Craig Marseilles Leads Heading into the Final Round at the BreconRidge Canadian PGA Seniors’ Champio

Craig Marseilles Leads Heading into the Final Round at the BreconRidge Canadian PGA Seniors’ Champio

Click here for Second Round Results for the BreconRidge Canadian PGA Seniors' Championship

Click here for Final Round Results for Super Seniors

Click here for Final Round Results for Diamond

Click here for Final Round Tee Times

Click here for Second Round Scoring Average

- Yvan Beauchemin and Dave Bell round out final pairing -

KANATA, ON (July 4, 2008) - Champions Tour member Craig Marseilles of Maple, ON took advantage of a very vulnerable Marshes Golf Club in Kanata, ON, firing a five-under par 67 in round two at the BreconRidge Canadian PGA Seniors’ Championship to vault into the top spot on the leaderboard. After a rain delayed first round, the skies opened up in the Nation’s Capital in round two as the combination of sunny skies and a cool breeze helped to dry out the golf course.

Marseilles will have some experienced company joining him in the final group with Yvan Beauchemin of Louiseville, QC and Dave Bell of Windsor, ON rounding out tomorrow’s featured pairing. Beauchemin is no stranger to Canadian PGA National Championships having four titles under his belt and Bell is hungry for this title after heading into the final round with a four shot lead in the 2006 Seniors’ Championship before finishing tied for 5th.

Marseilles got off to a scorching start on Friday as he birdied the first two holes out of the gate before recording three more birdies before he even made the turn, finishing with a four-under par 32 on the front nine. He cooled down slightly on the back nine with a bogey on the 11th hole but rebounded with birdies on the par-3 12th and the par-3 15th to secure the lowest round of the tournament so far. Coupled with an opening round of 75, Marseilles now leads the field after two days of competition with a 2-under par total of 142.

“The difference from today verses yesterday was my improved play on the par-3’s and par-5’s here at The Marshes,” said Marseilles, a 2008 Champions Tour member who was excited about his debut in this event.. “I would love to win this event on my home soil. It would really mean a lot to win this Canadian PGA National Championship and it would really help my confidence as I continue to pursue my full playing privileges on the Champions Tour.”

Beauchemin had another low maintenance trip around The Marshes Golf Club as he managed to hit every fairway and fifteen greens in regulation en route to a one-under par 71. He felt like he left some shots out there as he only managed to beat his first round score by one shot while playing in much easier conditions than the day before.

“For the second day in a row I hit my driver and irons very crisp but I had trouble getting the ball close to the hole and find that I am putting much too defensively out here,” said Beauchmin, four-time winner of the Canadian PGA Club Professional Championship. “This really isn’t a match against each other as it is a match against the course. If you hit your ball in the right spots at The Marshes you can make some birdies and I know I need to have my best round of the week tomorrow if I want to win.”

Bell, who narrowly missed qualifying for the US Senior Open last week by a single shot, also got off to a hot start in round two as he birded four out of his first six holes before putting it into cruise control for the back nine en route to a three-under par 69.

“I think I got about as much as I could out of my round today,” commented Bell, a top contender in almost every Ontario PGA Zone tournament he enters. “Two years ago I played far too conservative when I lost my lead but tomorrow I know I have to be aggressive and I hope to get out there and make some birdies right out of the gate again.”

First round co-leader Bob Panasik of Windsor, ON cruised to a seven shot victory over John Irwin of Summerside, PEI in the Super Seniors’ Division (60 years of age +) after shooting a one-over par 73. The 66 year-old Canadian Golf Hall of Famer remains in the hunt for the championship as he sits at a two day total of 145 and will be playing in the penultimate pairing, only three shots behind Marseilles.

Don Renaud of Kanata, ON successfully defended his Diamond Division title (70 years of age +) after shooting a six-over par 78 to finish with a two day total of 154. Renaud, a well known Ottawa area Canadian PGA Professional that served as Head Professional at both Kawartha Golf & Country Club & Cedar Hill Golf Course, won by three shots over Doug Sullivan of Indian Mountain, NB. Sullivan had the lowest round of the day for the Diamond Division in round two after a three-over par 75 but it wasn’t enough to catch Renaud.

“I played really well again today and I had so much confidence with my driver which is important for this course,” said Renaud, who only lives a few minutes away from The Marshes Golf Club. “Superintendant Phil Auger did a fantastic job of getting the course ready for us and I always have a great time seeing my old friends.”

The final pairing of Marseilles, Beauchemin and Bell will tee off at 11:10 am on the first tee at The Marshes Golf Club.

Notes:

- Claude Tremblay of Repentigny, QC finds himself in familiar territory after two rounds having finished tied for 2nd in 2007 and tied for 7th in 2006 in this event.


- Ken Tarling of Sandford, ON shot an even-par 72 after a double bogey on the 18th hole to sit in 6th place with first round co-leader John C. Davis of Waterdown, ON and John Rushnell of Manilla, ON.


- 2006 Champion and local favorite Graham Gunn of Nepean, ON sits in a tie for 11th place after a second round 76.

 
- Defending Champion Dave Barr of Kelowna, BC sits alone in 16th place after a 2nd round score of 74.


- 2004 Champion Adam Brown of Dundas, ON is tied for 17th place with four others after a second round score of 77.


The $55,000 BreconRidge Canadian PGA Seniors’ Championship is contested over three days.. The competition is open to Canadian PGA Professionals 50 and older. The Super Senior (60 and older) and Diamond (70 and older) division is contested over two days of 36 holes.

The Marshes Golf Club is one of the premier golf destinations and leading corporate-play facility in the National Capital Region. The Robert Trent Jones II design opened for public play in 2001 and has garnered many accolades. The 7,027-yard course includes six par 3s, six par 4s and six par 5s.


-30-

For more information contact:

Jeff Dykeman
Manager of Business Development
Canadian PGA
jeff@cpga.com  
647.400.4460


Brad Moyer
Manager of Events and Employment
Canadian PGA
brad@cpga.com  
800.782.5764 (x227)


About BreconRidge:

Headquartered in Ottawa, Canada, BreconRidge is one of the world’s top 50 electronic manufacturing services (“EMS”) companies with facilities located in Canada, the United States and China. Employing state-of-the-art technology and world-class talent, BreconRidge provides customers with a full service operations model. Servicing the needs of both emerging and established original equipment manufacturers in the communications, industrial, military, aerospace and consumer market sectors, BreconRidge delivers: design, process and test engineering services, component sourcing, global procurement, supply chain management, manufacturing, order fulfillment, and distribution services, along with after sales support, including product repair, refurbishment, warranty tracking and complete logistics services. Products manufactured by BreconRidge can be found all over the world. Find us on the web at www.breconridge.com


About the CPGA:


Established in 1911, the Canadian Professional Golfers’ Association is a non-profit association comprised of approximately 3,500 golf professionals across the country with a mandate to promote and advance the game of golf, serving the needs of both its membership and the golf public through professional and junior golf development programs and high-calibre competitive events. The National Office is located in Acton, Ontario with nine Zone Offices across the country. For more information, visit www.cpga.com