One week ago, Brooke Henderson hoisted the second major trophy of her career, winning the Amundi Evian Championship for her first major title since 2016. That six-year span was certainly longer than she had hoped, and to finally get the proverbial monkey off her back with the victory was a great relief to the 24-year-old Canadian superstar.
“It was definitely worth the wait. To win my first major championship, it really changed my life, just the attention that I received from the media and from fans and everything,” said Henderson. “But then to get the second one, yeah, it's a box that you can check off, and it just makes you feel a little bit more confident about where your game is and that you can compete on the biggest stages.”
After a week off to relish in and rest from the major adrenaline, Henderson now finds herself back on the big stage, teeing it up in the AIG Women’s Open. As with most of the field, Henderson saw Muirfield for the first time on Monday and it’s quickly become a high mark in her on-course repertoire. “I think it's maybe my favorite links that I've ever played,” she said. “It's definitely going to be a great test, very challenging especially if it it's as windy as it is right now. I think it's beautiful views walking around, and it's a beautiful golf course.”
This marks Henderson’s eighth appearance in the AIG Women’s Open and while she’s only missed the cut once, she’s also yet to earn a top-10 finish. Her best result came in 2018 on the links at Royal Lytham and St Annes, where she tied for 11th. While she admits that links golf is a different challenge for her game, Henderson knows that this week at Muirfield will be a worthy test, not to mention a big step forward for the women’s game.
“Links golf is very different, and definitely a big challenge for me coming from courses that were nothing like this growing up. So it is a big change,” said Henderson, who will play her first two rounds alongside Atthaya Thitikul and Lexi Thompson. “But every year, I feel like I get a little bit more comfortable with the different shots and the different style of play that you need to use. It's a great time to be a part of women's golf and to be here, major championship on this incredible golf course that we've never been able to play before, only the men. That really means a lot, and I'm just excited for the opportunity.”
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