SUDBURY, Ont. – A total of nine student-athletes from the Guelph Gryphons varsity golf program made their way to Sudbury, Ontario last week (June 2-6) to represent the University of Guelph at the 2024 Canadian University/College Championship, presented by BDO. The four-day national championship event was held at the Idylwylde Golf & Country Club in Sudbury, in what marked the 20th playing of the Canadian University/College Championship, established in 2003 by Golf Canada to give the country's best university golfers a chance to compete at a national championship. On the men's side, a total of 105 golfers representing 27 different schools made up the field, with the Gryphons men's golf team, comprised of Wesley Gill, Liam Fischer, William Dodd, Kobe Smith and Cam Foster, finishing T15 in the final team standings. On the women's side, 51 golfers representing 16 different universities and colleges from across Canada teed it up in Sudbury, with Ela Jones, Jacqueline Giles, Hunter Edwards and Faith Hertner all representing the Gryphons at this year's nationals, en route to a 9th-place finish in the final team standings.
 
The UBC Thunderbirds swept the team and individual titles at this year's event, with UBC's Dylan MacDonald winning the individual men's title in a playoff over William Forgues (Laval Rouge et Or). On the women's side, UBC's Una Chou won the individual women's title by 12 strokes, thanks in part to a sensational second round where she shot 5-under, 67 to set a new women's course record at Idylwylde Golf & Country Club.
 
Leading the way for the Gryphons at the 2024 national championship event was Ela Jones. Jones, who is from Kincardine, Ontario and majors in molecular biology and genetics at the University of Guelph, recently wrapped up an impressive rookie season in the OUA during her rookie year as a Gryphon in 2024. Ela shot an opening round 78 on Monday, and would go on to finish as the Gryphons top performer on the women's side, finishing 31st in the field after rounds of 78, 90 and 82.
 
On the men's side, the Gryphons were led by Wesley Gill, a mechanical engineering major from Rockwood, who posted three consecutive rounds of 76 to finish inside the top 50 in the field of 105 golfers. Liam Fischer (Markham, ON) posted the low-round of the tournament for the Gryphons, with the accounting major firing an opening round 74. In the end, the Gryphons narrowly missed the cut on both the men's and women's sides, with only the top nine schools out of 20 on the men's side advancing to Thursday's final round, and the top six of 12 schools on the women's side moving on to the final round.

"Competing against the top teams in Canada was a tremendous learning opportunity for our teams," says Brian Bard, head coach of the University of Guelph golf teams. "Qualifying and performing at a national championship is something all of our players take pride in and they represented the Gryphons well. Kobe Smith, Wes Gill and Hunter Edwards all played in their final event as Gryphons, with the rest of our players on the men's and women's teams eligible to return this fall."
 
For more information on the 2024 Canadian University/College Championships, visit golfcanada.ca.
 

---

 
Men's Final Standings:
1st – UBC Thunderbirds
2nd – Fraser Valley Cascades
3rd – Montreal Carabins
T15 – Guelph Gryphons
 
Gryphons Men's Individual Results:
Wesley Gill – 49th – (76-76-76)
Liam Fischer – T65 – (74-81-81)
William Dodd – T77 – (82-79-79)
Kobe Smith – T79 – (85-77-79)
Cam Foster – T96 – (87-86-81)
 
Women's Final Standings:
1st – UBC Thunderbirds
2nd – UBC Okanagan Heat
3rd – Laval Rouge et Or
9th – Guelph Gryphons
 
Gryphons Women's Individual Results:
Ela Jones – 31st – (78-90-82)
Jacqueline Giles – 35th – (82-86-86)
Hunter Edwards – 46th – (94-96-94)
Faith Hertner – 47th – (103-89-93)