With heavy heart, Henderson thrives
Long before she made her name in golf, Brooke Henderson played hockey while growing up in Smiths Falls, Ontario, a small town south of Ottawa. She occasionally rode to tournaments on buses. And she’s a proud, passionate Canadian.
So this month’s tragedy in her homeland — 16 people died when a bus carrying a Saskatchewan junior hockey team, the Humboldt Broncos, collided with a tractor-trailer April 6 — shook Henderson to her
core.
Eight days later, in Hawaii, she dedicated her latest LPGA victory to the victims. She wore a ribbon on her hat during the tournament and spoke
afterward of her lingering sadness and why many people took the accident “kind of personally.”
“That tragedy hit home on many fronts for all Canadians, I’d say — especially because of how many of us played junior hockey growing up,” Henderson said via email. “Smiths Falls is definitely a hockey town, and it’s about the same size as Humboldt.
“We know how each town and the families embrace the junior teams, so it really resonated across the entire country when that happened.”
Henderson, 20, handles herself with poise and maturity belying her age. This helps explain how she has blossomed into one of the world’s top players entering this week’s LPGA Mediheal Championship at Lake Merced.
She stands fourth on this year’s money list and No. 14 in the world ranking. The win in Hawaii was the sixth of Henderson’s career and extended her ascent to the game’s upper echelon, despite a frigid upbringing north of the border.
Henderson, a goalie, enjoyed her national pastime. But she also spent long winters staring wistfully at piles of snow outside, wishing she could play 18 holes.
Canada’s climate is not exactly conducive to churning out great golfers. Mike Weir probably is the most accomplished men’s player, with eight PGA Tour victories including the 2003 Masters. Sandra Post collected eight LPGA wins, the most by a Canadian.
Henderson, on track to race past Post in her early 20s, acknowledged the push from national pride.
“Our golf fans are so passionate, it feels like when I win, it’s a win for the country as well,” Henderson said.
The key to her success, in many ways, is her surprising distance off the tee. She stands 5-foot-4 by some accounts — she’s officially listed at 5-6 — but she generates striking power with a long, sweeping swing.
Henderson uses a longer-than-usual driver (48 inches), grips down 2 or 3 inches and smacks the ball with flexibility and fury. She ranks fourth on the LPGA in driving distance this season, averaging 274.4 yards.
“I’ve seen some side-by-side images of my swing plane next to John Daly’s or Bubba Watson’s, who are obviously known for their length,” Henderson said. “I’m not as tall or big as they are, but I definitely try to pack as much punch into my swing as possible. ...
“There were always lots of surprised looks on the faces of some guys on the driving ranges where I used to practice growing up.”
She’s not afraid to use the big stick, either. Henderson, who turned pro at age 17 in December 2014, often plays fearlessly, perfectly willing to take risks at times when others might proceed cautiously.
This showed at the tournament in Hawaii, where she sought to protect her thirdround lead — but also found spots to take a chance. She led by one stroke when she used “driver off the deck” on the 13th hole, hitting driver on the fairway.
That led to birdie and created some cushion. She shared credit with her older sister Brittany, who doubles as Brooke’s caddie.
“I’ve always played with a pretty aggressive mind-set, but I do try to be strategic as well,” she said. “Brit does a great job of keeping me present in the tournament and helps with our decision-making.”
Henderson returns to the Bay Area with some positive memories. She held the 54-hole lead at Lake Merced in April 2015, before sputtering in the final round (74) and finishing third; the next year, she tied for sixth.
Henderson also arrives at Lake Merced fresh off an exhilarating moment at last week’s LPGA event in Los Angeles (where she missed the cut). She met Wayne Gretzky before the tournament, and that’s a huge deal for a onetime junior hockey player from Canada.
Gretzky texted Henderson when she picked up her first LPGA win in August 2015, so their long-awaited meeting carried even more significance.
“It was awesome,” Henderson said. “He’s the Great One! Such a legend and icon in the sport, but especially in our country. It was really cool to meet him in person.”
Ron Kroichick is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: rkroichick@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @ronkroichick