Brooke Henderson’s in the hunt at Canadian Pacific Women’s Open

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Brooke Henderson, chewing gum and looking at her iPhone, walked to the first tee in the early afternoon at the Vancouver Golf Club, receiving encouragement from the crowd. "Good luck, Brooke," several fans said, and Henderson responded, quietly each time, "Thank you."

The 17-year-old, a sudden star after her first LPGA Tour victory last Sunday, promptly launched a big tee shot to start her first round at the Canadian Pacific Women's Open. She cracked her second shot, an iron from the edge of the fairway, over a bunker guarding the green and landed within 20 feet of the hole. Her birdie putt, which she urged to the cup with a hint of body language, fell – one-under after one. The crowd of several hundred roared their approval.

Throughout her round, on a cool overcast afternoon, Henderson displayed little emotion. When a birdie putt on the fifth hole broke right at the last moment, finishing an inch off, she allowed something of a smile-grimace.

Henderson did not play her best, on what was largely an uneven day. On the ninth hole, she landed in a fairway bunker, before carding a bogey, to head to the back nine at even par. On the 10th, a birdie putt again fell short. She winced.

After a series of pars, she made a couple birdies. Then, walking to the 17th green, she carried her putter balanced on the index finger of her left hand. On the green, however, a birdie putt didn't quite fall.

Henderson finished two-under, in the hunt tied for 13th.

"Two under, I'll take it," Henderson said after the round, describing her goal to build on the crowd's energy through the tournament.

Her playing partner, Stacy Lewis, who was close to winning here three years ago, finished at four-under, tied for third.

Lydia Ko, the New Zealander who made history here three years ago, was second at five-under and, as of late Thursday, Karine Icher of France, ranked No. 61 in the world, led at seven-under through 13 holes.

Earlier this week, Henderson spoke about how, even in the spotlight, she felt no nerves and relished the expected crowds. "It's pretty cool to be famous," she said on Tuesday.

Henderson, from Smiths Falls, Ont., arrived in the CP Women's Open on a remarkable run, finishing tied for fifth at two majors in June and July, and scoring a dominating victory in Portland last weekend, becoming only the third woman to win an LPGA event before the age of 18. Two days later, she was awarded tour membership.

Vancouver and the Canadian Women's Open, however, have not been good to her.

Henderson first played here at the same tournament in 2012, when she was 14, having won a Canadian Women's Tour event, setting a mark for the youngest woman ever to win a professional event (excluding LPGA-level contests). But at the Vancouver Golf Club, Henderson was five-over in her first round and then four-over in her second, missing the cut. She missed the cut again in 2013 in Edmonton, and last year, in London, Ont., tied for 46th at two-over.

Henderson will not have much time to mull her Thursday performance. Tee times for Friday are reversed, and her group will tee off at about 8 a.m. The Canadian teenager is looking to book the best Canadian result at the national championship in more than a decade, going back to the early 2000s and late 1990s when Lorie Kane and Dawn Coe-Jones scored several top 10 finishes.