News Release
MARC BOURGEOIS WINS NB AMATEUR TITLE
July 17, 2006
Fox Creek golfer finishes the 72-hole competition at 14-under
NB Telegraph-Journal | Sports - As published on page B6 on July 17, 2006
By Gerry McLaughlin
Times & Transcript
At 20, he already has an impressive golf resume. On Sunday, it got even better.
Marc Bourgeois, who in three seasons at Kent State University was an All-Rookie, a two-time conference All-Star and an All-Academic, too, put his A game on display for all of New Brunswick to see.
It was certainly impressive.
The Dieppe native capped the 72-hole BMO Harris Private Banking New Brunswick men's amateur golf championship at the Mactaquac Provincial Park Golf Course on Sunday with a final round score of 2-over-par 74.
It was his only over-par score of the championship but Bourgeois' margin of victory was still 11 shots over his nearest opponent, Greg Breen of the Hampton Golf Club.
A former three-time New Brunswick junior champion, Bourgeois claimed his first amateur title with sizzling scores of 66-68-66-74 over the par 72 challenge. After finishing as runner-up the past two amateurs, he left no doubt that it was his time, leading wire-to-wire.
"I don't know. . for some reason I just didn't have it today," said Bourgeois of his final round score in hot and humid conditions.
"I know I had a big lead but I wasn't thinking about that or anything. I was trying to make a real strong run but I just couldn't do it today."
In the final round he went out in 3-over-par 39 and came home in 1-under-par 35.
However, over 72 holes, his statistics were mind-boggling.
He had two eagles and 21 birdies, six more than his nearest opponent.
He played the par-3 holes in even par and was seven-under-par on the both the par four and par five challenges.
In 72 holes, his all-round scorecard showed 62 pars of better.
For sure, Bourgeois was still feeling good about his accomplishment.
"Winning was my goal at the start of the week and the first three rounds I played really well. It's about winning and I won," he said.
The runner-up at the 2004 Canadian men's amateur at Montreal, Bourgeois felt his game this week was similar to that event.
"That was the best I've ever played in a tournament and I felt like that this week," he said. "That was stroke and match-play combined but I probably would have been close to 14-under-par for the week. I was just feeling the game and the course really well."
Bourgeois said low scores and hot streaks always comes down to putting.
"I putted really well for the first three rounds," he said. "I had a great feel on the greens and that's the key to low scoring for sure. I pretty much made all my putts inside six, seven feet and then made a few 20-footers and a couple of 30-footers, too."
While Bourgeois was 14-under-par 274 for the championship, Breen was second at 3-under-par 285 on scores of 68-73-75-69.
Bob Brown of the Fredericton Golf and Curling Club was third at even-par 288 (71-71-68-78) and Adam Chamberlain of the Gowan Brae Golf Club in Bathurst and Bill Seagris of Seaforth, Ont., tied for third at 1-over-par 289.
Chamberlain posted games of 70-76-74-69 and Seagris was 69-70-75-75.
Sixth was Greg Jones of the Moncton Country Meadows Golf Club at 3-over-par 291 (73-72-73-73) and Michel Landry of Golf Pokemouche was seventh at 4-over-par 292 (71-73-77-71).
Darren Roach of the Riverside Country Club in Rothesay, last year's N.B. junior champion, and Tony MacKinnon of Fredericton, who last month won the N.B. men's mid-amateur title at Hampton, were tied for eighth at 5-over-par 293.
Roach had games of 72-75-76-70 and MacKinnon was 70-72-77-74.
The New Brunswick team that will represent the province at the Canadian Willingdon Cup Interprovincial championship at Mississauga, Ont., Aug. 11-18 will include Bourgeois, Breen, Brown and Chamberlain.
Seagris was not eligible to play for a team spot because he's not a resident of the province.
Bourgeois now begins a steady pace of tournament play. He's off to New Hampshire to play in a United States men's amateur qualifying tournament on July 27 and then he'll compete in the Barrett Amateur at the Fairmont Algonquin Golf Club in St. Andrew's.