The Portage Golf Club has crowned its 2025 champions, with 16-year-old Logan Cairns capturing his first Junior Boys title after a competitive weekend on the course.<\/p>\n
Cairns says he went into the event with a solid shot at the win, knowing his main competition would be familiar faces.<\/p>\n
The Portage junior field may be small, but it\u2019s tight-knit. Cairns notes that being friends doesn\u2019t dull the competitive edge.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re all friends and there\u2019s only three of us as juniors, so it\u2019s pretty competitive. We all want to be the best junior at Portage, but I\u2019d like to think we\u2019re all around the same.\u201d<\/p>\n
While his win came on home turf, Cairns adds that he has tested his skills elsewhere, including the MacGregor Golf Club where he came up one stroke short in their junior open.<\/p>\n
Committed to improvement<\/p>\n
Balancing practice with fun is part of his approach, but Cairns remarks that the club\u2019s limited practice facilities can make things tricky.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m trying to get more\u00a0 practice time out there. It\u2019s kind of hard because we don\u2019t have a good practice area. We just have a little practice green, so I\u2019m just trying to get out there, putt, chip, and just work on my game.\u201d<\/p>\n
That commitment extends to addressing weaknesses quickly.<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter the first day of Club Championship, I wasn\u2019t satisfied with how I putted. So I went out, me and my dad went over and we just putted for a bit. I put some tees up for my putter and just worked on it,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
Cairns golfs four or five times a week at the Portage course, and when it comes to memorable shots, he mentions one stands out.<\/p>\n
\u201cProbably a chip in from 80 yards. I\u2019ve done it a couple times and it\u2019s a pretty good feeling.\u201d<\/p>\n
Looking ahead to high school season<\/p>\n
As a student at Portage Collegiate Institute, Cairns continues to represent his school on the golf team.<\/p>\n
He remarks that this year will bring new challenges.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn my first year playing, we were pretty strong, we were pretty good. Now it\u2019s getting harder because the good players are leaving. I think this year we\u2019ll have a good chance.\u201d<\/p>\n
When asked if golf might have a future beyond high school, Cairns says that\u2019s exactly what he hopes.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to do something with golf,\u201d he noted.<\/p>\n
2025 club champions crowned<\/p>\n
Alongside Cairns\u2019 Junior Boys win, Lindsey Jordan took the Ladies division with a score of 154, while Melanie Dickenson captured the Senior Ladies title with 198. Brooke Henderson claimed the Junior Girls championship at 186.<\/p>\n
For Cairns, though, the weekend is one to remember, not for his best-ever score, but for the milestone.<\/p>\n
\u201cFirst time I\u2019ve ever won anything for golf,\u201d he mentions.<\/p>\n
– with files by Ryan Simpson<\/p>\n