LAKEFIELD, Ont. - The No. 9 ranked Durham College men's golf team will look to reach the podium this week at the Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) golf championship. The scheduled 54-hole tournament runs Monday through Wednesday at the Wildfire Golf Club in Lakefield, Ont., and is hosted by Fleming College.

Durham College is coming off a victory on Friday in the inaugural DC/UOIT Presidents Cup over the UOIT Ridgebacks at the Oshawa Golf and Curling Club. Led by sport management major Brent Clements (Pickering, Ont.), the Lords won the title in a two-hole playoff.

The Lords are hoping that the Presidents Cup victory is not the highlight of their season, as they look to medal and qualify for the CCAA national championship that is scheduled to run from Oct. 15-17 in Loretteville, Que.

If the Lords' results leading into the championship are any indication on how they will fair, the team has a great shot of accomplishing their goals. Durham won the DC Open and finished in third place at the Fanshawe Invitational, while Clements has been atop of the leaderboard in two of four tournaments.

Humber enters the championship as the eight-time defending OCAA men's team champions. The Hawks tied the all-time OCAA record for consecutive championships in one sport, and can win the record outright with another banner this week.

Golfers will represent 17 Ontario college campuses, including Centennial, Confederation, Durham, Fanshawe, Fleming, Georgian, Humber, Lakehead (Orillia), Lambton, Mohawk, Niagara, St. Clair, St. Lawrence (Brockville, Cornwall and Kingston), Sault and Seneca. It marks the first time Lakehead will participate in an OCAA varsity event since joining the association in 2013.

The tournament consists of three 18-hole rounds, weather permitting. The male and female player posting the lowest gross score through 54 holes will earn their respective individual championship.

Men's teams consist of four or five golfers, with the top four individual scores of each round contributing to the total team score. Women's teams consist of two or three golfers, with the top two individual scores of each round contributing to their total score. Schools with the lowest aggregate of gross scores after 54 holes win the respective team titles.

Wildfire Golf Club is located in the heart of Ontario's picturesque Kawartha cottage country. Opening in August, 2003 on the shores of scenic Stoney Lake, the spectacular 18-hole, 6,745-yard layout designed by noted Canadian architect Tom McBroom.

OCAA golfers will participate in a practice round on Sunday before teeing off for real on Monday. A tournament banquet on Tuesday will feature Olympic rower Jeremiah Brown as a guest speaker. Brown won an Olympic silver medal at the 2012 London Olympics as part of the men's eights for Canada.

Daily results at the championships will be available online via the championship website and OCAA.com.

Championship Website: gao.bluegolf.com/bluegolf/gao14/event/gao14310/index.htm

Wildfire Golf Club Website: www.matchplaygolfmarketing.com/WILDFIRE/index.html

Jeremiah Brown's Website: www.jeremiahspeaks.com

DURHAM LORDS ROSTER
Adam Hobb (Marketing)
Ben Reid (Business)
Bill Irvine (Project Management)
Brent Clements (Sport Management)
Craig Conroy (Marketing)
Matthew Perras (Golf & Facility Management)

Source: Durham College with files from OCAA Communications

Photo Credit: Al Fournier