Ottawa Valley Golf Association
Hall of Fame
Eric Kaufmanis
Inducted: 2021
Category: Player (Amateur)
Born: 1960
Birthplace: Toronto
Golf Club Affiliation(s):
Royal Ottawa, Rideau View, Glenlea
Canadian Championships:
1977 - Canadian Juvenile
Provincial Championships:
1972 - Quebec Mosquito
1974 - Quebec Pee Wee
1977 - Quebec Juvenile
1978 - Quebec Junior
Local Championships:
1976 - OVGA City & District Junior
1976, 1977, 1978, 1985 - OVGA City & District
1979 - OVGA 4 Ball
1985 - OVGA Match Play
Awards:
1975, 1976, 1977, 1978 - ACT / Ottawa Sports Award - Golf
Flagstick Golf Magazine Photo
The Royal Canadian Golf Association, now Golf Canada, created a Juvenile Championship in 1970 for junior golfers aged 16 years of age and younger. The Jack Bailey trophy, named for a long-time supporter of junior golf in Canada, was put in play in 1970.
After two consecutive runner-up finishes in 1975 and 1976, Eric Kaufmanis, playing out of the Royal Ottawa Golf Club in Gatineau, Quebec was awarded the Jack Bailey trophy for his Canadian Juvenile Championship win in 1977 at the Cooke Municipal Golf Club in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan.
"It is definitely nice to be able to say I won a National championship", said Eric. "I recall it being a cool weather week in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. My opening round was indifferent, but I finished with three solid rounds to win. The ceremony afterwards involved Prince Alberta native, John Diefenbaker, who presented me with the trophy."
Eric also spoke highly of the local OVGA tournaments - "They were always friendly events as everyone knew each other so well. In the 1970s, the courses we played were generally the finest ones in the area and the three-day City and District championship was a premiere event."
Eric moved to Vancouver in 1989 to practise law and has only played casually since then. But as he says, "I still love the game."
Eric married Lisa Colby in 1990 and they have two daughters – Sophie born in 1992 and Juliana born in 1994.
Eric Kaufmanis profile information from 2021 Spring Edition of Flagstick Golf Magazine