Hamilton, ONTARIO (July 25, 2001) - Lorie Kane of Charlottetown, PEI set records for lowest total score and lowest 18-hole score en route to her fifth Whirlpool Canadian PGA Women's Championship presented by Aquafina and Bank of Montreal Wednesday at the Glendale Golf & Country Club in Hamilton, Ontario.

Kane jumped out to a quick start with birdies at the first three holes and carded a 9-under par 63 to finish the championship at 13-under par, ten strokes ahead of runner-up A.J. Eathorne of Penticton, B.C. That broke the old championship record of 10-under par set by Kane back in 1999 at the Ladies‚ Golf Club of Toronto.

Her two-day total score of 131 also broke the record of 132 she established in 1999 as well. The 63 broke the lowest 18-hole championship score set just last year when A.J. Eathorne of Penticton, B.C. shot a 64 in the opening round of the championship at the Burlington Golf & Country Club.

Eathorne, who started the final round one shot off the lead, fired a final round of even par to finish in second place. The largets margin of victory in this championship is eleven strokes set by Cathy Sherk of Niagara Falls, Ontario in 1987.

Amateur Andrea Makauskas of Toronto finished in sole possession of third place at two-over par with rounds of 73-73. Fellow amateur Alena Sharp of Hamilton tied for fourth place with Kareen Qually of Calgary, Alberta. Qually‚s round was highlited by a hole-in-one at the 183-yard par-3 fourth hole to finish at 4-over par for the championship.

Claudia Beauchesne of Montreal was the top Quebec golfer, finishing in a tie for 20th. Mary Lee Cobick of Amos was one shot back.

Kane collects $13,000 for the victory along with a full set of premium Whirlpool appliances. Sandra Comadina of Vancouver, BC was honoured as the Low Club Professional and awarded three Whirlpool appliances along with her winning cheque of $1,795.

The Whirlpool Canadian PGA Women's Championship was the final event on the 2001 Bank of Montreal Canadian Women's Tour that included stops in Calgary and Montreal.

Seven players from the Tour were awarded exemptions into the Bank of Montreal Canadian Women's Open August 16-19 at Angus Glen Golf Club in Markham, Ontario.

The seven players include Kareen Qually of Calgary, Alberta, Susan Wright of Edmonton, Alberta, Andrea Maskauskas (amateur) of Toronto, Ontario, Deborah Lee Eldridge of Dundas, Ontario, Lanie Cahill of Brockville, Ontario, Carrie Vaughan of Rothesay, New Brunswick and Mary-Lee Cobick of Amos, Quebec.

Bank of Montreal, Canada's first bank, is a highly diversified financial services institution. The Bank operates more than 30 lines of business within its group of companies, including BMO Nesbitt Burns, one of Canada's largest full-service investment firms, and Chicago-based Harris Bank, a major US mid-west financial services provider.

Last October, the bank announced its title sponsorship of the Bank of Montreal Canadian Women's Open and, in May 2001, expanded its golf sponsorship to include the Canadian Women's Tour and Future Links, a grassroots program to develop golfing skills among junior golfers.

Whirlpool Home Appliances are supplied by Whirlpool Canada, the nation's largest supplier of major home appliances and a subsidiary of Whirlpool Corporation, the number one home appliance manufacturer in the world. Whirlpool Canada sells products under the brand names Whirlpool, KitchenAid, Inglis and Roper, and is a major supplier of Kenmore appliances to Sears Canada, the country's leading retailer.