Aug. 26, 2018.
For some it is just a day.
But for a number of Canadian sports fans it is a day they will not soon forget.
For the first time since Jocelyne Bourassa in 1973, a Canadian has defended home soil and won the Ladies Professional Golf Association’s Canadian Pacific Open.
Brooke Henderson, a superstar on the LGPA Tour, collected the title after firing a seven-under 65 to win the Canadian Open at Wascana Country Club in Regina by four strokes over American Angel Yin.
Henderson’s win was historic.
She is the first woman to win the women’s Canadian Open in more than 45 years.
But if you dig deeper into the numbers, you’ll realize her feat is ultra-rare across all Canadian individual sports.
When we look at individual sport with Canadian championships, two come to mind; tennis and golf.
Henderson’s win snapped a streak of 45 years without a winner on the women’s side, but on the men’s side you have to go all the way back to 1954 when Pat Fletcher won by four strokes to find the last Canadian Open men’s winner.
The Canadian tennis scene is no better.
Robert Bedard won the last of his three Rogers Cup titles in 1958. Canadian men have been shut out ever since.
On the women’s side Faye Urban was the last Canadian woman to win the Canadian Open, taking the title in 1969.
All told, in the last 50 years Canadians have just two national championship victories.
Two.
That is what makes Henderson’s win so special.
Nevermind the fact she won nearly wire-to-wire.
After shooting 66 on Thursday and 66 on Friday, Henderson went into the weekend just one stroke off the lead.
By the end of Saturday she took the lead and never looked back.
Opening the final round of what she admitted was her most coveted title, Henderson held a one stroke lead.
After a two under front nine, Henderson hit the turn with a two stroke lead and Yin nipping at her heels.
But with every shot Yin made, Henderson stared her down and one-upped her.
It was an incredible display of golf.
Admittedly, I have a little extra reason to get behind Henderson, having grown up with older sister and caddie, Brittany, and having been taught by coach and father, Dave.
But, the historical aspect of her win cannot go unnoticed.
When we think about historical moments in Canadian sport, this is one of those moments.
And to have it happen just down the road in Regina, makes it extra special.
Aug. 26, 2018 will be a day not many Canadian sports fans soon forget.
