It doesn’t matter how it looks, it just has to get the job done, right? Check out the top 10 all-time unique swings, and find out which swing is the most unorthodox on the PGA TOUR.

Imagine arriving at Augusta National for your Masters debut at 6:45 a.m. and getting ready to warm up.  Preparing for the day is a bit overwhelming if you have never done a similar warm up or you don’t have a set routine.  That is exactly what Corey Conners of Canada’s National Golf Team faced recently, but he was ready.

Warming up for your round is just that — it’s a tune-up for your mind and your body so you’re ready to play right from the opening tee shot.  For a competitive player, a typical warm up can last anywhere between 45 minutes to 1 hour and 15 minutes; Adapt the routine to the circumstances and to the facilities available.

Before you start, do a series of dynamic exercises to activate the body, get it ready to perform your best, and reduce the likelihood of injury.  Players on our National Team have an individualized series of movements that get them ready to compete that can start first thing in the morning before they get to the golf course, while others can do theirs on the range prior to hitting balls.

I like to have our players start the warm up by doing a few short range putting drills and getting a feel for the speed of the greens for about 10 minutes.  Then, they will go to the driving range to warm up the body and begin their long game warm up.

Start with your wedges to get loose. Hit a few light ½ and ¾ shots.  Then, work your way down your golf bag hitting two or three shots with the odd-numbered clubs: 9, 7, 5, 3-iron, 3-wood and a few more driver shots.  Then, work your way back up by hitting two or three shots with the even clubs starting with the hybrid, 4, 6, 8 and wedges.  Be sure to have a target for each shot and to occasionally change targets.  Finish off each club with a good shot prior to moving on to the next club.  Remind yourself if you are not hitting it exactly the way you want, that it’s just a warm up and you are preparing the body to play.  It’s a little like stretching prior to going for a run.  If your stretch doesn’t go well, does that mean you are not going to enjoy your run?

While moving through the bag, do your entire pre-shot routine on every third shot trying to simulate a shot on the course. I like to have the players on the National Team finish by playing the first two holes and the last two holes of the course they are about to play on the range – again – with a full pre-shot routine.  I want them to visualize being out on the course, picking the target they will be aiming at given the current wind conditions, and hitting their best shot.  Then, they’ll play their second shot from where the tee shot would have ended, again with complete pre-shot routine until the ball is on the green.  It is really important to warm up your mind and your body; playing a few holes on the range will get you ready.  After you have simulated playing the first couple holes and the last couple holes, hit a final first tee shot once more with your full routine.  Be sure to finish on an acceptable shot then move on to the short game area.  The long game warm up should take around 25 minutes.

Once in the short game area, hit a few pitch, chip and sand shots to get your contact solid and feeling ready.  Try to vary the lie and the hole you are hitting to so they are not exactly the same for each shot.  I love it when Corey [Connors] hits more random shots as opposed to hitting the same shot repeatedly.  Next, simulate a few greenside shots you could face on the course.  Do your full routine with one ball and mark and putt in out.  Do three or four up and downs so you are used to the routine of hitting the shot and putting out. You should get a decent feel for your short game in about 10 minutes.

Now head to the putting green to finish off your pre-round warm up; plan for another 10 minutes.  Take time to do a few short putting drills inside seven feet.  Corey uses a string and two spikes to practice starting the ball on line inside of eight feet on a straight putt.  Then, he will move to a left to right putt to practice starting the ball on his line and making some short breaking putts; he will also do the same on right to left putts.  After finishing up with a few more straight putts, he is really confident on those short need-to-make putts.

After the short putts, hit a few mid-length putts in the 10- to 20-foot range.  I like to have our players use only one ball, do a full read and their pre-putt routine to simulate what will happen during the round.  Then, similarly they can putt a few lag putts, and use their full routine and putt them out.  Last, it’s a good idea to finish with a couple more short putts and your full routine before heading to the tee.

Keep loose prior to hitting your first shot; it may be 20 or more minutes since you last hit a ball.  Take several deep breaths to keep relaxed—trying to inhale and exhale at the same rate.  Knowing you have prepared the best you can for the round, it’s now time to smile and just enjoy the competition.

DRUMMONDVILLE, Q.C. – CN and Golf Canada announced the continuation of the CN Future Links Community Tour on Friday with a visit to the city of Drummondville during its 200^th anniversary as part of CN’s dedication to junior golf and the community.

“Golf is an excellent sport for our young students to get involved with and we are thrilled to have CN engage with our community through the CN Future Links program,” said Johanne Marceau, General Director of the Corporation des fêtes du 200e de Drummondville. “We are extremely excited for our 200^th anniversary and are thankful to have CN share in the celebration through the Community Tour.”

Close to 50 students from Frédéric-Tétreau Elementary celebrated with a CN Future Links Field Trip event at the Drummondville Golf & Curling Club in honour of CN’s recent adoption of 15 local schools in the Drummondville region. Students received lessons in safety, putting, driving and chipping from Head PGA of Canada Professional, Claude Gamache.

As part of CN’s focus towards safety, each of the schools adopted into the Golf in Schools program (valued at $475) will receive an all-encompassing rail safety demonstration from CN’s partner, Operation Lifesaver, a national organization dedicated to keeping Canadian kids and the public safe around all rail tracks.

The celebration at Drummondville Golf & Curling Club marks over 150 schools adopted through CN’s school adoption program since 2013, reinforcing their vision of helping communities share in the health and safety values associated with junior golf. The Drummondville region was the second of three communities visited in 2015 by the CN Future Links Community Tour, a nation-wide event that brings the values of junior golf to regions across Canada—Kamloops, B.C. was the first stop earlier this month.

“Junior golf has provided us a valuable platform to make a significant impact in key communities like Drummondville that are along CN’s network,” said Claude Mongeau, CN President and Chief Executive Officer. “CN is pleased to be part of Drummondville`s  200^th anniversary festivities and to take an active role in helping Golf Canada and the PGA of Canada share the values of golf across the country.”

As a follow up to Friday’s school adoption, the CN Future Links Community Tour is gearing up to unfold from June 27–28 in the heart of Drummondville at 150 Rue Brock (parking lot 3), engaging community youth and attendees in various golf activities in addition to rail safety tips from CN Police.

“CN continues to move the needle in terms of initiating creative ways to expose golf to Canada’s youth,” said Jeff Thompson, Golf Canada’s Chief Sport Officer. “The Community Tour is a very exciting national initiative for introducing golf in fun, community-based festival environments across the country—an engaging method of taking the sport directly to youth.”

Current CN Future Links programming includes the Learn to Play program as well as mobile clinics, PGA Jr. League, Girls Club, Field Trip and the CN Future Links Championships. As part of its investment in Canadian junior golf, CN is also a proud supporter of Golf in Schools.

In 2014, CN Future Links junior golf activities were conducted at 455 golf facilities with more than 7,000 juniors registered in the Learn to Play program. In addition, 160 golf facilities took part in the Junior Skills Challenge running more than 3,200 juniors through qualifying events. More than 56,000 youngsters participated in more than 1,200 mobile golf clinics across the country. Since 2006, more than 1.2 million children have been introduced to golf through the CN Future Links program.

Adam Hadwin is driving to his hotel room in Florida during the week of the Honda Classic, and his fully loaded courtesy car is beeping at him. The navigation system feels that he’s starting to drift into the next lane. He doesn’t know why, because he’s right in the middle, driving straight ahead.

For the PGA TOUR rookie, whether it’s on the road or the golf course, he knows his path.

“I’ve been working most of my life to get to this point, where I’m at right now,” the 26-year-old says.

Sometimes, Hadwin admits, it’s great to see how far he’s come.  But he’ll be the first to tell you there’s more he wants to achieve.

“I get a text message every time a week is over with updated results.  If I play well and have a decent stretch, you see how much money you’re making and you’re like, ‘wow, that’s pretty good,’” Hadwin says.  “But I’m not that concerned with the money.  That’s great, but I want to win.  That’s the biggest thing.”

Hadwin has been a winner on every level in his golf career so far.  He was a celebrated junior and amateur golfer in British Columbia before moving to the University of Louisville.  After turning professional, he won three times on the Vancouver Golf Tour, before winning twice on PGA TOUR Canada (then the Canadian Tour).

Hadwin is fully exempt on the PGA TOUR for the first time after two years on the Web.Com Tour.  He won twice in 2014, but he’s looking for more this year on the biggest stage in golf.

But, even with this steadfast determination, he doesn’t let the cool parts of being a PGA TOUR member pass him by.

“We really are spoiled,” Hadwin says.  “I remember at the Frys.com Open, my very first week out, I had a Mercedes S550 (as a courtesy car), so I was like, ‘well, here we go… PGA TOUR!’”

He nearly made the PGA TOUR for 2013, but finished just outside the required position on the Web.com Tour.  He ended up struggling in 2013, but then enjoyed a breakout season last year.

“I feel like I’ve gotten better every year, even though I kind of regressed in 2013 and had a terrible year,” explains Hadwin.  “I didn’t play well on the Web.com Tour, but I still felt that I was a better player at the end of the year then at the start of the year.”

Not only did Hadwin earn his PGA TOUR card thanks to his 2014 season on the Web.Com Tour, he can also pick-and-choose his schedule for the entire year without having to think about priority rankings or re-shuffles. He acknowledges this has loosened him up a bit, knowing that he didn’t need to play well early in the season to guarantee entry into more tournaments as the year goes on.

But that hasn’t changed his approach to the job at hand.

“I’m not playing reckless because I’m guaranteed a bunch of events,” he says.  “I’m out there to practice on the golf course, figure out a game plan and stick with it.”

Hadwin says he made some small swing changes in the off-season, and he tweaked his grip.  After 10 events, he says he was starting to see some of the benefits of these improvements. This, he hopes, will help lead him to the winner’s circle soon.

“It would be a huge stepping stone in my career and the next step I need to take,” Hadwin admits.  “Getting a win in my rookie season would be huge, and a huge boost of confidence.  But, if I don’t win for, say, four more years but I’m still ac tive on the Tour?  I may be disappointed, but I’m really trying to have a more long-term perspective on things.”

This summer will mark four years since Hadwin’s best PGA TOUR finish: a T4 at the 2011 RBC Canadian Open at Shaughnessy Golf & Country Club.  He says he took a lot away from that week, and there is quite a bit that he still hangs on to.  He’s excited to be able to come into this year’s RBC Canadian Open as a full-time PGA TOUR member.

“It’s always great to come back to Canada,” he explains.  “Having a full Tour card is going to be a lot different, because usually I treat the Canadian Open as a one-off event.  It’ll be nice to go there as a full Tour player this year and approach it like every other week.” So while he drives towards a long career on the PGA TOUR, if you were to ask what motivates Hadwin, it’s, well, Hadwin.

“I love to compete, and it’s not even competing against everyone else, it’s about competing with myself and getting better,” he says.  “I found something I’m good at, and something I enjoy.  I’ve always been competitive with anything I’ve ever done, and it’s just been a lot of fun.”

HARRIS, Mich. – The Symetra Tour, Road to the LPGA, has announced that Brooke Henderson was granted Symetra Tour membership by LPGA Commissioner Michael Whan following her win at last week’s Four Winds Invitational. By virtue of her win, Henderson will be placed in category C on the Symetra Tour Priority List for the remainder of the year. She has committed to play in the Island Resort Championship this week in Harris, Michigan and was already scheduled to play the Tullymore Classic, July 3-5, as a sponsor invite.

Henderson carded a 3-under 69 on Sunday at Blackthorn Golf Club to win her first Symetra Tour event by three shots at 10-under 206. She became the third youngest winner in Symetra Tour history behind 16-year-old Hannah O’Sullivan, who won the Gateway Classic at Longbow Golf Club earlier this year, and Cristie Kerr, who was 17 years old when she won the 1995 Ironwood FUTURES Classic.

“I‘m really excited to be a member of the Symetra Tour and that my petition was accepted by Mike Whan and the LPGA,” said Henderson. “I have worked really hard to maximize the playing opportunities on both LPGA and Symetra Tours and to get a win at the Four Winds Invitational feels really good and gets me closer to my goals.”

Here is the statement from LPGA Chief Tour Operations Officer Heather Daly-Donofrio on Henderson being granted membership on the Symetra Tour:

“On Sunday, Brooke Henderson petitioned Commissioner Whan to waive the minimum age requirement to be eligible for Symetra Tour membership. Commissioner Whan reviewed the petition and accepted it. Based on her win Sunday at the Four Winds Invitational, Henderson will now be seeded into Category C on the 2015 Symetra Tour Priority List for the remainder of the season. As a Symetra Tour Member, she will be eligible to earn official money for the purposes of the Symetra Tour Money List and the Volvik Race for the Card. Per Symetra Tour regulations, any money previously earned by Henderson as a non-member will remain unofficial for the purposes of the Symetra Tour Money List. Henderson plans to compete this week at the Island Resort Championship in Harris, Michigan.”

Henderson’s $22,500 first-place check for the Four Winds Invitational victory will not count towards the official Volvik Race for the Card money list because she played the event as a non-member. However, any money earned by Henderson at the Island Resort Championship and any Symetra event moving forward will count.

While the money that Henderson won last week is unofficial, her victory at the Four Winds Invitational will count toward potential additional playing opportunities on the LPGA. Winners of three official Symetra Tour tournaments during the current year can earn a spot in Category 13 on the LPGA Priority List. A spot in Category 13 does not give a player LPGA membership but it is an opportunity for that player to compete in LPGA events as a non-member.

“Since turning professional this year, Brooke has compiled an impressive list of accomplishments including her victory Sunday at the Four Winds Invitational,” said Chief Business Officer of the Symetra Tour Mike Nichols. “We welcome her to the Symetra Tour for the remainder of the season as she continues her pursuit of ultimately joining the LPGA Tour.”

This year, Henderson has competed in seven LPGA events as a non-member while posting two top-10 finishes and five top-25 results. She recently finished in a tie for fifth at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. Henderson is scheduled to play in the U.S. Women Open in July after finishing in a tie for 10th at last year’s U.S. Women’s Open.

UNIVERSITY PLACE, Wash. – He won the first one the way players like to take majors, leading from the start at the Masters on a romp to the green jacket.

The second for Jordan Spieth came Sunday night with a bit more difficulty. Had Dustin Johnson been a little more steady with the putter on the final green Sunday, they might still be playing for the U.S. Open trophy.

Johnson wasn’t, much to the astonishment of the 6,000 or so who crowded the grandstands at maligned Chambers Bay for an Open finish like no other. He had to settle for holding his infant son off the 18th green on Father’s Day, instead of the U.S. Open trophy.

That belonged to Spieth, the phenom from Texas who impressed so many by not only winning the Masters but the grace and composure he showed while doing it. He spoke after that win about bringing a present home to his special needs sister, and it was clear that meant almost as much to him as winning his first green jacket.

He’s now halfway to history, yet still barely old enough to drink. The last player who did things like Spieth was named Tiger Woods, which seems so long ago.

Now he’s the youngest since Bobby Jones nearly a century ago to win back-to-back major championships. Spieth has a chance to do what even Woods couldn’t and win all four of golf’s major tournaments in one year.

Watching him Sunday on the crunchy greens at Chambers Bay, it was hard not to get the sense that he’s only just begun.

“He’s gritty, he’s fiery, he doesn’t give up on any shot,” caddie Michael Greller said. “If anything, this week just validated who I know he is, which is just a world-class player with an unbelievable mind.”

The story line at this Open unfolded easily, like it was written by a golf historian of the future. Woods came here to try and salvage his game, while Spieth came to cement his mark as a generational champion in the making.

Woods didn’t even make it to the weekend in yet another display of how humbling golf can be. The greatest player of his time seems forever stuck on 14 majors, and it remains to be seen how long he will keep embarrassing himself like he did here when he couldn’t even come close to beating a 15-year-old amateur before getting out of town on his private jet before the weekend began.

It was Spieth who salvaged this Open, making it one to remember for all the right reasons instead of the wrong. His 3-wood to the 18th green on Sunday was the kind of shot that will live in Open lore, even if Spieth didn’t make the eagle putt and even if he had to rely on Johnson 3-putting from 12 feet to seal the deal.

“This was just an odd deal, very odd,” Spieth said. “I very much feel for Dustin. He deserves to be holding the trophy just as much as I do, I think, this week. It just came down to him being the last one to finish and I was able to have one hole to rebound from my mistakes, and he wasn’t able to get that hole afterward.”

That Spieth did it without his best game should give his fellow competitors pause. His ball striking was just a bit off, he said, his putting not always up to his standards.

It was the kind of thing Woods used to say, then go out and beat everyone anyway. It didn’t seem possible another player of that caliber would come along in his time, but here Spieth is at the age of 21 brimming with confidence as the British Open at St. Andrews approaches and the possibility of a Grand Slam looms.

“I’m just focused on the Claret Jug now,” he said of the British Open trophy. “I think that the Grand Slam is something that I never could really fathom somebody doing, considering I watched Tiger win when he was winning whatever percentage of the majors he played in and he won the Tiger Slam, but he never won the four in one year. I figured if anybody was going to do it, it would be him.”

After doing all the right things to win his second title, Spieth said all the right things. He thanked his caddie, said he was happy just to be the brother of Steven Spieth, a shooting guard at Brown University.

And he held the trophy and looked at his beaming father just off the 18th green to show off the best Father’s Day present ever.

“To win this tournament on Father’s Day, I just hope my dad’s proud of me,” he said. “Dad, this one was definitely for you today. This trophy is for you, and this is a day we’ll never forget.”

They won’t, after a Sunday that a lot of people in golf won’t soon forget either.

UNIVERSITY PLACE, Wash. – Jordan Spieth is halfway home to the Grand Slam, a prize only three of the biggest names in modern golf have ever chased.

And he still can’t believe how he got there.

Spieth won the U.S. Open in a heart-stopper Sunday with a turn of events even more wild than the terrain at Chambers Bay. He thought he had it won with a 25-foot birdie putt on the 16th hole. He threw away a three-shot lead one hole later. He made birdie on the final hole. And then he thought it was over as Dustin Johnson settled in over a 12-foot eagle putt for the victory.

Three putts later, Spieth was the U.S. Open champion.

“I’m still in shock,” he said with the gleaming U.S. Open trophy at his side. “I’ve never experienced a feeling like this. It was a very intense back nine.”

Spieth became only the sixth player to win the Masters and U.S. Open in the same year, and he joined Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods in getting the first two legs of the modern slam that Palmer created on his way to St. Andrews in 1960.

That’s the next stop for the 21-year-old Texan whose two major championships could not be any more different. A wire-to-wire runaway at Augusta National. A nail-biter on the edge of Puget Sound.

And another major heartache for Johnson.

“I had all the chances in the world,” said Johnson, who missed six putts inside 10 feet on the back nine and finished one shot behind.

Spieth, the youngest U.S. Open champion since Bobby Jones in 1923, did his part. Even after letting Johnson and fast-closing Louis Oosthuizen back into the game with his double bogey on the 17th hole, Spieth responded with a 3-wood that caught the backboard on the 18th hole and settled below the hole for an eagle putt. He missed it left, made birdie and walked off the green feeling more regret than excitement over his 1-under 69 for a one-shot lead with the big-hitting Johnson behind him.

Johnson reached the par-5 18th with a 5-iron – that’s how far he smashed his tee shot on the 601-yard hole.

Make the putt and he wins the U.S. Open. Two putts would force an 18-hole playoff Monday on a course that favors power.

“I’m still amazed that I won, let alone that we weren’t playing tomorrow,” Spieth said. “So for that turnaround right there, to watch that happen, I feel for Dustin, but I haven’t been able to put anything in perspective yet.”

Spieth now prepares for St. Andrews, the next stop on this improbable ride.

Woods in 2002 was the last player to get the first two legs of the slam.

The others to win the Masters and U.S. Open in the same year were Craig Wood in 1941 and Ben Hogan in 1951 and 1953. Hogan won the British Open in 1953, though he never played the PGA Championship because it was held roughly the same time as the British.

Spieth finished at 5-under 275 in winning for the third time this year. He is still No. 2 and closing fast on Rory McIlroy, who has top 10s in both majors this year without being a serious contender.

Spieth becomes the first player since Jones to make birdie on the 72nd hole to win the U.S. Open by one shot – all because of Johnson’s three-putt. He also became the youngest player with two majors since Gene Sarazen in 1922.

For all the criticism of the unique course at Chambers Bay, this was the theater at its finest.

But there will be lingering questions about the condition of the greens, so bumpy that they were referred to as broccoli and Billy Horschel said he lost respect for the USGA. This championship ended with a short miss, the target of complaints all week.

“As you can tell, it’s very difficult to get them in the hole out there,” Johnson said. “The greens were really fast and they were rolling fairly smooth, but it was still bouncing a little bit.”

The final hour was so wild that four players could have won over the last two holes.

Branden Grace of South Africa was tied for the lead when he hit his tee shot on the reachable 16th hole over the fence and onto the railroads that run along Puget Sound. He made double bogey and never challenged again.

Spieth hit into the fescue-covered mounds right of the 17th and made double bogey just as Oosthuizen made one last birdie – his sixth over the last seven holes – for a 67 to post at 4-under 276.

Johnson, who had a two-shot lead at the turn until missing so many putts on the back nine, was forgotten until he stuffed his tee shot on the par-3 17th to 4 feet for birdie. He just couldn’t make one from a little closer when it mattered even more.

“I did everything I was supposed to do,” he said. “I hit the ball really well. I’m proud of the way I handled myself and the way I played today. I just really struggled getting it in the hole today. I didn’t think I was hitting bad putts. I thought I was hitting them pretty good they just weren’t going in.”

It was the fourth heartache for Johnson in the majors, and this was the worst.

Jason Day, who collapsed on Friday with vertigo only to rally for a share of the 54-hole lead, fell back with missed putt and was never in the hunt on the back nine. He closed with a 74 to finish five shots behind.

Grace never recovered from that double bogey on No. 16 and shot 71 to tie for fourth with Adam Scott (64) and Cameron Smith (68).

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont. carded a 3-under 69 to win the 2015 Four Winds Invitational by three shots at 10-under 206. Henderson becomes the third youngest winner in the history of the Symetra Tour.

“It’s amazing to win and I’m so thankful that I got the sponsors exemption this week so I’d be able to play with my older sister,” said 17-year-old Henderson. “I’m very grateful for the win here and I think it will be a big confidence booster moving forward.”

“These are great players out here (on the Symetra Tour) and this win is huge for me,” Henderson continued. “I have big goals and this is definitely a stepping stone towards them.”

Henderson played the front nine in 1-under to move to 8-under for the tournament and made the turn in a share of the lead with Dottie Ardina. Then, Ardina made birdie on the tenth hole to take the lead at 9-under. Both Ardina and Henderson made birdie on the 11th hole and Ardina held a one shot lead with seven holes to play.

The momentum shifted in Henderson’s favor on the 12th hole when she made birdie and Ardina made bogey. Henderson also birdied the 13th hole to move to 11-under. She would cruise to victory as Ardina made four bogeys over five holes between the 12th and 16th holes.

“I was 1-under on the front nine and I knew I was near the lead, but I was kicking myself because I knew I needed to get it going,” said Henderson. “Holes 11 and 12 were huge turning points where Dottie and I kind of switched positions and then I was able to keep it from there.”

Henderson has been very busy and will continue to be, but she is fine with that.

“I’ve been busy, but I wouldn’t change it for the world, it has been a lot of fun,” said Henderson. “People often ask me how busy it is and why I don’t take a week off, but I love being out here and I think every week I am learning a bit more about myself and my game and I think it is helping me be better.”

Brooke’s older sister, Brittany, a Symetra Tour member, followed her from hole 16th until the end.

“Brittany has been a huge role model for me and this week it has been awesome to be able to play with her,” said Henderson. “I’ve always followed in her footsteps and I was so excited to see her on 16 and have her follow me in. She is one of my best friends, too.”

Second-round leader Dottie Ardina of the Philippines was second. She birdied the final hole for a 74.

American Selanee Henderson, Canada’s Jessica Wallace of Langley, B.C., and Italy’s Giulia Molinaro tied for third at 7 under. Selanee Henderson had a 65, and Wallace and Molinaro shot 70.

After the victory, Henderson also took to Twitter to announce some great news. The Team Canada member – having previously been denied LPGA membership due to an age restriction – is now a member of the Symetra Tour.

So excited about my @Road2LPGA win!!! And so thankful to @LPGACommish to accept my petition to become a member of the #SymetraTour

— Brooke Henderson (@BrookeH_Golf) June 22, 2015

Brooke Henderson had petitioned Commissioner Whan to waive the minimum age requirement to be eligible for Symetra Tour membership earlier today. Commissioner Whan reviewed the petition and accepted it.

“Based on her win today at the Four Winds Invitational, Henderson will now be seeded into Category C on the 2015 Symetra Tour Priority List for the remainder of the season,” said Heather Daly-Donofrio, the LPGA’s Chief Tour Operations Officer.

As a Symetra Tour Member, she will be eligible to earn official money for the purposes of the Symetra Tour Money List and the Volvik Race for the Card.

Per Symetra Tour regulations, any money previously earned by Henderson as a non-member will remain unofficial for the purposes of the Symetra Tour Money List. Henderson plans to compete this week at the Island Resort Championship in Harris, Michigan.

UNIVERSITY PLACE, Wash. — The toughest test in golf met one tough player Saturday at the U.S. Open.

Jason Day had every reason to withdraw when he collapsed on the final hole of his second round with a nasty bout of vertigo. He gave it his best shot under the stiffest conditions yet at Chambers Bay. The vertigo returned on the back nine, along with nausea. When he turned his head toward the target, he had to wait for his eyes to stop dancing before he could swing. He thought about quitting three times.

And it was worth it.

With three birdies on the last four holes, Day staggered off the course with a 2-under 68 and his name atop the leaderboard. He was part of a four-way tie with Masters champion Jordan Spieth, Dustin Johnson and Branden Grace of South Africa.

One day after his collapse, Day was standing taller than ever.

“That was the greatest round I’ve ever watched,” said Colin Swatton, his caddie and longtime coach who whispered words of encouragement along the hilly terrain of Chambers Bay. “I said, `You’ve got the heart of a lion. You get to show the world today you get to be the greatest you can be and look, let’s do it.’ And he just put his head down and kept walking, one foot in front of the other. It was pretty impressive.”

And now he gets to play in the final group of a major for the first time.

All it took was a performance that brought to mind Ken Venturi winning the U.S. Open at Congressional in 1964 with a 36-hole final while suffering from heat exhaustion and severe dehydration, and Tiger Woods winning the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines in 2008 with a shattered left leg.

Day still has one day to go and a course that is getting faster and scarier by the day. And he has plenty of company.

Jordan Spieth had four three-putts, missed birdie chances inside 12 feet on the last three holes and still wound up in a tie for the lead with a 71 as he tries to become only the fourth player since 1960 to win the first two legs of the Grand Slam. The others were Woods (2002), Jack Nicklaus (1972) and Arnold Palmer (1960).

“I didn’t have my best stuff today but still tied for the lead, and I’ve had my best stuff at times this week, and I’m pretty sure I know where it is and how to get it tomorrow and get ready to go,” Spieth said.

Dustin Johnson gets a fourth shot at his first major. He also wasted good birdie chances with his power – a tee shot that landed on the front of the green at the 372-yard 16th hole (three-putt par) and a big drive on the par-5 18th. He hit 3-iron into a bunker and made par for a 70.

Johnson also was in position to win the 2010 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, the 2010 PGA Championship at Whistling Straits and the 2011 British Open.

“I’ve been in the situation a few times, so I know how to handle myself,” he said. “I know what it takes to get it done. And tomorrow I just need to go out there and focus one shot at a time. And we’ll see what happens.”

Grace overcame a rough patch in the middle of his round – three bogeys in five holes – and shot a 70. The leaders were at 4-under 206.

Day chose not to speak to the media out of sheer exhaustion. He offered a few comments to a USGA official, and then headed to his motor home to lie down.

“I didn’t feel that great coming out early,” said Day, who dropped two shots in his opening four holes to fall as many as seven shots behind at one point. “I felt pretty groggy on the front nine just from the drugs that I had in my system, then kind of flushed that out on the back nine. The vertigo came back a little bit on the 13th tee box, and then felt nauseous all day. I started shaking on 16 tee box and then just tried to get it in, really. Just wanted to get it in.”

He said it was worse than the vertigo he suffered last year at Firestone that caused him to withdraw. This time, he kept playing.

“I think the goal was just to go through today and see how it goes,” he said.

For everyone else, it was a matter of hanging on.

Spieth holed a pair of 35-foot birdie putts early and stretched his lead to three shots until he gave them back with a pair of three-putts, slapping his knee at the miscues.

“Just need to limit the mistakes tomorrow,” he said.

Johnson built a two-shot lead early on the back nine, only to give it back with a double bogey on the 13th hole with a 7-iron into the bunker and three putts. It was his only bad swing of the day. Johnson hit all 14 fairways.

Louis Oosthuizen, meanwhile, set himself up for a shot at U.S. Open history. No one since World War II has ever shot 77 in the first round of the U.S. Open and gone on to win. Oosthuizen was part of that horror show with Tiger Woods (80) and Rickie Fowler (81) in the opening round. He figured he would be watching the weekend at his home in Florida. Instead, he shot 66 to make the cut, and the South African shot another 66 on Saturday and was at 1-under 209.

Oosthuizen was joined by Cameron Smith of Australia (69), Shane Lowry of Ireland (70) and J.B. Holmes (71). No one else was under par, through 14 players were separated by five shots going into Sunday.

Canada’s Brad Fritsch shot a 2-over 72. The Ottawa native is currently tied for 38th at 6-over 216.