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Lydia Ko says it feels like shes going home. Zach Mettenberger Jersey . The New Zealander became the youngest winner on the LPGA Tour when she captured the CN Canadian Womens Open at the age of 15 two summers ago. Ko won again last year, and will headline the field for the 2014 tournament -- now known as the Canadian Pacific Womens Open -- when it gets going later this month at London Hunt & Country Club. "I love playing in Canada and the support Ive been getting is huge," the 17-year-old said on a conference call Monday. "To me, Canada feels quite close to what its like in New Zealand. It feels really welcoming whenever I go there. "Having my first LPGA win in Canada, thats huge and thats always going to be with me. They always say the first is one of the most memorable and its definitely been the case." Tournament director Brent McLaughlin said the Canadian golf community has a strong connection to Ko because of the success shes had the last two years. "Any time you see young talents just excel youre proud of them," he said. "Its even brought further to the forefront when you feel like youve had a part in helping them along. "People need heroes. They need to rally around heroes and they need a reason to watch." Ko was an amateur and didnt collect any winnings when she won her back-to-back Canadian championships at Vancouver Golf Club in Coquitlam, B.C., and at Edmontons Royal Mayfair Golf Club. She turned pro in October 2013 and has already won two tournaments this season, including the Marathon Classic last month. "This year has been very exciting, first year on the tour as an LPGA rookie. Its been a fun year. Ive learned a lot of things along the way," said Ko. "I really look forward to going back and playing the Canadian Womens Open. The last two years, the Canadian Open was a very exciting tournament for me." While shes happy with her decision to play on tour full time, Ko said dealing with the weekly grind has been an adjustment. "Ive been trying to balance life outside the course and not over doing it and taking some time off," she said. "Outside the golf course I do the normal teenage things -- watch TV, talk to my friends on Facebook. "I think that kind of helps me to bring back my life outside of golf and outside of what I do most of the time, and actually be like a normal teenager and talk about school and gossip about things." Ko -- who was named one of Time Magazines top 100 most influential people in April -- is still adjusting to her fame, including being viewed as a role model. "Thats pretty cool because Im only 17 myself," she said. "When I hear these little girls or boys say Youre my role model and I look up to you it is kind of cool and it makes me feel like I need to become a better person, a better player so that I live up to what they expect of me." Ko is one of a number of big names set play at this years Canadian Open in London, Ont., from Aug. 18 to 24, but one player who wont be taking part due to injury is Michelle Wie. "Shes such an awesome player and it would have been great to have Michelle there because we all know that she brings a lot of the crowds out," said Ko. "Hopefully the crowds will still come out. Its really unfortunate that it happened during this time." Meanwhile, the Canadian contingent will be led by 16-year-old Brooke Henderson of Smiths Falls, Ont., who finished second at last weeks U.S. Womens Amateur tournament in Glen Cove, N.Y. Ko said there is a buzz on tour about playing in Canada, not only for the $US2.25-million purse, but because of how the tournament is received. "When players talk to each other ... they want to go and play and theyre super excited to play. They dont want to miss out on it," she said. "Its been a great experience for me" Authentic Jake Locker Jersey . Grabner scored on a breakaway 3:53 into overtime as the Islanders defeated the Winnipeg Jets 3-2 on Tuesday. Craig Stevens Tennessee Titans . -- Look at London Fletchers career stats, particularly the column of numbers under the letter "G.MARTINSVILLE, Va. - Kyle Busch has seen it time and again at Martinsville Speedway. Driving down pit road, heading back onto the track and in contention for the lead, Busch is used to seeing the pole-sitter gun the engine just off the jack and reassume the race lead. Busch hopes to finally get to experience that for himself at Martinsville Speedway on Sunday after earning the pole on NASCARs smallest, tightest track for the first time in 19 career starts. "I think thats a great thing for us," Busch said after winning the pole with a lap at 99.674 mph. "We get to pit there and of course drop the jack and just lunge across the line and be good. "You need to still run up front all day. I think that its a great opportunity for us to pick up some spots say if were second, third, fourth, whatever, but you definitely always want to stay as close to the front as you can and try not to use that box as much as some guys have in the past." The pole is the 14th of Buschs career. In an interesting twist under NASCARs new knockout qualifying system, Busch won it while Joey Logano set a track record. That came at 100.201 mph during the first phase of two-session qualifying. All 44 cars competed in the 30-minute first session, and the top 12 moved into the 10-minute phase two. Denny Hamlin earned the No. 2 starting spot with a lap at 99.548 mph, and will be followed on the starting grid by Logano and Hendrick Motorsports teammates Jimmie Johnson and Jeff Gordon. That puts Busch in some pretty accomplished company because Hamlin (4), Johnson and Gordon (8 each) have won a lot. Busch, though, is coming off a victory last week at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana, Calif., and while he said it wasnt dominaating, it gave him hope that the Joe Gibbs Racing teams are coming together. Authentic Nate Washington Jersey. "It just seems to be working well right now, whatever is working," he said. Hamlin, who promised earlier in the day that he would win on Sunday, wasnt in love with the outside starting spot because it can be tricky to get down to the bottom on restarts from the outside, said nothing that happened in practice or qualifying made his change his view of how it can all unfold. "I knew, even going into this weekend, I knew we were going to be really good contenders and be in the mix anyway," he said. "I feel like after running a couple laps of practice I felt like this was a car that was capable of winning. I think with tire management being more of a factor than its ever been, it kind of lends itself to my driving style even more. For that reason I think well be tough on Sunday." Logano has two top-10 finishes on the 0.526-mile oval, but none since 2010. "So weve got a track record, but we dont have a pole. How does that work?" he asked. A solid pit position, he said, could help turns things around on Sunday. "Obviously, the pit stall is very important, especially here. Its a dangerous pit road, so you want to get a nice spot you can get in and out of, but obviously here its a slow pit road and you can make up a lot with timing lines on pit road," he said. "For that reason alone its big, and thats worth multiple spots throughout the race when youre thinking about making a lot of pit stops." Danica Patrick qualified 10th, her best starting spot in a race not held at Daytona. Her previous best starting position was 21st, accomplished twice last season. ' ' ' |
