| Dustin Risdon Moves Up In 2009 |
 Dustin Risdon Is On The Rise As He Plays The Nationwide Tour In Search Of A Route To The PGA Tour - Image Courtesy CanTour OAKVILLE, Ont. - Dustin Risdon is a talent-rich Canadian who surprised no one when he moved up to the Nationwide Tour in 2009. Armed with a deadly short game, it was only a matter of when, not if, that he would graduate to the next level. Before he did that, however, the laid-back 27 year old captured his second Canadian Tour event – this one just a long iron from where he was born. With Cottonwood CC just south of Calgary giving up birdies at seemingly every hole, Risdon opened with rounds of 67-62-65 before winning the ATB Financial Classic in a playoff over George Bradford. He and Bradford finished regulation at 20 under par 264, but it was Risdon’s 7-iron to two feet at the first playoff hole that landed him the victory. Bradford had it to eight under after 11 holes before cooling off somewhat in the blistering heat but his 63 had him in the clubhouse early. Both Risdon and Bradford split the fairway with their tee shots on the first extra hole, but while Risdon landed to almost tap-in range with his second, Bradford left himself with a 60-footer. “That was one of the best shots I’ve ever hit,” said Risdon of his approach shot at the first extra hole. To win in front of the home crowd really feels special. I don’t know, maybe the golf gods were with me this week.” “I missed a couple of three-footers early and never felt confident all week with the putter.” Kris Wasylowich briefly pulled into the lead on the back nine when Risdon bogeyed two holes late in the round to drop a shot back. “I made bogeys at 14 and 15 and lost the lead for a while and when that happened, I figured I had lost the tournament,” said Risdon. “I told my caddy that and she said that we’ll just have to win the hard way today. Standing at the 17th tee, I watched as Kris (Wasylowich) hit his tee shot to about 12 feet. "When I hit mine, I thought I put it in the bunker so I sort of turned away in disgust. I figured that if Kris makes his birdie and I don’t, it is game over.” Instead of landing in the bunker, Risdon’s tee shot took a fortuitous hop, hit the pin, and landed six feet away from the hole. He then sank the clutch putt to move back into a share of the lead after Wasylowich missed his birdie effort. Both Wasylowich and Risdon pulled their tee shots into the left rough on the final hole of regulation and a three way playoff, or perhaps an outright victory by Bradford, seemed imminent. Wasylowich dumped his approach left of the pin in the rough and failed to get up and down for par. Risdon’s second shot left him about eight feet for the win. With the hushed gallery looking on, he missed by about two inches left and he and Bradford went to a playoff. The next week in Saskatoon, Risdon opened with a 66 and eventually finished T-10 and followed it two weeks later with a T-2 at the Players Cup. His strong season earned him a spot in his first PGA TOUR event - the RBC Canadian Open. Risdon thrilled Canadian fans when he made the cut and continued to do so when he advanced to the final stage of Q-School to earn Nationwide status. At the Panama Digicel Championship earlier this month, he shot steady rounds of 70-71-67-70 to finish T-10 in his Tour debut as a full time member. |
