birdie at No. 12 and eagle at No. 13, Taylor posted a third-round 1-under 71 – the only sub-par round amongst all mid-am players – and tied 2017 champ Kyrinis at +8. The silver medalist was the first- and second-round leader with rounds of 75-76 and was two strokes ahead of Taylor to begin the round.

In November, Golf Ontario named Taylor its new manager of Junior Performance. Her passion for the game began as a junior when competed in the Drive, Chip and Putt National Championships. She competed on the Niagara Junior Tour, Ontario Summer Games team as well as at Golf Ontario and Golf Canada championships.

OSGA Vice President Kevin Collier (left) presents a plaque to West Haven G&CC golf superintendent Joel Johnston for turf maintenance professionalism and tournament contributions. Photo: Jeffrey Reed/LondonOntarioGolf.com.

After junior golf, Taylor was an NCAA golfer achieving three All-Conference Golfer awards at Grand Valley State University in Michigan where her team participated in the NCAA DII National Championship three out of her four years.

This was the most notable tournament staged at West Haven, and it passed the test with flying colours. The membership were 100-per-cent invested in the event and embraced the tournament from start to finish. GM Jeff Pacheco, head golf professional Scott Loosely and golf super Joel Johnston were at the top of their game in showcasing this great private, member-owned equity golf club. With two strong storms halting play for a total of six hours this week, and a torrential storm passing through the northwest London course last Thursday, the club did remarkably well in showcasing its golf to a Canadian audience.

Following today’s round, Ontario Golf Superintendents Association (OSGA) vice-president Kevin Collier, golf superintendent at RiverBend Golf Community in London, presented Johnston with a plaque for his team’s hard work during this championship tournament.

Ed. Note: Watch for more stories and photos here and at our social media platforms (links at bottom right of this page) on Friday.

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Jeffrey Reed has covered Golf Ontario championships for 45 years. A three-time author and eight-time award winner for sports journalism in Canada and the U.S., Reed is publisher and editor of LondonOntarioGolf.com, the Voice of Golf in Southwestern Ontario. Reach him at jeff@londonontariogolf.com.