Brooke Henderson’s name strikes fear into top players, and more bits and bites from the golf world

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This article was published 26/04/2021 (1965 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Bits, Bites and Barbs from around the world of golf:

Bits

Big fan of the team event in New Orleans, but wish it was somewhere else on the schedule so that it would draw bigger names. A Jordan Spieth/Justin Thomas squad? Maybe Rory McIlroy/Sergio Garcia? Dustin Johnson/Phil Mickelson? More top players should embrace it … The golf equivalent of the baseball fan who stands up and roars for a routine fly ball is the one who’s basically amazed anytime a golf ball gets airborne. Shots that were never going to come close to hitting the green were getting roars at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans … Actually let’s give those knuckleheads a break. It must be so exhilarating to be attending a live sporting event again. And it was New Orleans… … This must be a mistake. According to statistics on its website, there are currently 14 women on the Symetra Tour, the LPGA Tour’s minor leagues, who are averaging 290-plus yards in driving distance. There is only one player doing that on the LPGA Tour … Among those Symetra Tour players is Quebec’s Maude-Aimee Leblanc, who finished tied for second last week, her second such result this season. Leblanc, who walked away from competitive golf in 2019, is third on the tour’s money list.

Bites

Moving to the ongoing saga in Ontario, where golf courses remain closed under Premier Doug Ford’s stay-at-home order, We Are Golf officials will apparently meet with Ford on Tuesday in an effort to have golf put back on the exempt list. Some clubs are preparing to reopen by the weekend, if not earlier. There is no guarantee of that happening, especially since officials thought golf was going to remain permissible shortly before Ford made his announcement on April 16 … You too can get behind the cause by writing your MPP. We’ve even done all the work for you. See here … You know what won’t help? A rogue golf course defying the order and opening anyway. Without the participation of its head professional, by the way. A selfish, brazen act … Can somebody at the LPGA Tour tell players it’s no longer a good idea to pour water from a bottle you are drinking out of onto the head of a tournament winner? In fact, that was never a good idea. The girl is then soaking wet doing interviews. Sometimes she’s cold. Nobody is there with a nice warm towel for her. Like the exuberance and camaraderie but maybe have some confetti or something on hand instead?

Barbs

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Brooke Henderson has made a habit of producing statement victories over her six-plus seasons on the LPGA Tour. Her first win came in Portland in 2015 while paired in the final group with one of her childhood idols, Morgan Pressel. She held a five-shot advantage over Pressel and ultimately won over three others by eight, shooting 69 to Pressel’s 75 head-to-head. She wasn’t yet a member of the tour at the time, having Monday qualified for the tournament. Her next win was the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship where she memorably beat World No. 1 Lydia Ko in a playoff with two of the most aggressive, well-struck shots you’ll see under such pressure. Her one and only major to date. Other big names to finish runner-up to Henderson through the years include Stacey Lewis, Michelle Wie, Lexi Thompson (twice) and now Jessica Korda. Not to mention that World No. 1 Jin Young Ko was also in the final group with Henderson and Korda in Los Angeles on Saturday and Henderson dusted them both, carding a 67 to their 72s. Henderson hasn’t always delivered when she’s had a chance to win but of her five career LPGA Tour runners-up only once did she enter the final day on top. That was at the 2020 ANA Inspiration, a major, where she and Nelly Korda shared the lead, shot 69 on Sunday, and were felled in a playoff by Mirim Lee who came from behind with a final-round 67. Really, you have to go all the way back to 2015, Henderson’s first year as a professional, to find the one tournament she threw away. That was the Swinging Skirts LPGA Classic where she took a one-shot lead into the final round, posted a two-over 74 on Sunday, and missed a playoff by one shot. (She also lost a late lead at the 2014 U.S. Women’s Amateur to finish second.) Hers is a name that makes other top players take notice when it’s near the top of the leaderboard. She plays a rather fearless game that pays off more than it doesn’t. The key to her having even more success is getting off to better starts so that her presence is there right from the get-go.

Jason Logan is the editor of SCOREGolf Magazine and is based in Toronto. He is a contributor to the Star’s Sports section. Follow him on Twitter: @jasonSCOREGolf