It didn’t take long for competitors to find their range in the British Columbia Amateur Championships which began yesterday at North Vancouver's Seymour Golf and Country Club as two golfers scored holes-in-one in the opening round.
Both Michael Belle and Alex Francois celebrated an ace, on number 11 and number eight, respectively, on the 6,405-yard par-71 course on the first day of competition.
Belle, 22, co-leads the field with Spencer Weiss with a two-under 69 after one round. The Simon Fraser University senior recorded his third-ever hole-in-one, and the first of the Championship, on number 11, a par 3 set at 149 yards.
"I was just trying to play conservatively today,” Belle said in a B.C. Golf release. “The course is in great shape and the greens are a lot faster than they were in the practice round, a lot firmer, but you can post a good number if you play smart." The Burnaby native had another standout year at SFU and looks to improve on his T51 finish at the BC Amateur last year.
Francois claimed the second hole-in-one of the Championship shortly after Belle; on number eight, a 159-yard par 3, with an eight iron. He began his round with back-to-back birdies and finished in a four-way tie for second after shooting -1 in the opening round.
Francois, 16, finished tied for fourth at the British Columbia Golf Junior Boys' Championship held last week at Meadow Gardens.
"I feel like it's a little bit of a different expectation that everyone has for me at this event,” said Francois. “It's an amateur event and there are all kinds of accomplished players in this field. I'm just going to play my own game and see how far I get."
Co-leader Weiss, of Sammamish, Wash., didn’t make it into the field until Sunday when he shot a one-over-par 73 at a supplemental qualifier at Kings Links by the Sea.
The championships continue throughout the week at Seymour, wrapping up with the final round on Friday.
— North Shore News, with files from British Columbia Golf
