Soft putting sinks Henderson’s dream
Ontarian disappointed after tie for 13th at biggest tournament in women’s golf
It just goes to show you how much Brooke Henderson expects of herself that a tie for 13th at the biggest tournament in women’s golf could leave her in tears.
The 19-year-old from Smiths Falls, Ont., knew she left a few shots on the greens at Trump National Golf Club in Bedminster, N.J., at the U.S. Women’s Open on Sunday on her way to a 1-under 71 and a four-round 3-under 285 (70, 71, 73, 71).
That left her eight shots adrift of first-time winner Sung Hyun Park, the 23-year-old who had a brilliant 5-under 67 for a two-shot win over 17-year-old amateur HyeJin Choi, who had a two-shot lead at the turn.
Choi was still tied through 15, but dumped one in the water on the par-3 16th and made double bogey.
Shanshan Feng, who led after each of the first three rounds, triple bogeyed the 18th hole for a
75 and finished in a tie for fifth at 6-under.
The disappointment on Henderson’s face was clear, but she still dutifully signed golf balls for the volunteers who scored her group and posed for pictures.
Henderson knew she was close to being able to challenge for her second major, but her putter, which was so good over the first two days — she needed only 57 putts through 36 holes — took about 27 holes off before coming alive again. A 73 and 71 on the weekend sealed her fate.
“It’s good to know I left something out and there and I’m still T-13,” Henderson, who earned US$97,696, said.
“I putted great the first two days and then the ball striking really kicked in the last two,” Henderson added. “It’s good to know I have both sides and I’m just kind of waiting for them both to come together.”
After playing in the Marathon Classic in Sylvania, Ohio, next week, Henderson will skip the Scottish Open and take the week off before the Ricoh Women’s British Open, Aug. 3 to 6 in Fife, Scotland. The Canadian Pacific Women’s Open in Ottawa follows, running from Aug. 24 to 27.
“The British Open and the Canadian Open are really high on my list right now,” she said. “Then (the Cambia) Portland (Classic) soon after the Canadian, which is a big week for me. There’s a lot of really good events coming up. Hopefully, I can play well and see my name on the top of the leaderboard a couple more times.”
Meanwhile, Bryson DeChambeau overcame a four-stroke deficit to beat third-round leader Patrick Rodgers by a stroke at the John Deere Classic for his first PGA Tour title and a spot next week in the British Open. The 23-year-old birdied four of the final six holes at TPC Deere Run for a 6-under 65 and an 18-under 266 total at Silvis, Ill.
The win punctuated a comeback of sorts for DeChambeau, who capped a string of eight straight missed cuts last month in the U.S. Open, and became the season’s 10th first-time winner on the PGA Tour.