Cort Tunall (left) stands with his coach and Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour (MJT) director for Saskatchewan, Jeff Chambers, after winning the MJT tournament at Dakota Dunes Golf Links held over two days on July 23-24. Tunall is the top ranked MJT bantam golfer in Saskatchewan.
Kenneth Brown
of The Clarion
Cort Tunall of Kindersley is having another good golf season, and he is among the highest ranked bantam golfers on the Maple Leaf Junior Golf Tour (MJT).
The 14-year-old golfer played in the Pepsi Junior Lobstick at Waskesiu Golf Course last week from Aug. 13 to 17. Tunall finished as the runner up in the 1st Flight Consolation bracket after four rounds of match play. He is also placing high on the leaderboard at MJT tournaments.
There are three categories in the MJT ranking system. The categories are overall points, best three Order of Merit finishes and stroke average. Tunall said he has played in a total of six MJT tournaments this season including five in Saskatchewan, and one in Alberta.
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The MJT is considered to be Canada’s most-played major junior golf tour, and it is run by Professional Golf Association (PGA) of Canada Golf Professionals. The MJT has played a role in developing national and provincial champions, according to its website.
Tunall will be in Swift Current this weekend to play at Elmwood Golf & Country Club in the final MJT tournament in Saskatchewan this season. The tournament will be played over two days from Aug. 25 to 26.
The local golfer said his coaches are his stepfather Rob Cote of Kindersley and Jeff Chambers, who is the head golf professional at Elmwood. Tunall said he was just in Swift Current on Sunday working with Chambers.
Tunall goes into this weekend’s tournament ranked first in points, first in best three Order of Merit finishes and second in stroke average among 26 bantam boys from Saskatchewan that are on the tour. He is ranked first in points, sixth in best three Order of Merit finishes and 42nd in stroke average among 173 bantam boys across Canada.
At the Junior Lobstick last week, he said it was the first time he has played in the tournament and it was the first time he has been involved in match play. The golfer lost his first round match in the 1st Flight to Parker Dale, who ended up winning the 1st Flight.
Tunall went on to defeat Carter Wingert and Jake Kowalchuk before losing to Will Blake in the 1st Flight Consolation final. Tunall said he had never played at Waskesiu, so the course, Lobstick and match play were all new experiences.
The golfer said he enjoyed the match play format because a person only goes up or down by a single hole no matter how many strokes are taken, so it is a forgiving style of play. Tunall said he did not have too much confidence in his swing at the Junior Lobstick, so he “winged it” for the most part.
When asked about his top-golfer status on the MJT, he said “it’s pretty cool” to be the highest ranked bantam golfer in Saskatchewan. Tunall won the MJT stop at Dakota Dunes Golf Links on July 23-24 with rounds of 76 and 74 to finish 6-over par for the tournament.
Tunall has only won once this season, but he has not finished lower than fourth place in any tournament. He finished third or tied for third in tournaments at Estevan, North Battleford and Moon Lake Golf & Country Club south of Saskatoon, and fourth in tournaments at Lloydminster and Bragg Creek, Alta.
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