Two local golfers are teeing off in the Sun Life Amateur Ladies’ Championship this week at the Sturgeon Valley Golf and Country Club.
Sandra Fisher and Diana Kastelic will each have the home course advantage at the July 10-13 championship as members of Sturgeon Valley.
“It’ll probably give me a little bit of advantage,” said Fisher. “To know where to go and play on the course.” Fisher knows the course well having been a member at Sturgeon Valley on and off for the past 40 years. The veteran golfer has been swinging a club since the age of twelve and currently has an impressive four handicap.
Fisher has played in tournaments and championships before, but this is her first time competing in the Alberta ladies’ amateur event.
This will be Kastelic’s fifth year at the ladies’ amateur and she is in her first season as a member at Sturgeon Valley. She said playing on her home course “would be a big advantage, but I just joined this year and was working in Red Deer until the end of June.”
The 24-year-old has been making up for lost time in the past couple of weeks practising at the course. “For the last week I’ve been practising every day at Sturgeon Valley.”
Kastelic developed a practice plan that she has been following leading up to the tournament, some days working on her short game, other days focusing on a different area.
Fisher’s preparation is “just playing and I’ve got a few girls that come out with me and they tell me what I do wrong and I try to get that straightened out. And my husband does help me a lot too.”
“I’ve never been much of a practiser, even when I was a junior,” she said.
Both women were confident heading into the tournament and felt prepared for competition. “I’m feeling good,” said Kastelic who currently has an eight handicap. Last year she made the cut and finished between 25th and 30th, but Kastelic isn’t setting her sights on a specific place in the pack this year. She is focusing on her individual performance. “I want to try to beat my personal best.”
In two weeks, Kastelic will compete in the Royale Cup Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship running July 24-27 in Lethbridge. It will be her first time in the national championship. “I’m excited, looking forward to it,” she said.
Fisher is looking forward to more competition this season as well. “This year I’m going to play in the seniors at the Highlands – just because I want to play the Highlands.”
Both women played practice rounds on Monday and said that the course is in great shape for the championship. “The conditions are really good, they’ve managed to get the course together nicely,” said Kastelic.
While the course conditions are unlikely to be a factor in the tournament, temperatures of over 30 degrees mean that the heat will be a factor for the 41 registered players.
“I’m getting an umbrella, I’m going to have to stay hydrated and eat some fruit and things along the way. It’ll be a big factor,” said Fisher.
The championship format is 72 holes of stroke play competition with a cut to the low 30 players and ties after the third round. The competition is held from Alberta golf tee markers at 5,850 yards and a par of 72.
