Brooke Henderson looks to keep Canadian party going at Meijer LPGA Classic

Canadian golf is hot right now.

Nick Taylor won on the fourth hole of a sudden-death playoff Sunday to become the first Canadian man to win the PGA Tour's Canadian Open in 69 years, and the winningest golfer in Canada's history certainly was paying attention.

Now, Brooke Henderson, of Smiths Falls, Ontario, is out to keep the Canadian celebration going, as one of the headliners in the ninth Meijer LPGA Classic, which starts Thursday just outside Grand Rapids.

"Yeah, I'm super excited to be back here at the Meijer," Henderson, who won the tournament in 2017 and 2019, said earlier this week. "You know, being a two-time past champion is really cool. I feel like I've always had great vibes around this golf course, lots of great memories, lots of birdies to look back on, which is always a great feeling.

"Now, I have lots of family and close friends in the area, as well, which makes it really fun. The fans are always amazing here, and having those extra personal connections in the crowd makes it even more exciting."

Henderson, 25, always has been among the fan favorites at the Meijer, given her success, plus her proximity to her hometown, which is less than a 10-hour drive to Belmont in west Michigan. This tournament is among the closest LPGA tournaments to Henderson's hometown.

In 2017, Henderson shot 17 under to win by two strokes, over Lexi Thompson and Michelle Wie. In 2019, she shot 21 under to win by one, over four players, including Thompson again.

She now has 13 LPGA victories, the latest in January, to become the winningest pro golfer in Canada's history. Taylor's PGA Tour win Sunday, in a playoff over Tommy Fleetwood, was his third — and, by far, his biggest.

"We were traveling, actually, so I had it up on my phone trying to refresh all the time and I was watching a couple videos of his clutch putt on 18 to, at the time, I guess, take the lead in clubhouse," Henderson said. "And then I was texting a bunch of people trying to stay updated. It was an amazing round of golf. Obviously, since then, I've seen the putt he made in the playoff (a 70-plus-footer, for eagle), which was absolutely incredible.

"I'm just so happy for him and all of Canada, because I think having a Canadian win the Canadian Open is such a huge deal for the entire country."

The last Canadian to win the country's national-championship tournament was Pat Fletcher in 1954.

It wasn't just a huge deal for the fans, but also Taylor's fellow Canadian golfers, many of whom stuck around to watch Sunday's playoff — and eventually join in the celebration.

The celebration was a bit delayed, of course, for Adam Hadwin, who rushed to toast Taylor with a bottle of champagne, but was tackled by a security guard who mistook him for a fan.

Yes, Henderson saw that video, too.

"I'm so grateful he's OK," said Henderson, who has experience winning on home soil, after her triumph at the CP Women's Open in 2018. "It is very funny now that he is all right. I've been chuckling about it the last few days."

Henderson, at No. 10, is one of five players ranked inside the world's top 10 to be in this week's field at the Meijer, which will be four rounds, and ends Sunday. She's joined by No. 3 Lydio Ko, No. 5 Minjee Lee, No. 7 Hyo Joo Kim and No. 8 Thompson, 2015 champion at the Meijer.

Other past champions in the field include Jennifer Kupcho, last year's winner (who later in the summer went on to win the Great Lakes Bay Dow Invitational in Midland) and world No. 22, and So Yeon Ryu, the 2018 winner.

Notably absent is world No. 2 Nelly Korda, the 2021 winner who lost in last year's three-player playoff, who is nursing a back injury and hopes to return for next week's major, the Women's PGA Championship at Baltusrol in New Jersey. Women's golf sensation Rose Zhang, who made history in winning in her professional debut on the LPGA earlier this month, also is skipping the Meijer.

Among the notables in the field is Brooke Biermann, a rising junior at Michigan State who received a sponsor's exemption and will play in her first LPGA tournament. Other sponsor's exemptions were allotted to Wake Forest's Rachel Kuehn, the No. 5-ranked amateur in the world golf rankings, and Paige Crawford, who won the women's division of The John Shippen National Invitational earlier this month. Michigan State alum Valery Plata, who's a rookie is one of 29 rookies on the LPGA this season in the 144-player field.

"It is really nice coming back to places where you have felt very confident and you've found success, so that's always a great feeling," said Henderson, a two-time major winner who tied for ninth at last year's Meijer.

"Definitely one of my favorite stops on tour."

Meijer LPGA Classic

▶ When: Thursday-Sunday

▶ Where: Blythefield Country Club, Belmont, Mich.

▶ Defending champion: Jennifer Kupcho

▶ Purse: $2.5 million (winner: $375,000)

▶ TV: Thursday-Saturday — 3-6 p.m., Golf Channel; Sunday — 1-2 p.m., Peacock; 2-4 p.m., CBS

▶ Tickets: Daily starting at $10; children 17 and younger get in free with a ticketed adult, and military and first responders also get in free; dads get in free on Sunday, Father's Day. Details at meijerlpgaclassic.com.

tpaul@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @tonypaul1984