Usually June provides milestone moments for Brooke Henderson – she won her first major, in 2016, during that month, and in 2019 she won her ninth LPGA Tour title, becoming the winningest Canadian professional of all time (male or female) in the process.

This June, however, she was at home in Smiths Falls, just preparing to get back to work.

Yes, like everyone these days Brooke is navigating a ‘new normal’ as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to impact everything from the way we shop for groceries to the LPGA Tour’s upcoming schedule.

“I’ve just tried to stay really busy,” Brooke said. “I’ve been productive. It’s been an opportunity to do a lot of things I didn’t necessarily have time for when I was playing golf, every single day or week. In that way, I’ve tried to take advantage of some extra time that I had.”

TAKING A BREAK

Brooke has only played two events on the LPGA Tour in 2020 (she finished T4 and T15 at the first two events of the year in Florida, respectively) before the season was put on pause due to the coronavirus.

She decided to return to Smiths Falls with her family before getting back to the U.S. prior to the beginning of the LPGA Tour season – which is set to get going again in late July in Ohio.

With a laugh, Brooke said these last five months has definitely been the longest break she’s had in competition since she was in middle school.

“That’s a long time. It’s kind of crazy!” said Brooke. “There will definitely be some nerves when I tee it up again, but it’s kind of surreal everything that’s happened the last few months.”

COOKING UP A STORM

Brooke said while at home she’s mostly been working out a lot to try to maintain her fitness levels from before the break. She said she’s been getting a little stronger, too. Although she took a lengthy break when the pause button was first pressed – there really were no answers with respect to when the LPGA Tour could come back – she’s refocused now with the first tournament on the schedule just around the corner.

“I’ve been trying to put in some work to get my consistency back. I’ve come a long way the last few weeks,” said Brooke. “I’ll keep practicing and I’ll be ready to go for when the LPGA Tour comes back.”

Brooke’s original break lasted until golf courses were open again in Ontario (late May) and then she got back to it. In the interim, however, she said she’s been working on her game in the kitchen.

“The kitchen game has definitely gotten a lot better,” Brooke said with a laugh. “That’s good! Definitely a life skill I need improvement on and definitely had a lot of practice so I feel good about that.”

Other than that, Brooke said she watched some of the re-runs of older LPGA Tour events and did check out the Tiger Woods vs. Phil Mickelson match, which she enjoyed. She was also part of an impressive video put together by TSN that gave a shout-out to frontline workers across Canada during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Thank you Frontline workers!! #OurHeroes ❤️ https://t.co/WloXEkawsP

— Brooke Henderson (@BrookeHenderson) April 24, 2020

“I think it was so important. Without the essential workers and front-line workers this would have been even scarier. We really owe a lot to them and they’ve been our heroes these last few months and every single day, really, when you think about it,” said Brooke

She’s also read a lot, she said, and has tried to help out her parents with things around the house that needed done.

“Just a few things here and there and made a plan and tried to accomplish some things. It’s been kind of fun,” she said. “Of course I didn’t want it to happen like this but I’ve tried to take advantage of the time I’ve had.”

BACK TO WORK

With the break coming to a close and LPGA Tour golf back on the horizon, Brooke said she’s refocused on, well, getting back to work. It’s going to be very unique, she said, playing in front of no fans. Brooke said she loves to play in front of big crowds, especially the Brooke Brigade.

“It will be a very different experience, more like the junior golf days! Even though people won’t be there in person I’ll definitely feel the support because I know they’ll be watching on TV,” said Brooke.

Brooke said she’s very much looking forward to getting back out on Tour and getting her 10th win sometime in the future. The schedule will be a busy one before the end of the year – with most of the majors and the CP Women’s Open all happening in a short stretch of time – but the break has also made Brooke realize how well things have gone so far in her career.

“It makes you realize how grateful you are and how great a life I really do have being able to live my dream and play against the best in the world and travel the world, too,” she said. “I’m not taking anything for granted and once I get back it’ll be a great feeling.”