Inconsistent putting leaves Brooke Henderson seven shots off U.S. Women's Open lead
China's Shanshan Feng has a one-stroke lead with six South Korean players following within four shots
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Brooke Henderson hits 16 greens, goes bogey-free on opening day of U.S. Women's Open
Women's U.S. Open at Trump National puts golfers in a difficult position
One shot short: Brooke Henderson barely misses repeat win at Women's PGA Championship
By Chris Stevenson
BEDMINSTER, N.J. — As her four-foot par putt on the 13th hole at Trump National Golf Club Bedminster slid past the hole Saturday, Brooke Henderson gently swung her putter in quiet desperation and looked up at the sky.
The groans from the crowd had dissipated and the only sound was the drone of a white single-engined aircraft that circled Bedminster endlessly Saturday. It was no doubt keeping tabs on the comings and goings as President Donald Trump continued his visit to the U.S. Women's Open.
The miss on 13 pretty much summed up Henderson's round Saturday, her second bogey in a row in a 1-over par 73 and a 54-hole total of 2-under 214. She's in a tie for 14th place, seven shots behind leader Shanshan Feng of China, who broke her string of 23-straight pars with a birdie on the par-5 18th to take the lead.
Amateur Hye-Jin Choi and Amy Yang, who each shot 70 Saturday, are tied for second at 8-under.
U.S. Women's Open leaderboard
"I'm a little too far back for the win unless they buckle, but I could still get a great finish here if I could just play well (Sunday)," Henderson said. A solid round Sunday could help her add to an outstanding record in the majors.
Since turning pro late in 2015, Henderson has played in 11 majors and has six top-10 finishes. She'll start Sunday two strokes back of the top 10.
After heavy rain on Friday, the Bedminster course is soft and the undulating greens are receptive. There were a couple of 5-under 67s on Saturday and Henderson said she believes there could be a round out there to get her back in the mix.
Brooke Henderson lines up her shot on the first fairway during the third round of the U.S. Women's Open golf tournament on Saturday, July 15, 2017, in Bedminster, N.J. Seth Wenig / The Associated Press
"I do. You have to play almost perfect because this course doesn't give you too much, especially (Sunday) is going to be more pressure, it's the final round of a major, which makes it really exciting," Henderson said. "I would love to get a 4- or 5-under round (Sunday). I think that would be great. Realistically I think it could happen. I'd have to hit the ball like I did today and putt like I did the first two days. It's definitely out there and I feel like I'm really close to being really good."
For the first two rounds, Henderson's putting was gold and her ball striking was so-so. On Saturday, she hit it great from tee to green, but despite half a dozen good looks, she couldn't make anything.
She made a birdie on the fourth hole when she holed out from a bunker and birdied the 17th from about four feet. She bogeyed the second (three-putt), 12th (drove in the rough, hit it in the bunker, didn't get up and down) and the 13th when she hit it in the rough, came up short of the green and missed that par putt.
"It's disappointing to lose ground on the field and shoot a 1-over round when I hit it so great. I hit the ball so well today which is always a great feeling," she said. "There were a couple of dumb mental mistakes on 12 and 13, but I hit the ball super well and the putts just weren't dropping from that 15-foot range which would have been nice if they would have."
Henderson said she couldn't put her finger on why the putts didn't drop for her on Saturday.
"I wasn't as comfortable as I was the first two day," she said. "(Friday), the four footers, no problem. Today I was little bit shaky over them."
Rather than look at Saturday's round as an opportunity lost, Henderson looks at Sunday's round as the chance to gain more experience in the heat of the final day of a major.
It's a great perspective.
"Every time you're in those final groups and you have the TV cameras on you, the fans, it's really exciting and it gives you more confidence for the next time you're in that position," she said. "So if I can go out there tomorrow and climb right from the start, maybe birdie the first hole or the first couple of holes, I feel like things could turn out really well."
"It's there and I just have to put it all together."
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