Gander’s Blair Bursey birdied his final hole Thursday to finish with a one-under par 71, a score that puts him in the top half of the field after the opening round of the MacKenzie Investments Open in Ile Bizard, Que, just outside if Montreal.
The Open is an event on the MacKenzie Tour, the PGA’s top professional circuit in Canada. It’s also the first MacKenzie Tour event that the 22-year-old Bursey has qualified for during this, his first year as a pro. The Newfoundlander failed to qualify in three Tour events earlier this season, although he did play in the Steele Jaguar Pro-Am in Halifax on a sponsors’ exemption.
Bursey just failed to make the two-round cut in Halifax, missing the mark by a single stroke. To avoid a similar fate at the Elm Ridge course at Ile Blizard, he will probably need to duplicate his performance Thursday or be even better.
His first-round score, the result of four birdies, a bogey and a double bogey, puts him in a tie for 68th in the field of 144 golfers. The top 60 scores, plus ties, will survive the cut after today’s second round.
