Blogs
Christie Gialloreto
The Mental Game
Christie Gialloreto is a private practice mental training consultant in Victoria, BC. She holds a Masters degree in Athletic Counseling, is a Certified Canadian Counselor, and a Registered Psychologist. A former competitive gymnast, Christie plays golf at a recreational level, living and practicing the mental skills she teaches.
Jeremy Estey
From The Rough
Jeremy Estey is the founder of VIGolf.ca. He has played golf since he was 6 years old, where he learned the game from his father. The first time he picked up a golf club he fell in love with the game. He was born and raised in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan and grew up playing at the Holiday Park Golf Course. Jeremy has aspirations of playing tour golf, and is relentlessly working on his game. Before he makes his way down that road there are a few other things he would like to accomplish first. If you have any feed back about the site, or just want to see what's up he can be reached [email protected].
Dave Smit
Strength and Conditioning
Dave Smit is an accomplished trainer, corporate fitness consulant, and a national level conditioning coach. Dave has assisted teams and athletes in winning provincial and national championships. He has presented on fitness topics to large corporations, has conducted fitness evaluations for law enforcement agencies, and is well known for assisting clients of all ages and levels in achieving their goals. Dave was the former fitness coach for Canada at the 2003 World Cup of Rugby, and Dave also represented the Canadian mens triathlon team in the 1990’s were he won a gold medal for Canada at the 1990 Commonwealth Games.
Jeff Palmer
Instruction
Jeff Palmer is the owner of the Palmer Golf Institute and the Director of Instruction of the Palmer Golf Institute. Over the past 20 years Jeff has travelled the world working at some of the finest golf facilities in North America and China. He has established golf academies in Hawaii, Ontario and China coaching players of all levels, helping them to develop their golfing skills but also inspiring them to thoroughly enjoy the game. Jeff is also a dedicated player having played in various tour events in North America and Asia including the 2002 Volvo China Open. Palmer has spent time with some of the games finest instructors including Mike Hebron, Jim McLean, Jim Flick and Pete Cowan and has incorporated much of what he has learnt from them into his programs.
Glenn Bell
Zone 5
Glenn picked up the game of golf while in Halifax, but once he’d experienced the game on the west coast his passion for the game really picked up. Glenn has organized many Navy golf tournaments, and held many managerial and leadership positions within the Navy. Glenn recently retired from the Navy and graduated from the Camosun College Advanced Diploma in Golf Operations. Glenn has been on the Board of Directors of British Columbia Golf for the past 3 years, sitting on the Championships and the Policy Committees, and for the past 6 years has been the Secretary/Treasurer of the Zone 5 Men’s Executive Committee. Glenn is a member of Gorge Vale Golf Club, and will be bringing the next generation of golfers into the game by way of his grandson.
Stephen Watson
Zone 6
Stephen Watson has played 30 years of competitive golf within BC and the United States. Some player accomplishments include:
- Third Place individual and member of BCGA Team Champions at the Canadian Junior Championship in 1984
- Junior BCGA Player of the Year in 1985
- Academic and Athletic (Honourable Mention) All-American at the University of Nevada-Reno in 1989
- Vancouver City Amateur Champion in 1996
- Top finishes at the Provincial Amateur Championships include a second at the BC Amateur and a third at the BC Mid-Amateur
- Numerous local amateur championships at various Vancouver Island golf clubs
- Member of the Golf British Columbia Zone 6 Committee since 2003, and Chair since 2009.
Cory Renfrew
The Tour Perspective
Cory recently earned his Canadian Tour card for 2012. In 2011 he won the British Columbia Mid-Amateur Championship, finished runner up in the Canadian Mid-Amateur Championship and tied for 3rd in the Canadian Amateur Championship. In 2010 Cory graduated from the University of British Columbia with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology while playing on the varsity golf team. He captained the golf team for three years and won two Canadian National Championships and one NAIA National Championship. Following graduation Cory moved back to Victoria and has been continuously practicing to improve his golf game at Cordova Bay Golf Course. Cory's ultimate dream and goal is to play on the PGA Tour, and plans to compete in the 2012 PGA Tour qualifying school in an effort obtain his PGA Tour card for 2013.
PGA Tour Canada
PGA Tour Canada is a semi-professional golf tour owned and operated by the PGA Tour. It was formally known as the Canadian Tour, and has been a stepping stone to the PGA Tour for a number of years. This had helped build the reputation of being one of the premier developmental tours in the world. Vancouver Island is a popular stop for PGA Tour Canada as there have been a number of events through out the years. The Times Colonist Open which is played in Victoria, BC is the season kick off, and has proved to be one of the more popular events on tour.
Bryan Scott
Chasing The Dream
Bryan’s golf career began twenty-five years ago at the age of two, using a wooden spoon to whack a ping-pong ball around the family’s living room. When he was three, his father would take him to the Hope Golf & Country Club to play the first three holes each night. By the age of nine, Bryan was dominating his age category in local junior tournaments. Bryan’s recent amateur accomplishments have seen him represent British Columbia Golf on Team BC at the PNGA Cup (Pacific North West Golf Association) and the Canadian Mid Amateur Championship. One of Bryan’s recent highlights, was shooting a tournament low 7 under par 65 in the 2011 British Columbia Mid Amateur. Consistent play in local, provincial, national and international competitions has given Bryan both the experience and confidence to move onto the professional ranks.
Brian Youell
Course Maintenance
Brian Youell is the Master Superintendent at Uplands Golf Club. He has been at Uplands Golf Club since 1981. In 2001 he became the seventh person in Canada to achieve his Master Superintendent designation. He has served on the Board of Directors for the; Western Canada Turfgrass Association, British Columbia Golf Superintendents Association, and the Canadian Golf Superintendents Association. He won the 2005 BCGSA Superintendent of the Year Award for British Columbia, the 2012 CGSA Superintendent of the Year Award for Canada, and the 2012 Score Golf Award for Canada’s Top Superintendent. For the past ten years he teaches turf related courses for the Golf Management program at Camosun College, and for the past 15 years, turf related course for the Horticultre Centre of the Pacific. He has a strong golf back ground playing to a two handicap, including taking his team to the 2003 John Deere World Championships at PGA West. Brian has written also written numerous articles for golf related journals, and has spoken at numerous conferences internationally on turf related subjects.