12 teenagers are dreaming day and night about the Junior Presidents Cup. The grand stage for leading amateurs, presented in conjunction with the Presidents Cup, will open on September 23. There is one little snag, however. The Canadian government is apparently reluctant to grant the visas. 

The International team captain and Canadian former PGA Tour pro, Graham DeLaet, tweeted that he was unable to bring his team to the country. “In 3 weeks I’m headed to Montreal to captain the Int Team for the Jr Presidents Cup. I am embarrassed to say that so far the Canadian government is making it impossible for our kids to get visas to come play in a globally important AMATEUR tournament. Can anyone help these kids?” 

It is unclear why the Canadian government is blocking the visas. The 42-year-old didn’t reveal any further details. The Junior Presidents Cup is hosted four days before the Presidents Cup. 24 top amateurs, Americans, and non-Europeans will travel to Montreal.

The two-day match play event will be hosted at the Blue Course at Le Club Laval-sur-le-Lac. The American team already boasts of ‘heavyweights’ like Miles Russell, and Blades Brown, both of who already have a PGA Tour experience under their belts. 

Last year, the USA edged past the International Team thanks to a late charge (13-11). It is not yet known if any of the American players have also been mired in trouble. Nevertheless, Canada’s move to block visas for players and delay their arrivals has infuriated Americans and Canadians alike. 

Canadian govt. slammed by golf fans after DeLaet’s plea for help

Unlike the Presidents Cup, where the captain has six picks, he can only pick one player in the Junior iteration. The top ten players from the world amateur golf ranking (from the eligible countries) fill the first batch. One spot is reserved for the host country’s top player among those 10. One spot is filled by the top-ranked player in the WAGR (otherwise not eligible). 

Unsurprisingly, many were shocked that despite their hard-earned spot, their dream was on the verge of ending up in smoke. One user tweeted, “These kids have earned the right to play in this!” Another straightway termed it as “a disgrace” for the country’s government.

DeLaet was himself embarrassed at the current fiasco. As were many Canadians. One of them commented, “Our government is an embarrassment.” Another user wrote the officials will be the first to forget all the hassle they created if the team wins. “But win and they will be the first to congratulate you!”

This is only the fourth edition of the tournament. Nevertheless, like the Junior Ryder Cup, this is another platform where the upcoming stars can showcase their talents. So one fan wrote, “I know it’s not the main event but surely when you pitch to hold a tournament you have to let the players into the country at all levels of the competition.”

But it’s not just golf that’s facing the problem. Reportedly, the very famous Ottawa Marathon organizers face a similar quandary. The two-day running event, hosted on the 4th weekend of May, has seven races that start and end at the Ottawa City Hall. One of the coordinators tweeted, “As the Ottawa Marathon elite coordinator we struggle with this”

Graham DeLaet has also asked people in power for help from his X (formerly Twitter) handle. Clearly, DeLaet doesn’t want his team to worry about visa problems when there is already a lot of pressure because of the stature of the Presidents Cup.