Victoriaville, QC – The Sani-Marc/Desjardins Canada Cup presented by City of Victoriaville (CCSM-D) organizing committee has announced an alliance of Canadian professional golf tours that will assist in filling the field for their exclusive event August 12-15, 2021.
The alliance of tours will include the East Coast Pro Tour (ECPT) in Quebec, Vancouver Golf Tour (VGT) in British Columbia and Great Lakes Tour (GLT) in Ontario. The three tours will receive exemptions to be allocated to their tour members via their respective order of merit standings and major events on their schedules.
Each tour will be responsible for providing players from each of the regions they operate.
• (10) Ten Professional Exemptions – Vancouver Golf Tour – B.C./WEST
• (40) Forty Professional Exemptions – Great Lakes Tour – Ontario/CENTRAL • (45) Forty-Five Professional Exemptions – East Coast Pro Tour – Quebec/EAST
With the RBC Canadian Open being cancelled for a second consecutive year along with travel restrictions and current border closure, the importance of providing a major Canadian Championship for professional golfers and elite amateurs in Canada has become very important.
The CCSM-D will feature a $125,000 purse for professionals with a winner’s share of $25,000. In 2020, the CCSM-D was cancelled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, however, the organizing committee is confident that the 2021 edition will be executed as normal with protocols in place.
‘’Having cancelled last year’s event due to the ongoing pandemic we are very excited here in Victoriaville to host this championship once again,’’ Says CCSM-D Organizing Committee President Jerry Seguin. ‘’We are extremely happy to see these very reputable tours working together and their excitement in supporting our event. This alliance of golf tours also assures us the best Canadian representation possible.’’
The East Coast Pro Tour, based in Montreal and established in 2019, will be responsible for producing the top Quebec professionals in the CCSM-D. This will give the local spectators and community a chance to follow their favourite Quebec professionals all season and in August see them up close and cheer them on at Victoriaville GC. The list of top Quebec pros includes the #1 ranked PGA of Canada professional P.A. Bedard, Marc-Etienne Bussieres, Dave Levesque, Max Gilbert and Vaita Guillaume, to name a few.
ECPT Tournament Director Massimo Roch speaks highly of what this means for Canadian professionals, ‘’Aligning Canada’s three professional developmental golf tours will provide aspiring Canadian golfers with a unique opportunity to compete in one of the biggest tournaments of the summer. This ensures a quality and fair representation of the best players the country has to offer. The ECPT is excited to add our top players to the field in what will be a memorable season for elite golf in Quebec.’’
Entering its 15th year, the Vancouver Golf Tour in B.C. (whose Alumni include current PGA TOUR professionals Adam Hadwin, Nick Taylor and Roger Sloan) are thrilled to be a part of such an important event. “This is an amazing opportunity for our VGT players and for our Tour, and a giant step for Canadian Golf with this newly formed three-tour alliance,” stated VGT commissioner, Fraser Mulholland, a PGA of Canada member and former touring professional. “We are extremely grateful of this opportunity to form ties with the Great Lakes Golf Tour and the East Coast Pro Tour to promote a truly world-class event to our players. I look forward to working hand-in-hand with both tours to market the Sani-Marc/Desjardins Canada Cup and the beautiful city of Victoriaville to our West Coast golfers”.
When the CCSM-D was first started in 2010, it was a PGA of Canada only event. This meant that the competitors needed to hold membership with the PGA of Canada in order to have eligibility to participate. Each provincial zone was given exemptions for their members to the CCSM-D. Today, the event is available to unattached touring professionals and PGA of Canada professionals from across the country. These Canadians will be gaining exemptions through the PGA of Canada National Rankings and the qualifying criteria set by each affiliated tour and CCSM-D organizing committee.
‘’The CCSM-D is a National Championship and it continues to bring the very best playing professionals from across Canada to one of the most passionate golf communities we have ever visited,‘’ says GLT President Jim Kenesky. ‘’It is an absolute honour to continue our support of this event and work alongside both Mr. Seguin, Alain Danault and the countless volunteers. Many of our members have experienced the CCSM-D since 2016 and they simply see it as their Major Championship. We cannot wait to get back and help execute this shared vision.’’
The Great Lakes Tour is celebrating 20 years in 2021 and their past members include current PGA TOUR professionals Michael Gligic and David Hearn along with former PGA TOUR professionals David Morland IV, Brad Fritsch, Ben Ferguson and Matt McQuillan. Also, PGA TOUR Champions winner Rod Spittle used the GLT to prepare his game before joining the Senior circuit and ultimately getting a win during his 10+ years on that Tour.
The CCSM-D will once again host a strong contingent of Canadian professionals and elite amateurs August 12-15. Specific qualifying details for members of each tour will be available on their respective websites. Non-Members of the tours and PGA of Canada members will have access to the CCSM-D and these details will be announced and made available before the start of the tournament schedules in Ontario and Quebec.
Exciting details surrounding the CCSM-D will be announced as they happen and for more information on each tour and the three professional tours, please visit the links below.
Victoriaville GC CCSM-D – www.golfvictoriaville.com/coupe-canada-sanimarc
East Coast Pro Tour (ECPT) – www.eastcoastprotour.com
Vancouver Golf Tour (VGT) – www.vancouvergolftour.com
Great Lakes Tour (GLT) – www.greatlakestour.com
