KPMG Women’s PGA Champion bids to make history
Canadian teen sensation Brooke Henderson is heading to the Ricoh Women’s British Open looking to make history as the first Canadian player to win arguably the most prestigious title in women’s golf.
At only 18 years old, Henderson is fast-becoming one of Canada’s biggest sporting stars with her breakthrough Major victory at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship catapulting her into the limelight and up to No.2 in the Rolex World Rankings. Having turned professional in December 2014, Henderson won on her first appearance on the Symetra Tour in June 2015 before claiming the Cambia Portland Classic on the LPGA Tour by eight shots in August.
In 2016 she already has 10 top-10 finishes on the LPGA Tour and heads to Woburn Golf Club looking for more Major success as she makes her second appearance in the Ricoh Women’s British Open, following her debut last year.
Henderson joins a long list of top names already confirmed for the Championship including Defending Champion Inbee Park, the youngest ever world No. 1 Lydia Ko and Past Champions Mo Martin, Stacy Lewis, Yani Tseng, Jiyai Shin, Catriona Matthew and Karrie Webb.
Commenting on her appearance at Woburn, Henderson said, “I can’t wait to play in England for the first time, as I’ve heard a lot about the history of the championship at Woburn and the list of past winners there is really impressive. Winning at the Women’s PGA Championship gave me a lot of confidence and I know that I can compete with the best players in the world and I’ll be doing everything I can to get my hands on the trophy.”
The 40th Ricoh Women’s British Open will be played at Woburn Golf Club, England, 28 to 31 July on the Marquess Course. The world’s best golfers will compete for a prize fund of UK £2,072,253 (US $3 million). The Championship is played at Woburn for the 10th time, having first been played there in 1984 when Ayako Okamoto became the first and only Japanese winner of the event.
The Ricoh Women’s British Open was founded by the LGU in 1976 and has been staged in conjunction with IMG, the world’s largest sports marketing company, since 1984. The event has been co-sanctioned by the LPGA and LET since 1994 and gained Major status in 2001.
