In a star-studded field at the 2019 CP Women’s Open, Canadians Brooke Henderson and AC Tanguay are tied for second place after shooting opening rounds of 66, one shot behind leader Annie Park.
The ‘Brooke Brigade’ was out in full force to celebrate Henderson as she looks to defend her title after a thrilling victory in 2018 in Regina.
With all eyes on Henderson, she handled the pressure well, matching her opening round 66 from last year thanks to seven birdies and just one bogey.
AC Tanguay was bogey free today to shoot her 66, tying her lowest round of the 2019 LPGA Tour season with the support of local fans and some from her native Quebec.
“Canadians love golf, and Quebecers as well. I mean, we had so many people. I was shocked actually at how many people came up to me today and spoke French. I thought it was amazing,” Tanguay said.
Henderson made a clutch par-saver on the par-3 2nd hole after nailing a long putt. She birdied the par-3 4th before bogeying No. 5. She made six more birdies the rest of the way, however, including knocking her approach on the 18th hole to just a couple of feet.
The Brooke Brigade gave her the loudest ovation of the day when she drained her final birdie to jump out to a two-shot lead.
…. and the crowd goes wild! Brooke Henderson finishes with a birdie sitting as the solo leader after her first round at the #CPWO! #BrookeBrigade pic.twitter.com/g0aAvcYUQI
— Golf Town (@GolfTown) August 22, 2019
“To have this many people out on Thursday morning was pretty special. They’re cheering for me bright and early, so that’s pretty cool,” said Henderson. “To get a solid round like this in in front of them I think is really a confidence booster for me; gives me a lot of momentum going into the next three days.”
Henderson said the key to her round was her putting, after she hit 12/14 fairways and 16/18 greens in regulation. She needed only 28 putts around Magna Golf Club on some seriously tricky greens. She managed to adjust her game-plan early – since their was a brisk wind that stayed with the players for most of the morning – and took advantage of a very solid ball-striking day.
“My putter was really hot – especially for me – today, which was really exciting,” she said. “When I saw the conditions early I didn’t know how low you could really go, so I think it kind of gave me a step back and I was just trying to play simple golf: hit fairways, hit greens, and then if birdies were there try and take them.
“All the birdies pretty much fell for me today, which is a great feeling. It’s going to be hard to back up. Hopefully I’ll go out and keep hitting it well.”
As the defending champion, Henderson has had so much crowd support already this week. The Golf Town Brooke Brigade Zones were packed all day, and members of the Brooke Brigade – young and old – were vocal in their cheers as she went out to an early lead.
But Henderson said she didn’t feel butterflies before teeing off, in fact, she said she felt the opposite of nervous.
“I think I was a lot more relaxed and more confident than I have been other years stepping on the 1st tee just knowing I have (won) before. I have handled the pressure,” she said.