Smiths Falls’ Henderson fires first-round 72,
Paris, Ont., golfer’s 67 good for sixth
In the first round of her first CN Canadian Women’s Open as a firstyear pro, Jennifer Kirby was a study in controlled calm Thursday and it showed on the leaderboard, where her 3-under 67 slotted her in a five-way tie for sixth, two shots behind defending champion Lydia Ko and Angela Stanford.
Kirby was the low Canadian among the 20 who teed off in the CN Canadian Women’s Open at Royal Mayfair Golf Club.
Brooke Henderson, the pride of Smiths Falls, who lipped out a par putt at the last hole, finished with a 72. At 15, Henderson was the youngest player on the course, but playing her third pro event, having finished T-159 in the U.S. Women’s Open and competed in the Manulife Financial LPGA Classic in Waterloo, Ont., in July.
Qualifier Nicole Forshner of Banff, on the other hand, was a quivering nervous wreck from start to finish, as she fashioned an openinground 89, 19 over par, dead last on the leaderboard.
The circumstances were completely different for the two Canadian golfers, of course. Kirby, a 22-yearold standout at the University of Alabama, and a winner just last week in her pro debut, at the CN Tour event in Cowansville, Que., entered the event riding all that U.S. university momentum, not to mention a stellar, victoryladen Canadian amateur career.
Forshner, 29, whose various forays into pro golf have not panned out, was a surprise qualifier at the 72-hole playdown on Monday at the Edmonton Petroleum Club. It was a breakthrough that put her instantly out of her league.
“First tour event ever, you know, I haven’t played in an event in a year-and-a-half,” Forshner said.
“And I had never played at this level.
“So, I was totally out of my element. I tried to stay calm, but I was just shaking on my first drive.”
Forshner played with Moira Dunn of the United States and Sylvia Cavalleri of Italy who were “really nice.” Forshner reckoned she would find something a comfort level in Round 2 Friday, playing with the same golfers.
“I’ll tell you what, today was one shot after another of just trying to make sure I made contact.”
Kirby played with 16-yearold Ko, an amateur from New Zealand, and emerging British star, Charley Hull, 17, and looked completely at home.
All three were under par, with Ko firing a five-under par 65 and Hull finishing with a 1-under, 69. They were the hot threesome of the opening round, and yet a cooler, more composed trio of young, younger and youngest golfers you could not hope to find. Kirby was asked whether she experienced any nerves, playing with the defending champion and with Hull, who was a sensation for the victorious European side at the Solheim Cup competition in Denver last week.
“No, not really,” Kirby said. “I mean, I think it’s always great to play with good players.
“Often you play up to people if they’re playing well.”
Ko birdied four of the first seven holes and continued her solid play the rest of her round. She had one, threeputt bogey, on No. 15, but otherwise was flawless teeto-green.
Had Kirby rolled in a couple more putts, she would have matched Ko shot-forshot, and ho-for-hum, in terms of composure. Pressure? Not for these young women.
“It was good, It was pretty consistent, I only had one bogey all day,” said Kirby, who birdied No. 18 to finish with a flourish. “I felt like I hit a lot of greens and gave myself a lot of opportunities. A few went in.”
Nor did Kirby, a raw rookie, keep in mind, feel ‘old’ playing out there with a pair of teenagers, however precocious and composed they so clearly were.
“I feel like they’re mature beyond their years, I didn’t feel too old.”
Others might have. Lorie Kane, the 48-year-old doyenne of Canadian women’s golf, shot a 1-over 71.
Kirby works with Canadian coach Sean Foley, who also coaches men’s World No. 1 golfer Tiger Woods. She has excelled at every level, so her smooth debut at the Canadian Women’s Open is no surprise.
She won both the Canadian Women’s Amateur and Canadian Junior Women’s titles in 2009. In 2012, she was a key part of the Crimson Tide team that won the NCAA title. Before her Canadian Women’s Open debut here, she had played in the U.S. Open. As an amateur, she was a semifinalist in the U.S. Women’s Amateur.
Meanwhile, Forshner’s ordeal was all-too human, one that any golfer could identify with.
“I think my heart rate was at 180 when I teed off,” Forshner said. “So, the breathing got it down to, like, 140. It still was not really helping. I definitely tried to relax.
“Maybe I’ll have a shot of whiskey (Friday) morning.”
Watching those teens making the game of golf look so easy, more than a few spectators of a certain age may have one or two themselves.
‘I was totally out of my element. I tried to stay calm, but I was just shaking on my first drive.’ NICOLE FORSHNER LPGA qualifier