BLAINVILLE, Québec—It was a cool, overcast day in Blainville, Québec but Blair Bursey powered through the inclement weather.

Starting in the first group of the day, the Gander, Newfoundland native set the pace firing a 6-under round of 66, good for a two-shot lead at the Mackenzie Investments Open which marks the first stop on the 2021 Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada schedule.

“I was fortunate today to get off to a good start,” said Bursey. “I hit some good shots early and then missed a few but things kind of progressed as the round went along so it was a good snowball effect.”

The 24-year-old saved the best for last making birdie on three of the last four holes finishing up with a 32 on the back nine as the rain began to fall.

“It was good to get a few coming in,” said Bursey. “I’ll get some rest, come back tomorrow, see how the weather shakes out and be ready to go.”

Aurora, Ontario’s Marc Casullo made a late afternoon charge and sits just two shots off the lead despite finishing with a bogey on his 18^th hole. Consistency was the key to his game.

“I didn’t really get hot,” said Casullo. “I made a lot of pars and made birdies when I could.”

Playing in his home province, Keven Fortin-Simard made four birdies on his first seven holes en route to a 3-under round of 69 and currently sits in a tie for third.

“I hit the ball great and made it easy on myself,” said the St-Prime native. “I gave myself some close looks and a lot of straight putts and that made it quite easy from the start.”

Overall, 44 Quebecers are present at Le Blainvillier this week. In addition to Fortin-Simard, Sonny Michaud of Québec City is tied for 11th at -1, Brandon Lacasse of Châteauguay and Baptiste Mory of Québec City are tied for 16th having played the par (72). Michaud got off to a rough start with a +2 front nine including a double on the 9th. However, he recovered on the back nine with three birdies.

The best card for a Québec amateur was recorded by Louis-François Carpentier, who sits in 44th place at +2.

Round two of the Mackenzie Investments Open begins on Friday morning at 7:15 am. After its completion, the top 50 scores and ties (pros and amateurs), including a minimum of 50 golf professionals, will advance to the weekend rounds. The cut is currently projected at +2.

Key Information

• Former Montréal Canadiens Donald Audette (a) is playing in the field and shot an opening round of 79 (+7).
• Only 15 players managed to break par at Club de golf Le Blainvillier in the opening round.
• The projected cut sits at +2.
• The top 5 players on the final points list will earn 2022 PGA TOUR Canada membership. First place on the points list will receive fully exempt status for the 2022 PGA TOUR Canada season, 2^nd-5^th will earn exempt status up until the first reshuffle.

Quotable

“There are some narrow landing areas on the golf course, more than most of us are probably used to playing. This helps level the playing field because it forces everyone into the same position and requires more mid-length approaches instead of being able to hit driver and wedges.” – Blair Bursey

“I haven’t played a tournament in a long time so it feels great to be back out. Today I focused on taking it easy and enjoying the moment.” – Linus Lo

“I made a really long birdie putt on hole 3 which built confidence early. The biggest thing during the round was to make sure I stuck to my game plan which translated into making putts.” – Linus Lo

“I’ve played this golf course so many times, dating back to my first Quebec Amateur Championship. This is the first time I have played it this soft which makes for a lot of birdie chances. You still have to pick your spots because it is the type of course that can bite really quickly if you’re not careful.” - Keven Fortin-Simard

First-Round Weather:

Rainy and cool. High of 19 C (66 F). Wind WNW at 9 mph. Light breeze.