Brooke Henderson started her ninth season with a win at the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions.
After three times being in the lead at 36 holes, she won the event with a victory of four strokes at Lake Nona Golf and Country Club.
She quickly put aside any doubts that an equipment switch could have had on her year. In her first week, she won another LPGA title with a full bag filled with TaylorMade clubs. She now holds 13 LPGA titles, which includes two majors. This makes her 14th all-time winner, tied with Jin Young Ko or Stacy Lewis. She won the TOC for the third time wire-to-wire in an LPGA event. In eight of nine seasons with the LPGA, she has won. She did not win in 2020.
Henderson said, “I always aim to win a couple of times each year.” It takes some pressure to get one right out of the gate.
Henderson, a 25-year-old veteran, is still looking for the next step to become World No. Henderson was awarded the Rolex Player Award of the Year. Although she has been an LPGA player for many years, she has never been at the top of the game.
She’s positioned herself to be a leader with three wins in her 13 previous starts, including the Pelican Ladies’ Championship which she pulled out of due to an upper back injury. She now has 16 rounds of play that are below par on tour.
Henderson said that “a lot of things have been really successful.” “I am always striving to improve and pursue bigger goals. I hope more victories will come. It’s just small steps but it will pay off in the end.
Henderson won the title of the year despite the fact that many top players from Asia and Australia missed the TOC. Her efforts earned her $225,000
Mardy Fish, a tennis player, won the celebrity division for the second time. She finished 16 points ahead former MLB pitcher Mark Mulder in Stableford scoring format.
Henderson finished the tournament with a closing score of 2-under 70. Hull birdied the 72nd to score a fourth consecutive 69. She is now in a share of second place with Stark, the young Swede that won an LPGA/LET sanctioned event last year in Northern Ireland to earn her card.
Stark stated that she still feels like an underdog when she goes to LPGA tournaments. She also noted that some fans mistake her for Brooke Henderson, Charley Hull and Jennifer Kupcho.
Stark said that she still cannot comprehend her rapid ascension.
World No. 2 Korda was three strokes behind and made a poor charge on Sunday. She carded a 72, which included three bogeys. Korda stated that she is motivated to start working in the second offseason of the tour. There’s one month before the next week. She said that her irons will be the main focus.
She said, “I was hitting it really good with my driver.” “I wasn’t doing my shots right.
“I was putting myself in really long putts that I would not normally make, and then I double-crossed a few this week. I don’t recall the last time I did this, in a left/right wind. There are so many things to do and I am really excited about it.
Korda stated that she instinctively woke up at night to check on Sebastian’s score at the Australian Open.
She said that she saw it was 1:all in the tiebreak and was shocked. “It is impossible for me to go to sleep now. It’s okay to put it on.
For the first time in Korda’s career, he reached the quarterfinals at a Grand Slam event.
Brittany, Brooke’s older sister, has been at the bag for almost every shot of Brooke’s LPGA career. She said Brooke was particularly impressed by how quickly she adapted to her TaylorMade equipment and noted that she is seeing improvements in all areas of her game.
Brittany said, “Honestly, they are all I would call a little better.” “She gets so much spin with the wedges, they’re nice high. We can play a lot more aggressively with these shots, even chips. They are sturdy and hold well on windy days like this. You can hit shots downwind with irons that release endlessly and just get away from your body, but these don’t feel that way.
Brooke stated that she was working on her new clubs up to the event and might still make some changes afterward.
It was a great start to the season, and she now has a month before taking up the LPGA in Thailand.
Brittany said, “After the way she played that week, I feel like anything’s possible.”
