From deep in the South Pacific to southern Ontario via Uplands. With a big cheque in hand.
Frenchman Paul Barjon won the 37th Bayview Place DCBank Open presented by the Times Colonist, plus the $36,000 winner’s purse and berth into the PGA Tour Canadian Open this week in Hamilton, which came with the title.
“It’s great to get an opportunity to play on the PGA Tour against the best players in the world and I am looking forward to it,” he said.
Barjon was raised playing on the public course in the far-flung French-administered protectorate of New Caledonia, which is about 1,200 kilometres off Australia, and a moonshot away from France.
He shot a final-round 65 on Sunday to finish with a four-round total of 19-under 261 at Uplands to best American Doc Redman by one stroke in the Mackenzie Tour-PGA Tour Canada event.
Redman, out of NCAA Clemson, played in the 2018 Masters thanks to his 2017 U.S. Amateur title. The native of Raleigh, North Carolina, led or shared the lead through the first three rounds but shot a 68 Sunday to finish at 18-under 262.
“It feels good but I’m still in shock,” said Barjon.
“It was a great match with Doc. I had a great eagle on the 12th hole and that put me in front.”
The two leaders were followed by a large gallery all day at Uplands.
“The crowd was pretty intense,” said the 26-year-old Barjon.
“Walking down the fairway gave me a taste of the PGA Tour.”
That is something Barjon will experience this week at Hamilton in the 2019 Canadian Open.
It’s all part of the trajectory.
“No hard feelings, but I won’t be back here any time soon,” he quipped, despite expressing love for the Victoria tournament.
Moving on is the whole idea in the pro golf ladder. The Mackenzie Tour-PGA Tour Canada leads to the Web.com Tour, which in turn leads to the PGA Tour.
The Order of Merit season champion on the Mackenzie Tour will gain a 2020 season exemption on Web.com Tour, which is one step from the PGA Tour. The next four in the overall standings will earn conditional status on the Web.com Tour, while sixth through 10th will gain exemptions to the final round of the Web.com qualifying school and 11th through 25th a bye into the second round of the Web.com Q-School.
Barjon now leads the Order of Merit race with $43,200 in winnings after two events.
Since 2013, when the Canadian Tour became the Mackenzie Tour-PGA Tour Canada, numerous players from the Victoria tournament have gone on to the PGA Tour, including seven PGA Tour tournament winners in Tony Finau, Mackenzie Hughes, Nick Taylor, Aaron Wise, Adam Long, Corey Conners and C.T. Pan.
Barjon and Redman hope to one day join that group.
They went at each other like two heavyweight boxers Sunday, exchanging metaphorical blows all over the course.
“Paul played great … with no bogeys on the day,” said Redman.
So instead of cruising into the opening round of the Canadian Open on Thursday, Redman suddenly had to ready himself to catch a red-eye flight in order to try to Monday qualify in Hamilton.
Top Canadian at Uplands was Taylor Pendrith of Richmond Hill, Ont., at 10-under 270 for a three-way 10th place tie.
“Victoria is one of my favourite spots in Canada and I love playing here,” said Pendrith.
Like many in the Bayview Place tournament, Pendrith said he also will be catching a red-eye into Toronto and then driving down to Hamilton for Monday qualifying in the hopes of getting into the Canadian Open, which no Canadian has won since Pat Fletcher of Victoria in 1954.
Jimmy Jones, son of the late Canadian women’s golf ground-breaker and LPGA player Dawn-Coe Jones of Lake Cowichan, was popularly followed by galleries all week and finished tied for 33rd at 3-under 277.
Two golfers who qualified out of the Island Bayview Place Performance Tour made the cut with Evan Holmes finishing 5-under 275 for a 23rd-place tie and 59-year-old European, Asian, PGA and Champions tour veteran Jim Rutledge at 1-under 279 for a 46th-place tie.
“I didn’t hit my targets today,” said Rutledge, of his final-round 73, on his home course.
“But this is the event of the year for these kids [on the Mackenzie Tour-PGA Tour Canada] and overall one of their favourite weeks. I hope they keep this tournament going.”
Ken and Patricia Mariash of Bayview Place, the main sponsors of the tournament, were unable to attend Sunday but released a statement that read in part: “We believe in and love this tournament and the community.”
Meanwhile, $194,000 was raised for youth mental health during the week by the Children’s Health Foundation of Vancouver Island, which is the official charity of the tournament
