Christopher Vandette was crowned champion of the 2021 edition of the Alexandre de Tunis which concluded on Tuesday, at the Ottawa Hunt & Golf Club.
The Beaconsfield athlete won ahead of host club golfer Yaorui Xu on the second overtime hole to win this first stage of the Triple Crown.
Fifth heading into the second round of this men's Provincial Tour tournament, Vandette had an excellent day, taking three shots off par (68).
Successful birdies on the 16th and 18th holes allowed him to take control of the event at -4 (138) with only one group to show up on the last green. Yaorui Xu, however, stalled his ride for the birdie, which allowed him to force overtime.
The two young men then found themselves at the 15th , where they both got normal (3). A few minutes later, Vandette finally made his victory a reality by once again getting normal on that same hole, while Xu concluded with the boguey.
This is the second triumph in a Triple Crown tournament for Christopher Vandette who, in 2017, became the youngest provincial amateur champion at the 100th edition of the event. He was 15 years old at the time.
Leading at -5 (66) after the first round, Brendan Kuffner carded a 74 (+3) on Tuesday to finish fourth at -2 (140). The Member of the Royal Ottawa Golf Club shared the overall lead for most of the second day of activities with William Duquette, who finished third with a cumulative of -3 (139).
Considered the most prestigious of all the amateur tournaments played in the Ottawa area, the "Tunis" saw 120 participants begin at the start on Monday. The top 70 golfers, as well as the tied ones, then participated in the second and final round of the event. The 2020 champion, Thomas Westfall (Camelot), could not avoid the cleaver and finished at +10 (81).
During its history, several names have been inscribed more than once on the coveted trophy of the Alexander of Tunis. Graham Cooke has won it four times. However, it was Robbie Jackson of The Royal Montreal who distinguished himself with four consecutive titles won from 1973 to 1976.
Since the creation of this tournament in 1950, no participant has managed to win the honors of all stages of the Triple Crown in the same year. Only ten players have managed to win two of the three events, some more than once.
The Golf Québec team is now turning its attention to the second stage of the Triple Crown, the Duke of Kent, which will be presented at the Royal Québec on July 5 and 6. The grand winner of the Triple Crown will be known on July 22, at the end of the Men's Provincial Amateur Championship, which will be played over four rounds in as many days at the Summerlea Golf Club.
The top fourteen in the Triple Crown order of merit will then be invited to the Canadian Men's Amateur Championship to be held at the Ambassador Golf Club in Windsor, Ont., from August 2 to 5, 2021.
In the event of a tie for the spots allocated for the event, the players will be determined by an immediate outcome playoff phase following the conclusion of the final round of the Men's Provincial Amateur Championship.
