A sport for all ages

STEPHENVILLE, N.L. — Frank Gale
The Western Star

STEPHENVILLE, N.L. – While there is a focus at Harmon Seaside Links to get young people interested in the sport, there’s also the other end of the golf spectrum.
Recently, Ryan McNeil-Lamswood , who is working this summer as junior golf instructor at Harmon, won the club’s Captain’s Cup by placing first in a competitive field with a two-under-par, two-day (July 5 and 6) total of 145.
That wasn’t the only notable score recently at the club as Roy Bungay, a long-time member, shot a 69, three-under-par on a “men’s night” on July 17, shooting from the red tees in a total of 5,355 yards.
This was the lowest score on the course shot to date from those tees and certainly was a source of pride for the 77-year-old golfer.
“It was one of those evenings when there was no wind and just beautiful to step up and shoot away,” Bungay said of the game.
He’s been golfing since he was 12, starting in Nova Scotia, and has continued at it since he moved to Stephenville in his 20’s in 1966.
Bungay was inducted into the Sports Hall of Fame as an athlete in 2000.
He came to Stephenville working with the Bank of Montreal and later got into selling real estate.
“Golf is a healthy retirement game. I’m still walking around the course, and will as long as I can,” Bungay said.
He holds an eight handicap, something he considers very good at this age, and feels starting young with golf and keeping at it is one of the reasons he’s still able to do that.
McNeil-Lamswood’s Captain’s Cup win, at 19 years of age, is also of note; he’s the second youngest to win it since Steve Harris had his name added in 2000 at the age of 17.
He edged out John Hogan who finished the tournament just two shots back with a 147, shooting par 72 on the first day in comparison to McNeil’s two-under-par 70 on the first day.
McNeil-Lamswood played the men’s amateur at Blomidon in Corner Brook in mid-July, where he tied for fifth place, qualifying him for the national men’s amateur being held in Nova Scotia Aug. 5 to 8, competing in the men’s category at the level for the first time.
“My goal is to make the cuts (about half the field moves on) and play on,” he said.
As junior golf instructor, his job is to teach kids basic skills so they hopefully gain a love of the game at an early age.
“It’s about giving them as much exposure to the game as possible. If they get used to it, it’s something they may do for a long time,” he said.
McNeil-Lamswood has completed his first year of university at Grenfell in Corner Brook and will be attending Memorial University in St. John’s this fall taking science, with a goal of becoming a teacher.

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