This time, So Yeon Ryu was able to celebrate – without any hint of drama or suspense.

And the third-ranked South Korean might just have used victory Sunday in the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship as a springboard for a possible rise to No. 1 in the world.

Ryu became the LPGA Tour’s first two-time winner this season, finishing at a tournament-record 18-under 195. She won the ANA Inspiration two months ago in California for her second major title, a controversial playoff victory after Lexi Thompson was penalized four strokes for a third-round rules violation reported by a television viewer during the fourth round.

“To be honest, after I won the ANA Inspiration, a lot of people said I maybe I didn’t deserve to win the tournament,” Ryu said. “It was understandable if someone was a big fan of Lexi … (Sunday’s win) feels a bit more free than after the ANA.”

Five strokes ahead after a course-record 10-uner 61 on Saturday, Ryu closed with a 69 for a two-shot victory over fellow South Korean player Amy Yang and Thailand’s Moriya Jutanugarn.

Yang finished with a 64, and Jutanugarn had a 66.

Local favourite Stacy Lewis (69) and Michelle Wie (64) tied for fourth at 13 under.

Ryu became the tour’s first repeat winner in the 16th event of the year, winning at Pinnacle Country Club four years after losing a playoff to Inbee Park in event.

“Hopefully, there are many more to come,” Ryu said before leaving for the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in Illinois.

Ryu’s lead was at four shots midway through the final round, but it closed to two for a brief stretch on the back nine. Moments after Ryu fell to 17 under after missing the green on the par-3 11th en route to her lone bogey of the week, Yang gave the final round its first taste of suspense with a birdie on the 12th.

The birdie pushed Yang to 15 under, but she followed with bogeys on 13 and 14 _ and Ryu quickly extended her lead back to five shots with a birdie of her own on the par-4 12th. She also had a long par-saving up-and-down out of the bunker on the par-4 13th.

Despite the big lead to open the round, Ryu continued to play aggressively. She went at a difficult pin location on the par-3 sixth and on her third shot into the par-5 14th _ with the pin perilously close the front of the green and a steep slope leading into the water.

“I just tried not to do something special,” Ryu said. “Just better to be like me and play to win the tournament.”

Defending champion Lydia Ko set the previous tournament best of 17 under last year. The second-ranked New Zealander shot a 68 on Sunday to tie for 25th at 8 under.

Lewis began the day five shots back and in the final pairing with Ryu, but struggled for much of the day before closing with an eagle on the par-5 18th.

“So Yeon’s played great for a year now, so I’m not surprised,” Lewis said. “She did exactly what she needed to do today; made some good key par putts, especially there on the back side.”

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A few weeks off was all So Yeon Ryu needed to kick-start what is shaping up to be possibly the best year of her LPGA Tour career.

The third-ranked South Korean star shot a course-record 10-under 61 on Saturday in the NW Arkansas Championship to take a five-stroke lead into the final round, putting in in great position to become the first repeat winner this year.

The ANA Inspiration winner in April for her second major title, she reached 16 under to break the tournament 36-hole record by two strokes. She had her lowest score on the LPGA Tour and matched her professional best set in the 2012 Australian Ladies Masters.

Ryu opened the year with eight straight top-10 finishes, including the major victory. She struggled in her two events after that run, finishing 56th and then missing the cut at the ShopRite LPGA Classic this month in New Jersey. Coming off a two-week break, she has returned to her early season form _ and then some.

“I played really well the beginning of this year, then I didn’t really play well at the last championship, kind of lost confidence a little bit,” Ryu said. “But I think it was great to have two weeks off, because when you have two weeks off you totally forget about how you played the last few tournaments.”

Local favourite Stacy Lewis and Moriya Jutanugarn were tied for second. They each shot 65.

“I think I go try to play a round like I have the last couple of days, really,” Lewis said. “That’s all I can do, and then hope for some help.”

First-round leader Sung Hyun Park followed her opening 63 with a 73 to drop into a tie for 10th at 6 under. Defending champion Lydia Ko was 5 under after a 67.

Hamilton’s Alena Sharp is the top Canadian. She shot a 75 and is 2 over.

A day after opening with a 65 in gusty afternoon conditions, Ryu preyed on the Pinnacle Country Club course on a calm Saturday morning.

She needed only 25 putts, posting a 30 on her opening nine holes before closing out the blistering round with three birdies on her final four holes. Ryu capped the round with an uphill 10-foot birdie putt on the par-4 nine, much to the delight of the gallery.

She also earned the praise of Ai Miyazato, the retiring Japanese star who finished a group ahead of Ryu and was nearby at the scorer’s tent as the South Korean walked off the course.

“Way to go, So Yeon,” Miyazato said. “You were on fire out there.”

The previous course record was 62, set by Angela Park and Jane Park in 2008 and matched last year by Ko and Ayako Uehara. Ko went on to win the tournament with a record score of 17 under.

Ko and Morgan Pressel held the previous 36-hole best at 14 under, set last year.

Ryu nearly won the tournament in 2013, losing playoff to Inbee Park.

She’s trying to win her fourth LPGA Tour title.

“I have a few good memories out here,” Ryu said. “Maybe losing in a playoff is not a good memory, but you know, close to a win. I think a lot of positive out there, so hopefully I can catch my opportunity tomorrow.”

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Sung Hyun Park has said one of her goals this season on the LPGA Tour is to win the Rookie of the Year award.

The South Korean might add the title of “winner” to her resume well before any season-ending awards, particularly after opening the NW Arkansas Championship with an 8-under 63 on Friday.

Park finished with nine birdies on her way to nearly matching the course record of 62, needing only 24 putts to take a two-shot lead over Mel Reid, Ally McDonald and So Yeon Ryu.

“My play was best with the putter today, very good,” Park said.

Reid also reached as low as 8 under midway through her round, making a hole-in-one on the par-3 11th. She used a 9-iron on the 135-yard hole, hitting it just past the flag before it spun back and rolled into the hole.

“As soon as I hit it, I thought, ‘Oh, it’s got a chance,”’ Reid said.

Local favourite Stacy Lewis and 56-year-old Juli Inkster were at 66 along with Felicity Johnson, Moriya Jutanugarn, and Katherine Kirk. Defending champion and second-ranked Lydia Ko opened with a 70

The 34-year-old Park won seven times and was the top earner last year on the Korean LPGA tour, but she also played in seven LPGA Tour events with an eye on making the move to the U.S. She has finished in the top 10 four times this year, nine times in her 19 total LPGA Tour appearances.

All that is lacking to solidify her rapid rise into the ranks of the LPGA’s elite is a victory, possibly this weekend in advance of next week’s KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.

“I wasn’t really surprised to see how well (Park) is (playing),” fellow South Korean Ryu said. “Even last year, she played a few LPGA tournaments as a non-member, but she would finish top-five, top-10. I think she is a really great golfer, and it’s a matter of how comfortable she is on the tour.”

Park played in the humid and overcast conditions during the morning at Pinnacle Country Club, avoiding a 46-minute weather delay and gusty conditions during the afternoon.

She entered the tournament fourth in the LPGA Tour in driving distance, and she lived up to that Friday, booming 290-yard drives on the 7,001-yard course.

Ryu was the only player in the afternoon to come within two shots of Park’s morning round, capping her round by reaching the par-5 18th in two and two-putting for her sixth birdie and a bogey-free round.

“I had two weeks off and was really fresh to play,” Ryu said. “I think was everything was really smooth from start to end, and it feels really great to be back.”

Former world No. 1 Ai Miyazato shot a 72 in her first round in the U.S. after announcing last month that she plans to retire at the end of the season.

Michelle Wie opened with a 68.

Hamilton’s Alena Sharp is T37 at 2-under-par.

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GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – Brooke Henderson made it a special Father’s Day.

With father and coach Dave Henderson and other family members watching, the 19-year-old Canadian won the Meijer LPGA Classic on Sunday for her fourth LPGA Tour title, holding off Michelle Wie and Lexi Thompson by two strokes in cool, windy conditions.

“It was just like the perfect day,” the Smiths Falls, Ont., native said. “My dad is my coach, he’s a great father to both my sister (caddie Brittany) and I, and he’s one of our best friends. He’s with us all the time, and he gave me a lot of lines early in the week that I didn’t know, that I wouldn’t normally take without him there. But he said, ‘If you want to win and you want to contend, you need to take these lines off the tee.’

“I did that and I had an advantage over the rest of the field all four days. So this win, I say it’s for him, but it really is for him because I probably wouldn’t have done it without him.”

.@BrookeHenderson grabs her 4th LPGA Victory at the 2017 @MeijerLPGA! A great way to celebrate Father’s Day! ❤️ pic.twitter.com/U6smMxg2rR

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 18, 2017

Henderson closed with a 66 on the Blythefield layout that was reduced to a par of 69 – the fifth hole was played as a par 3 instead of a par 5 – the final two rounds because of flooding.

Wie finished with a 65, and Thompson had a 69.

Henderson finished at 17-under 263 and earned $300,000. She led after each of the first two rounds, shooting 63-67 at a par of 71, and had a 67 on Saturday to drop a stroke behind Thompson.

Henderson won twice last year, taking the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship for her first major, and successfully defending her title in the Cambia Portland Classic.

But she hadn’t won an LPGA tournament since, a winless drought that spanned nearly a year before breaking it Sunday.

“It’s kind of been a little bit tougher season for me, I haven’t got the results that I’ve been really looking for,” Henderson said. “But this week I played really well and things kind of started to turn around for me. So to get my fourth win is super exciting and I’m just excited for the rest of the summer now.”

Henderson had three birdies in a bogey-free round. She birdied Nos. 7 and 8, while Thompson faltered.

“I missed a short one on 10, which I would have liked to have, but then I made a great birdie on No. 11,” Henderson said. “I had zero bogeys on a day like today where it was super windy. And any day on Sunday, there’s that little bit of extra pressure and you’re in contention so you want to play really well so you might push a few more shots than you would like.”

Thompson was 1 over on the first five holes with two bogeys.

Thompson hit one of the longest drives of the day on No. 9, put her approach shot within 20 feet and made the birdie putt to tie for the lead. But she bogeyed No. 10 to fall out of the lead.

“I hit my driver great the whole day, so that was definitely a positive,” Thompson said. “I didn’t roll the putter that well today. It is what it is. I hit two great last putts. I almost made the two long ones.”

Wie shared the lead early in the round and wound up with five birdies and no bogeys.

“It was tough out there,” Wie said. “The wind just started blowing and it was just interesting. Some spots are really wet, some spots are dry, but overall I felt like I played good this week and I’m happy about it.”

Su Oh (64), Madelene Sagstrom (65) and Moriya Jutanugarn (66) tied for fourth at 14 under.

Second-ranked Lydia Ko had a 68 to tie for 10th at 12-under. Top-ranked Ariya Jutanugarn, coming off a playoff victory last week in Canada over Thompson and In Gee Chun, had a 69 to for 22nd at 9 under.

Henderson said she’ll be taking the next week off after playing in a charity event Monday in Rhode Island. Her next tournament will be KPMG PGA Championship, where she’ll look to defend her title from last season.

“It’s really exciting and it gives me a lot of confidence going into that tournament knowing that I’m coming off a win,” she said. “Hopefully I can go there to Olympia Fields and defend the championship that really defined my career last year.”

Henderson is the 15th different winner on the LPGA Tour in 2017 and the first from Canada. She is the youngest winner on the LPGA Tour in 2017 and the youngest since her last victory.

.@BrookeHenderson goes bogey-free on her final round to win the @MeijerLPGA! See how she was Up To The Challenge in these highlights: pic.twitter.com/nON4CmRGrw

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 18, 2017

Lexi Thompson shot a 64 on Saturday on the Blythefield layout reduced to a par of 69 because of flooding, giving her a one-stroke lead in the Meijer LPGA Classic.

The fifth hole was played as a 111-yard par 3 instead of a par 5 because of the flooding from overnight rain.

Coming off a playoff loss to Ariya Jutanugarn last week in Canada, Thompson had six birdies – four on the back nine – and a bogey to reach 15-under 196.

“It was just a matter of staying patient,” Thompson said. “I knew I was hitting it well on the front nine, I just wasn’t making the birdies. But I hit it well all day, so it was all a matter of hitting the shots closer and I guess just taking advantage of like No. 11, reaching that one in two, and making a few putts for birdie.”

Her only bogey was on the par-4 seventh.

“It was just a stupid club coming in,” she said. “I should have just played short of the green, that’s where you have to miss it, and I hit it long. Just a bad miss, stupid mistake.”

Brooke Henderson, the leader after each of the first two rounds, had a 67 to drop into a tie for second with Lee-Anne Pace (61), Sung Hyun Park (62) and Jenny Shin (63).

"It's actually probably a little bit easier going into Sunday being one shot back." @BrookeHenderson interview: #MeijerLPGA pic.twitter.com/GnQlphWRz4

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 18, 2017

Thompson won the Kingsmill Championship last month in Virginia for her eighth LPGA Tour title after losing the ANA Inspiration in a playoff after being penalized four strokes for a rules violation reported by a television viewer.

At Rancho Mirage in early April, Thompson was given the four-shot penalty with six holes to play in the final round. She had a 15-inch putt on 17 in the third round when she stooped to mark the ball, and quickly replaced it about an inch away. The television viewer contacted the LPGA Tour the next day, and officials determined it was a clear violation.

Thompson was assessed a two-shot penalty for where she replaced the ball, and because it happened the day before, she received a two-shot penalty for signing an incorrect scorecard. She went from a three-shot lead to one shot behind, and eventually lost to So Yeon Ryu in the playoff.

Henderson birdied Nos. 12 and 13 and closed with five pars.

Heading into Sunday one shot off the lead ? @BrookeHenderson @MeijerLPGA pic.twitter.com/Yx5uZJLhhw

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 17, 2017

“I made that long one from off the green on 12 that wasn’t really expected and that kind of gave me some energy,” the 19-year-old Canadian said.

Pace had two eagles and five birdies.

“My irons were really good,” the South African player said. “Obviously, all the par 3s, that helps. I was looking at birdie almost every hole, which is quite nice. I was never really in trouble except on 10, I missed the drive left, but that was really the only thing. There were a couple of long putts I made, unexpected putts actually. ”

Shin made a long putt on No. 14 for her fifth straight birdie. But on 17, she pushed her approach shot and wound up on the bottom of the green, and took her only bogey of the round.

Hyo Joo Kim (65) was 12 under, and Lydia Ko (64), Michelle Wie (64), Moriya Jutanugarn (67) and Carlota Ciganda (68) followed at 11 under. Ko dropped to No. 2 in the world Monday after an 85-week run at the top. The top-ranked Ariya Jutanugarn, Moriya Jutanugarn’s younger sister, was 9 under after a 64.

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Brooke Henderson bogeyed the final two holes for a 4-under 67, leaving the 19-year-old Canadian with a two-stroke lead Friday in the Meijer LPGA Classic.

Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., had seven birdies – four in a row on Nos. 9-12 – and three bogeys to reach 12-under 130 and break the 36-hole record at Blythefield. She had a one-stroke lead Thursday after an opening 63.

Her approach on the par-4 17th rolled down a hill and she two-putted.

“Could have been really close to being a great shot,” Henderson said. “I practiced that shot in the practice rounds and it jumped forward on the first bounce there and I don’t think I got that today. So, unfortunately, it’s a tough hole and I just came away with bogey, which is not really what I was looking for.”

On the par-4 18th, she missed the green, left her chip well short and missed the long par putt.

“I kind of let emotions get into things and I was chasing birdie to try and get it back,” Henderson said. “Unfortunately, two bogeys to finish. Hopefully, that just gives me a little bit more motivation going into tomorrow.”

“I’m really excited to be in this position. I haven’t been in it in a little while.” @BrookeHenderson is your leader at #MeijerLPGA pic.twitter.com/MUq1VdMtrx

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 17, 2017

Maude-Aimee Leblanc (65) of Sherbrooke, Que., is 5 under while Hamilton’s Alena Sharp (72) is 3 under. Calgary’s Jennifer Ha shot an opening round 64 but faltered to an 80 on Friday to miss the cut. Augusta James of Bath, Ont., also missed the cut.

Fellow major champion Lexi Thompson, coming off a playoff loss to Ariya Jutanugarn on Sunday in Canada, followed her opening 64 with a 68 to join 2016 runner-up Carlota Ciganda (64) and Mi Jung Hur (66) at 10 under.

Thompson closed with a birdie on 18.

“I kind of peeked with about five holes to go and I think it said minus 14 was leading, and then I just saw on the last minus 12 was,” Thompson said. “But I try not to look at leaderboards, just try to focus on my own game, that’s all I can control.”

Ciganda lost a playoff to Sei Young Kim last year at Blythefield.

“I’ve been playing good,” the Spanish player said. “I’m just excited. It was a good week for me here last year so I have great memories. Yeah, I like the course. I like the greens. I think the crowds are always good, so I’m very excited.”

Henderson won twice last year, taking the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship for her first major, and successfully defending her title in the Cambia Portland Classic. She has a 36-hole lead for the first time since late last September in China in the Reignwood LPGA Classic.

“It’s great to see my name up there,” she said. “It’s been a little bit of a rough season so far, you know, not getting the results that I’ve been looking for. But this week seems to be a turnaround week and, hopefully, I can just finish strong the next two days.”

.@BrookeHenderson showing us how its done at the @MeijerLPGA!

Watch highlights: pic.twitter.com/fzMf3dZ5oa

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 17, 2017

Moriya Jutanugarn was 9 under after a 66.

“It was great,” Moriya Jutanugarn said. “I’ve been playing solid. I rolled the ball good on the green. Everything seems to be good.”

Shanshan Feng (70) topped the group at 8 under. The Chinese player is trying to complete a Michigan sweep after winning the LPGA Volvik Championship three weeks ago in Ann Arbor.

Ariya Jutanugarn, Moriya Jutanugarn’s younger sister, was tied for 30th at 4 under in her first event as the No. 1 player in the world. Lydia Ko, at No. 2 after an 85-week run at the top, was 6 under after a 71. Michelle Wie also was 6 under after her second 68.

Kim had her second 70 to make the cut on the number.

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Canadian Brooke Henderson shot an 8-under 63 on Thursday to top the star-packed leaderboard in the Meijer LPGA Classic.

The 19-year-old from Smiths Falls, Ont., eagled the par-5 eighth hole and had six birdies at Blythefield in her lowest round of the season. She won the major KPMG Women’s PGA Championship last year and has three tour victories.

“It’s beautiful here,” Henderson said. “I feel like this course suits my game really well. There’s a couple tee shots where you need to hit it really straight, which I think is kind of my advantage or my strength. And once the putts start dropping, then really good things can happen.”

Fellow major champions Lexi Thompson, Stacy Lewis and Shanshan Feng were a stroke back along with Calgary’s Jennifer Ha, Giulia Molinaro and Holly Clyburn. Lydia Ko, at No. 2 in the world after an 85-week run at the top, returned from a three-week layoff to top the group at 65.

.@JenniferHa0201 makes the turn tied for the lead at (-6) with @HPClyburn! @MeijerLPGA pic.twitter.com/QXCVPJZ8p3

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 15, 2017

“I had the last three weeks off to get prepared with this big stretch coming up,” Ko said. “I took some time to relax, did some university work. So it was, I think, a really good break.”

New No. 1 Ariya Jutanugarn opened with a 69. She won the Manulife LPGA Classic on Sunday in Canada in a playoff with Thompson and In Gee Chun.

Henderson tied for 11th last week in her native Ontario, her seventh top-15 finish of the year.

“I felt like today was going to be a really good day,” Henderson said. “Everything was just kind of going my way. I was hitting the ball really well and some putts were dropping, which is kind of a change from the last few weeks. It’s really exciting and I’m looking forward to the next three days.”

“I felt great from the start and felt like today was going to be a very good day” – @BrookeHenderson after her opening 63 @MeijerLPGA pic.twitter.com/B3lReeH9GQ

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 15, 2017

Thompson had eight birdies in a 10-hole stretch in the middle of the round.

“I just love the layout,” Thompson said. “It’s always in great shape for us, first of all. Hit a lot of drivers, which is nice. That’s my strength, so it comes into factor on this golf course a lot.”

Lewis also eagled No. 8. She won the last of her 11 tour titles in 2014.

“I played really solid,” Lewis said. “I was kind of surprised looking at the scoreboard. I expected somebody else’s name to pop up that was still playing. It was pretty hard out there and the greens got firm. The wind was tricky back in the trees. I played great. It felt like boring golf but it was good, boring golf.”

She was surprised by the low scores.

“I didn’t quite see all those numbers, but I knew the golf course had to be softer,” Lewis said. “I tried to stay patient. The ball was going so far. That was my biggest challenge. I had some iron shots rocket on me, just because of the heat. I tried to dial it back and was able to make the last two.”

Hamilton’s Alena Sharp shot 67 while Maude-Aimee Leblanc of Sherbrooke, Que., shot 72. Augusta James, from Bath, Ont., shot a 2-over 73.

Feng is trying to complete a Michigan sweep after winning the LPGA Volvik Championship three weeks ago in Ann Arbor. The Chinese star pointed to putting on Blythefield’s undulating greens.

“Some the greens are pretty hilly, so you have to get the right read and also the right speed at the same time,” Feng said.

Madelene Sagstrom and Simin Feng matched Ko at 65. Jane Park and Mi Jung Hur shot 66.

Michelle Wie opened with a 68, and defending champion Sei Young Kim had a 70.

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Ariya Jutanugarn was seated by the scorer’s tent snapping selfies with In Gee Chun on Sunday, thinking there was little chance they would return to the course for a playoff at the Manulife LPGA Classic.

A short time later, Jutanugarn was posing for pictures as the tournament champion.

Lexi Thompson buckled down the stretch and missed a four-foot putt to win in regulation, forcing her to return to the 18th tee with Jutanugarn and Chun for a playoff hole.

Jutanugarn found the rough with her drive but her approach was pin-high and she drained a 25-foot birdie putt for her first victory of the season.

That. Winning. Putt. Ariya @Jutanugarn #Playoff #ManulifeClassic pic.twitter.com/Y8VBYu3YE7

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 11, 2017

The 21-year-old from Thailand is a virtual lock to move up one position Monday and knock Lydia Ko off her perch as the world’s top-ranked women’s player.

Jutanugarn, who won five times last year, had three birdies over a four-hole stretch around the turn at Whistle Bear Golf Club. She closed with six straight pars for a 3-under-par 69 that left her at 17-under 271.

Thompson, meanwhile, started the day with a one-shot lead and led by four strokes after a birdie on No. 9. Four bogeys on the back nine did her in, with the final one coming when she three-putted on the 18th hole.

“I had like a five-footer, six-footer, and about a four-footer and missed them all,” Thompson said of her last three holes. “If I made those I would have won, but that’s golf I guess.”

Conditions were warm and blustery for the second straight day and preferred lies remained in effect. Thompson finished with an even-par 72 while Chun had a 70.

Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., was the top Canadian. She finished six strokes back in a tie for 11th after a 71.

"I really appreciate all the support I got this week – the crowds were amazing” – @BrookeHenderson finished T11 @ManulifeClassic pic.twitter.com/6B27P8JWNx

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 11, 2017

Hamilton’s Alena Sharp started the day three shots behind Thompson but was unable to make a run. She had a double bogey on her final hole and finished at 10 under after a 76. Sponsor invite Brittany Marchand of Orangeville, Ont., struggled to an 81 (285).

Sharp, who had a share of the 36-hole lead, was looking for her first career victory in 246 career LPGA Tour starts. Henderson, meanwhile, had an uneven round with an eagle, six bogeys and six birdies.

“Obviously I’m a little bit disappointed, but (tied for) 11th, I can’t complain too much,” Henderson said. “I feel like my game is so close to being so great.”

Jutanugarn birdied three of four holes over the turn and closed with six pars in a row. She earned US$255,000 of the $1.7-million purse for the victory.

Jutanugarn is the 13th different winner on the LPGA Tour this season. Her last victory came at the 2016 Canadian Pacific Women’s Open.

Worth a look ==> Final Round highlights from Canada & @ManulifeClassic where Ariya Jutanugarn won in a playoff:https://t.co/OqxIPHXOqY pic.twitter.com/8O8Tld0BnX

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 11, 2017

Marchand, a full-time member of the Symetra Tour, was making her first career weekend appearance at an LPGA Tour event. She tumbled from a tie for ninth place into a tie for 46th.

The last Canadian to win on home soil was Jocelyne Bourassa at the 1973 La Canadienne Golf Championship.

Manulife will not return as sponsor next season. The LPGA Tour has said it hopes to return to the area and the search is underway for a new title sponsor.

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Brittany Marchand is making the most of her first weekend appearance at an LPGA Tour event. Fellow Canadians Alena Sharp and Brooke Henderson are right in the mix too.

Marchand had a 67 Saturday at the Manulife LPGA Classic to move five shots behind third-round leader Lexi Thompson of the United States, who closed with a birdie for a 67 to move to 17-under-par 199.

Sharp, who started the day in a three-way tie for the lead with Thompson and South Korea’s Hyo Joo Kim, shot a 70 to sit three shots off the pace. Henderson was also within striking distance after a 68 left her seven strokes behind.

“It was good to get through this round,” Sharp said. “I didn’t hit it as great as I would have liked to but my putter saved me. I had a lot of up and downs.”

American Lindy Duncan was alone in second place at 16 under and South Korea’s In Gee Chun was two shots off the lead at 15 under.

Marchand, a Symetra Tour player from Orangeville, Ont., wasn’t intimidated despite playing with world No. 2 Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand, who was tied with Sharp in fourth place after a 65.

“I felt like I would probably be nervous today and I actually felt a lot more comfortable than I expected,” Marchand said. “I think that’s a good sign for tomorrow.”

Five early birdies helped Marchand to a blistering 31 on the front nine in warm, breezy conditions at Whistle Bear Golf Club. On the back nine, she bogeyed No. 10 but got the stroke back with a birdie on the 13th hole.

Henderson, from Smiths Falls, Ont., kept herself in the mix despite opening with a bogey. She followed that hiccup with two straight birdies and played bogey-free golf from there.

“I started out a little bit shaky and got a little bit shaky in the middle,” Henderson said. “I made a lot of birdies to compensate.”

This was new territory for Sharp, who’s from nearby Hamilton. It was the first time in her 12-year LPGA Tour career that she has been the leader or co-leader after 36 holes – a span of 246 starts.

Marchand, meanwhile, is playing on a sponsor exemption. She’s coming off a season-best 15th-place result at last week’s Fuccillo Kia Classic of New York on the lower-level Symetra Tour.

She earned US$1,749 for that result. The 24-year-old will be in line to earn much more than that on Sunday.

"This experience has helped me believe that I belong here” – Canadian & @ROAD2LPGA member @Britt_Marchand is currently T9 @ManulifeClassic pic.twitter.com/V6G8154g8l

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 10, 2017

A victory here would give her Category 7 status on the LPGA Tour and a likely spot in the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship later this month.

Marchand has also played at the U.S. Women’s Open and the Canadian Open over her career. This is the first time she has made a cut in six career appearances on the LPGA Tour.

The 2012 Ontario Women’s Amateur champion played at the collegiate level with North Carolina State University.

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When Canada’s Alena Sharp was faced with challenges Friday at the Manulife LPGA Classic, she responded in quick fashion.

A penalty stroke and double-bogey on the third hole? Answered with a birdie on the fourth.

A headache coming on at the 11th hole? A run of three straight birdies soon followed.

Sharp refused to buckle en route to a second straight 66 at Whistle Bear Golf Club, moving her into a first-place tie with American Lexi Thompson and Hyo Joo Kim of South Korea at 12 under. Three other players were one shot off the lead at the tournament’s midway point.

“This week has been different,” Sharp said. “I just walked up to the golf course yesterday and today just feeling like it was going to be a good day.

“Just had these good vibes coming out.”

.@ManulifeClassic Co-Leader @AlenaSharp

“I love playing in Canada… there’s nothing better” ??

More ==> pic.twitter.com/uD5tTqmNRt

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 9, 2017

The headache had gone away by the time Sharp signed her scorecard. Her third-hole misery didn’t last long either.

Sharp said her ball moved ever so slightly as she went to address a chip shot. While she didn’t feel she had grounded her club, she conferred with a rules official and took a one-shot penalty.

“I needed to call it on myself because I was going to be thinking about it all day,” Sharp said. “I thought I did the right thing. Went out and birdied the next hole and really just forgot about it.

“Just kept playing the way I was.”

Sharp, from Hamilton, capped her front nine with an eagle and had a run of three straight birdies on the back.

Perrine Delacour of France, American Lindy Duncan and South Korea’s In Gee Chun were tied in fourth place while China’s Shanshan Feng, Bronte Law of England and Minjee Lee of Australia were two strokes off the pace.

Canadians Brittany Marchand and Brooke Henderson were also in contention.

Marchand shot a 70 to make her first career LPGA Tour cut. The full-time Symetra Tour player from Orangeville, Ont., was five strokes off the lead at 7-under 137.

Henderson, from Smiths Falls, Ont., was six shots back after a 67. She started a run of four straight birdies on the ninth hole and played bogey-free the rest of the way.

“That was the day that I needed,” she said.

.@BrookeHenderson -“ I had good energy today & felt like I could have been better than -5”

Henderson (-6) is currently T26 @ManulifeClassic pic.twitter.com/4F34z2TYaL

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 9, 2017

Delacour shot a blistering 62, the lowest score at the tournament since three players shot 63 when the event moved here in 2015.

South Korea’s Inbee Park (2014) and Hee Young Park (2013) share the tournament low of 10-under-par 61. Both scores were recorded at the Grey Silo Golf Course in nearby Waterloo.

Suzann Pettersen of Norway had a 71 to move to 9-under 135 while fellow first-round co-leader Mi Hyang Lee of South Korea was a shot behind her after a 72.

Conditions were warm and breezy and preferred lies were in effect for the second straight day.

Henderson, one of the longest hitters on tour, has been crushing her drives but she struggled with the putter Thursday. She was visibly frustrated at times and didn’t speak with reporters after signing her scorecard.

Her smile – and her short game – returned Friday.

“I played really well yesterday, I hit a lot great shots, I just didn’t make any putts and my energy kind of dropped a little bit,” Henderson said. “Today I was able to get a few tap-in birdies that were only at three or four feet and that gave me a lot of confidence.

“I felt like I could make any putt out there.”

The world No. 15 has had a rather quiet season after a huge year in 2016. Henderson won her first major title last year and reached No. 2 in the world rankings, but she has just two top-10 finishes this season.

ICYMI: Round 2 highlights @ManulifeClassic

Watch ==> https://t.co/V8h0j5NPYn pic.twitter.com/SHiwErFcZZ

— LPGA (@LPGA) June 9, 2017

Augusta James of Orangeville, had a 73 to fall to 1-under 143, just one stroke away from the cutline at the US$1.7-million tournament. Maddie Szeryk (78-67) of London, Ont., and Maude-Aimee LeBlanc of Sherbrooke, Que., (74-71) also missed the cut at 145.

The rest of the Canadian contingent included Jennifer Kirby (76-72, 148) of Brantford, Ont., Calgary’s Jaclyn Lee (75-74, 149), Calgary’s Jennifer Ha (72-77, 149), Samantha Richdale (79-72, 151) of Kelowna, B.C., Grace St. Germain (79-72, 151) of Penticton, B.C., Vivian Tsui (76-76, 152) of Markham, Ont., and Charlottetown’s Lorie Kane (76-77, 153).

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