Five Things To Look For At The Beachlands Victoria Open

The tournament starts Thursday and we have a few things definitely worth keeping your eye on...

#5 Jeevan's Bag

Jeevan Sihota will be sporting a bag that has a local connection (just like he does). Pacific Sunday is a Victoria-based company entering the golf bag manufacturing business. In an Instagram post, they were clearly excited about the representation, "Our bag is going to be in a Tour event! Thanks to Jeevan Sihota for agreeing to rep the brand... at Uplands Golf Club June 20-23.  It’s going to be awesome seeing one of the longest hitters on Tour rocking the Garden Club bag 😂 🐞. Onwards and upwards 👊"
Find out more about the bag HERE


#4 - Big Prizes For A KP At The Golf Simulator

Details about this seem hard to come by but Irons & Woods Golf Simulators is setting up an inflatable indoor golf simulator beside the 10th tee. You can play a hole from TPC Sawgrass (we assume the 17th) for the chance to win four rounds at that iconic layout. There will also be prizes for rounds at local courses too (Highland Pacific, Royal Colwood, Uplands, and Victoria).
Click HERE for more about Irons & Woods

#3 The Birdie Bar Beside The 18th green

Timing is everything and no more than at the greenside Driftwood Beer Garden. Anytime a player gets a birdie on the 18th hole, spectators can buy a beer for five dollars!

#2 - Beachland's Mister 59

It would be remiss of us not to mention New Zealand's Harry Hillier who comes to Uplands in second place in the Fortinet Cup points race having recently won the Inter Rapidisimo Golf Championship in Bogota, Columbia. While the win may be impressive, it was his second-round score that puts him in rarefied company. His round started with six consecutive birdies and then he bettered that with seven consecutive birdies to start his back nine. Add in five pars and you have a 13-under 59 for the first sub-60 round in PGA TOUR Americas history.

#1 - The Lock For Future PGA Tour Stardom?

You would never want to jinx someone, but Neal Shipley may be the hottest young golfer on the planet. The amateur :) now professional golfer from Pittsburgh was low amateur at the 2024 Masters Tournament and the 2024 U.S. Open. He qualified for both these tournaments by being runner-up at the 2023 United States Amateur Championship. Even his path to qualification on the PGA TOUR Americas has a storybook ending. He survived a nine-man playoff to earn the final spot at the California stop for Q-School earlier this year. If you ever wanted to see one of tomorrow's stars today... this may be your chance.

Bonus Thing To Look At... The Manicure of The Course

Uplands, under the direction of Brian Youell, has the deserved reputation as not only the best manicured course in Victoria but also the best year-in, year-out on the Canadian swing of the PGA TOUR Americas. But this year, the word is that course conditioning may be among the best ever.

For more on the Beachlands Victoria Open Presented by Times-Colonist, click HERE