Lincicome Riding Solheim Cup momentum
While Brittany Lincicome’s focus was on the course during Friday’s second round, where she fired her second straight 3-under-par 68 to sit at 6-under par for the tournament and just two shots back of the lead at the CP Women’s Open, she admitted that her afternoon was going to be filled with a nap and a pizza party, hosted by her caddie.
“My caddie is going to make pizzas from scratch tonight, so we have that to look forward to, which is obviously very exciting,” she said with a smile.
Other than Friday evening pizza, Lincicome had many reasons to be pleased with her day, as she admitted her putting – which was spectacular at the Solheim Cup last week, she said – continued to be as such this week in Ottawa.
“There were a lot of holes out there where I felt like I putted pretty well. You know, I seemed to be making the five-footers or the comebacks for par, which is really huge. Kind of keeps the momentum going through the round,” she explained.
Lincicome was also pleased with her driving on Friday.
“The whole day was good. I'm driving the ball pretty well. Some of these holes out here there are a lot of bunkers that are right in my way, right in my landing zone, so we're kind of being a little more aggressive than I feel like we probably should be. But so far since I'm driving it well, we're just going to keep doing it,” she said. “I obviously have a lot more wedges in my hands than most girls, so I need to take advantage of those.”
And as far as toppings on that pizza?
“Normally I think sausage and pepperoni, and then this mascarpone, which is like a sweet cream which is super weird,” she said with a laugh. “Everyone's like, ‘oh my gosh, what is that?’ But it's delicious.”
Clyburn Battles Through Injury
Although Holly Clyburn admitted she did something ‘stupid’ at the gym at the beginning of the week, she’s been managing the pain well enough to sit 5-under par through two rounds, and just three shots back of the lead going into the weekend at the CP Women’s Open.
Clyburn got off to a strong start Thursday, making three birdies in her first nine holes. It was a bit of a tale-of-two-nines, however, as she made two bogeys on her back nine and finished at 1-under for the day.
“Found it tricky on the back side. I played awesome from start to finish, just didn't get anything going in the hole, really, unfortunately, from the backside really,” she said. “Other than that, I'm quite happy where I'm standing right now.”
Clyburn also played the first two rounds with Canadian Golf Hall of Famer Lorie Kane, and said she was feeding off the crowd’s energy all day.
“The crowds are amazing. They absolutely adore her. It's awesome. Every two minutes it's, ‘Go Lorie, Go Lorie.’ It's great to be around. Yesterday was amazing crowds in the afternoon. Even this morning when we teed off at 10 to 9:00, it was quite loud. They just love her. It's great,” she said. “It's great for us to be around, and it's pretty special to be around such an icon like that.”
Clyburn came into the CP Women’s Open having missed her last three cuts, but said she’s found something in her swing for this week, and it’s been paying. When asked what her approach will be for the weekend, she said she’d just keep trying to do the same things.
“Rest is the key. Just keep doing what I'm doing, like I said, and speak to my family and coach back at home, and see where we can go from there,” she said.
Martin Riding Birdie Streak Into Weekend
Mo Martin couldn’t really get anything going Friday until late in the day, when she rattled of four birdies in her final six holes to post a 4-under-par 67. Through two rounds, she sits at 6-under, and is just two shots back of the lead at the CP Women’s Open.
“Super-solid finish. It's nice that things are coming together. I think I've been playing better than I've been scoring this summer, so nice to see those things connect,” she said.
Martin said the Ottawa Hunt & Golf Club had some ‘sharp’ pins on both Thursday and Friday, but said the greens were ‘really pure.’
“This morning on the pure greens… it was nice to have some clean runs at birdie,” she said. “The greens are running really well.”
Martin’s best finish of the year was a tie for seventh at the ShopRite LPGA Classic Presented by Acer, and she looks to improve on that this weekend.
Feng Relishes Canadian Crowds
Despite a late bogey from Shanshan Feng, her 1-under-par 70 Friday moved to her 4-under for the tournament and she has a chance to win her second event of the LPGA Tour season.
“I think yesterday I had a very good round, so this morning I didn't have any pressure. I think my ball striking has been pretty good. I think one of the keys to play well this week is actually to be accurate, especially off the tees. The rough is pretty long. Some of the fairways are pretty tight. I think that's what I did pretty well for the first two days,” said Feng. “I'm happy about the 4-under.”
Feng made three birdies and two bogeys on Friday, and said she was thriving on the support she was receiving from the Canadian crowds.
“I was surprised, actually, many people they recognized me. A lot of them asked when I was going to wear my cow pants, and I'm really happy to see them here,” she said with a smile. “I think what Brooke (Henderson) did for Golf Canada… it means a lot. Compared to a couple years ago when Brooke wasn't on the Tour, now we have a lot more people (watching), even on the Pro-Am day. I was so surprised because we had so many people watching. So I'm really happy coming back to Canada.”
Marchand Low Canadian
Although all eyes were on Brooke Henderson on Friday – who eventually made the cut on the number after birding the par-5 9th, her final hole of the day – it was Brittany Marchand who sits as Low Canadian through two rounds at the CP Women’s Open.
Marchand, who has won her last two professional starts, was riding a wave of momentum heading into this week’s event, and fired a 4-under-par 67 on Friday to reach 2-under for the tournament, sitting tied for 23rd.
She said her biggest goal this week was to make the cut, and now that she’s done that, she’s trying to cash a solid cheque in order to keep her Epson Tour season going and be in a position to be on the LPGA Tour full time next year.
“I'd like to make some good money, so all I want to do is do the same thing as I've been doing, play well, and we'll see what happens,” she explained.
And while some golfers may be intimidated by the pressure of playing in front of their hometown crowds Marchand has been relishing it this year, as she had a solid result at the Manulife LPGA Classic as well.
“I kind of like playing for the Canadians and playing at home. Having my family and people turn out. I've said before at Manulife it's kind of nice when people cheer for you,” she said. “It feels like it really boosts your mood and gives you confidence. Because no matter how well you do, they're probably going to cheer for you because you're Canadian.”
Brooke Henderson was the only other Canadian to make the cut, after she birdied her final hole of the day to get right on the number (1-over), and credited a discussion with her playing partner Cristie Kerr as the kick-start for her fine play in the middle of the round, where she made three birdies in four holes.
“I was talking to Cristie down on the fairway, and things kind of changed right there,” said Henderson. “Great run right there, and I hit the ball really well again today. Couple pulls on No. 8 and I guess No. 13. But other than that, I hit it really well and gave myself a lot of great opportunities.”
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