A year ago to the day, Winnipeg golf star Adam Speirs was asked to point out an unheralded dark horse for the Players Cup at Pine Ridge.

He didn’t even think about it.

“Graham DeLaet,” Speirs said, a seemingly odd choice at the time because the then-second-year tour pro from Weyburn, Sask., hadn’t finished better than 20th in 2008 and had missed as many cuts as he’d made.

DeLaet played two rounds at Pine Ridge and went home, leaving Speirs’ words to come true just a few weeks late.

August saw the former Saskatchewan Amateur champ win the Montreal Open and finish second the next week in Ontario, then finish second over the Labour Day weekend in the Tour Championship.

The 27-year-old didn’t stop there.

He played for Canada at the World Cup with defending Players Cup champ Wes Heffernan, then early in the new year went to the South African Tour and had a couple of runner-up finishes early and was never worse than 12th.

Back on the Canadian Tour in 2009, DeLaet has been second, first and third in his last three events, making him somebody to keep an eye on this week at Pine Ridge.

“I always knew I had it in me, but last year, up until this week, I had been really struggling,” DeLaet said before Tuesday’s wet pro-am round at Pine Ridge. “You go through that in the game of golf sometimes, but I knew I had it in me.

“When I got the win in Montreal, it started a streak of confidence I’ve been rolling with ever since. There have been ups and downs, too, but in general, after the win, I really felt I had what it takes to win out here.”

Convincing himself he was a winner was the hardest part.

“You always think you have what it takes, but until you actually do it, you just don’t have that full momentum and feeling,” he said. “Now I expect to win, even though I won’t every week, and I feel if I play well I’ll be in the hunt on Sunday.”

Not only is it not bold, it’s not news to Speirs.

“He is the best ball-striker I’ve ever played with, and I’ve played with some good ones,” Speirs said. “He hits the ball better than anyone I’ve played with, and I’m a pretty good ball-striker myself.”

Speirs, reminded of his prediction last July, said he’s not surprised in the least by what has taken place since.

“And I won’t be surprised at what happens in the next year,” he said.

DeLaet admitted to surprising himself in South Africa early in the year.

“I left Jan. 3, hit balls in Las Vegas for just one day before I left, so I didn’t have any expectations,” he said. “I hadn’t played any golf in a month, but I happened to play well in the first week, so it was the same thing — I had some confidence going.”

All the recent additions to his resumé, including the Canadian Tour win in Calgary three weeks ago, has earned him an exemption to play next week’s RBC Canadian Open at Glen Abbey.

“I’m obviously extremely excited about the Open… for the money — that’s a huge purse — and also to see where I’m at against the world’s best,” DeLaet said. “This week, I’m here to try to win the golf tournament. If I don’t, I’ll be OK with that, but I want four solid rounds and if I do that, I should be in the mix on Sunday.”

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/sports/golf/wins–confidence–more-wins-50836967.html

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