THERE was a time not so long ago when gaining access to the LPGA Tour was a bit like trying to get into a pub without an ID.
It was over-18s only. Of course, the flood of talented teens emerging in the women’s scene essentially led to the metaphorical bouncer on the door being trampled into the ground as the doors swung open.
Lydia Ko was granted an age-waiver as a 16-year-old due to her extraordinary exploits.
Brooke Henderson, meanwhile, had her original request to compete in the LPGA Tour’s qualifying school turned down as a 17-year-old a couple of seasons ago.
So what did she do? That’s right. The Canadian went out and won the Portland Classic by eight shots and made her case irresistible.
It’s a young woman’s game, alright. Poor Catriona Matthew, Scotland’s sturdy stalwart on the global scene, must feel like Methuselah’s granny at times when she peers at the dates of birth on the tournament entry list.
This week, Matthew, 47, and Henderson, 19, will be in Chicago for the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, the second major of the LPGA Tour campaign.
The big ones are starting to come thick and fast. In addition to the forthcoming showpiece in the Windy City, the next month also includes the Women’s US Open and the RICOH Women’s British Open.
Having made her breakthrough on the LPGA circuit in 2015, Henderson upped the ante last season by winning her maiden major crown in the Women’s PGA with a play-off win over Ko.
At the time, the Canadian Prime Minister was straight on offering congratulations. If she successfully defends her title this week, Henderson might get a seat in the Parliament.
It won’t be easy. Up until the weekend, there had been 15 LPGA Tour events and 15 different winners. Competitive parity seems to be, well, par for the course.
So Yeon Ryu, who won the opening major of the year back in April, bucked the trend on Sunday when she scored her second victory of the campaign in the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship.
Ryu’s win also leapfrogged her to the top of the world rankings. After Lydia Ko’s 85-week stint as the global No.1, there have been two different players at the forefront in the last fortnight.
It could change again this week. Henderson, meanwhile, is in fine fettle. She won the previous weekend’s Meijer Classic by two shots from Lexi Thompson and Michelle Wie and heads to Chicago in a buoyant mood.
Having experience of getting over the major line has also bolstered her sense of purpose.
“Probably the best thing about winning a major championship is just the confidence that it gives me,” she said. “Every time on the tee, I hear, ‘major champion’, and that settles my nerves. I know I can do things.”
Henderson certainly performed great golfing feats in the Women’s PGA a year ago.
On the fourth hole of the first round she had a hole-in-one and won a car, which she would later give to her sister. “After that, I thought the week could be something special,” she reflected.
It was. Henderson was still three shots off the lead heading into the final round but she mounted a closing day charge which barged her into a play-off with the all-conquering Ko.
“I was hoping to force a play-off with Lydia,” she recalled. “I was nervous. I just went into the locker room and had a little chat with myself. I realised that people dream of this opportunity and I didn’t want to throw it away.
“I knew she was the No.1 player in the world. I knew if I was going to win it, I had to win it on the first hole, otherwise my chances would get lower.
“And so I was able to go out and hit three great shots, make birdie and become a major championship winner. That really defines anybody’s career.”
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