His start was a bit shaky at the BC Mid-Amateur & Mid-Masters Championship in Sicamous – four over par after six holes. But after a chat with himself, Greg Koster got down to business and was leading the June 27-29 tournament after 27 holes.
“My chipping and putting weren’t helping me too much, but tee-to-green was as good as I can do,” the Courtenay golfer said. “I had a good chance of winning the 25-and-over as well. I was playing in the final group with two guys who were trying to win that, so I was pretty focussed on trying to win the whole thing. Late in the round, with a few holes left, I realized I had fallen behind by a couple of shots.”
But Koster made a few pars, won the 40-and-over division, and finished fourth overall. He shot rounds of 74, 70 and 73 at the challenging Hyde Mountain on Mara Lake Golf Course.
“I certainly had my chances the last day to win it all. Just didn’t make any putts, and unfortunately that’s all the difference was. Just a few six-footers.
“I hadn’t played that tournament in a few years,” added Koster, who won the event when he turned 40. “It was good to get back into it.”
His next big tournament is the Canadian Mid-Am and Masters Championships, Aug. 21-24 at the Victoria Golf Club in Oak Bay.
“That’s one of the oldest, richest-in-tradition golf courses Canada has. It’s a treat to play there. Right on the ocean. It’s a bit Pebble Beach-like, the way it goes right down to the water’s edge for a couple of holes. And it’s always quite windy.”
Over the course of his career, Koster has won more than 110 amateur golf tournaments, and set several course scoring records. At past nationals, he has registered second-, fifth- and sixth-place finishes, usually with the B.C. team. In one of those tournaments, he tied a course record in Quebec that had stood for 39 years. That course had hosted a Canadian Open, back when the PGA tournament attracted the likes of Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Gary Player.
“They played at the same course that I went to for the Canadian Mid-Am. I had the best round of my life. It wasn’t the lowest score ever, but it was a tough course. I shot eight-under-par. I didn’t win that year, but I was right up there in Canada, and tied a course record that was pretty prestigious.”
Another memorable win came at the B.C. Mid-Am in Cowichan when his father Gerry was a member of the club.
“He taught me to play and everything else, and was caddying for me that week, so that was pretty special.”
Koster has represented B.C. on several occasions throughout Canada and the U.S. He has competed at the Mexican nationals in Mexico City, and in Peru on a couple of occasions. He was also part of a winning two-man team at an international event in Bogota, Colombia.
“B.C. has been a fantastic place to be an amateur golfer,” said Koster, whose home course is the Sunnydale Golf Club. “It’s been a lot of fun.”