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Whitehorse disc golfers leave their mark at Alberta tourney

Alberta disc golfers wont take the presence of Yukon players too lightly in the future.

Alberta disc golfers wont take the presence of Yukon players too lightly in the future.

Three Whitehorse golfers placed in the top half of the field — one took second place — at the 16th annual Lost Egg disc golf tournament over the weekend in Wayne, Alta.

“It was a fantastic time. It’s well worth the trip,” said Whitehorse’s Ryan Norquay. “I couldn’t imagine it going better. It was great to have Alan (Hill) and Ben (Monkman) there, and we all performed really well and left a mark. Everybody is going home knowing about those Yukon guys.”

The Lost Egg is one of the top tournaments in Canada with just over 100 players taking part this year.

The three Whitehorse golfers were in a field of 25 in the advanced men’s division.

Norquay, 32, took second place with a five under par, Monkman tied for fifth with two-under and Hill placed 11th at even par.

“We all did better than half the field and that was a wish for me,” said Norquay, who is president of the Whitehorse Disc Golf Association (WDGA).

The tournament was supposed to be made up of three rounds, but rounds two and three were scrubbed due to rain and lightning. With its steep clay slopes and pervasive cacti, it is too dangerous to play the Wayne Disc Golf Course in wet conditions.

“It’s an extreme course with thick clay and when it gets wet you can lose your footing and slide into a crevasse or cactus and really hurt yourself,” said Hill.

“I would have liked to see three rounds played because I could have potentially done better, but I could have potentially done worse.”

After 18 holes Norquay was tied for first with Calgary’s Cormac Hergott, winner of Calgary’s Isle of Mull tourney in June. After the rain subsided they played a two-hole playoff – on two of the safer holes in wet conditions – and Hergott took it on the second hole.

“I was prepared to play the three rounds and hold it together, hopefully, it just is what it is,” said Norquay. “It was still a very successful tournament. Nobody went home unhappy.”

“It’s one of the best courses I’ve ever played,” he added. “I loved the layout, I loved the tone-cans. The shots were very challenging and very rewarding when you got them. It was very disappointing when you saw your disc fly three or four holes farther than it needed to when it didn’t stop on the top of the hill.”

Last year the Lost Egg was third in prize money for Professional Disc Golf Association events in Canada. Norquay, Monkman and Hill were the first members of the WDGA to enter it.

“I’m coming back next year,” said Hill. “I’m going to do everything I can to make it back for this one again next year.”

Contact Tom Patrick at tomp@yukon-news.com