Just read that Big Break PEI that was filmed at Mill River in PEI in Canada is airing April 20th. Nothing yet on GC's site, but the contestants have been announced. There are 6 men and 6 women: Aaron Wright, Brenda McLarnon, Eugene Smith, Gerina Mendoza, Robert Read, Caroline Larsson, Derek Gillespie, Nicole Sikora, William Thompson, Blair O’Neal, Brian Skatell and Kim Kouwabunpat.

Do you know any of them? I'm trying to figure out who I should try and interview after the shows. I definitely want to connect with my fellow Canuck, but after him, who knows???

Golfgal

Here's a handicapping link:

http://golf-babes.blogspot.com/2008/12/wom...g-break-xi.html

Actually, after following the Futures Tour last year the name that jumped out at me was Gerina Mendoza. She is a long hitter who finished high in many statistical categories, while making 15 of 17 cuts. I thought she had a chance to crack the top 10 on the money list but some of her final rounds were poor and she ended up 15th. Her scoring average of 72.60 was 10th, ahead of many players who did earn LPGA cards.

So many nice golf courses on PEI. New Brunswick and Nova Scotia as well. I was really excited to hear Big Break was coming to Canada let alone PEI. Crowbush Cove is my favorite course on PEI. Just a great golfing experience.

http://scoregolf.com/blog/bob-weeks/2008/A...ming-to-PEI.cfm

This just in...all the bios from the Golf Channel. I updated them on my blog, but here they are as well:
Kim Kouwabunpat (27, Upland, Calif.) – Focused and driven, Kouwabunpat (pronounced “Kowa boon pat”) has the uncanny ability to pick herself up when she’s been knocked down. The former Stanford University golfer has played on professional tours all over the world in her attempt to make it to the LPGA Tour.

Caroline Larsson (24, Orlando, Fla.) – The Stockholm, Sweden, native is considered to be one of the most talented competitors in the field. An accomplished player on the Duramed FUTURES Tour over the last two years, she competed in the 2007 LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament.

Brenda McLarnon (25, Charleston, S.C.) – The Belfast, Ireland, native is brutally honest and outspoken, and brings humor and conflict to everything she does. Having played the Duramed FUTURES Tour the last three years, she learned the sacrifice it takes to play professional golf and is ready to capitalize on the hard-earned experience.

Gerina Mendoza (23, Roswell, N.M.) – Mendoza picked up the game in her late teens but is one of the most naturally gifted competitors in the series. A member of the Duramed FUTURES Tour, last year she competed in the LPGA Final Qualifying Tournament, where she missed the cut. With her length off the tee, Mendoza will be a force to be reckoned with in Big Break Prince Edward Island for both the ladies and men.

Blair O'Neal (27, Tempe, Ariz.) – A four-year starter at Arizona State University, she twice won the NCAA Long Drive Championship but has been out of professional golf since 2006 pursuing a modeling career. Before leaving the fairway for the runway, she competed on numerous Tours around the world.

Nicole Sikora (25, Yonkers, N.Y.) – Sikora may be the most inexperienced competitor on Big Break Prince Edward Island. After an unsuccessful rookie year on the DURAMED FUTURES Tour in 2007, she accepted a job on Wall Street as an executive assistant for a New York stock broker. Golf has taken a backseat, but now that her business career is on the fast track, she is slowly finding more time to re-devote to the game.

Derek Gillespie (30, Oshawa, Ontario) – The only Canadian in the cast, Gillespie was once labeled “the next great Canadian golfer” by fellow countryman and PGA TOUR professional Mike Weir. One of the most talented and experienced in the cast, Gillespie is looking to realize his dream of playing on the PGA TOUR after many years of missed opportunities and bad breaks.

Robert Read (30, Seekonk, Mass.) – Reid turned professional to play in Big Break Prince Edward Island. Read will use his humor and prodigious length to level the playing field. Quite the bomber, he has hit drives over 420 yards in long drive competitions.

Eugene Smith (30, Glen Ridge, N.J.) – Smith won the 2000 NCAA Big East Championship and later was the Seton Hall Athlete of the Year in 2001. The Canadian Tour veteran once shot 59 at his home course in New Jersey in a round that included a hole in one.

Brian Skatell (36, Virginia Beach, Va.) – A very confident player, Skatell prides himself on his meticulous work ethic and considers himself to be mentally strong. Though lacking the same amount of tournament experience as many of the other contestants, he firmly believes that even the best in the field can’t match his skill level.

William Thompson (22, Bracey, Va.) – A self-admitted and rather obvious country boy, William “Football” Thompson will be one of the most unique personalities in the cast. The youngest competitor, his Big Break experience will be a trial by fire.

Aaron Wright (31, Orlando, Fla.) – Wright put his dream of playing on the PGA TOUR on hold to serve a six-year tour of duty with the Marines, including a five-month stint in Afghanistan. In 2008, the United States Navel Academy graduate played the Hooters Tour and made the cut in a Nationwide Tour event. He lost to Tiger Woods 4&3 in the quarterfinal match of the 1992 U.S. Junior Amateur Championship.



Some pretty interesting looking characters don't you think?

not to mention Dunderave...that area of PEI is perhaps the best in canada

blaire sounds like my kind of girl. model/ golfer.. what more can you ask for?

as always...Awsi makes some good points. She's good and she was the player I was most worried about to knock my girl KW out of the top 10 last season. Also, she's fine if that matters to anyone.

For those struggling through the winter working on their swings I'll use Gerina as a form of inspiration. IIRC, her first year playing college golf, her avg score was 81. Sophmore year she dropped it to ~79, ~77, and finally ~73 by the time she graduated. Still hope for all of us out there!

Guillotine007, that was some great info about Gerina Mendoza.

BTW, speaking of KW -- Big Break Ka'anapali winner Kim Welch -- it's already obvious how uncertain the playing schedules can be for the 6-10 players on the Duramed money list, the ones who got low priority LPGA cards in Category 17. Song Yi Choi (#6) and Leah Wigger (#8), barely squeezed into the field for this week's season opening SBS Open at Turtle Bay in Hawaii. Sophia Sheridan (#9) is first alternate, and Kim Welch (#10) is second alternate. Jessica Shepley (#7) might have no showed, although that's tough to believe, and remarkably masochistic, considering she would have made the field.

When Kim dropped from 7th to 10th in the final weeks of the Duramed season, including missing the final cut to fall from 9th to 10th, she won a playing card but it may cost some starts.

http://www.lpga.com/content_1.aspx?mid=1&pid=18589

This week the priority number to make the field is in the 230s but that's considerably lower than it normally will be. I wonder if some players with low priority didn't bother to make the trip to Hawaii, thinking it would be a waste, but suddenly the "Last Player In" number dropped much lower than would have been forecast? Hound Dog, an excellent LPGA blogger, is going to chart that every week, the "Last Player In" and "First Player Out," based on the new priority list. His Last Player In, Tania Elosegui, might have no showed also. She's not listed in the final field.

http://www.hounddoglpga.com/2009/2/9/753728/sbs-open-preview

Nice to see this being taken place in Canada, and a Canadian playing

Good work as always, Gayle!!!

I can tell you right now I'm rooting for Kim Kouwabunpat. For one, I love to listen to announcers trying to pronounce Thai names and two, I'm two degrees (Kevin Bacon style) from Stanford's asst. coach.......hey, it's a reason.

Hopefully it's a great show!!!

Mike

I think it shows you just how much pressure there is on a show like the BB when a guy like James Nitties shows up on the PGA tour and plays as well as he has this year. I've always said how hard it would be to go out there ice cold and hit long irons into greens and some of the other challenges they have. I think a lot of people don't realize how good some of the players are that have been on that show that just dont look that great under BB circumstances. It should be a cool show...I'm sure someone on there can play.

I'll be rooting for Blair since I semi know her. I worked with a girl who played with her at ASU, and we all went out a few times. It will be cool to have a personal connection while watching this season of the 'break.

Met Gerina a few years ago when UTEP was recruiting my daughter, great young woman. My early pick to be the best female on the show.

i will actually watch this one. i have known Derek for a while now, and he definatly has the game, he is jsut a little volitile at times.

When was this filmed? is has not exactly been golfing weather up in Canada lately.....

Taping was during the last two weeks of September 2008.

Eugene Smith used to work at my club here in South Florida. He is now at another nearby course. He played in an event that I was in a few weeks ago and would divulge NOTHING about the Big Break. NOTHING!

He has no new clubs and still has his old car, so I made a comment to him about 'he must have played badly!'. He laughed and said that the prizes are not awarded until after the show airs for just that reason.

He's one heck of a player and looks 1/2 of his 30 years. I hope he did well, but we won't know until after it airs.

Dont froget about Newfoundland, they have a couple of beauties as well

Eugene is a good friend of mine. I've known he was on the show for a short time now and I can't wait to see it. Kid has SKILLS.