Golf Canada announced the 2021 National Amateur and Junior Squads this week, and two junior girls from the Oakville Golf Club made the squad. They are Nicole Gal and Katie Cranston. Members of the Oakville Golf Club were ecstatic to hear the good news.
In September, Golf Canada in partnership with Provincial golf associations selection process for the junior squad took place at Bear Mountain Resort in Victoria, British Columbia. These young and extremely talented golfers were run through a series of testing modules followed by a 54-hole competition. Both Cranston and Gal made the cut.
About Katie Cranston
Cranston joins the Junior Girls Squad as one of two Team Ontario program graduates. The Oakville, Ont. native had a breakout year highlighted by a win at the 2020 Ontario Junior Girls Championship. In 2019, Cranston finished 2nd at the Future Links Ontario Championship and 3rd at the Future Links Fall Series (East). Katie turned 16 years-old in May.
Highlights
- Champion – 2020 Ontario Junior Girls Championship
- 3rd – 2019 Future Links Fall Series (East)
- 2nd – 2019 Future Links Ontario Championship
About Nicole Gal
Gal earned her spot on the Junior Girls’ Squad after several years of strong results. The Oakville, Ontario native finished 2nd at the 2020 Ontario Junior Girls Championship and T8 at the 2020 North & South Junior Amateur. The former Team Ontario member was victorious at the 2019 Drive, Chip and Putt Championship, winning the girls 14-15 age division. Nicole will turn 16 on November 23rd.
Highlights
- 2nd – 2020 Ontario Junior Girls Championship
- T8 – 2020 North & South Junior Amateur
- 7th – 2019 Future Links Fall Series (East)
- Champion – 2019 Drive, Chip and Putt Championship (Girls 14-15)
Moving forward, from March through early June, the Junior Squad will practice out of Golf Canada’s National Training Centre at Bear Mountain—the fourth year that the program has provided centralized training, accommodation and education for athletes during the second semester of their school year.
Team members will be immersed in a focused centre of excellence, surrounded by world-class technical coaching staff and experts in the areas of mental performance, physiotherapy, biomechanics, and nutrition.
The 2021 National Junior Squad—a U19 program
Junior girls squad
- Angela Arora | Surrey, B.C. – Beach Grove Golf Club
- Katie Cranston | Oakville, Ont. – Oakville Golf Club
- Nicole Gal | Oakville, Ont. – Oakville Golf Club
- Jennifer Gu | West Vancouver, B.C. – Seymour Golf & Country Club
- Lauren Kim | Surrey, B.C. – Morgan Creek Golf Club
- Michelle Liu | Vancouver, B.C. – Shaughnessy Golf & Country Club
- Emily Zhu | Richmond Hill, Ont. – National Pines Golf Club
Junior boys squad
- Willy Bishop | Victoria, B.C. – Victoria Golf Club
- Félix Bouchard | Otterburn Park, Que. – Club de golf de la Vallée du Richelieu
- Malik Dao | Notre-Dame-de-l’Île-Perrot, Qué. – Summerlea Golf & Country Club
- Ashton McCulloch | Kingston, Ont. – Cataraqui Golf & Country Club
- Owen Mullen | Shortts Lake, N.S. – Truro Golf Club
- JP Parr | St-Célestin, Qué. – Club de golf Ki-8-eb Golf
- Hunter Thomson | Calgary, Alta. – Glencoe Golf & Country Club