PGA TOUR Canada – Goodwin heats up to take GolfBC lead

KELOWNA, British Columbia — Noah Goodwin is at it again. Although he didn’t lead the GolfBC Championship after one round of play, the wire-to-wire winner of the Sotheby’s International Realty Canada Ontario Open in July took control Friday.

Goodwin fired a 10-under 61 and improved to 14-under after 36 holes of the final full-field PGA TOUR Canada event of the season. He holds a one-stroke advantage over Monday qualifier Cole Madey and James Hervol. Jake Scott, Scott Stevens, Luke Schniederjans and Dalton Ward are tied for fourth, at 11-under.

“It was a great day,” Goodwin said. “I was hitting good golf shots all day.”

Things went exceedingly well for the 22-year-old Texan, who finished No. 12 on the 2022 PGA TOUR University rankings. He scored consecutive eagles, on No. 11 and No. 12 in a round that also featured six birdies.

Along the way, Goodwin acknowledged he was rolling his putts and hitting the ball well. The goal was simply to keep giving himself good looks. Things really came together when he recorded those back-to-back eagles. The first one, explained the former Southern Methodist University star, came after getting the exact shot he wanted. The ball took an aggressive bounce left and rolled into the cup.

“So, that was fantastic,” Goodwin said. “I couldn’t ask for anything more on that.”

Even so, there was more to come on the next hole. Goodwin noted that he got a “really fortunate bounce.” His ball skipped off a bunker and left him with a seven-foot putt. He made it and then birdied No. 13.

“At that point I was just like, Well, we might as well just keep going for it and just try and shoot 59,” Goodwin said. “I just kept giving myself looks.”

However, his final birdie came on the 15th hole. He fretted that lost opportunities on No. 16 and No. 17 will haunt him a little. He left both putts about two inches short.

Despite the shortcomings, Goodwin admitted days like he had don’t happen often.

“I’m still waiting to wake up right now,” he said. “It was just one of those rounds of golf where everything was perfect.”

And yes, Goodwin continued, he’s getting the same vibes he had during his first victory on earlier this season in Canada.

Another win would put him in good position to make a run at the Fortinet Cup points title. The season-long competition is tightly contested since no one has prevailed in two tournaments, and Goodwin is currently projected to move from 11th to third with a victory. Still, 36 holes remain.

The Fortinet Cup winner receives $25,000, Korn Ferry Tour membership in 2023 and a spot in the PGA TOUR’s RBC Canadian Tour. Like other contenders, Goodwin has his eyes on the prize.

“I’m not going to lie to you. It’s always going to be in my mind,” Goodwin said. “It is what it is, right? It’s what we’re going for. But at the end of the day, I know that I have a bunch of really good golfers that are a few shots behind me.”

Goodwin added that every single player is capable of what he did in the second round. So, his thoughts of winning aren’t in the forefront.

“It’s still just pedal down and try to make as many birdies as I can and just bring this thing home,” Goodwin said. “I will figure it out after Sunday.”

Scott Stevens, who won the Royal Beach Victoria Open presented by Times Colonist in June, is also in the hunt. He’s 11-under, three shots back of Goodwin after shooting a 65 in the second round.

Stevens is determined to just keep doing what he’s doing and “see what happens in the end.”

For obvious reasons, there’s a whole lot of jockeying for position.

“I’ve been playing really well lately,” Stevens said. “It’s impossible not to think about trying to be No. 1 or trying to stay in the top five.” 

Did you know tournament leader Noah Goodwin is a two-time AJGA Rolex Junior Player of the Year (2016, 2017)? He joined a select company in repeating as the award winner. Tracy Phillips (1979-80), Phil Mickelson (1986-88), Tiger Woods (1991-92) and Brian Harman (2003-04) were the others.

Key Information

How the Canadians fared

Jimmy Jones (Lake Cowichan, British Columbia) and Monday qualifier Max Sekulic (Rycroft, Alberta) lead the 12 Canadians still in the tournament after the 36-hole cut. Jones and Sekulic are both tied for eighth, at 10-under. Overall Fortinet Cup points leader Wil Bateman (Edmonton, Alberta) is in a group tied for 14th. 

Fortinet Cup Standings

(Through the CRMC Championship presented by Gertens)

The cut was at 4-under with 67 golfers advancing to Saturday and Sunday. Among those not making it was Ian Holt (even-par), who was sixth in the Fortinet Cup standings and will not get any points this week. Holt had a 73 Friday and fell 51 leaderboard positions.

 Aaron Beverly (even) had a hole-in-one on No. 8 (8-iron, 187 yards). It was the ninth PGA TOUR Canada ace this season. Beverly joins eight golfers in the accomplishment: Josh Hart, John Duthie, Noah Woolsey, J.T. Griffin, Charles Wang, Luke Schniederjans, Jake Knapp and Ryan Gerard. Unfortunately, Beverly shot a 74 on Friday. He dropped 66 positions and missed the cut.

While there’s a lot of talk about shooting a 59, with Noah Goodwin’s superb round, Dalton Ward has walked the walk. He accomplished the feat last year on the Forme Tour, the U.S.-based, pandemic-caused circuit designed for PGA TOUR Canada players He shot a 59 in the final round of the Fuzzy Zoeller Classic in Sellersburg, Indiana. Ward also fired a 61 in the second round of the GolfBC Championship on Friday and was the top climber—moving up 61 positions and into contention, into a tie for fourth.

There must be something about British Columbia for Scott Stevens. He’s among the leaders this week in Kelowna after finishing first in the season-opening Royal Beach Victoria Open presented by Times Colonist “There might be some good vibes in B.C.,” said Stevens, who is being cheered on this week by the family that hosted him in Victoria.

Cole Madey (13-under) and Max Sekulic (10-under) are the only Monday qualifiers to make the cut. Both are in championship contention heading into the weekend. To date, only 20 of 68 qualifiers (29.4 percent) have advanced to the third round.

After missing the cut in his first six starts of the season, American Jake Vincent has now made it to the weekend three consecutive times—this week on the number. Vincent fired a pair of 69s to open the GolfBC Championship, and he’s 4-under entering the weekend. In his first made cut, in Winnipeg, he tied for 44th. He tied for 37th last week in Minnesota. He has a streak of six consecutive sub-70 rounds.

Here are the five players inside the top 60 in the Fortinet Cup standings and five currently on the outside looking in and how they performed through 36 holes. Of this group, only Germany’s Alexander Herrmann and American Jackson Suber made the cut this week.

Overheard at the 19th Hole…

“The vibes here are immaculate. I love the views. I love the nature. We got to see some deer on the golf course today. Everything is keeping me calm. It’s keeping me relaxed. You can’t get upset looking at these views on the golf course all day.” — Noah Goodwin

“It’s been pretty stress-free. I’ve just given myself a ton of birdie looks. Some are falling, some are not.” — Scott Stevens 

“I just tried to do the same thing. Stay in the same mindset. Continue to pick smart targets and make relaxed swings; not put any added pressure on myself and just let the results happen.” — James Hervol 

“Keep trying to make birdies. Just keep hitting fairways and try to make birdies.” — Dalton Ward on his weekend plans

Second-Round Weather: Sunny and hot. High of 33. Wind SSW at 6-9 kph.