Henderson improved by one shot from Thursday, playing through some early rain and a two-hour delay en route to a 68. “I feel like I’m hitting the ball really well so I’m excited for the weekend,” Henderson said. “I’m giving myself a really good birdie, so if the putt stays hot, hopefully I can make a charge tomorrow like I did in 2017.” That year, the last time the tournament was held at the Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club, Henderson scorched the course on Saturday for a then-course record 63 and put herself in contention before eventually losing a tie for 12th place. He’s going to need a little more of that magic to stand a chance this time. Her second round was highlighted by five birdies against a pair of bogeys. For the most part, he hit the ball well, missing just one green in regulation. Her footwork was also better as she hit a lot of base hits throughout the day. None of them were as clutch as the 18-footer he putt on the seventh hole for bogey. That came after she sailed her tee shot into a threatening bunker and got aggressive and tried to get the ball out with a second-shot hybrid. The ball hit the lip and forced it to the side, leaving her with a medium approach to the green. “Trying to bogey out of there was huge,” Henderson said. “He looked like a little bird or even an eagle going about his day.” The 24-year-old from Smiths Falls, Ont., birdied the ninth, 11th and 13th holes but ended her round with a three-foot bogey, the second time this week she finished the day with an over par. When asked after her round if she still had a chance to win the tournament, Henderson remained optimistic. “Not where I wanted to be, but I’m playing on the weekend and I’ve got amazing crowds and amazing fans out here cheering me on, so I feel like if I can make a few birdies early, maybe I can ride some momentum and make a ton tomorrow. “That’s the goal, it’s just to get on the leaderboard as much as possible.” If he won, Henderson would do it in a new way. In her 12 career wins, she has led or tied for the lead after 36 holes in seven of them and has never been further back than ninth. Once again, Henderson was lured by a large gallery, who didn’t seem to mind the wet conditions. As a bonus, viewers also got to see Henderson’s entire round after not being able to watch a single take on Thursday. A last-minute deal between Golf Canada, the Golf Channel, the LPGA Tour and TSN negotiated during the rain delay extended the broadcast window on TSN to allow all 68 of Henderson’s swings to be shown. The show also captured the final hole of Lorie Kane, who was playing in her 30th and final CP Women’s Open. As she walked onto the green, there was a standing ovation from fans, officials and teammates who left Kane in tears as she waved her appreciation and beat her heart to show that she was sending them love right away. “I thought I held it together until I probably got to the 150-yard mark,” Kane said. “I wanted to finish — I’m glad to be here, like I said. My golf was terrible, but today I think it was more about doing what I had to do to finish something I wanted to finish.” While Kane and Henderson grabbed much of the spotlight, the low Canadian on the leaderboard was Mandy Sherick of London, Ont., who carded a 68 on Friday to move into 7 under for the tournament. Szeryk, a rookie on the LPGA Tour this year, missed just one putt and one green in her second round and has now gone 36 holes without bogeying.
