Cory Renfrew was on the unlucky side of the draw in Round 1 of the Bayview Place Cardtronics Open presented by the sa国际传媒 on Thursday.
Starting in the afternoon wave, the 31-year-old Cordova Bay teaching pro began his round with birdies on his second, third, fourth and fifth holes in the rain on the back nine, but his 4-under opening was sideswiped by brutal windy conditions that blew in rather quickly with 12 holes to go.
He finished with an impressive 1-under 69 considering the mayhem the weather created for the afternoon players.
鈥淚 thought it was going to be the lucky side after the rain came early and hearing it was going to clear. I played well in the rain. There was no wind so a little drizzle was fine,鈥� he said of his start. 鈥淚 hung in there pretty good and I鈥檓 looking forward to [Friday].
鈥淟ooking back, it would have been nicer if it just drizzled all day with no wind, but it is what it is,鈥� added Renfrew, who has resigned himself to playing just two events on Mackenzie Tour-PGA Tour sa国际传媒, here and next week in Kelowna, despite having full playing privileges.
鈥淚鈥檓 a teaching pro now,鈥� he said of life鈥檚 circumstances.
But what if the five-year tour veteran comes up with a win in either week?
鈥淚鈥檓 happy doing what I鈥檓 doing so it would be a bonus if I win,鈥� he added.
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鈥� THE TEEN BEAT: Sixteen-year-old Royal Colwood junior Nolan Thoroughgood continues to write an impressive story.
Playing in his first pro event, as an amateur, Thoroughgood made the turn in 1-over, but finished the round at 4-over 74 as he ran into a stretch of three bogeys over four holes. Still, it was a solid outing considering the nerves and the competition.
鈥淥bviously, I have high expectations of myself. I have, what I think, is a good game that can compete out here,鈥� he said after his round. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 play the greatest, but I learned a lot. I made some mental errors, some physical errors, but [today] I think I can be a little less tentative and shoot a good score.鈥�
Thoroughgood 鈥� a Grade 11 student at Royal Bay Secondary, who is looking for a scholarship and has visited Oregon State and Utah 鈥� won the sa国际传媒 Men鈥檚 Amateur last year as a 15-year-old, the youngest ever to claim the provincial crown.
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鈥� LOCAL SCORES: Most other locals struggled on Day 1.
Uplands club champion Brian Sluggett was 72, while course assistant pro Ben Griffin shot 74. Steven Lecuyer of Bear Mountain also signed for a 72. Comox鈥檚 Riley Wheeldon came in at 74, along with Gorge Vale assistant Isaac Weintraub, and Royal Colwood鈥檚 Keaton Gudz shot 80.
Kimberley鈥檚 Jared du Toit was 3-under 67 in his first round as a professional 鈥� after opening with a bogey on No. 1 鈥� and two-time world long drive champ Jamie Sadlowski shot 8-over 78, also bogeying his first hole (No. 10) and did not have a birdie all day.
