Kimberley's Bootleg Gap Golf Course hosted the 123rd BC Amateur Golf Championship, an historic and prestigious tournament that this year was ultimately taken down in dramatic fashion by 17-year-old Austin Krahn from Christina Lake.
It all came down to the final approach shot on the par-four eighteenth hole for Krahn; he knew he had to make a par to avoid a playoff with Chilliwack鈥檚 Maxim McKenzie, who had made a late-round charge to get himself right into contention.
The hole, which typically plays as a par-five, is a dogleg right that features a water carry on the approach shot to a guarded green. Krahn's drive found one of the long-left fairway bunkers, leaving him over 200 yards to the green from the sand, so he elected to lay up.
Unfortunately, he chunked his layup, so his ball remained in the rough and he still had 175 yards in. He drew his eight iron and manged to roll his ball up to about three feet and made the putt for par, securing the championship and his second wire-to-wire victory in as many weeks. Krahn won his second-straight B.C. Junior Boys Championship the week before at Quilchena Golf and Country Club in Richmond, B.C.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know if I have hit a clutch shot better than that one,鈥� Krahn said in an who described the shot as miraculous and perhaps one of the most clutch shots in BC Amateur history. 鈥淚 have had a few good ones in my life, but that one has got to be up there. To be in that position when I have to get up and down from 175 yards to win the B.C. Am and then do it is just a phenomenal feeling.鈥�
While it wound up all coming down to that final approach shot, Krahn had played incredible golf throughout the week, with rounds of 67, 69, 68 and 69, for a final score of eleven under par, beating out a field of 157 players.
Bootleg Gap was looking pristine heading into the tournament, thanks in large part to the crew, who are now led by superintendent Owen Perrin, who was hired this year after 21 years working at Trickle Creek Golf Course in Kimberley.
"The golf course was in excellent shape, I mean, we've had quite a bit of rain for July, so that made it a little bit more green and a little bit more lush," said Trevor Simkins, General Manager, Head Professional and Co-Proprietor of Bootleg Gap.
"But then our superintendent Owen Perrin had to deal with quite a bit of rain the day before the the first round and him and his crew handled it quite well. The golf course was in phenomenal shape and a lot of the credit goes to Owen Perrin and his team for just maintaining and providing an excellent golf course for some of the top players from around the province to play."
Perrin said he was very happy with how the week went.
"It was a little touch and go with the nearly two inches of rain forecast for early in the week," he said. "I'm super proud of how hard all my staff and volunteers worked leading up to the tournament to showcase Bootleg in the capacity that we did. The course is looking great and playing great."
Simkins said many of the people from BC Golf were familiar with the course, as Bootleg had previously hosted the BC Senior Men's Championship in 2021, but of the field of 157 players in the first two rounds, he thought as many as 100 had never been to the area before.
"It was very cool to be able to showcase the facility and a lot of people love the golf course, but they also love the facilities as a whole," he said. "They love the driving range and the proximity to the practice greens and the driving range to the clubhouse, the patio overlooking the 18th hole and being able to see the first tee from the practice greens.
"A lot of people said it gave them kind of a stadium vibe and they just thought the facility as a whole was exceptional."
Simkins was impressed with Krahn's winning performance throughout the week, remarking that he will have the opportunity to win three B.C. provincial golf championships in a row, as Krahn will be competing at the 2025 British Columbia Indigenous Golf Championships at St. Eugene the week after the BC Amateur.
"He will also be competing at the Canadian Amateur in Ottawa in two week's time, so we'll definitely be keeping a close eye on him and his golfing future," Simkins said. "He's 17 years old and just a phenomenal player. He up-and-downed it on the last hole from over 150 yards to win the tournament, so just a clutch player, it was pretty exciting to watch.
"It's a special tournament and he'll remember it for the rest of his life."
Simkins added that in addition to being a remarkable talent, Krahn was a very mature 17-year-old, from how he conducted himself on the course to his post-win interviews, in which he thanked all the volunteers and the staff and team of Bootleg Gap.
Simkins reiterated his gratitude for the hard work of Owen Perrin leading up to the tournament and the team who made it possible.
"This is something you start preparing for last year, when we purchased the ground coverings and the tarps for the winter," Simkins said. "I'm sure we would have purchased them anyways, but having this major tournament coming up year. As soon as the snow goes, you're planning for it.
"Owen and his crew were were preparing for this tournament for the last three months and it's nice to see it go so well. I think it was equal to the amount of golfers that raved about the golf course and also raved about the conditions. It was really just hats off to Owen Perrin."
With files from britishcolumbiagolf.org
