There are two stories that emanate from the Manulife LPGA Classic, completed yesterday, Sunday the 7th of June. The first concerns the tournament itself, a compelling event that found a new home in 2015 (Whistle Bear golf club in Waterloo, Ontario) and crowned a new champion in Suzann Pettersen of Norway. The event began on Thursday with explosive scoring. Three golfers lit up the scorecard with nine-under tallies of 63 strokes. P.K. Kongkraphan, Cheyenne Woods and Christie Kerr seized the lead with their sublime play. Of the trio, only Kerr would find herself in the mix on Sunday. The other two golfers were done in by scores in the 70s in the middle rounds. At Whistle Bear, it was 60s or bust. The 36-hole cut, in fact, came at four-under, meaning that those at minus-three had an off weekend ahead.
Day two saw the emergence of Pettersen and Maria Jose Uribe of Colombia, two names that would be in the fray until the final putts were holed. While the first-round leaders fell off pace, Pettersen and Uribe reached the midway mark at thirteen below par. The pair would hang together through Saturday and make up the final grouping. On Sunday, Pettersen stumbled early but righted herself in time to complete the tournament at 22-under par, one stroke clear of Brittany Lang, who put on quite a Sunday show as she closed with 65.
The second story of the week is told by the photos taken below. A young man with a gift for photography, Wilson Alexander Fisher represented BuffaloGolfer for two years at the Manulife. He navigated the unique, Grey Silo layout in 2014, then shifted over to the more traditional Whistle Bear trace in 2015. His work has been of the highest quality and his prompt efficiency in submitting photos is unmatched. Life will carry Alex away from the area for a few years, as he heads off to college. That’s right, the best photography around was shot by the savvy eye of a teenager. If you visit his photo site (linked above) you will see that his interests extend far beyond the world of golf. The great listeners in life are few and treasured; Alex Fisher listens with his eyes and his lens, and BuffaloGolfer is grateful to have showcased his early work. Enjoy, then, this latest gallery of images from the Manulife Classic.
