Osoyoos set to host B.C.'s first Indigenous golf tournament

First Nations, Métis and Inuit athletes will have a chance to compete in the inaugural Indigenous Golf Championship of British Columbia this May at the Nk'Mip Canyon Desert Golf Course in the south Okanagan, about 100 kilometres south of Kelowna. 

The tournament is a partnership between the Office of the Lieutenant-Governor of B.C. and the Osoyoos Indian Band, which owns the course.

Christina Proteau, a competitive golfer and chair of the organizing committee, says she's looking forward to blending competition and reconciliation at the same event.

"This has been in the making for a number of years," she said. 

"On a personal level, if we can get more exposure for the game of golf in our communities and with members of our society that may not have traditionally been engaged with the game of golf, that's a huge piece of this."  

The championship will see 128 men, women and youth compete and play together from May 28 to May 30. Participants must register before April 28.

The youth division will serve as the final qualifying round for golfers under 19 vying to represent B.C. at the North American Indigenous Games in Halifax this July.

The idea for the tournament came from Patrick Kelly, past chair of B.C. Golf and member of the Leq:amel First Nation, and Steven Point, former lieutenant governor of B.C. and Skowkale First Nation member.

"I think the potential for the growth of golf in the Indigenous community is quite extensive," said Kelly.

"We've got just about 200,000 Indigenous peoples in B.C. and almost 60 per cent are 24 years and under. I'd say the potential for attracting more Indigenous people to the game of golf is very high."

Ontario held its first Indigenous golf championship last year, and tournaments both there and in B.C. will qualify golfers to compete in a national event this fall at Bear Mountain Resort in Langford on Vancouver Island.