Gavelin wins thrilling junior tour final

OAK LAKE — Two Saskatchewan kids showed up for the Westman Junior Golf Tour final and took turns making Oak Island Resort their dartboard on Tuesday.

One hole after the next, Ryker Gavelin and Brock Dorrance stuffed approach shots that PGA Tour stars would be more than happy with.

Gavelin took control towards the end and could have ended it on the 15th hole, but Dorrance pushed him to the last one before falling 2 down in the 18-and-under championship match.

“It was good. Kinda made it closer than I wanted to, but it was good,” Gavelin said.

“When I started getting up there, I thought it was going to be safe, but then I started doing not too well, and I was 1 up going into 18, so it gave me a little room.”

Incredibly, Gavelin is in just his third season on the links but says it’s pretty much all he does in those few months he’s not in a hockey rink. He started playing golf tournaments last year but showed the poise of a seasoned veteran on Tuesday.

After taking an early 1-up lead, he hooked his tee shot on the par-4 seventh into the left trees and had to punch out. Unphased, the 15-year-old stuffed his third shot from 80 yards out to a foot and saved par, then hit another beauty on the long par-3 eighth to win the hole.

“I just put a six-iron up there and tried to get it close to the green,” said Gavelin, who did more than that, leaving his approach eight feet away.

“It’s good when you do that. It gives you momentum.”

That momentum was short-lived, however, as Dorrance hit a wedge shot to three feet on the ninth hole to claw back within one.

Gavelin pulled ahead 3 up through 12, then nearly put it away when Dorrance found trouble off the tee on the 15th hole. Dorrance hit his fourth shot to four feet, then Gavelin did the same with his third. However, his birdie putt to ice it slid by.

One hole later, Gavelin chipped to gimme range and forced Dorrance to hole a nearly impossible 50-footer to extend the match.

He did just that.

“That made me pretty mad about that one, kind of swung the momentum there when he got that hole,” Gavelin said.

The leader lost a ball on the following hole, sending it to the 18th. But he stayed calm and hit three solid shots before lagging his birdie putt and tapping in for the title-sealing par.

EAST, PERNAROWSKI HANDILY WIN DIVISIONS

Terran East was able to enjoy a victory lap on Tuesday, with the 14U division essentially locked up before the day began.

He carded a 6-over 78 and walked away with a brand new golf bag, thanks to WJGT sponsors.

“Definitely had to play consistent, which was some sort of a struggle but got it done,” said the Carlyle, Sask., native.

The 14-year-old feels his game has improved a fair bit this year, but he admitted he’s been struggling with hooking the ball. Fortunately for the right-handed player, Oak Island favours a right-to-left ball on most holes and made for a fun walk in the park.

East plays a lot of his competitive golf on the Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour in Saskatchewan but has enjoyed the laid-back Westman events.

“Just simple Tuesdays out here, meet new people,” East said, adding he’s excited to join the 18U division next year.

“We’ll see what we can do, going to have some good competition.”

In the 12U division, Landon Pernarowski of Dauphin locked up first place with a solid 5-over 77 at Neepawa Golf and Country Club last week.