Maude-Aimee Leblanc notches second best result on tour as Canadians continue momentum at Gainbridge LPGA

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This article was published 30/01/2022 (1699 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Maude-Aimee Leblanc started the week without much in the expectations department.

Come Sunday night, she had notched her second-best result ever on the LPGA Tour.

Leblanc, of Sherbrooke, Que., finished tied for eighth at this week’s Gainbridge LPGA at Boca Rio, only her second top-10 finish on the LPGA Tour in a pro career beginning about a decade ago. She shot a 3-under 69 in the final round.

Lydia Ko won the Gainbridge LPGA by one shot over Danielle Kang, who was looking for her second straight win to start the year. It was Ko’s 17th win on the LPGA Tour.

Leblanc retired from professional golf in 2019 but returned about a year later. She re-earned LPGA Tour status for this season thanks to her position on the Epson Tour’s money list last year. The Epson Tour is the official qualifying circuit for the LPGA Tour.

“It’s a great first event of the year. I think it’s going to give me a lot of confidence for the rest of the year,” said Leblanc. “It just confirms that I need to keep doing what I’m doing.”

Leblanc’s best result on the LPGA Tour came in 2017, when she finished tied for seventh at the ISPA Handa Women’s Australian Open. She told the Star earlier in the week that she didn’t have as much time to prepare as she would have liked for her 2022 LPGA Tour debut after testing positive for COVID-19 in December.

However, she opened the week with a 5-under 67 – her lowest LPGA Tour round in relation to par since June 2017.

“Feels good. It’s been extremely consistent since last year, and, you know, like I said, even if I didn’t put as much preparation into this week because I had COVID a few weeks ago, I was still able to get a lot out of it,” said Leblanc, who finished 6-under for the tournament. “I’m very proud.”

Despite Leblanc’s solid result, she wasn’t the top Canadian.

Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont. finished a shot ahead of Leblanc, 7-under for the week, and was tied for sixth.

Henderson got off to a magical start to her final round, going 6-under par for her first 10 holes thanks to a hot putter. The flatstick turned cold on the back nine, however. She made bogey on No’s 13 and 18 and missed birdie tries of no more than six feet on both No’s 16 and 17.

“Making the turn it looked like if I could have a solid back nine I could post a low score in the clubhouse,” said Henderson. “Unfortunately, didn’t finish off the way I wanted to, but I definitely started the way I wanted to.”

It was still a fun way for the Canadians to wrap up the week – they played in the same group on Sunday.

Leblanc said it was the first time they had played together in a competitive round, and Henderson said she couldn’t remember the last time she was paired with a Canadian on Tour at a ‘regular’ event. She played with countrywoman Alena Sharp at the DOW Great Lakes Invitational, which is a team event, in 2019.

Henderson told the Star earlier in the week she was very familiar with Leblanc’s game since Leblanc and Henderson’s sister, Brittany, grew up playing a lot together.

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“I was always really impressed by her game,” said Henderson. “We had amazing fans. Great crowds from Canada (in) Florida so it was a really fun day overall.”

Despite the stumble home, Henderson said she’s feeling some early-season momentum.

She was runner up at the Tournament of Champions to open the season, added another top-10 result this week, and next week the LPGA Drive On Championship takes place just 25 minutes from her home in Florida – which means a week in her own bed.

“It’s nice to go low on a Sunday afternoon,” said Henderson. “And I feel it’s two solid weeks back-to-back, so hopefully next week I can continue solid play and hopefully be in contention.”

Adam Stanley is an Ottawa-based contributor to the Star’s Sports section and the host of golf podcast Next Round’s On Me. Follow him on Twitter: @adam_stanley