CALGARY 鈥� Australian Hannah Green has high hopes that a Canadian connection can help her win one of her favourite golf tournaments.
Green commended her Canadian caddie Nate Blasko, of Kingston, Ont., for helping her take on the challenging conditions at Earl Grey Golf Club during Friday鈥檚 second round of the 2024 CPKC Canadian Women鈥檚 Open.
鈥淗e鈥檚 from the other side of the country, but (it would) be pretty cool for us to both win here,鈥� said Green, who had five birdies and three bogeys during her round of 2-under 70.
After the completion of the afternoon play on Earl Grey鈥檚 par-72, 6,856-yard layout, Green ended up tied for second place with Korea鈥檚 Haeran Ryu at 5-under.
鈥淚t was tough again out there,鈥� Green said. 鈥淭here was some pretty strong wind gusts, especially our last few holes, so committing to the shot you were envisioning was kind of difficult. I鈥檓 kind of glad that I鈥檓 finished for Friday and I can go relax now.鈥�
While Green was taking it easy, American Lauren Coughlin followed up the 68 she shot on Thursday by carding a 70 to take back the overall lead at 6-under.
鈥淭he front nine is where you鈥檝e got to take advantage and you just try to hold on there on the back nine, especially with how windy it got,鈥� said Coughlin, who had three birdies in her first five holes and just one bogey on the par-4, 422-yard 11th hole.
鈥淚 think I really only had one bad swing on the 11th tee. Other than that, I feel like I hit everything really, really solid all day.鈥�
After finishing fifth in the LPGA鈥檚 Louise Suggs Rolex Rookie of the Year standings in 2018, Green was looking to hire a new caddie. That鈥檚 when Blasko entered the picture, she said.
鈥淲e both met when I was playing on the Symetra Tour, now Epson Tour,鈥� explained Green, who鈥檚 currently sitting third behind Nelly Korda and Ayaka Furue in the LPGA鈥檚 season-long Race to the CME Globe points competition.
鈥淚 was looking for a caddie in the off-season and he was looking for a player.鈥�
The partnership paid almost immediate dividends, as she made 19 of 23 cuts in 2019 and surpassed the $1 million mark in earnings while winning her first major title at the KPMG Women鈥檚 PGA Championship, then adding a victory at the Cambia Portland Classic.
鈥淥ur first event was together in Australia and then later that year we won KPMG together,鈥� Green said. 鈥淏een together ever since.鈥�
With Blasko on her bag at last year鈥檚 CPKC Women鈥檚 Open at Vancouver鈥檚 Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club, Green finished in a tie for fourth to earn a payday of $117,507.
鈥淚 always really enjoy coming to sa国际传媒,鈥� said Green, who will represent Australia in the women鈥檚 golf competition at the 2024 Paris Olympics. 鈥淚 played well last year in Vancouver, so hopefully I can do a few better and get my hands on that big trophy.鈥�
When she finished her round, Green didn鈥檛 even know that she was tied for first place at the time with Coughlin, who had just birdied her first hole.
That doesn鈥檛 mean she doesn鈥檛 like peeking at the leaderboard while out on the course.
鈥淚鈥檓 definitely a leaderboard watcher,鈥� said Green, who noticed that Jennifer Kupcho was ahead of her at one point before the American golfer struggled on her back nine and finished at 3-under after reaching 8-under at one point.
鈥淭he last time I probably saw a leaderboard, I would have been at 5-under and she was at 7. I just assumed she continued to play well.鈥�
Also on Friday morning, Maude-Aimee Leblanc of Sherbrooke, Que., shot a round of 2-over 74. Her total score of 1-over left her in a tie for 26th place with nine other golfers, including Brooke Henderson, of Smiths Falls, Ont.
Leblanc made the cut at her national championship for the first time since 2016 when she finished in a tie for 14th place at nearby Priddis Greens Golf and Country Club.
鈥淚t鈥檚 our only tournament in sa国际传媒 for the whole season, so I love being out here,鈥� said Leblanc, who started her round with her lone birdie of the day on the Par 5, 550-yard opening hole. 鈥淚t was a good start. I gave myself a lot of opportunities at the beginning and wasn鈥檛 able to make putts. Overall, I hit the ball pretty well. It鈥檚 just tough conditions out there.
鈥淭he greens are starting to get firmer and faster, so if you鈥檙e not in the fairway, it鈥檚 almost impossible for the ball to stay on the green.鈥�
Henderson had a hot start on Friday with three birdies in her first four holes. She then reeled off 10 straight pars before ending with four straight bogeys.
鈥淛ust a tough finish,鈥� said Henderson, who will head into the weekend tied with Leblanc as the top Canadians at 1-under. 鈥淚t kind of stings right now.鈥�
Hamilton鈥檚 Alena Sharp and Savannah Grewal, of Mississauga, Ont., are both at 3-over through two rounds and made the cut along with Ellie Szeryk (4-over) of London, Ont.
Vancouver鈥檚 Leah John shot 74 on Friday and finished the day at 5-over to miss the cut by one stroke. Fellow Canadians Michelle Xing, Katie Cranston, Lauren Kim and Monet Chun all missed the cut at 6-over as did Vanessa Borovilos (7-over), Brooke Rivers (9-over), Maddie Szeryk (12-over), Anna Huang (14-over), Yeji Kwon (15-over), Mary Parsons (16-over) and Brigitte Thibault (20-over).
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 26, 2024.
Laurence Heinen, The Canadian Press
