Brooke Henderson looking to break 43-year drought for Canucks at Canadian Open

The top player in the world should be the favourite to win her fourth Canadian women's golf championship which kicks off at Priddis Greens Golf and Country Club beginning today.

But Lydia Ko, the Olympic silver medallist from New Zealand who leads the LPGA rankings, is in second place when it comes to being the sentimental choice.

That honour belongs to Brooke Henderson, the 18-year-old from Smiths Falls, Ont., who is ranked number three and hoping to break a long drought for Canadians at the Canadian Open.

The last Canadian to win was Jocelyne Bourassa in 1973.

"It's definitely something I'm hoping to break ... that history ... either this year, next year or in a couple of years," said Henderson.

"I'm going to give it a good effort this week. I'll do some practice...and try and get everything almost perfect and then I will go out and try my best for the next four days and we'll see what happens."

Ko, however, is on a roll after a strong performance in Rio and seems to thrive at the Canadian Open.

She's won three times, including last year. Two of those wins have come when she was an amateur, the first time in 2012 when she was just 15 years old.

"Somebody out there earlier today said 'You know if you win this one more time you probably can't reject saying that you're a Canadian,"' said Ko with a laugh.

"I said 'Well they didn't even ask me in the first place."'

Ko was born in Seoul, South Korea and raised in Auckland, New Zealand.

"When I come to Canada it feels like New Zealand ... a lot like home," she said.

"I have a lot of homes now that I'm living in Orlando but I feel like this is another place I come and I feel very relaxed to be here."

Nobody in the field would be happier for a Canadian to win than Lorie Kane of Charlottetown, P.E.I., who is making her 26th straight appearance at the Canadian Open.

"That would be my Stanley Cup for sure," Kane said.

"The opportunity I have just to play ... to do the best that I can this week. I'll be happy if I leave everything on the golf course."

The $2.25-million Canadian Open was last held in Priddis, southwest of Calgary, in 2009 and runs through Sunday.

Now sponsored by Canadian Pacific, the purse includes $337,500 for the winner.