MISSISSAUGA, Ont. — The only person who can feel the kind of pressure Brooke Henderson is under at the CPKC Women’s Open is Brooke Henderson. But now, in her 11th year as a pro, the support at this event often acts as the elixir she needs for success.
Friday at the Mississaugua Golf and Country Club, Henderson did seemingly everything right — for the first time all season — and fired a 5-under 66 to move into the top 10 on the leaderboard heading into the weekend.
“After shooting 5-under you feel like, ‘Oh, yeah, close is here.’ But I’m right there. Just got to keep going, put two more solid rounds in together. This week it’s been nice because when things haven’t worked out well, I’ve been able to be gritty and get up and down, and I’m really proud of that,” Henderson told Sportsnet.
Henderson is just four shots back of the lead held by Akie Iwai, who won last week’s LPGA Tour event in Portland and sits at 9 under. Leona Maguire, former world No. 1 Minjee Lee, and currently world No. 1 Jeeno Thitikul are tied for second at 6 under.
Henderson closed with four birdies in her last seven holes, including two in a row on Nos. 17 and 18 — slippery mid-range putts, both — to come into the house and firmly in the mix through 36 holes.
“A lot of things have gone correctly the last couple days,” Henderson said.
Henderson, who switched putters at the beginning of the week to a different mallet model from TaylorMade, needed just 28 putts in her second round. Statistically, it was as tidy an effort as she could have asked for — she missed just two fairways and three greens. Henderson’s ball-striking is the part of her game that always sets her up for success and Friday — in fairly calm conditions — she was dialled in thanks to a mental pivot Thursday evening.
“Definitely clearing the mind is always a huge one for me, especially lately. And also, I started to gain some momentum the last three or four holes yesterday. Started to hit more greens and some better birdie opportunities, so I feel like that gave me a little bit of confidence going into today,” Henderson said.
“Just tried to have a better mindset and be a little bit more determined and it’s worked out.”
The Canadian hasn’t found the winner’s circle on the LPGA Tour since January of 2023 and has slid to No. 58 in the world rankings, her worst-such mark since she turned professional in 2015. Coming into the week, Henderson had notched just one top-10 finish this season and it wasn’t even in a stroke-play event.
Not only does Henderson want to have a good result this week in front of the Canadian faithful, but it comes at a great time of the season to put a high finish on the board as she looks to lock up her spot in November’s CME Group Tour Championship — the season-finale that features just the top 60 in the season-long points race.
The CPKC Women’s Open, despite the fact that it travels around the country each year, has been a solid spot for Henderson to play well. Since 2016, she has just one finish outside the top 15 at Canada’s national open.
Henderson, who zipped up 33 spots on the leaderboard Friday, was also quick to heap praise on 15-year-old Aphrodite Deng, who shot her own 5-under 66 on Thursday but struggled to a 2-over 73 on Friday. Still, the Canadian teenager will find the weekend in her LPGA Tour debut.
“Regardless of the result, it’s more about Aphrodite having this opportunity to gain experience in a new environment and learn by competing against players on the LPGA Tour,” Deng’s coach at TPC Sawgrass, Todd Anderson, told Sportsnet.
Henderson and Deng are among a group of five Canadians who made the cut along with Maude-Aimee Leblanc, Monet Chun, and fellow amateur Katie Cranston.
“Any time you can see your name near the top of the leaderboard, it’s always a great feeling. I know there will be a lot of movement this afternoon once the rest of the crowd goes out, but definitely solid way to start the morning,” Henderson said. “Feel like I’m so excited to be playing the weekend in front of these amazing fans, and just hopefully I can give them some more to cheer about tomorrow.”
No pressure.
