CPKC WOMEN'S OPEN

July 26, 2024

Brooke Henderson

Earl Grey Golf Club

Quick Quotes

Q. That finish kind of tough to stomach, but what are your emotions like as you leave the golf course today?

BROOKE HENDERSON: I think just try and take the positives because I was playing really well until the -- physically those four holes to finish. Even those four holes could have been a little bit different.

16 was really strange. The green was just burnt out a little bit so that three-putt would like to think was not all my fault. Just kind of weird conditions.

Definitely did play pretty tough out there. Very windy. For the most part, lots of positives to take away. Stings the finish for sure, but hopefully I'll just try to get it back tomorrow.

Q. How do you kind of digest it when you walk off a course and think, jeez, I probably deserved better than what that score indicates today?

BROOKE HENDERSON: Yeah, for sure. Most of the day I was 3-under so feeling pretty great. To walk away 1-over, yeah, that's not the best feeling.

But all you can do is move forward and try to learn from some of the things you did out there. Like I said, just try to go out tomorrow and birdie a couple early.

Q. One last one: Does that mean firing at a few more pins early?

BROOKE HENDERSON: If I can I would love to. It's been tough with how windy it is and even the release downwind has been a bit tough to judge, so you can't play quite as aggressive as I would like.

I' see come the weekend; hopefully it's a little bit calmer; maybe I'll be able to fire at more pins.

Q. All right, here with Brooke Henderson. Maybe a bit of a tale of two nines. Let's start with the start. How important was it to get off to the three-birdie extravaganza to start the day?

BROOKE HENDERSON: It was super important. It was tough out there today. Conditions were really tough, so to get that three birdie stretch was really great. Kind of settled me in. Everything was going pretty well and it was nice to be near the top of the leaderboard.

It stings, the finish a little bit, but hopefully just go out tomorrow and make a couple birdies early and get it back.

Q. How about the setup out there. A lot of golfers are saying it's a very major championship like setup.

BROOKE HENDERSON: Yeah, with how windy it is the setup is pretty tough. Some pins were tucked opposite the wind, which makes it very difficult to kind of get close.

So just trying to play and strategize your way around the course and trying to hit solid shots, because when it's that windy, you're a little bit off balance and some things can go awry pretty quick.

Just trying to keep within yourself and hit good shots.

Q. Game plan for the weekend?

BROOKE HENDERSON: Try to go low. I mean, hopefully it won't be quite as windy. I'll be teeing off a little bit earlier tomorrow, so hopefully can get off to a fast start. Conditions hopefully won't be as bad. Just make some birdies and see if we can make a run.

Q. How would you sum up your round?

BROOKE HENDERSON: It was going really well there for a while. Just a tough finish. The conditions are really tough out there today. It was pretty challenging.

All in all, feel like I was playing really great golf up until maybe 15 and then kind of got away from me a little bit.

Happy to be playing the weekend.

Q. How much of that finish was based on the conditions? The winds certainly seemed a lot worse on the back than the front.

BROOKE HENDERSON: For sure. The wind was very strong all day, but at times on the back it was -- could get to you if you let it, or if you hit a shot with the wind it really carried for a while.

So just trying to play a little bit smarter with the conditions if they're the same tomorrow. But just tough finish. Kind of stings right now, but we'll get over it and hopefully make some birdies quick tomorrow.

Q. These two days conditions have been very difficult. For someone as aggressive as you are, how tough is it to reel that back in?

BROOKE HENDERSON: For sure. You have to really play smart out here, smart-aggressive, and capitalize when you can. I feel like it was awesome to get three birdies in a row on the front nine. Kind of I got settled in a little bit, and I was ball striking really well for the first few maybe 13, 14 holes.

After that, wasn't as solid as I would've liked, which is a tough finish, like I said, but hopefully tomorrow I'll probably be a little bit earlier, so hopefully conditions will be a little better.

Q. It did seem maybe that your putter was pretty good for most the day out there. Even if you didn't make a birdie putt, you didn't leave yourself much left for pars.

BROOKE HENDERSON: Yeah, for sure. Putter has been working really well. Again, for the last four holes it didn't really maybe, but leading up to that and all week it's been really solid.

Even if it didn't go in, it looked like it could, so lots of positives to take away. Couple greens there on the finishing holes were very burnt from the wind and everything so they played a little bit tougher.

But, yeah, hopefully tomorrow will be a little better.