The Tamarack Golf Tournament is one that welcomes hundreds of golfers to the Clear Lake Golf Course every August. Of those hundreds is Winnipeg's Kody Fawcett. That name has become familiar for a few reasons around the area.
The first reason is that Kody's dad, Keith Fawcett lives in Clear Lake and plays the course several times per week. The second reason, we'll get to that a little bit later. The top 16 golfers in the men's division are placed in the Championship Flight after two rounds.
After an opening round of 2-under, 70, Kody was in a good spot. He entered his second round in third place. Kody went out for his second round and fired a 2-over, 74. The total dropped him three places to sixth, but that was enough to qualify for the top bracket heading into the match play format.
"It's good enough, that's pretty much all there is to it," he said. "My only goal was getting into the Top 16 and I did that. I hit the ball pretty well throughout the two rounds. Things were a little tougher in the second round, but I still hung around for a pretty decent score."
"It's all match play now, so the first two rounds are in the past and don't matter," he added. "I just need to keep playing solid and I need to make as many birdies as possible, that's the key to success."
As the sixth-seed, Kody plays the 11th seed tomorrow morning at 8:12. That happens to be Landon Trotter who went 75-73 in his qualifying rounds.
"I've never really played with him, I know he's a grinder and just sort of finds a way to get the ball in the hole," Fawcett added. "That's a tough quality to beat in match play. It should be a good one."
Fawcett and Trotter will be joined by the #1 vs #16 matchup when they tee-off on the 277-yard par 4, 1st hole.
"If Landon isn't playing very well on a hole, I don't really need to be aggressive, I can just play a simpler hole," he continued. "It's always good to know that if I make a big number, I'll only lose that hole. If I need to, I'll take a shot for the pin and hopefully, I can capitalize on my opportunities."
What's the second reason behind people knowing Kody in this area? He's won the men's division the past two years. That means the 29-year-old is chasing his third straight Tamarack Championship and if he does, he’ll join some very elite company. Dating back to 1934, only one golfer (Barry McKenzie) has won the men's division in three straight years. He achieved the feat in 1965, 66 and 67.
On top of winning it in 2017 and last year, Kody also won the crown in 2015. Is the pressure of winning three straight getting to him?
"I wouldn't say I'm nervous really," he added. "I'm just trying to approach it like any other year I would. I just want to play as well as I can. I'm not thinking of the three in a row, I just want to go out there and play my best and we'll see what happens."
In the Champion's event is where you'll find Kody's dad. Keith opened up with a 6 over, 78 in his first round. He will enter his second round in the third spot as he looks to qualify for the Championship Flight.
In the end, playing good golf and making great memories is what the Fawcett family is all about.
"It's a tremendous week. There are a lot of families that play in this," he concluded. "It's nice when Keith is playing solid as well and he is right now. We watch each other's matches and we're always rooting for each other. It's a fun tradition every year."
