April is PING Month at Golf Town! Demo any PING G410 clubs this month to enter for a chance to win a trip for two to meet Brooke Henderson at the 2019 CP Women’s Open in Aurora, ON! See in-store for details.

It’s major championship season for the LPGA Tour – and Golf Town athlete Brooke Henderson is feeling good about her chances as she heads to the ANA Inspiration.

The first major of the year, contested at the Mission Hills Country Club in Rancho Mirage, Calif., has produced mixed results for Henderson since she first teed it up as an amateur on a sponsor exemption in 2014.

Henderson finished tied for 26th that year, and following it up with a tie for 10th two years later – her best result at the first major of the year. She finished tied for 14th in 2017 and tied for 48th a year ago.

The native of Smiths Falls, Ont. says she’s learned a lot the last few years playing the typically tricky Dinah Shore Tournament Course, and that learning, she explains, will be key to lean on this year.

“Every time you get to that course you really have to do a lot of learning fast. Sometimes the rough is incredibly thick, other years it’s not as bad. Off the tee you can make holes easier if you can get down certain sides of the fairway, but your ball may end up in the rough. If the rough is really penalizing you don’t want to do that,” she says with a laugh. “But if the rough is fine, you might have an advantage. I’ll always need to get used to the green speed because they’re always faster and they’re pretty slopey out there.”

Taking place just minutes from Palm Springs, Henderson loves the opportunity to play the ANA Inspiration in front of the “Brooke Brigade” – with so many Canadians calling California home during the wintertime.

“I’m always feeling the love down there, which is really cool,” she says of her snowbird support. “It’s far from home, but Canadians stick together wherever we go.”

The 21-year-old says she’s feeling better after an illness sidelined her from a couple events early in the season. With some time off, and rest, she’s ready to compete again. Although she hasn’t been 100 percent, she says her game has been solid.

Henderson has three top-10 finishes and a tie for 15th so far in 2019.

“My game has been really good, even though I haven’t been feeling the best. That makes me feel good since there’s a lot of confidence with having three top-10’s and a top-15, which could have been a lot better,” she says. “Overall I feel like I’m hitting the ball really well and all parts of my game are coming together nicely. Even though I wasn’t feeling well over the off-season I still felt like I put in good work and hopefully it’ll pay off this summer.”

The key to having even better results, Henderson says, is to be able to string four good rounds together. She wants to get off to a quick start at the ANA Inspiration since, she says, that early-tournament mojo relaxes her, and gives her the momentum she needs for the rest of the week.

After the ANA Inspiration the LPGA Tour has a two-week break before it returns to action at the LOTTE Championship in Hawaii, where Henderson is the defending champion.

She says returning to defend a title is something she feels confident doing since she has “beat the course” before.

“Knowing that you’ve won there before and have made so many great memories on pretty much every hole gives you a lot of confidence when you step up to the tee,” she says.

Including last year’s LOTTE Championship and of course, the CP Women’s Open in August, Henderson has won seven times on the LPGA Tour in her career.

Every tournament, she says, is special in its own right. But gearing up for a major championship – especially the first one of the year – has a different kind of feeling.

“I’ve been able to win one (major) which is truly incredible, but every time I’m at a (major) it makes you love what you’re doing and love that you’re able to play the LPGA Tour. It sounds silly, maybe, but the atmosphere is incredible,” she says. “Thursday morning at a major is the most emotional I am all year.”

The ANA Inspiration begins Thursday April 4.