As the best young golfers in Saskatchewan come to Lloydminster for the junior provincials, the local participants are teeing up from a position of strength.
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“Not having a long drive to a tournament is nice to have,” said Lloydminster junior Carson Mazzei. “To sleep in your own bed, it’s good.
“I didn’t do Sask provincials last year, but the tournament was in Yorkton, so that would have been a decent drive.”
This year’s junior provincials run July 8-10 at Lloydminster Golf and Curling Centre, which last month hosted a Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour tournament involving many of the same players.
“The course has been really nice the last couple of years, with a new grounds crew,” said Mazzei, a 17-year-old going into his senior year at Lloydminster Comprehensive High School.
Mazzei has a good read on the Lloyd course, not only from playing it for years, but also because he’s working at the club this summer.
He’s the oldest of the small Lloyd contingent entered in the junior provincials. His brother Drew, 15, is also in the mix.
Right between the Mazzei brothers, age-wise, is Graydon Moore, who turns 16 in the fall.
Moore also works at Lloyd’s city course, and he’s noticing an increase in interest at the junior level.
“It’s nice to be at the course all day,” he said. “I know a lot of guys that go golfing here. Lots of kids my age or younger. So, lots of junior golfers are out, which is really good to see.”
Moore is even more excited to see the junior provincials in his backyard.
“We had a tournament here about four weeks ago, and it’s just going to be nice to have a home-course advantage again,” he said.
Moore, entering Grade 11 at Lloyd Comp, will try to capitalize on his
knowledge of the tendencies of the local course and its layout.
“I’d say tee shots (are the key), where to put the tee shots,” he said. “It’s a really tight course, so you’ve really got to know what to hit and where. Yeah, try to keep it consistent. Try and put confident shots out on the fairways.”
U.S. GOLF TRIPS
Moore experienced a big boost of confidence this winter as he made a few U.S. golf trips.
“I quit hockey last year to pursue golf more,” he said. “I made a couple of trips down south in the winter. I went to California with the family, and then I went to Florida with my mom.
“I went to the Henry Brunton Academy in Florida and spent a week there. It was amazing, a great experience. I played a tournament down there and I got second.”
Mazzei and his brother have continued to balance golf with competitive hockey. Carson’s busy spring included top-40 skates with prospects for the U18 AAA Lancers. He was a member of the U17 AAA Lancers last winter.
The U18 AAA Lancers have taken a break until their main camp in August, but Mazzei is still skating at least a couple of times a week in preparation for the final tryouts.
Along with his hockey commitments, Mazzei has been golfing daily. A week after the Maple Leaf tour event in Lloydminster, he was invited to a one-day tournament in Canmore for an Alberta stop on the same junior tour.
He was able to gain a measure of redemption after what he described as a disappointing performance the previous week in windy and rainy conditions at Lloyd.
“I felt quite good in Canmore,” Mazzei said. “I didn’t shoot great — it was a really tough course — but I did feel a lot better, especially bouncing back from the weekend before.”
CHALLENGING COURSE
Mazzei concurred with Moore’s assessment of the challenging Lloyd course.
“Yeah, it’s quite narrow and quite bushy — a lot of bush,” he said. “It’s pretty tough to find your ball if you’re not hitting good off the tee.”
Regardless of his placing in the junior provincials, Mazzei said his goal for the prestigious event is to play consistently.
“Playing well would be good,” he said. “It’s definitely a tough course. If I play well, I’ll just be really happy, especially bouncing back from the last tournament in Lloyd.”
At that Maple Leaf stop in Lloyd, his younger brother played solidly in the juvenile division. It’s been that kind of season for Drew, who just finished Grade 9.
“Yeah, he did very well in that Lloyd one,” Carson said. “He’s been hitting the ball quite well. Good ball-striking so far this year.”
Lloydminster bantam golfers Charlie Kappel and Cooper Roberge are also registered for the junior provincials. They played in the Maple Leaf tournament last month, with Roberge posting a second-place finish in their division.
Carson Mazzei said those young guns are showing promise on the golf course.
“They’re very consistent,” he said. “They don’t miss the fairway very often. I don’t play with them very often. Just from what I’ve seen, they maybe don’t hit it the farthest but have a great short game. They hit the ball straight.”
FAMILY AFFAIR
About 90 boys and almost 20 girls were registered for the three-day
Saskatchewan junior provincials.
For the Mazzei brothers, the family affair extends to their first cousins Chloe and Jace Wills, junior golfers from Kyle, Sask.
The Wills siblings plan to stay with the Mazzei family during their Lloyd visit.
Carson Mazzei said he and Drew joined the provincial golf circuit in large part because of their cousins paving the way.
“It’s great. I always wanted to do tournaments when I was younger, but we didn’t really know what to do. My cousins have been on this tour for quite a while, so we joined in for one of those events. They’re around the same age as us.”
Chloe Wills has just graduated from high school and now is bound for
Missouri to study and golf at the collegiate level.
GOLF AND HOCKEY
Carson Mazzei has struck a workable balance between golf and hockey, which essentially has become a year-round sport with its extensive training in the off-season.
He believes participation in multiple sports provides a mental break from one or the other.
“For sure, if you have a bad day, it helps to take your mind off it (when you) do the other sport or something else,” deduced Mazzei, whose favourite school subject is math.
The individuality of golf makes it “a little more” nerve-racking than a team sport like hockey, he said.
“It’s all up to you (in golf). It’s more of an independent sport, so it all depends on what you do and what you can control. It kind of puts a bit more pressure on you.”
Mazzei and the other four Lloyd participants in the junior provincials will try to turn any perceived hometown pressure into an advantage next week.
“Yeah, just kind of using it to focus and hit some good shots,” Mazzei said. “Have a good mental game and just worry about each shot at a time.”
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