Cabot Links
INVERNESS, N.S. – Two leading golfers on the professional circuit praised the Cabot Links golf course in Cape Breton on Monday before playing a special match there.
Graham DeLaet and Graeme McDowell went head-to-head at the course in Inverness.
Both pros said prior to competing that the Cabot Links course has the potential to host a PGA tour stop.
McDowell, the No. 9-ranked player in the world, won the 2010 U.S. Open championship and was part of the European Ryder Cup team.
DeLaet, of Weyburn, Sask., is the top Canadian player on the tour with seven, top-10 finishes this season.
WATCH: Pro golfers tee it up at Cabot Links in Nova Scotia
McDowell won the match against DeLaet with a 5 under par, a new course record.
DeLaet shot a 2 under par.
"I can't think of any reason why a golf course like this couldn't host a really big event," McDowell said before the match started.
"I've played the Canadian Open in Toronto this year and really enjoyed it and I know we're going to Royal Montreal next year ... We'd love to see more great events coming to this part of the world."
DeLaet said as a Canadian he enjoys playing in different locations around the country.
"It would be pretty special to come out here and play a championship on a golf course like this," he said.
For McDowell, a native of Portrush, Ireland, Cabot Links had familiar surroundings.
"When I opened the curtains of my hotel this morning, it almost made me feel like I was at home at the north coast of Ireland," he said.
"It has that Scottish/Irish feel to it. It's a very authentic links. It looks the part. It's very tough to replicate this type of look. It's been tried all over the world inland and it's tough to replicate this type of look, this kind of surface, these type of grasses."
The two golfers had a large gallery follow them as they played, while film crews were shooting the pros and the course for a future television production.