One thing’s for certain, the Winnipeg Jets don’t have to worry about Kyle Connor changing sports and becoming a professional golfer. Connor was able to participate last weekend in the Winnipeg based golf tournament on a sponsor’s exemption, just like Mark Scheifele did last summer.
It’s always fun to see how these types of events work out where the worlds of hockey and golf collide. Obviously Connor had no chance to really compete with the pros, but surely his task was to out-do his teammate Scheifele who finished with a +15, and +14 on his two rounds last year in the tournament.
Jets forward Kyle Connor met with the media this morning in advance of competing in this week’s @theplayerscup. #NHLJets pic.twitter.com/65FNXBWQXC
— Winnipeg Jets PR (@WpgJetsPR) August 14, 2019
Connor began the tournament with an atrocious start as he double-bogeyed hole one before triple-bogeying holes two and three. It wasn’t until hole seven that Connor was able to nab his first par, although he was already +14 by that point.
Tough start for #NHLJets Kyle Connor at Players Cup. 2 triple bogeys & 2 double bogeys & he's at +11 thru just 5 holes.
— Russ Hobson (@russ_sportsguy) August 15, 2019
The nerves began to settle down on the back nine as Connor was able to shoot +6 on the final nine holes. Connor finished round one with a score of 94 (+22) which was quite a bit worse than Scheifele’s round from a year ago.
After day one, Connor was hoping to reset and have a solid outing in round two.
Unfortunately, Connor didn’t fare too well in round number two either as he finished the second round with a +18. Although the round was an improvement over the first one, the real highlight of the weekend came on the 11th hole as Connor was able to score his only birdie of the weekend. It was a 215 yard par three that Connor was able to hit the green and knock down the putt.
It was evident that there was a large skill gap between Connor and the rest of the field as the nearest golfer to Connor finished 21 strokes better than him. That comes as no surprise as this event is meant for professional golfers who are trying to work their way to the PGA tour. Despite finishing at the bottom, it was still a positive experience for Connor who enjoyed the event.
Kyle Connor enjoys experience at Players Cup in Winnipeg.
— Winnipeg Jets (@NHLJets) August 16, 2019
Although Connor spoke to the media and didn’t give anything away in regards to his contract status, showing up to an event like this does provide some reassurance that a deal is going to get done sooner rather than later
