Vancouver, B.C., August 18th, 2012
VANCOUVER GOLF TOUR ANNOUNCES MARQUEE PLAYERS TO PLAY ’12 VANCOUVER OPEN
With it 2 weeks to the day where the winner’s name will being etched on the ‘12 Paine Edmonds Vancouver Open trophy, VGT is excited to confirm three Marquee Canadian Golfers in this year’s VANCOUVER OPEN event.
Two names you are most likely familiar with are JAMES LEPP and EUGENE WONG. Both players have had phenomenal Amateur golf careers, Lepp winning 7 College tournaments including the NCAA Individual Championships in 2005 and Wong recently being crowned Pac 12 Player of the Year.
Lepp went on to win two Canadian Tour events, (one as an amateur and once as a Pro), before effectively retiring from the game in 2010 to start up his shoe company KIKKOR GOLF. He recently competed in the GOLF CHANNEL’S BIG BREAK CONTEST, which will air this fall. His lips are sealed on his performance on the show, but he does claim to be a lot more excited about the game, and has thoughts of stepping back into the competitive arena this fall at the PGA Tour Q-School. “I’m definitely having more fun with the game and it was a great experience to be on the Big Break Show” said Lepp. “I haven’t formally registered for the Q-School, but it is definitely on my mind, and the Vancouver Open will be a great opportunity for me to sharpen up the game in the process”.
The Van Open will serve as Lepp’s first multiple day Professional event for quite a while, although he did recently win Ray Stewart’s Charity Pro-am shooting 63, and then following up with another 61 at Ledgeview just a couple of week’s ago.
Lepp is certainly primed to play, as well as give back to the game……as he has agreed to play in the Charity Pro-am (Wed, Aug.29th at Fraserview) and offer amateur golfers a chance to play with him with all proceeds going to the First Tee Program Charity. Interested parties are to connect with Lepp on Twitter @jameslepp or you can contact him directly at http://kikkor.com. The winning bidders will also take home a pair of KIKKOR SHOES as a bonus gift!
The 21 year old Wong, on the other hand is fresh out of his final year at University of Oregon, where he was voted First Team All American for the 2nd time. Along with being a past BC Junior and BC Amateur Champion, Wong has a long list of Amateur credits, including a runner-up finish in the 2010 Canadian Amateur Championship and being honored with the 2010 Jack Nicklaus Player of the Year award for his exceptional play, earning him a spot to play in the ’11 Memorial Tournament on the PGA Tour.
Wong has recently signed on with the power-house agent IMG and made his Pro debut at the Canadian Tour’s Players’ Cup event in Winnipeg, where he finished in a respectable t27th. He has been given an exemption to the Canadian Tour Championship this week before heading back to compete in his first ever VANCOUVER OPEN. A resident of North Vancouver, this ‘rookie on tour’ will be a fan favorite for sure!
Another recent addition to the Vancouver Open field is 18 year old Junior star Adam Svensson, who capped off his 2nd Canadian Junior Title earlier this month. Svensson stood tall against the top Western Canadian pros in last year’s Vancouver Open, finishing 6th place overall and winning the Overall Amateur Trophy by six shots. His outstanding play this year puts him on the radar as one of the feature players to contend for the coveted ’12 VANCOUVER OPEN trophy!
Lepp, Wong and Svensson will join a field of 230 Professional and Amateur golfers competing on Vancouver Parks Golf’s 3 premier City courses – McCleery, Langara & Fraserview. Many of the Canadian Tour’s top Pros residing in BC will be featured in the event, including Cory Renfrew (recent Canadian Tour winner in his rookie year), Nick Taylor, Ryan Williams and James Allenby, all with a number of top 10’s this year! They will be joined by some of the top PGA of BC Pros in the field, including 4-time VGT order of merit winner Bryn Parry (’11 & ’12 Canada Cup Winner), Phil Jonas (t55th in British Senior Open) and Brad Clapp (winner of PGA of BC and BC Assistant’s Championships and Runner-up to Adam Hadwin in ’11 Van Open).
Professionals and Championship Amateurs will commence play at McCleery Golf Course on Friday, Aug.31st while Flight A and B Amateurs will start their bid to win their Divisional Championships at Langara Golf Course. Players will switch courses on Saturday, Sept.1st, and the top players from each flight will make the cut to play the final round at Fraserview Golf Course on Sunday, Sept.2nd. Leaders will be expected to tee-off at approximately 1pm.
We still need volunteers to help us execute this year’s event!!! To be a part of our volunteer team and help stage Vancouver’s Premier Annual event, please CLICK HERE!
Tickets for this great event are on sale at here with part proceeds from ticket sales going to support the First Tee Program of Greater Vancouver.
For player profiles of some of our feature players: CLICK HERE
FOR SPECTATOR TICKETS: CLICK HERE
General Admission : $10/day or $20/weekly pass
TO REGISTER FOR 54-HOLE VAN OPEN: CLICK HERE
TO REGISTER FOR AUG.29TH CHARITY PRO-AM: CLICK HERE
We have four flights in the event, so there is room for all Amateurs up to 18.0 handicap factor to enter and play the same rotation and measure yourself up against Canada’s Top Pros!!
Listen to Team 1040 and Team 1410 Radio as we are starting to blast out some great promotional ads for the VAN OPEN!! Last year’s final round ended in a dramatic playoff with WEB.COM’S Adam Hadwin and BC’s Hottest Pro Brad Clapp. Who will duel down the 18th fairway this year??? Come out and watch and help us support a great charity in the FIRST TEE PROGRAM of Greater Vancouver!
Regards,
Fraser Mulholland
Commissioner
Vancouver Golf Tour