Prior to golf history being made Aug. 26 at Regina’s Wascana Country Club, the course’s chief executive officer was overjoyed with last week’s CP Women’s Open.

Greg Dukart said Sunday afternoon, before Brooke Henderson became the first Canadian to win the tournament since 1973, that the event exceeded the expected wow factor.

“I think it has,” Dukart quipped. “The support of the spectators has been overwhelming. Over 1,100 volunteers put this together, it’s quite a week.”

A few short months ago, the Wascana C.C. was concerned with the shape of the course. Dukart said earlier this season thousands of yards of dead grass peppered fairways and greens in large part due to a rain storm in January. Crews worked long days throughout the summer in preparation of the six-day event. Dukart said the feedback was spectacular from the players and public.

“The stunning views of the golf course and how good the greens are is what people said. Our superintendent Chad Fawcett worked tirelessly to get the greens, fairways, and collars back from the ice devastation. They brought them around to very high standards,” he said.

The 2018 CP Women’s Open was the first LPGA event ever held in Saskatchewan. Last year the Wascana C.C. hosted the Canadian Mid-Amateur Championships. Dukart said the legacy of hosting the professional ladies’ tournament will be remembered for a long time.

“I think people that were part of this are going to be part of history for a long time, they should be very proud of themselves,” Dukart said.

The event is moving back to Ontario next year. There has been no public discussion regarding a future professional tournament returning to Saskatchewan or Regina. Dukart said the Wascana C.C. board of directors and shareholders will make any decision regarding future events.

A trio of Saskatchewan women are competing in the Canadian Women’s Senior’s Mid-Senior Championship in Thornhill, Ont. this week.

Saskatchewan senior champion Jo-Anne Schiller, Judy Sefton, and Robin Acton are in the field of 132 golfers. Lethbridge’s Schiller opened the 54-hole tournament with a plus-21, 93. Judy Sefton of Melfort shot a 27-over, 99 during round one and Acton shot 102, 30-over.

Acton, who plays out of the Lloydminster Golf and Curling Centre tees off first on Wednesday, she will begin her round at 11:14 a.m. Saskatchewan time. Sefton will start at 11:25, Schiller’s tee time is 11:36 a.m.

The event will conclude on Thursday. You can see the complete leaderboard here.

Steven Duchscher saved his best golf of the season for the Maple Leaf Junior Tour Championship this past weekend in Swift Current.

Duchscher, 18, stroked a 141 (68, 73) at the Elmwood Golf Club on Aug. 25 and 26 taking the junior age group championship as well the lowest overall honour. The Saskatoon golfer hit five bogeys and one double-bogey on the par 71, 6,386-yard host course. He had nine birdies and an eagle as well helping him finish at 1-under par.

Lethbridge’s Rylie Seaman was second overall winning the juvenile boy’s division with a score of 146 (71. 75). Josh Nagy of Saskatoon, Medicine Hat product Nolan Burzminski, and Cole Bergheim of Red Deer all shot 148 during the tournament. Bergheim won the bantam age category, they played from 5,936-yards.

Martensville’s Jax Gipman, 19, won the collegiate age group with a 153 (74, 79) and Max Regier was the low peewee boy golfer. Regier fired a 73 on day one and a 5-over 76 in round two. Fellow 12-year-old Darien Herlick of Weyburn was eight shots back at 157 (75, 82).

The junior girls in the championship played the Elmwood at 5,156-yards. Sarah Grieve, 15, carded a two-round score of 167 (83, 84), one shot ahead of both Yorkton’s Ella Kozak, 12, and Carey McLean, 16, of Deer Valley. Moose Jaw’s Raylyn Schmidt, 16 was just three was just three shots back. Grieve, McLean, and Schmidt play in the 15-18 age group, Kozak competes in the under-15 category.

You can see the complete results from the championship here.

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.

Saskatoon’s Kim Brown is the Women’s Lobstick champion for the second year in a row.

Brown went undefeated in the match-play event on route to back-to-back titles at the Waskesiu Golf Course. She won the qualifying round shooting a 6-over, 76 on Aug. 20 just edging Saskatoon’s Abra Thompson. During the head-to-head portion of the four-day tournament Brown downed Dianna Sutton, Beth Davis, and Pauline McDougall. She defeated Kathy Ziglo, also of Saskatoon in the championship flight final on Aug. 24.

The senior champion was Arlene Segin. Veronika Duchscherer was the junior champion and the low net score belonged to Thompson.

You can see all the brackets here.

REGINA – Canada’s Brooke Henderson feels most comfortable with her game when she’s on top of the leaderboard.

A solid third round has left her in that very position as she prepares to take a run at history at the CP Women’s Open.

Henderson moved into the lead Saturday with a 2-under-par 70, leaving her at 14-under 202 and one shot ahead of Japan’s Nasa Hataoka (69) and American Angel Yin (71).

“It’s a lot more fun (on top) and I feel like I can kind of go off the crowd a little bit more,” Henderson said. “It’s just really exciting and I feel like when I have a lot of confidence in my game, that’s when I tend to make a lot of birdies and I tend to play really well.”

After back-to-back scores of 66, Henderson had to deal with windier conditions at the Wascana Country Club.

Her length off the tee was impressive but her short game was inconsistent at times. Henderson did manage to hit some big putts when she needed to and spent most of the afternoon alone in first place.

@brookehendersongolf shoots a 2-under 70 to lead heading into the final round at the #CPWO ??

A post shared by CP Women’s Open (@cpwomensopen) on Aug 25, 2018 at 3:00pm PDT

On Sunday, she’ll try to become the first Canadian since Jocelyne Bourassa to win this tournament. Bourassa was victorious in 1973 in Montreal.

Yin missed an eight-foot birdie putt on her final hole that would have given her a share of the lead. Defending champion and world No. 1 Sung Hyun Park of South Korea (70) was two shots back.

Australia’s Su Oh (69) and American Austin Ernst (70) were three strokes off the lead.

The 6,675-yard course sets up well for Henderson’s style. She’s one of the LPGA Tour’s longest hitters and is not afraid to go for it.

If Henderson can attack the par-5 holes and stay consistent on the greens, she’s got a great shot of winning the event.

“I definitely do play better when I’m aggressive,” she said. “I play smart but aggressive and when I’m kind of chasing birdies, I feel like that’s kind of where I’m playing my best. But it just kind of depends on the conditions.”

Play will begin earlier than usual in an attempt to avoid the wet weather that’s expected to arrive by lunch hour. The fourth round will start at 7 a.m. local time and the last group will tee off at 9:01 a.m.

Henderson, from Smiths Falls, Ont., started the day one shot behind second-round leader Amy Yang, but the South Korean bogeyed her first two holes to give the Canadian the outright lead.

One round to go ? #CPWO

A post shared by CP Women’s Open (@cpwomensopen) on Aug 25, 2018 at 4:01pm PDT

They were joined in a group with Yin, who hovered near the top of the leaderboard for most of the day.

With a vocal group of supporters cheering her at every turn, Henderson opened with four straight pars before a drive on the par-4 fifth hole found the rough and led to a bogey. She responded by rolling in a 12-foot birdie putt on the sixth.

She was aggressive after the turn with birdies on Nos. 12 and 13. Henderson nearly eagled the 14th hole, but her chip from the rough hit the back of the cup and bounced out for a tap-in birdie.

She ran into some trouble on the 16th hole but recovered nicely. Henderson pulled her drive and her second shot landed in the rough beside a greenside bunker.

Standing in the sand, she flopped a wedge that came up short but she hit a 20-footer to save par.

“To be able to get up and down when I kind of ran into a little bit of trouble there on 16 I think was really key and just (helped me) keep my composure a little bit,” Henderson said.

Henderson and Yin both struggled on the 17th green. Yin had an eagle putt but settled for par while Henderson missed a four-foot par putt.

Yang, meanwhile, struggled to a 75. She was in a five-way tie for seventh place at 10-under 206.

Hamilton’s Alena Sharp (70) and Anne-Catherine Tanguay (70) of Quebec City were nine shots off the lead.

Henderson, 20, has one victory this season and six wins over her LPGA Tour career. Her best career finish at this event came last year in Ottawa when she tied for 12th.

“She’s gritty and determined and aggressive,” Sharp said. “I think that is a huge thing to have out here, especially with the wind.”

The winner of the US$2.25-million tournament will earn $337,500. The runner-up will pocket $209,358.

REGINA – Sung Hyun Park emerged from the scorer’s tent after a masterful round of 64 at the CP Women’s Open to a swarm of golf fans.

Few seemed to notice the defending champion and world’s best women’s golfer as she strolled undisturbed down the path, fresh from tying a course record at the Wascana Country Club.

This crowd had only one person on its mind. Canadian star Brooke Henderson is the star of this show, especially after a second straight 66 left her just one stroke behind clubhouse leader Amy Yang of South Korea.

“Brooke is almost like Canada’s Tiger Woods,” said Park, who played with Henderson and Sweden’s Anna Nordqvist. “I was really surprised at how many fans came out to support Brooke today. To witness that was pretty awesome.”

Dozens of fans – many clad in red and white and waving small Canadian flags – let out a roar when Henderson chipped in on her opening hole and they were just as vocal when she capped her round with another birdie.

.@BrookeHendersonGolf shoots a second-round 66 to sit in the clubhouse with a share of 2nd place, one off the lead #CPWO

A post shared by CP Women’s Open (@cpwomensopen) on Aug 24, 2018 at 2:03pm PDT

The 20-year-old from Smiths Falls, Ont., was at 12-under-par 132 and right in the mix for what could be a very exciting weekend.

“I hit the ball in good spots and made birdie putts when I had them,” Henderson said. “I feel like I made the most of today’s round, which is always a great feeling.

“To be close to the top of the leaderboard heading into the weekend is awesome, especially when you’re here in Canada.”

Henderson has managed to score in different ways over the first two rounds. She took advantage of her impressive length on Thursday and had her short game working when the wind picked up Friday.

Highlights from @BrookeHenderson’s second-round 66 at the #CPWO pic.twitter.com/8oB7WVXWwG

— CP Women’s Open (@cpwomensopen) August 24, 2018

Yang shot a 65 to move into top spot at 13-under-par 131. American Angel Yin (67) joined Henderson in second place with several groups still on the course.

“I was hitting it pretty solid out there,” Yang said. “But I gave myself a lot of good chances and I think I made most of them out there.”

Park, from South Korea, was three shots off the lead after her 64, a score that three players attained a day earlier. She was joined at 10 under by first-round co-leader Nasa Hataoka of Japan (70) and Maria Torres of Puerto Rico (66).

Starting on the par-4 10th hole, Henderson had four birdies over her first six holes before missing a three-foot putt on the 16th for a bogey.

She started to spray the ball a little bit after that miscue, but the six-time winner on the LPGA Tour had some luck on her side too.

Her drive sailed well right on the 18th hole, hitting a grandstand post on a bounce before settling in the rough. Henderson found the green with her next shot and two-putted for par.

Five pars followed after the turn before Henderson found a late groove. She hit a tricky four-foot downhill putt on the sixth hole and drained a 22-footer from the fringe for another birdie on the seventh.

“Definitely have a lot of confidence in (my putter) this week, which is always amazing when you can depend on that club,” she said. “But I think overall, everything is kind of going really well.”

The 20-year-old from Smiths Falls, Ont., closed her round by going up-and-down from the side of the ninth green for birdie to the delight of the partisan gallery.

Americans Mariah Stackhouse (69) and Austin Ernst (69) were at 9-under-par 135, one shot ahead of Nordqvist (66) and several others.

It was hot and sunny again on the 6,675-yard course and the wind really started howling later in the day. First-round co-leaders Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand and Colombia’s Mariajo Uribe had late tee times.

Anne-Catherine Tanguay of Quebec City (71), one of 16 Canadians in the field, was a good bet to make the cut at 3-under 141. The early projected cut line was 2 under.

Play continues through Sunday at the US$2.25-million event.

Humboldt’s Mike Herperger didn’t get off to a great start at the Canadian Mid-Amateur Men’s Championship this week, but his finish left him in a tie for 11^th overall at the event.

The four-day tournament concluded Friday in Victoria, B.C. with Herperger carding a 1-under, 69 leaving the 25-year-old a respectable 11 strokes back of American Joseph Deraney who won the event. The Humboldt Golf Club member said he’s happy with his performance through 72 holes.

“It was a surprise, I was seven over on the front nine in the first round,” he told Golf Saskatchewan. “I was just trying to hold my own and from there on I finished even for the tournament, so it was really good.”

Saskatchewan sent 13 players to the national championship. Many of the representatives bounced up and down throughout the event including Herperger who was a slow as 44^th at one point. Regina’s Travis Fifi climbed as high as fifth at one point as well. He ended the event in a tie for 44^th. Herperger said the host course is to blame for the rise and fall of the players.

“The Victoria Golf and Country Club, it was amazing to be out there. You are right on the ocean and the biggest part of it was the greens. The greens had angulations at some points 15 feet high. The speed and difficulty of them made it a very difficult course, that’s what it was,” he said.

Five players made the cut following the first two rounds. Regina’s Shawn McNall shot a four-day total of 293 leaving him in a tie for 28^th. Prince Albert golfer Brett Henry tied Fifi at 296 and Saskatoon’s Shaun Dunphy finished in a tie at 60^th with 302. Team Saskatchewan finished in sixth during the inter-provincial competition. Herperger said that was a let down after losing in a playoff last year in Regina.

“As a team we were a little disappointed. We wanted to put in a better showing in and get a few more quota spots for guys next year. We were happy to be at the course and have a chance to play a track like that, but we were disappointed we couldn’t play as well as the guys did last year,” Herperger said.

Overall the season was a successful one for Herperger. He placed sixth in the Lobstick at Waskesiu, won the Saskatchewan Men’s Mid-Amateur and placed second in the Saskatchewan Men’s Amateur behind Kade Johnson. He also sits fifth overall in the Men’s Order of Merit standings. Herperger said he’s happy with the season’s outcome.

“It was an eventful summer,” he said. “From last year essentially quitting golf to this year getting back into it and 11^th in this tournament, it’s exciting.”

You can see the complete results from all 13 Saskatchewan competitors here.

With family and friends in the gallery, Prince Albert’s Bobbi Brandon was able to share her CP Women’s Open experience.

The Moon Lake Golf and Country Club professional qualified for her second ever LPGA event on Monday through a one-day event at the Royal Regina Golf Club. On Friday she shot an 18-over, 90 at the Wascana Country Club to finish the tournament at plus-29. She said she wanted to finish with a better score but, overall the experience of playing in a pro tour event in her home province was special.

“It was a very awesome experience. Obviously, I’d like to play better but towards the end I found my swing again and it was good to finish my last hole with a birdie,” Brandon told Golf Saskatchewan.

Brandon had a morning tee time on Thursday where wind was not a factor. On Friday the gusts exceeded 50 kilometres and hour at times pushing the scores in the field higher. She said she has plenty of experience playing in Saskatchewan weather but not on a course this challenging.

“I’m not used to it on a course that is this demanding. The greens were quick, and your ball was moving around. I can’t use the wind as an excuse though, it was the same for everybody,” she said.

Brandon said she recognized family and friends in the gallery from across the province. Her mom was also in attendance both rounds. She played in an LPGA event in Ontario back in 1998 but said the support this week has been exceptional.

“Thanks for all the support from everyone. I would have loved to have played better but it was great seeing everyone out there,” she said.