The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

31 |Thursday July 27, 2017 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insidehalton.com Nicklaus gave Canadian Open a winner, even though the tourney never gave one back By Herb Garbutt Oakville Beaver staff Jack Nicklaus and the Canadian Open w ill forever be linked. But unlike m ost things associated w ith the 18-time major champion, that tie does not include victories. Nicklaus finished runner-up at the Canadian Open seven times. And that doesn't even include 1983 w hen he finished third, just one shot back of John Cook and Johnny Miller. "My w ife kept saying to me, "I'm sending you back until you do it right," Nicklaus said Tuesday as he helped open the 108th edition of the Canadian Open. "She sent me back every year and I never could quite get it right." But as m uch as Nicklaus is know n for his near-misses north of the bor der, his ties to the Canadian Open are far stronger because of Glen Ab bey Golf Club. Nicklaus left a last ing imprint on our national cham pionship and on Oakville w hen he created his first solo course design on the 229-acre property. Nicklaus was already a four-time runner-up at the Canadian Open w hen he was tabbed to design a permanent hom e for the tourna ment. He was com ing off back-toback second-place finishes w hen Glen Abbey made its debut in 1977. But his detailed knowledge of the course' s intricacies did nothing to change his luck. He finished fourth. W ith Glen Abbey entrenched as the Canadian Open' s home, Nicklaus was always at the top of the leaderboard as he pursued the one championship that eluded him. Be tween 1981 and 1985, Nicklaus fin ished second three times and third once on the course he designed. But though he never saw his name added to the wall of champi ons, outside the clubhouse, Nicklaus clearly had a winner in Glen Abbey. Even after Nicklaus played his last Canadian Open two decades ago, his course has continued to provide highlights that have be com e part of Canadian golf lore, from Tiger W oods' bunker shot on the 18th hole, to John Daly' s 390yard drive into Sixteen Mile Creek on the 11th hole. "It' s served it' s purpose pretty w ell," Nicklaus said as Glen Ab bey prepared to host the Canadian Open for the 29th time. "How long Glen Abbey is going to serve its purpose is another question." And the question everyone want ed to know the answer to was how Nicklaus felt about the course be com ing a housing development, as its owner ClubLink applied to do two years ago. "It is what it is," Nicklaus said. "I'd hate to see it torn down but progress moves on." Though having the legendary golfer at the Canadian Open as the country celebrated its 150th birth day was a nice touch, Nicklaus' presence at Glen Abbey this year wasn't a coincidence. W ith Glen Abbey' s days seem ingly numbered, Nicklaus is in the area to scout new locations for a course that could be com e a new permanent hom e to the Canadian Open. "We're working on it," said the 77-year-old Nicklaus, w ho has de signed more than 400 courses since Glen Abbey. "It' s a work in progress. We are looking at property and try ing to settle on som ething that may Jack Nicklaus signs autographs for fans Tuesday after helping officially open this year's RBC Canadian Open. In addition to winning a record 18 major championships, Nicklaus also designed Glen Abbey Golf Club, which is hosting the national championship for the 29th time. | photo by Graham Paine - Oakville Beaver work out, nothing is signed or anything else, but w e're trying to figure out what w e're trying to do." Glen Abbey may have been sur passed in terms of prestige in the eyes of Canadian golfers, in som e cases by Nicklaus' ow n designs. On Score Golf' s list of Canada' s top 100 courses, Glen Abbey has slipped down the list into the 80s. But it occupies a disadvantaged spot on the golf landscape. It is too old to have the new car smell of the 34 courses on the list that have opened since 2000, nor does it have the history of the 26 that opened prior to 1940. Only two courses on the list, including Glen Abbey, opened between 1962 and 1979. Unfortunately, it w ill never like ly see the day where it swings back into favour as it fully matures as a golf course. And it w ill surely be missed if and w hen the bulldozers arrive. But rather than mourn Glen Ab bey, Nicklaus w ould prefer to give the Canadian Open another win, even if it never returned the favour. "If w e did this golf course 41 years ago this way, I think w e can do som ething better today," he said. "I think I've gotten better." That sounds like som eone w ho is w illing to com e back and do it right again. Titansfacingelim ination inSr. B playoffsafter9-5 loss toO w en Sound The Oakville Titans w ill try to stave off elimination Friday after falling behind 2-0 in their best-of-five Ontario Sr. B Lacrosse series. The Owen Sound North Stars outscored the Titans 4-1 over the final two periods Sunday on its way to a 9-5 w in in Game 2. Brendan Muise scored twice for the Titans and Eddie Renaud, Jahmal Shears and Braden Wallace also scored for Oakville. The North Stars scored five straight goals to over com e a 4-3 deficit in the series opener, w hich they w on 8-6. Keyan McQueen had a pair of goals for the Titans and Cam Mancini had a goal and two assists. Ja mie McMahon, N ick Rybka and Renaud had the other Oakville goals. Nolan Apers had two assists. Bassett Over 100 Years of Mattress Experience B lu Tek Gel V isco OAKVILLE SOCCER CLUB M a d e in Canada LUXURY SAVE $350 CANADIAN MADE! ALL W eek Ten Photo C ontest Winner: Photographer: Liz Del Vecchio Age Division: GU9 ADP Sponsored by: FOAM AUBURN QUEEN MATTRESS #105412 Oakville Beaver A Proud Sponsor of Oakville Soccer Club