Rob Couture wins Men’s Mid-Master division; Team Manitoba won Inter-Provincial Team Championship on Wednesday
BRANTFORD, Ont. – Garrett Rank came from behind to win his fifth national championship at the 2026 Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship, presented by BDO by one shot at Brantford Golf & Country Club in Brantford, Ont. on Friday.
Rank of Waterloo, Ont. entered the final round two shots behind Evan Nachtigall of Brandon, Man. Rank birdied hole no. 1 to get within one shot of Nachtigall, on the third hole Nachtigall bogeyed to sit tied with Rank. From there Rank and Nachtigall exchanged the lead back and forth throughout the round.
“I was just trying to get off to a good start, I hit two good shots on hole one and made birdie, I was able to kind of close the gap there through first four holes and it kind of flip flopped a little there in the middle,” said Rank.
Rank and Nachtigall were tied at 18-under heading into the final hole. Rank’s par coupled with a bogey from Nachtigall, secured Rank’s fourth Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship.
“He hit in in the left bunker on 18, so I figured birdie was probably going to win, I hit it down the right side and didn’t have a great lie in the rough, but I was able to advance it near the green,” said Rank. “I was trying not to fool around with the bunker short so I was trying to hit it a little closer than I did but as soon as I saw my ball was on the back of the green, I knew it was a good time for lag putt to try and two putt, and luckily enough I was able to make the six footer at the end to win,” added Rank.
Rank finished the final round with a 3-under 69 to finish the tournament at 18-under. With the win, Rank earned his fifth national championship closing with rounds of 64-68-69-69-270, carding two eagles and 22 birdies through four rounds. Nachtigall shot an even par 72 to finish at 17-under with rounds of 64-67-68-72-271.
“I think just staying patient, I was trying to hit solid approach shots and give myself a look on the greens, I hit good drives on the par 5’s and wasn’t able to capitalize with birdies but I kind of just stuck with it, it wasn’t pretty golf all day but it was fairly efficient.
“It probably didn’t feel as good as the round yesterday or the day before but it was the same score so that is the secret sometimes, just being able to put a good score on the board when you don’t have your best stuff,” added Rank on what the key to success was throughout the final round.
Rank’s previous Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship wins came three years in a row from 2014-2016.
“It’s a huge honour, winning a golf tournament is never easy, to do it four times is pretty special, I think it’s been 10 years since I last did it so to do it close to home in a place like Brantford is something that I will remember for the rest of my life,” he added.
Along with four Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championships, Rank also won the 2012 Canadian College / University Individual Championship. Throughout Rank’s golf career he has acquired a lot of experience through many high-performance events.
“I’ve played in some big events before, I played a couple PGA TOUR events, I played in the U.S. Open and have won the national championship before so I definitely think that was an advantage in knowing that I have the pedigree to kind of lean on those experiences, it definitely helped in the end.”
Along with winning the Canadian Men’s Mid Amateur Championship trophy, Rank also receives an exemption into the 2026 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship at Sand Valley Resort in Nekoosa, Wis. from September 26 – October 1, as well as a spot in the field for the 2027 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship, and the 2027 Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship, both presented by BDO.
Rob Couture of Celina, Texas won the Mid-Master title after finishing 10-under through four rounds to win by one shot over Alex Larg of Dead Mans Flats, Alta. This is Couture’s second Mid-Master division title, after winning in 2016, He also won the Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur champion in 2011.
On Wednesday, Team Manitoba won their first Inter-Provincial Team Championship since 2005, beating Team Alberta by four strokes. Team Manitoba was represented by Nachtigall (Brandon, Man.), Jordy Lutz (Winnipeg, Man.), and David Spurr (Oakbank, Man.).
Team Manitoba finished with a score of 15-under through two rounds, while Team Alberta finished second at 11-under, and Team Quebec finished third at 7-under.
To view the final leaderboard from the 2026 Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur Championship, presented by BDO, please click here.
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