The world’s top 18-and-under female junior golfers will head to Ottawa for the fifth edition of the World Junior Girls Championship from Sept. 11-14 at Camelot Golf and Country Club. As host nation, Canada will send two teams of three athletes to compete for the international title of World Junior Girls champion.

Representing Canada One will be Céleste Dao (Notre-Dame Ile Perrot, Que.), Ellie Szeryk (London, Ont.) and Tiffany Kong (Vancouver, B.C.), who are three of Canada’s top-ranked junior golfers at No. 317, 459 and 546, respectively, on the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR). All three recently competed in the 2018 CP Women’s Open at the Wascana Country Club in Regina, Sask.

This will be 17-year-old Dao’s third year representing Canada at the World Junior Girls. The Team Canada Development Squad rookie is having an extremely impressive season, adding to an already notable junior golf career. So far in 2018, she has recorded four victories – the Canadian Junior Girls Championship, Girls’ Provincial Junior Championship, U.S Women’s Open Qualifying – Cape Cod National and Mexican Junior Girls Championship – to lead the Junior Girls Order of Merit for the second consecutive year.

Szeryk, sister of Canada’s top-ranked amateur female golfer Maddie, has four top-five finishes in 2018 so far, including a win at the Ontario Women’s Amateur Championship. The 16-year-old Team Canada Development Squad rookie currently sits in third in the Junior Girls Order of Merit and will be competing in her second World Junior Girls.

Kong will also be competing in her second World Junior Girls – she represented Canada at the 2015 tournament hosted at The Marshes. The 17-year-old recently competed in the 2018 CP Women’s Open after qualifying as the Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship’s low Canadian. With a win at the Ryan Moore Junior Championship and four top-ten finishes in 2018 under her belt, she currently sits fourth in the Junior Girls Order of Merit.

As the host country, Canada reserves the right to field two teams in the 63-player, 20-country competition. Canada Two will consist of Emily Zhu (Richmond Hill, Ont.), Sarah Beqaj (Toronto, Ont.) and Lauren Kim (Surrey, B.C.), who are ranked 1127, 1013 and 1066 respectively.

14-year-old Zhu is currently second in the Junior Girls Order of Merit. She has six top-ten finishes this year and competed in the 2018 Canadian Junior Girls Championship, where she came in second and took home the juvenile title. Her last win came at the 2018 Golf Ontario Investors Group Junior Spring Classic in May.

Beqaj, 16, has top-ten finishes in three of the four events she competed in so far this year. Her best finish in 2018 was third at Golf Ontario’s Investors Group Junior Girls Championship, followed by her fifth place finish at the Canadian Junior Girls Championship. She currently sits twelfth on the Junior Girls Order of Merit.

Kim is the youngest of all the Canadian team members – she only recently turning 13 in August. The rookie junior golfer held the lead during the first round of the Canadian Junior Girls Championship before finishing the tournament in eleventh. She won her first event in 2017 at the MJT – Boston Pizza National Championship and has five other-top ten finishes, including second place at MJT – Odlum Brown Classic and a tie for fifth at the Future Links, driven by Acura Pacific Championship.

“These six athletes have been selected to represent Canada as a result of their tremendous season, hard work and commitment to the sport. Their accomplishments and selection is a result of the support and joint efforts of Provincial Golf Associations, home clubs, parents and athletes,” said Jeff Thompson, Golf Canada’s chief sport officer. “It is a true honour to be selected to represent your country and we look forward to seeing this group proudly represent all of Canada as they learn and grow on the international stage.”

Matt Wilson (Golf Canada’s Women’s Development Squad Coach and Director of Next Generation Performance) will lead the two Team Canada squads for this competition with the support Reggie Millage (Golf Ontario Head Coach).

“Golf Ontario is excited to once again partner with Golf Canada to conduct this global championship at the historic Camelot Golf & Country Club,” said Mike Kelly, Golf Ontario executive director. “We are thankful for their membership and volunteer committees for all their hard work. We are thrilled for our athletes from Ontario who have been selected to represent Canada and wish them the best of luck.”

The World Junior Girls Championship is conducted by Golf Canada in partnership with Golf Ontario, and supported by the R&A and International Golf Federation. Recognized as an ‘A’ ranked event by the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR), the World Junior Girls Championship will run for its fifth time.

Nestled in Ottawa’s east end, Camelot is no stranger to running Golf Canada championships. The venerable club has hosted the 2012 Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship, a Canadian Women’s Tour event, the 2017 Canadian Junior Girls Championship, as well as final qualifying for the 2017 CP Women’s Open.

Opening ceremonies for the championship take place on Sept. 10 followed by the first round on Tuesday, Sept. 11. The tournament’s closing ceremonies will immediately follow the conclusion of play on Friday, Sept. 14.

“It is an honour to host this prestigious event and we look forward to welcoming these players from across the globe to our nation’s capital,” said tournament director Dan Hyatt. “The course is in tremendous shape and our partners at Camelot Golf and Country Club as well as  communities in the surrounding area have come together to make this a truly memorable event for our competitors.”

Admission to the competition is free. Additional information regarding the fifth annual World Junior Girls Championship can be found on the competition’s website.

SMITHS FALLS, Ont. – Glenda Cooke started to get emotional when she sat, glued to her TV, while watching Brooke Henderson hit the golf ball off the 16th tee Sunday on her way to victory in the CP Women’s Open.

“That’s when I got up and got the Kleenex,” Cooke said Monday as she recalled witnessing Henderson, a fellow Smiths Falls, Ont., native, become the first Canadian to win an LPGA Tour crown on home soil in 45 years.

“And the happy tears started to flow and they just kept coming.”

By the time Henderson was walking comfortably toward the 18th, local fans of the 20-year-old were yelling “Go Brooke, yay,” said Anita Kerfoot as she and the others in her threesome were finishing their Monday morning round on the course at the Smiths Falls Golf and Country Club.

Henderson has had an immeasurable impact on young girls wanting to get into golf, even before she won in Regina, said Cooke.

“That started as soon as Brooke went on the (LPGA) Tour,” she said.

“Just the audience watching her (Sunday), there were a lot of young girls there,” Kerfoot added.

Club members who watched Henderson playing while she was growing up said they haven’t been surprised by her achievements.

“I did play a couple of rounds with Brooke when she was growing up and it was a treat to play with her then,” said Ken Closs.

“You could tell that she was going to be something special,” said Closs, adding that Henderson bested him on the golf course when she was just 10 years old.

“I don’t want to talk about that,” he said as his golfing buddies laughed.

You rock, #Saskatchewan! @BrookeHenderson says thanks to the fans and volunteers @The_Wascana for an amazing week at the #CPWO ? pic.twitter.com/PYaRI4M9ZX

— CP Women's Open (@cpwomensopen) August 28, 2018

The Henderson family has become synonymous with golf in the small Eastern Ontario town. Her uncle, Tom Henderson, is the current local course title holder.

“What she’s doing for golf in Smiths Falls, and for women in general, it’s really awesome,” Tom Henderson said of his niece.

There is, after all, a trophy case displaying Brooke Henderson’s achievements just inside the clubhouse.

A new junior locker room in her name also was built in the last year, displaying pictures from some of Henderson’s junior championships.

“It’s really there to help inspire our juniors to continue working hard and loving this game,” said club manager and senior pro Dan McNeely.

Henderson has, through her talents but also by virtue of her character, become an ambassador for not only Smiths Falls, but for the sport of golf and for her country, said the town’s mayor, Shawn Pankow.

“She’s our favourite daughter,” Pankow said as he stood on the sidewalk outside his office.

“When you look at the way she represents our community, the way she represents Canada, she’s still that humble small-town girl who has taken the golf world by storm,” he said.

“So much she’s done in such a short period of time, the whole town is incredibly proud of her.”

Pankow said Henderson’s victory was yet another shot in the arm for a town which was once struggling, despite being close to the nation’s capital. However, Smiths Falls more recently has experienced a boom in tourism and business development.

The future for the town of roughly 9,000 people appeared grim a decade ago when a major local business, the Hershey Chocolate factory, shut down operations and moved to Mexico.

But Smiths Falls has since benefited from the explosion in Canadian cannabis, which has brought a resurgence in jobs and tourism.

Pankow said Henderson’s victory Sunday appeared all the more remarkable, given her and her family’s own recent turmoil.

Both of Henderson’s grandfathers died this summer.

Osprey Valley, a collection of three courses just north of Toronto designed by acclaimed Canadian architect Doug Carrick, will join the PGA TOUR’s TPC Network of premier golf facilities as TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley and become the first TPC property in Canada, it was announced on Tuesday.

Known as one of the Greater Toronto Area’s most popular golf destinations, Osprey Valley has provided golfers with a world-class experience for more than 25 years on its three distinctive courses, each of which are ranked in SCOREGolf’s Top 100 Courses in Canada. Effective immediately, it joins as the 33^rd property in the TPC Network.

“This is an exciting day for the TPC Network, Osprey Valley and Canadian golfers as we welcome this wonderful facility as the 33^rd property in the TPC Network,” said Jim Triola, PGA TOUR Golf Course Properties Chief Operating Officer. “Canada is the home of many passionate golfers, so we see this as a natural fit to add TPC Toronto as the fifth international TPC facility. This represents another major step forward for this outstanding facility, which already has earned the admiration of so many people in the golf community.”

“We’re extremely proud of this new partnership and the bright future that lies ahead for Osprey Valley,” said Osprey Valley President, Chris Humeniuk. “The TPC brand is known around the world for its network of premier facilities and the quality experience that the PGA TOUR brand promises to every player. As we look to the future, we believe that this alignment will help usher in a new and exciting era at Osprey Valley.”

The Toot Course, one of TPC Toronto at Osprey Valley’s three unique layouts, will also be re-named the North course effective immediately, with the Heathlands and Hoot courses continuing to offer golfers an unparalleled 54-hole experience.

The Osprey Valley Open, an official Mackenzie Tour – PGA TOUR Canada event that saw its inaugural playing take place at Osprey Valley in July, will also return in 2019 and beyond, with Mackenzie Tour’s only tournament in the Greater Toronto Area staying as part of a long-term agreement.

“We were absolutely thrilled with the inaugural playing of the Osprey Valley Open this year and look forward to returning for many years to come. The players were delighted to compete at such an outstanding facility, and we look forward to working with the Osprey Valley team to grow the tournament’s profile and impact in the Greater Toronto Area in the future,” said Mackenzie Tour President Jeff Monday.

Opening in 1992 with the Heathlands course, Osprey Valley quickly developed a reputation among golfers in the Greater Toronto Area as one of the region’s hidden gems, adding two additional courses in 2001 to become a truly unique 54-hole facility. Its three layouts – the rolling, links-style Heathlands; the winding, wasteland-style Hoot; and the lush, pastoral parkland-style North – each offer players a variety of experiences and aesthetics, welcoming all kinds of golfers.

Once a beacon of inspiration for men’s golf in Canada, Mike Weir believes Brooke Henderson can be the same for the women’s game – and she will “blow past” the all-time mark for top-flight tour wins by a Canadian in the process.

Weir returned to his hotel after hiking in southern Utah on Sunday to the news that Henderson had won the CP Women’s Open. That put the 20-year-old Henderson at seven LPGA wins, just one back of the record for most victories by a Canadian at a top-level tour held by Weir, George Knudson and Sandra Post.

“I hope it makes a difference in Canadian women’s golf,” Weir said in a phone interview. “She’s such a young person herself, so hopefully that means young girls and teenagers will take up golf and we get the women’s game growing even more.”

Weir, the 2003 Masters champion, was the last Canadian to win a PGA or LPGA event on home soil when he picked up his first PGA Tour victory at the now-defunct Air Canada Championship in 1999. The native of Brights Grove, Ont. had an infamous near miss at the 2004 RBC Canadian Open, losing in a playoff to Vijay Singh.

Henderson, of Smiths Falls, Ont., shot a 7-under-par 65 Sunday at Wascana Country Club in Regina to beat Angel Yin by four shots. At one point in the back nine, Yin made three birdies in a row. Henderson matched her shot-for-shot, making four straight birdies.

PGA Tour golfer Graham DeLaet of Weyburn, Sask., took to Twitter on Thursday to say Henderson was “single-handedly changing the game of golf for young girls in Canada” like Weir did in the early 2000s.

@brookehendersongolf : made in ???? #CPWO

A post shared by CP Women's Open (@cpwomensopen) on Aug 27, 2018 at 8:53am PDT

Weir said Henderson’s strong mental approach complements her athleticism.

“The way she swings the club and how dynamic her movement is with her swing, she may be the most athletic woman out there from what I’ve seen,” said Weir. “But it’s the mental side. A girl makes three birdies on her and she makes four? That shows something not only with her athleticism but what’s inside, and what she thinks about the game, how she’s able to handle herself in a tough situation.”

Weir said he still remembers the roars from his Air Canada Championship victory, and outside of the Masters it was as loud a crowd he’s ever had cheer him on. He called it an incredible feeling.

“When I won in Canada, it wasn’t the Canadian Open but it felt like a major because the crowd is so big and so behind you. The energy feels like a major,” he said. “I’m sure (Henderson) felt that.”

Weir’s life changed after his Masters victory in 2003, as he climbed as high as No. 3 in the Official World Golf Ranking. He said he’s not sure Henderson’s life will change that much after the CP Women’s Open victory – since she’s already got a major win and is an established player, he said – but it will be important for her confidence.

“This is huge for her for sure, and her game going forward,” he said.

Henderson returns to action this week on the LPGA Tour at the Cambia Portland Classic, an event she’s won twice in her career. She also said Sunday she’s got a lot of confidence as she heads into The Evian Championship, the LPGA Tour’s final major.

“I’ve had two wins the last couple seasons, so I wanted to keep that streak going, so I’m happy that I did,” she said. Hopefully I can look forward to getting a third win this season.“

Weir believes Henderson’s win on the biggest stage in Canadian women’s golf could be the start of a “special” run.

“I want her to keep having fun, play aggressively, and not take it as pressure but ‘let’s just see how good I can get.’ Whether that’s two or three wins a year or seven or eight or nine, maybe she’ll rattle off one of those years like one of the all-time greats Tiger (Woods) or Annika (Sorenstam),” said Weir.

“She has the talent, and that’s a real possibility.”

Feeding off the energy of fans in the galleries, but not letting it overwhelm her, is now a skill in Brooke Henderson’s toolbox.

Labelled the face of Canadian golf at age 14 when she played in her first CP Women’s Open, Henderson had to learn how to manage her own intense desire to win on home turf, and the fervent, vocal wishes of home fans that she do so.

The 20-year-old from Smith Falls, Ont., solved that puzzle at Regina’s Wascana Country Club on Sunday where she became the first Canadian in 45 years to win the CP Women’s Open.

“I played my first CP Women’s Open seven years ago. I just felt like I was slowly getting better, getting used to the attention,” Henderson said Monday in Calgary.

“This year, something just sort of clicked. Just being able to feed off the energy of the crowd, that was the first time ever I was really able to manage that.”

Less than 24 hours after hoisting the trophy she superstitiously wouldn’t touch until she won it, Henderson was at Calgary’s Canyon Meadows Golf and Country club for a women’s golf clinic and panel discussion.

The course is hosting the men in the PGA Tour Champions Shaw Charity Classic starting Friday.

Henderson’s visit was a stopover en route to Portland, Ore., and the Cambia Portland Classic, which she won in both 2015 and 2016.

Seeing England’s Georgia Hall claim the Ricoh Women’s British Open at Royal Lytham and St Annes Golf Club in early August inspired Henderson as she headed to her own national championship.

But she was taken aback by the size of Wascana’s galleries when she stepped to the first tee box for her opening round.

Henderson still engaged with spectators, however. She smiled, waved and high-fived for three rounds until Sunday when her game mask was firmly on.

“Heading into Sunday, I just wanted to give it everything that I had and I wanted to keep that focus from when I first teed off until the 18th hole,” Henderson explained.

“I definitely did show my appreciation, but I was much more serious and much more focused.

“I just figured it would all be worth it if I was able to hoist the trophy on the 18th green and celebrate with everybody then. So, I feel it was a smart decision.”

The mask slipped as she walked to the 18th green for a birdie putt and she let the moment in.

“It was the first time all day I could really take a deep breath and realize that I’d actually just won,” she explained.

“That feeling of being able to let go, because I’d been not stressed, but just wanting to win it so badly. This was probably number one on the tournaments I wanted to win.”

What followed was whirlwind of media, autographs and fielding congratulatory messages on her phone, including one from Wayne Gretzky.

Henderson admitted not sleeping well after her four-stroke victory in part because she dreamed she hadn’t won and had to keep playing.

Only three other Canadian golfers since 1954 have won an Open at home is a testament to how difficult it is.

Henderson took her game management to a new level to achieve it. It is now in her skill set at just 20 years old.

She vaulted into world’s top 10 to No. 8 this week and sits second on the LPGA’s 2018 money list.

Henderson now targets a second career major Sept. 13-16 at the US$3.8 million Evian Championship in France.

She was just 18 when she won the 2016 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.

Having checked a Canadian win off her career bucket list, Henderson says she now feels less pressure in her game.

“There is definitely a lot more pressure playing here at home in Canada, but it’s amazing I know I have that much support and people are cheering for me so hard,” she said.

“I definitely was a little disappointed with the way I’d played previously, but I feel like it was all a stepping stone in the right direction leading to this win.”

Golf Canada is pleased to announce the six individuals selected to represent Canada at the 2018 World Amateur Team Championship, conducted by the International Golf Federation.

The World Amateur Team Championship—featuring both a women’s (Aug. 29 – Sept. 1) and men’s (Sept. 5-8) competition— will be contested at Carton House (Montgomerie and O’Meara Courses) in Maynooth, Ireland, located 30 minutes west of Dublin.

Representing Canada on the women’s side will be Maddie Szeryk, 22, of London, Ont., Jaclyn Lee, 21, of Calgary, Alta., and Naomi Ko, 20, of Victoria, B.C. The trio will compete for the Espirito Santo Trophy at the Montgomerie and O’Meara courses at Carton House.

The men’s team selected to represent Canada consists of Hugo Bernard, 23, of Mont-St-Hilaire, Que., Joey Savoie, 24, of La Prairie, Que., and Garrett Rank, 30, of Elmira, Ont. Also contested on both at the Montgomerie and O’Meara courses at Carton House, the men will compete for the Eisenhower Trophy.

“The World Amateur Team Championships are an excellent benchmark to monitor our players’ performance and development globally,” said Jeff Thompson, Golf Canada’s chief sport officer. “Our participation in this premier golf competition is a reflection of our commitment to supporting and developing world-class talent in Canada, and we hope to demonstrate that again this year with the remarkable group of athletes chosen to represent our country.”

Team Canada Men’s and Women’s National Team coaches Derek Ingram (Winnipeg, Man.) and Tristan Mullally (Ireland native) will accompany their respect squads.

WOMEN’S TEAM BIOS

Maddie Szeryk

A member of Team Canada’s National Squad for the past four years, Szeryk will lead the women’s squad into competition as the top-ranked Canadian at No. 16 on the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR). Szeryk will make her second World Amateur appearance after being selected in 2016. She finished a strong 2018 collegiate campaign at Texas A&M with two NCAA wins en route to earning All-SEC First Team honours for the fourth consecutive season. Szeryk’s senior year featured 11 top-ten finishes in fourteen events including four runner-up finishes. She would add another runner-up finish at the prestigious Women’s Porter Cup in June and finished T22 at the Canadian Women’s Amateur. Currently the No. 1 ranked golfer on the National Women’s Order of Merit, the 22-year-old has prior experience representing Canada on the global stage, finishing tied for 15th at the 2014 Youth Olympics and helping Canada to win the team competition at the 2017 Mexican Amateur. She has also competed in three CP Women’s Opens as an amateur.

Jaclyn Lee

Jaclyn Lee is in her fifth year as a member of Canada’s National Team and is currently ranked No. 21 on the WAGR. The Ohio State Buckeye enters her final collegiate season with three NCAA wins including the 2018 Big Ten Championship as well as a pair of runner-up finishes. Lee made a splash on the international amateur scene in 2018, making it to the semi-finals at the Ladies’ British Open Amateur Championship and quarterfinals of the US Women’s Amateur. The former Alberta Ladies Amateur champion also boasts LPGA experience, making the cut at the 2016 CP Women’s Open and competing in the 2018 Meijer LPGA Classic for Simply Give, where she finished tied for 35^th.

Naomi Ko

Naomi Ko is in her sixth year with the Team Canada program and will make her second World Amateur appearance. The 20-year-old spent three years with the Development Squad before graduating to the Amateur Squad in 2016. Ko, a three-time CP Women’s Open competitor who will be heading to her final year at N.C. State, won her first NCAA championship in 2017 at the Lady Puerto Rico Classic. Her 2017 season also included third-place finishes at the Canadian Women’s Amateur Championship, the B.C. Women’s Amateur Championship and Women’s Porter Cup.

MEN’S TEAM BIOS

Hugo Bernard

A four-year member of Team Canada, Hugo Bernard is the top-ranked Canadian on the WAGR at No. 78 and will compete in his second World Amateur. The 2016 Canadian Men’s Amateur champion recorded three top-10 finishes this season, including a runner-up at the Azalea Invitational and a ninth place finish at the Australian Men’s Amateur. In 2018 he also finished T41 at the Canadian Men’s Amateur and played in his third RBC Canadian Open. His 2017 season was highlighted by earning medalist honours at the U.S. Amateur Qualifying in Maine alongside top-five finishes at the 2017 Canadian Men’s Amateur and the French Open – Coupe Murat. In 2016, Bernard posted six top-5 finishes in eight events with the Division II Saint-Leo Lions, including medalist honours at the NCAA Division II Championship to earn him a Freshman of the Year title to go with being named as a first-team all-American.

Joey Savoie

Team Canada Amateur Squad rookie Joey Savoie is ranked No. 84 on the World Amateur Golf Rankings (WAGR) and currently leads the National Men’s Order of Merit thanks to seven top-five finishes this season. Internationally, Savoie has a win at the Grant Clements Memorial Tournament in New Zealand, co-medalist honours at a U.S. Amateur Qualifier and a fifth-place finish at the prestigious St. Andrews Links Trophy in Scotland. The Middle Tennessee State graduate also led Team Canada to victory at the 2017 Tailhade Cup in Argentina with his first-place finish and competed in his first RBC Canadian Open.

Garrett Rank

Team Canada graduate Garrett Rank made the most of his amateur season to secure a spot on his second career World Amateur team. Rank, a three-time RBC Canadian Open competitor, has been balancing a professional career as an NHL referee with a busy summer competing at high-level amateur golf events. The 30-year-old made headlines when he earned co-medalist honours to qualify for the U.S. Open. His 2018 season has been highlighted by a win at the Ontario Men’s Amateur Championship and a third place finish at the Canadian Men’s Amateur Championship where he earned low-Canadian honours. The three-time Canadian Men’s Mid-Amateur champion also boasts international experience from representing Canada in the 2015 Pan-American games, where he finished 15^th, as well as the 2016 World Amateur Team Championship, where he finished tied for 36th.

About the World Amateur Team Championships

A biennial competition, the Men’s World Amateur Team Championship has been played since 1958, with the winner taking home the Eisenhower Trophy while the winner of the Women’s World Amateur Team Championship, conducted since 1964, earns the Espirito Santo Trophy.

In 2016, the Canadian men’s trio of Hugo Bernard, Garrett Rank and Jared du Toit (Kimberley, B.C.) finished tied for 9^th in Riviera Maya, Mexico, while the women’s trio of Maddie Szeryk, Naomi Ko, and Josée Doyon (St-Georges-de-Beauce, Que.) finished in 9^th place.

In 2014, The United States won the 2014 title in Karuizawa, Japan, by two strokes over the Canadian contingent of Corey Conners (Listowel, Ont.), Taylor Pendrith (Richmond Hill, Ont.) and Adam Svensson (Surrey, B.C.). In the women’s division, Australia claimed the title by two strokes over the Canadian team of Brooke Henderson (Smiths Falls, Ont.), Augusta James (Bath, Ont.), and Brittany Marchand (Orangeville, Ont.).

In 29 appearances at the World Amateur Team Championship, Canada has captured the Eisenhower Trophy on one occasion (1986) and earned runner-up honours five times. In 25 appearances at the Women’s World Amateur Team Championship, Canada has earned runner-up honours four times.

The World Amateur Team titles are contested over four days of stroke play. A country may field a team of two or three players. In each round, the total of the two lowest scores constitutes the team score for the round. The four-day total is the team’s score for the championship.

The World Amateur Team Championships are conducted by the International Golf Federation, which was founded in 1958 to encourage the international development of the game and to employ golf as a vehicle to foster friendship and sportsmanship. The IGF is comprised of 146 National Federation Members in 141 countries and 22 Professional Members. The IGF serves as the International Olympic Committee’s recognized International Federation for golf.

REGINA – When Brooke Henderson sank her final putt on the 18th hole to win the CP Women’s Open, her father Dave ran onto the course and started to shower her with champagne.

He said after the victory on Sunday that he then congratulated his daughter and told her what an unbelievable feat that she had just accomplished.

“I’m sure it will take a lot of years for that to sink in with Brooke and her to reflect on it,” Dave Henderson said. “It’s a momentous occasion and history was set here today at Wascana Country Club.”

Henderson shot a final-round 7-under-par 65 for a 21-under 267 total and four-shot victory over American Angel Yin.

It’s the first time a Canadian has won the national Open since Jocelyne Bourassa was victorious in Montreal in 1973.

“I tell ya, golf in Canada just grew,” Dave Henderson said. “It grew across the country in every capacity today.”

Henderson hit four birdies in a row at one point on the back nine to pull away.

Her sister, and caddie, Brittany said that she was trying to hold in tears before the final putt that sealed the victory.

“I didn’t want to start celebrating too early and I think she didn’t either even though we were up three going into the last hole, it’s golf and anything can happen,” her caddie said. “Until that last putt went in, we didn’t really believe it. But now it’s just amazing.”

Henderson said that she thought of her family as she claimed victory and all the hard work that they’ve put in to help her along the way.

Family means everything. pic.twitter.com/wzLiWgXu4Q

— CP Women's Open (@cpwomensopen) August 26, 2018

She added that winning the title was a “big dream and a big goal for all of us.”

“I thank God for this win and just the many opportunities that I’ve been given,” Henderson said. “My grandfather passed away this summer and I really think they were helping me today.”

It was the seventh career LPGA Tour win for the 20-year-old from Smiths Falls, Ont., and second victory this season.

The win also moved her one behind Sandra Post’s record for all-time victories by a Canadian.

“I don’t think anybody could have predicted that,” her father said. “We were just plugging along and good lord willing, we’ve got that many so far.”

PARAMUS, N.J. – Canadian, Adam Hadwin, finished with a share of 11th this weekend at The Northern Trust. He recorded a 70 in his final round to sit 10-under for the tournament.

To his right was the silver trophy Bryson DeChambeau won Sunday , a victory that felt comfortable to everyone but him. To his left was the silver FedEx Cup trophy, a reminder of the ultimate prize in the PGA Tour season.

Missing was the gold Ryder Cup trophy.

DeChambeau took a giant step toward playing for that, too.

“Like I said yesterday, I’m a man on a mission right now – two missions, actually,” DeChambeau said after a four-shot victory in the opening FedEx Cup playoff event. “One being the Ryder Cup and one being the FedEx Cup. I’m doing pretty well right now and just got to keep moving forward in the right direction.”

That was the only direction his game went in a final round devoid of much drama.

Staked to a four-shot lead, DeChambeau never let anyone closer than two shots, ended the threat with consecutive birdies and closed with a 2-under 69 to win by four shots over Tony Finau, who also had the Ryder Cup on his mind.

DeChambeau never felt entirely in control until he stabbed at a chip short of the 12th green – a shot he had worked on all week and used that one time – that rolled out to 4 feet for a birdie that turned back his only threat.

His only wild shot was on the 18th hole, sending his drive so far to the right that landed in the fairway of a hole that wasn’t being used at Ridgewood Country Club. He still had a good angle to the green, made par and finished at 18-under 266.

He won for the second time this year, both against some of the strongest fields. He moved to the top of the FedEx Cup standings and is virtually assured of being one of the top five seeds at the Tour Championship who have a clear shot at the $10 million bonus.

Also on his mind is playing for no money at all at the Ryder Cup.

DeChambeau narrowly missed earning one of the eight automatic spots for the U.S. team when he missed the cut at the PGA Championship. Jim Furyk makes three of his four captain’s picks a week from Tuesday, and it will be tough to ignore a 24-year-old Californian with victories at the Memorial and a FedEx Cup playoff event.

“Hopefully he can see that I’ve got some grit and grind, and that even when I don’t execute certain shots, I can get it done,” DeChambeau said.

DeChambeau, who stayed on the practice range until it was dark Saturday night, came out firing with two straight birdies to stretch the lead to six shots. His only mistakes were a pair of three-putt bogeys on the front nine, the second one at No. 9 that reduced his lead to two shots over Aaron Wise.

But not for long.

Wise’s threat ended with a bogey on No. 16, about the time DeChambeau got up-and-down with that chip from just short of the reachable par-4 12th for birdie.

No one got any closer the rest of the way.

Finau also made a strong statement about a captain’s pick. Furyk invited Finau to join a small group of Americans who played Le Golf Nacional the weekend before the British Open. He was playing with Furyk at the PGA Championship when Finau tied a tournament record with 10 birdies in the second round.

And while he stared five shots back on a course where the greens were as firm as they have been all week, Finau closed with a 68 to finish alone in second. Finau cracked the top 20 in the world (No. 18) for the first time in his career.

“If I’m in the conversation, this doesn’t hurt my chances, I don’t believe,” Finau said. “I had a solid week all around. My game feels good and I feel confident. Whatever his decision is, I’ll be ready to play.”

Tiger Woods, coming off a runner-up finish at the PGA Championship, never got anything going. He closed with a 70 and tied for 40th, 14 shots out of the lead.

“I’m sure you guys are used to seeing me win five times a year or more,” Woods said. “It’s not that easy to win out here. What you’re seeing is that I’m close, and just one shot here, one shot there per day, flips momentum.”

Woods has played plenty of practice rounds with DeChambeau and is a strong advocate for adding him to the U.S. team that goes to France at the end of September.

“The guy is fiery,” Woods said. “He’s competitive, and we want guys like that. It’s going to be a tough environment, so we want guys that are mentally tough and can handle it.”

Billy Horschel (68) and Cameron Smith (69) tied for third.

Ryan Palmer also felt like a winner. He came into the FedEx Cup playoffs at No. 100 – the top 100 advance to the second stage next week at the TPC Boston – and Palmer delivered a 65 on Sunday highlighted by a wedge he holed for eagle on the par-5 third hole. He tied for fifth, along with Wise (67) and Adam Scott (69), and moved all the way to No. 50.

Dustin Johnson’s only consolation was four birdies over the final four holes for a 68 that enabled him to stay No. 1 in the world by the narrowest of margins over U.S. Open and PGA champion Brooks Koepka.

Nick Watney was among six players who moved from outside the top 100 to advance to the Dell Technologies Championship, which starts Friday. The others were Scott Stallings, Jhonattan Vegas, Bronson Burgoon, Brian Stuard and Danny Lee.

REGINA – Throughout the entire week at the CP Women’s Open, Alena Sharp would write the number 16 on her golf balls.

It was one the Hamilton native’s ways of paying tribute to the 16 people that died in the April 6 bus crash involving the Humboldt Broncos junior hockey team.

Sharp said earlier in the event that she felt as though she had 16 angels watching over her at the Wascana Country Club.

“I totally was thinking about them all day. Even on the last putt,” Sharp said after her final round on Sunday. “I wrote 16 on my ball just to give me a reminder of it.”

Thirteen people survived the crash that happened as the Broncos were on their way to a Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League playoff game.

Sharp played this year’s Canadian championship with a golf bag that featured the Broncos’s green and yellow colours and team logo. The bag is being given to the Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital and will be auctioned off at a fundraiser next month.

Sponsor obligations along with trying to learn the course prevented Sharp from making the trip to Humboldt, which is located 2 1/2 hours north of Regina. The busyness of the tournament also didn’t allow her to meet any of the survivors.

“I haven’t met them, but they’re always in my thoughts,” Sharp said.

Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., has captured the Canadian headlines during the tournament, but Sharp shot a 1-under 71 on Sunday to finish the event at 6 under. Anne-Catherine Tanguay (73) of Quebec City was 4 under.

As Sharp was walking on the cart path to the sixth hole on Sunday, she saw Henderson putting on the practice green and ran over to give her friend and Olympic teammate a hug before Henderson started her round.

Sharp said that she was excited for Henderson, who is aiming to become the first Canadian champion of the event since Jocelyne Bourassa won in Montreal in 1973.

“Hopefully she can stay strong in the last little bit, the last few holes and bring the win in,” Sharp said.

Sharp has struggled with consistency this season and said that it’s been a mentally tough year for her. She said that it’s always tougher to play at home but felt as though she has taken a step in the right direction with this week’s play.

“I’m just battling through some mental demons,” Sharp said. “I’m happy walking off of this week, I played well under the pressure and have a lot of positives to take to next week.”

REGINA – Brooke Henderson ended Canada’s long drought at the CP Women’s Open on Sunday, firing a final-round 7-under-par 65 to win the national championship by four strokes.

Henderson finished with a 21-under 267 total, sealing the win with a short birdie putt on the 18th hole at the Wascana Country Club.

“It’s amazing, just surreal,” Henderson said. “The crowds here have been so amazing all week, and to finish it off the way I did is really a dream come true.”

American Angel Yin was alone in second place after a 68 and American Jennifer Song (67) was six shots behind at 15 under. Australians Minjee Lee (68) and Su Oh (69) were seven strokes off the pace in a fourth-place tie with South Korea’s Amy Yang (68) and American Austin Ernst (69).

It was the first time a Canadian has won this tournament since Jocelyne Bourassa took the 1973 event – then called La Canadienne – at Montreal.

Henderson earned US$337,500 of the $2.25-million purse for her second victory of the season. It was her seventh career LPGA Tour win, moving her one behind Sandra Post’s record for all-time victories by a Canadian.

Henderson, who started the day with a one-shot lead, was aggressive from the start on an overcast, chilly morning in front of a vocal group of adoring supporters.

CHAMPION! ??? @BrookeHendersonGolf becomes the first Canadian to win the #CPWO since 1973.

A post shared by CP Women’s Open (@cpwomensopen) on Aug 26, 2018 at 1:22pm PDT

Displaying a steely focus and no sign of nerves, she found the fairway with her opening drive and cleared a greenside bunker with her second shot, sticking the ball 12 feet from the pin.

Henderson is one of the biggest hitters on the Tour but her short game can be inconsistent at times. The 20-year-old from Smiths Falls, Ont., set the early tone by sinking the birdie putt for a two-shot lead.

She gave the stroke back on the second hole after her drive found the rough. A line of fairway-hugging trees forced her to chip out on the fairway and Henderson would settle for bogey.

Back-to-back pars followed, allowing Oh to briefly pull even with the Canadian. However, Oh missed a 10-foot par putt on the fifth hole and Henderson drained a 25-footer for birdie to regain the lead.

Canada’s @BrookeHenderson wins the 2018 #CPWO, becoming the first Canadian to win since 1973 https://t.co/rtdHhQ7ueb

— CP Women’s Open (@cpwomensopen) August 26, 2018

After a birdie-bogey run, Henderson showed her form on the par-3, 206-yard eighth hole. With a challenging pin placement, she elevated her tee shot perfectly to clear a greenside ridge and bunker to leave herself an 18-foot putt.

She hit the birdie to move to 16-under for a three-shot cushion on Oh and defending champion Sung Hyun Park of South Korea.

Henderson was playing to win and not to just hang on.

A steady rain started to fall as the last few groups made the turn. Some of the Tour’s biggest names were chasing Henderson but no one could get hot enough on the back nine to get close.

Yin hovered a few shots back but Henderson wouldn’t budge.

“It’s great for golf in Canada, women’s golf, and it’s great for her too,” Yin said. “I mean, people shouting her name left to right since the first hole, like (since) nine in the morning. I bet you she feels pressure.

“But she’s used to it and she handles it pretty well, and she finished the job.”

The Canadian was making almost every shot look easy. The greens softened up a touch and Henderson was going for the pins. Approach shots were usually in tight and the putter was working.

Yin rolled in her third straight birdie on No. 15, and Henderson answered by knocking in her fourth birdie putt in a row to keep her three-shot lead.

She maintained that cushion through the 17th hole, allowing her to fully enjoy the moment on No. 18 as the packed gallery roared during her walk up the fairway.

After a beautiful drive, Henderson’s approach shot from 69 yards out cozied up to the hole. She tapped in the short putt and the celebration was on.

Henderson raised her arms in the air and hugged her sister Brittany, who was on her bag all week. Their ecstatic father, Dave, ran on to the green and doused them in champagne.

Park (71), who finished at 13 under, will retain her No. 1 position in the world rankings. She was tied with three-time CP Women’s Open champion Lydia Ko (69) and several others.

American Mo Martin was another shot back at 12 under after firing a course-record 62.

Hamilton’s Alena Sharp (71) was at 6 under, two shots ahead of Quebec City’s Anne-Catherine Tanguay (73).

The 2019 CP Women’s Open will be held at the Magna Golf Club in Aurora, Ont.