Hudson Tyson Tour’s Newest Star

Reed On The Greens August 19, 2024
by Jeffrey Reed, Editor, LondonOntarioGolf.com
Photos: Jeffrey Reed/LondonOntarioGolf.com

When the COVID-19 pandemic shut down much of our normality in spring 2020, the game of golf benefited like never before. The sport’s participation rate grew at an unprecedented rate as it led the way for society to again allow interaction with others. Already, Southwestern Ontario, per capita, had boasted the most golf courses in the world. Now, a whole new portion of society was hooked on the game of a lifetime.

Golf industry members knew that there would be some good news stories to emerge from the pandemic-driven growth. Already, we see that in the Junior Tyson Tour’s Ben Hudson, who today at Fanshawe Golf Club captured the Les Thomas Memorial Tournament.

Fanshawe GC head golf pro Rob Vincent with Les Thomas tourney winner Ben Hudson

A tournament-within-a-Tour, the Les Thomas tourney was first staged in 1981, and was named in honour of the former Golf Ontario director and commissioner of London’s Public Utilities Commission who died that year. Like this scribe, Thomas was a big backer of junior golf in London and area. Today, the two-day tournament is a stroke-play event, with the City of London municipal golf system’s Thames Valley Golf Club hosting Day 1 of the event, and Fanshawe GC hosting the second and final round. A Girls, Bantam Boys, Juvenile Boys and Junior Boys champion were crowned today, with the golfer boasting the lowest two-day total – Hudson – named the Les Thomas Tournament champion.

As a golfer, Hudson, 17, of Ailsa Craig was born out of the pandemic – an all-around athlete, Hudson’s hockey was put on the shelf along with most other sports, so in spring 2020 he turned to golf. Already, he’s an ace on the links and creating quite a buzz amongst the local golf community.

Today, playing at 5,747 yards, Hudson posted a terrific round of 5-under-par 65 on a windy, cool day at the heavily-treed Fanshawe Traditional course. Combined with his July 29 T2 finish at Thames Valley GC where he shot a 4-over 74, Hudson emerged the winner of the Les Thomas event.

In fact, as a City of London municipal golf system member, Hudson is very familiar with the Thames Valley and Fanshawe layouts – his home courses and golf designs for which he has great admiration.

“The way they are designed, they play very difficult. They’re public courses which are tougher than most people think. They’re older courses with difficult treelines and tough bunkers. So when I play at golf courses that are more ‘prestigious,’ I am ready to compete,” said Hudson.

Entering Grade 12 at Strathroy District Collegiate Institute, Hudson has played competitive hockey, baseball, lacrosse, soccer and now golf. No surprise, he comes from an athletic family. His father, Jeremy Hudson, was a standout middle infielder – and my teammate – with the London Majors of the Intercounty Baseball League, and enjoyed a cup of coffee as a professional ballplayer with the London Monarchs and Montreal Royales of the short-lived Canadian Baseball League.

“For sure, my dad has been a major influence on me,” Hudson said. “With his baseball background, and how he pursued it as his passion, that has affected me. He has given me tips – the biggest one being that work ethic is everything, and work ethic will beat talent when talent isn’t working.

Ben Hudson during Les Thomas tourney Round 1 at Thames Valley GC

“I love golf,” Hudson explained, “because it is totally individual. My score is a complete representation of my work. I know there are no other factors other than how I am playing. I’ve done well so quickly because of my work ethic. I know that if I want to get to a specific level, I have to put in more work than anyone else. I’ve done that now for more than three straight years – at the range every day, play a round a day when I can. It’s all about work ethic.”

Add a lot of talent to that mix, too. Like his father, Ben is one of the most liked and respected – and hardest-working – athletes amongst his peers. On the Tyson Tour – and beyond, thanks to chatter at local golf courses – he has become a local star at lightning speed. But he remains humble, if not focused, while outlining his success path.

“I would love to become a golf pro. Aim high, right? Set the highest goal. That’s what I do. And work harder than anyone else.”

While finding it in the dirt, Hudson is working with instructor Mitch Sutton, another local golfer who turned a lot of heads as a junior golfer when he captured back-to-back Canadian Junior Golf championships in 2008 and ’09.

When 2003 Masters Tournament and this year’s Presidents Cup International Team captain Mike Weir captured the Les Thomas event – match play – in 1986 and ’87, he carried much of the same clout as Hudson. Not to make an unfair comparison beyond that similarity, but Weir’s work ethic, too, was at another level than the rest of the field.

Weir, who still follows the Tyson Tour, told this scribe he’s “glad it’s still continuing and going strong. It was a great tour when I played, and from what (my junior coach and former Tyson Tour convenor) Steve Bennett has told me, it’s still a great tour. I have many great memories playing as a junior on the Tyson Tour.”

Practice makes perfect: pre-round action today at Fanshawe GC

“I think it’s awesome having my name beside Weir’s on the Les Thomas trophy and plaque. It really is an honour. He has done so many great things in the game of golf, so knowing my name will be right beside his, on the same trophy, is something that will be memorable for the rest of my life,” said Hudson, who also applauds the new life inserted into the Tyson Tour this year.

“I like to say, the Tyson Tour is a great community. There are improvements this year. Scores have dropped, and I think players overall are better. It’s a great tour. And as it continues to grow once again, people will continue to return and more players will register.”

Unfortunately, Hudson – who also won the Highland Country Club event amongst his three tourneys this season – won’t be in the field at Wednesday’s Sunningdale Golf and Country Club Tour Invitation. Golfers must play in a minimum four tournaments. Visit the juniortysontour.com website for Wednesday’s field.

Approach shot today at No. 10 fairway

Today’s winners also included Juvenile Boys victor Andrew Sudicky, who has won all four of the tournaments he has entered this year including the Highland CC, West Haven Golf & Country and FireRock Golf Club stops. Cole Grant captured the Bantam Boys crown today – he also won at Highland, and at Sarnia Golf and Curling Club, plus has two runner-up finishes. And in the Girls division, 10-year-old Avyanna Lai of St. Thomas G&CC captured her fifth tournament of the season.

Hats off to long-time Fanshawe GC head golf professional Rob Vincent for hosting a highly-successful event today, and to Tyson Tour committee members Scott Loosely, Rob Mason and Rick Pero for continuing a great Canadian golf tradition – the 1968 est. Junior Tyson Tour, Canada’s oldest junior golf loop.

Sunningdale will again prove to be a tough test of golf for Wednesday’s field. Can’t wait to help celebrate the very best of local junior golf.

Visit LondonOntarioGolf.com and our social media platforms for more photos from today’s round at Fanshawe GC, and from Wednesday’s championship round at Sunningdale G&CC.

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Award-winning writer and broadcaster Jeffrey Reed has covered the Southwestern Ontario golf scene since 1980. He’s the author of the 2018-published book, The Canadian Seniors’ Golf Association, Celebrating 100 Years of Seniors Golf 1918-2018. Reach him at jeff@londonontariogolf.com.