Despite Missing Another Cut,
Weir Vows ‘He’ll Be Back’
ANCASTER, ONTARIO | Local favourite
Mike Weir missed the cut at the RBC
Canadian Open, extending his stretch
of futility on the PGA Tour to 11 starts.
The eight-time Tour winner, coming off
elbow surgery in 2011, hasn’t reached
weekend play in North America this
year. He failed to reach the weekend at
Mike Weir
Hamilton Friday by five shots and came
off the course seemingly bewildered.
“I need a little time to think about
it and see what I can draw on,” the
42-year-old from Sarnia, Ont., said.
He admitted before the tournament
began that he had low expectations but
he insisted he is working hard with new
swing instructor Grant Waite and expects
to start seeing results on the course.
“I believe in myself, bottom line,” said
Weir, who will try to break the string
of missed cuts this week at the Reno-Tahoe Open. “So, I believe I’ll be back.”
David Duval honored the Colorado
shooting victims and their grieving
families by wearing an Aurora Police
hat while playing at the Canadian Open.
A gunman opened fire in an Aurora,
Colo., movie theatre on July 20, killing
12. Aurora is a suburb of Denver, where
Duval has a residence.
Hunter Mahan’s Canadianization
continues. The California-born world
No. 13 has started using a sports drink
and other products made by Toronto-based BioSteel Sports Supplement. The
drink was formulated by Matt Nichol, a
former strength coach with the Toronto
www.globalgolfpost.com
JULY 30, 2012
Els: Late Arrival, Early Exit
ANCASTER, ONTARIO | Ernie Els can
perhaps be forgiven for missing the cut
at the RBC Canadian Open. Still basking in his surprising Open Championship victory on July 22, the Big Easy
arrived late in Canada and barely saw
Hamilton Golf and Country Club before
teeing it up in the first round Thursday.
His 36-hole total of 2-over-par 142
left him three shots above the cut line.
Els had planned to fly to Canada
from England immediately after the
Open, but he changed his plans once
he won, opting instead to stay behind
and celebrate with his family and
friends, including fellow South African Tour player Thomas Aiken.
He said in his victory speech that he
was “going to blow that thing off,” an
apparent snub to the Canadian Open
that sent tournament organizers into a
scramble to get his plans clarified. But
Els soon after said he was joking and
would honor his commitment to play in
Canada’s national championship.
“I should choose my words more
carefully next time,” he said with a
smile after arriving in Canada. “But I
was always coming.”
He spent last Monday in London
with his family, sleeping in late and
then hanging out with his two chil-
dren and wife, Liezl, before heading
to Canada early Tuesday.
Ernie Els
Maple Leafs, and is also the training
liquid of choice for such NHL stars as
Carey Price and Tyler Seguin and some
of Canada’s Olympians in London.
The BioSteel connection deep-
ens Mahan’s link to Canada. Mahan,
who tied for 48th after a closing 66 at
Hamilton, has a swing instructor (Sean
Foley), therapist and trainer (Craig Da-
vies), mental coach (Jim Murphy) and
two sponsors (Sun Life Financial and
Royal Bank of Canada) all from Canada.
After a blisteringly hot start to the
summer in central Canada, rain finally
came last week – much to the RBC
Canadian Open’s dismay. Heavy rain
before and during the first round soft-
ened the 6,966-yard Hamilton Golf and
Country Club, leaving it defenceless
against PGA Tour players.
