Martin Ring is looking to turn back the clock at the 103rd Men’s Northern Championship at Cooke Municipal Golf Course this weekend.
Ring says he will have to be sharp against a younger field that can drive the golf ball.
“Age kind of works against me. The younger guys coming in now are extremely long. They’re extremely talented golfers. For me, I’ve got to be on my A plus game to try and get myself back into that winning circle. I always give my best, but we’ve got a great field coming in. We’ve got a number of great players coming in from around the province again this year as well as our cast of local characters . They come out and play very well at Cooke Municipal.”
Ring defeated Colin Coben to win his only Northern title in 2009. He would qualify for the championship match again in 2017, but would fall to Brett Henry who repeated as Northern champion that year.
The Men’s Northern championship is one of the oldest match play tournaments in western Canada, with the 103rd edition of the tournament set to tee off with the qualification round on Saturday morning.
The top 16 players will make the championship flight to compete for the coveted Northern title. Players who do not make the top 16 will be sorted into flights based on their qualifying score.
Ring says the opening qualifying round will be a tall task for every player in the field.
“Last year was the lowest cut ever that we’ve seen and I believe the number was 72 (or) one over par. I’m not so sure that it’s going to be quite that low this year. Saturday, it can be daunting. Especially after last year, I think some guys come in this year thinking that the cut was really low last year. It puts a little bit of extra pressure on the guys when they tee it up on Saturday and everybody’s trying to get into that low 16. You want to be in the championship flight, that’s where the action is.”
Ring is no stranger to Cooke Municipal Golf Course. He was inducted into the Prince Albert Sports Hall of Fame back in 2020 in the athlete and builder categories for his contributions to the sport.
Ring has won the Waskesiu Lobstick title a total of four times, took home the Saskatchewan Amateur title at Cooke in 2014 and has served in an organizational role for several events at Cooke Municipal Golf Course over the years.
With players returning from all over the province, including two-time defending champion Cory Selander, Ring says the competition and the reputation of Cooke Municipal keeps the top players coming back year after year.
“It’s a longstanding tradition. It’s one of the oldest tournaments in the province. I think the only one that’s older is probably the Saskatchewan Amateur Championship. A lot of guys know that it brings in very stiff competition. We did lose a couple players this year that have qualified to play at the Canadian Amateur, which starts on Monday in Saskatoon.”
“When I look down the roster, I know that there’s some guys that are definitely capable of winning the tournament. They are players that I’ve seen at other tournaments as well, whether it’s the Lobstick or they were competing at the Sask Amateur. Even some of my friends that are still competing at a high level in the seniors. Our golf course, it’s got a reputation. It’s a fun course to play. It’s in terrific shape this season, and guys are in for a treat when they come in.”
Ring will tee off in the qualification round at 8:06 on Saturday morning. He is playing alongside Keenan Streleau, Rob Schnieder and Brent Ryan. See Saturday’s edition of the Daily Herald for a feature on five-time Northern champion Colin Coben.
sports@paherald.sk.ca
