Benito's Sas Is Championship Bound

Benito's, Dustin Sas is heading to the Quarry Oaks Golf Course later this weekend. He'll tee it up in the 2019 Nott Autocorp Men's Amateur Championship. Dustin plays most of his golf at the Madge Lake Golf Resort, a track where he's done quite well at.

His low round off the year is a 3-under, 66 at the course. Despite his solid play there, it hasn't exactly translated to having success in this tournament. He struggled last year and didn't make the cut. With the tournament set to begin on Monday morning, Dustin is welcoming the challenge he expects to take on.

"I've been playing pretty decently lately. As long as it translates to going down there, I think I should be fine," said Sas. "It's supposed to be really hot, so that's going to be a challenge in itself. There isn't much shade on a lot of the course."

The temperature is expected to be around +30 all four days.

Although he hasn't won at this event, Dustin does know what it feels like to be a Champion. He won the men's night season series at Madge Lake in 2017. He won that based on how many points he earned throughout the season.

Quarry Oaks will play to just over 6,600 yards for the week. Five of the par 4’s is longer than 400 yards. With the exception of the par 5, 18th hole that's just 492 yards, the other par 5’s is at least 519 yards. The longest par 3 is the 11th hole, as its 203 yards.

"I'm just going out there to get pars. It's really hard on some of the holes to get aggressive," said Sas. "My goal is to stay around for the weekend, so we'll see how things go. I'm pretty excited about the event."

His first round on Monday is set for 9:20 a.m.

Details: Contributed by Darnell Duff; Published: Jul 12, 2019 - 3:17 pm

The "Celebrity" lineup is starting to shape up for this year's Grand Plains Celebrity Classic on July 27th at the Gilbert Plains Country Club.

Earlier this week, it was announced that both Ryan Pulock and Colby Robak would be coming back. Another professional hockey player that's making his return is Roblin's, Jayce Hawryluk.

Jayce will play in the event for the fourth straight year, which is when the tournament began.

"It's always a well run, put together tournament. It always goes smoothly," said Hawryluk. "It's always nice to get back to the local community that you grew up playing for and against. Whenever I can support a friend and try and raise money for charity, I'm always there."

How it'll work on July 27th is everyone that's playing will get the chance to bid on a celebrity. That means your team could play with Jayce, which is something the Roblin native really enjoys.

"I played with four guys last year that I never met before or knew. We just had a blast together," said Hawryluk. "They were a great bunch of guys, we shared some stories and just had a lot of fun. It's always a fantastic time."

When it comes to the golf itself, if you're hoping to win the tournament and you bid on Jayce, it could be a safe bet.

"The golf game is looking pretty good this year," said Hawryluk. "I've been golfing quite a bit. I guess we'll see come tournament time, but I'm feeling pretty confident about my golf game right now."

You can signup for the Grand Plains Celebrity Classic by calling the Gilbert Plains Country Club at 548-3030. It's $500 per team which includes your round, meal, and a chance at prizes.

When it comes to what Jayce does in the winter, he achieved a massive milestone this past season. He made his NHL debut with the Florida Panthers on December 15 against the Toronto Maple Leafs, on Hockey Night in Canada.

He played just over six minutes in that game and he had two shots on goal. After that game, Jayce went on to play 41 more games with the team, recording 12 points (7G). As Jayce takes a look back at the season, it was one big whirlwind.

"It was a little bit of a roller-coaster, but it was a really special feeling playing in my first NHL game and scoring my first goal. It's something I'll never forget," said Hawryluk. "I was fortunate enough to get the opportunity. I'm looking forward to a full year up with the team. I think this past season went well. I thought I grew a bunch, continued to get better and learn every day."

Florida plays their first game on October 3 against Tampa Bay.

Details: Contributed by Darnell Duff; Published: Jul 12, 2019 - 12:00 pm

If the Dauphin Clinic Pharmacy 11U team can replicate what they've done all season long, they should be Provincial Champions by Sunday evening.

The team is heading to Winkler for the provincials that begin today.

"I know it's going to be a tough field that we're playing against," said Ed Koe. "With that being said, we've had a really good season so far. We're pretty confident that we can do well this weekend."

15-teams in all are in the tournament. The Portage Phillies, St. James, Hamiota, and East St. Paul will join Dauphin in the five-team, Pool A. The Parkland squad has yet to play any of those teams, but they're ready for any challenge that comes their way.

"Our biggest thing that allows us to have success is our pitching," added Koe. "Everyone on our team has pitched in the past. That's what I've been telling players from the start of the season, you're going to pitch and that's going to help us this weekend."

Only six of the 15 teams competing will advance to Sunday's playoff round. The top two will get a bye into the semi-finals on Sunday afternoon. Although they are confident, whatever happens, this weekend, the team will make many memories that they'll never forget.

"Our main goal honestly, is to just have fun," concluded Koe. "We had a really good season. This is just a chance to celebrate all they've learned about baseball throughout the season. Everyone is really excited, it should be fun."

Here is the team's full schedule:

Friday @ 11:00 a.m. - vs Hamiota.

Friday @ 4:00 p.m. - vs St. James.

Saturday @ 8:45 a.m. - vs East St. Paul.

Saturday @ 1:45 p.m. - vs Portage.

Details: Contributed by Darnell Duff; Published: Jul 12, 2019 - 10:12 am

More than a dozen Dauphin baseball players will invade Altona this weekend for the 13U "AA" Provincial Championships.

The Strilkiwski Contracting team based out of Dauphin will play at the 15-team event.

They beat Swan River, last month to earn their spot at the event. Chris Geisel is the team's Head Coach, and he shares his thoughts heading in.

"My goal is to compete for a playoff spot and go from there," said Geisel. "Our kids have put in a lot of hours this year. They've been playing their best ball late in the season and that's exactly what we hoped for. We're hoping to open some eyes and show people the great athletes in Dauphin."

"We're fortunate to have a lot of pitchers on our team, and a lot of good pitchers," he added. "We can use that to benefit us. We also have some good hitters and good defence, we're a pretty well-versed team."

Dauphin will play four round-robin games starting tomorrow. They'll play at 1:30 against Seine River and 6:30 against East Selkirk.

On Saturday, the team begins their action nice and early. They play at 8:30 against Morden and they wrap up their round-robin at 4:00 p.m. against North Winnipeg. Despite not playing these teams in the past, Chris knows his club can get things going in the right direction.

"We can't control what the other team does, we just need to play the exact way we did when we had success in the regular season," concluded Geisel. "It's a great opportunity for everyone on our team. It's the little things you're going to learn along the way, I've told everyone to just soak it in and have a great time."

The top six teams after the round-robin will advance to the playoff round. The top two teams earn a bye into the semi-finals.

Details: Contributed by Darnell Duff; Published: Jul 11, 2019 - 1:43 pm

Dauphin’s, Jackson Delaurier just about did something no one else has done on the Westman Junior Golf Tour in a while.

Playing in an event at Poplar Ridge on Wednesday, Jackson nearly made an ace.

His ball hit the pin and rolled just back. Jackson also went on to win the tournament with an 86.

Jackson

Details: Contributed by Darnell Duff; Published: Jul 10, 2019 - 10:40 pm

Dauphin’s, Ken Benson shot a 76 to win the McCreary 50+ golf tournament yesterday.

Gail Tycholiz, also from Dauphin, won the women’s title with a 92.

Gail

Closest to pin on #3 for the ladies was Gail Tycholiz.

Closest to pin on #7 for the men was Leo Neault.

Details: Contributed by Darnell Duff; Published: Jul 10, 2019 - 10:32 pm

The 4th annual Grand Plains Celebrity Classic is only 17 days away. On Monday, Ryan Pulock was announced. Today, another past player in the Grand Plains Minor Hockey Association is coming back. Gilbert Plains, Colby Robak will play in the event for the fourth straight year.

"It's great to be playing in the event. It gets better and better every year," said Robak. "To be a part of something that's helping grow hockey in our community, it's a good feeling and it's great to be part of."

Robak played several years in the Grand Plains Minor Hockey Association. With some of the proceeds from the tournament going right back to GPMHA, playing really is a no-brainer for the Gilbert Plains native.

"Grand Plains Minor Hockey is a part of who I am, it helped me grow into the player I am today," added Robak. "To be able to do something like this and give back to the community, it's something I'm really excited about it."

Colby has spent his Tuesdays in Brandon in a men's league. That means he'll be ready come July 27.

"I'm still no Tiger, but I'm working on it," he added with a chuckle.

When it comes to hockey, Robak played this past season with Vaasan Sport. When it comes to next season, he's not sure where he'll end up.

"I'm just sort of playing the waiting game. It's sort of been my whole career so I'm not really worried about it," concluded Robak. "We're open to a lot of options whether that's in North America or overseas. We'll see where the hockey gods take us."

If you'd like to enter, call the Gilbert Plains Country Club at 548-3030. Only paid entries will be accepted. Its $500 per team and that includes your round, meal and a chance at some great prizes.

Details: Contributed by Darnell Duff; Published: Jul 10, 2019 - 12:09 pm

The Manitoba Junior Golf Championships have wrapped up in Winnipeg.

Swan River’s, Ethan Weir led the Parkland as he finished in a tie for 28th.

Dauphin’s, Thomas Scott, was just behind in a tie for 30th.

Neepawa’s, Hayden Delaloye finished in solo 37th.

The overall winner was Winnipeg’s, Jacob Armstrong. He fired a 2-under in the final round.

Details: Contributed by Darnell Duff; Published: Jul 9, 2019 - 10:16 pm

The Grandview Lakers are on the brink of elimination from the Southeast Senior Baseball League 2019 season.

A fired up Willowbrook team paid a visit to Wilson Park in the opener of the three-game set, and it was all Royals.

They ended up winning, 8-2 to take a 1-0 series lead.

Game two will be back in Willowbrook. We’ll let you know when it is.

Details: Contributed by Darnell Duff; Published: Jul 9, 2019 - 10:07 pm

It's been quite the last year for Roblin's, Jakob Brook. First, he played his first full season with the Prince Albert Raiders. A season in which he had 14 total points as the team won the Western Hockey League.

Now, the 17-year-old is off to Calgary as he's been invited to Canada's National Men's Summer U18 Team selection camp from July 26-30.

If Jakob is successful, he'll represent Canada at the 2019 Hlinka Gretzky Cup early next month in the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

"It's an awesome feeling. Only 43 others were invited, so I'm pretty pumped up," added Brook. "It's definitely a once in a lifetime experience."

"I'm ready to showcase my strengths and hopefully, I can impress the coaches and scouts," Brook continued.

Jakob's older brother, Josh has worn the maple leaf on his jersey on a few different occasions. Most recently, he played on Team Canada at the World Junior Hockey Championships in Vancouver and Victoria.

Josh will now play his first full season in the AHL with the Laval Rocket. With the advice that Josh has handed down to Jakob, he's feeling there's no reason he can't make the team.

"Yeah, obviously you need to have confidence going in," continued Brook. "I'm going in to make the team and if I don't, it's a letdown obviously. I'll give it everything I have."

The Hlinka Gretzky Cup goes from August 5-10 and Canada faces off against the Czech Republic, Finland, and Switzerland in the preliminary round. The bronze and gold medal games are on August 10.

If Jakob did get the opportunity to join the team, it would change his life.

"It would be awesome. You grow up wanting to play on Team Canada, it's been my dream for as long as I can remember," said Brook. "Seeing my brother playing for the team has really pushed me. I really want this."