Monday evening was anything but ordinary for the American girls in contention to represent the United States in the 2015 Solheim Cup. Captain Juli Inkster had a surprise in store for the players, but did not give them much information. 2013 Solheim Cup team member, Lizette Salas, and current American player in the hunt, Austin Ernst, shared some of their experience as they prepare for the Solheim Cup team selection.
“We were told that we wouldn’t be able to drive there,” Ernst said. “I thought, it must be pretty important place if we can’t drive there…we got to go meet President Bush and Mrs. Bush. It was awesome, probably the coolest thing I’ve ever done.”
Lizette Salas was a little more in the dark about the group’s itinerary for the night. Getting the opportunity to meet and have dinner with the Former President of the United States and the Former First Lady was nowhere in Salas’ expectations for the evening.
“What’s going on?” Salas said. “I kind of wish I had changed my outfit for that.”
Captain Juli Inkster wanted it to be that way, she wanted to keep it a surprise for the players until Monday night when it was time to load the bus. But it was even a bit of a surprise to Inkster when they arrived to their undisclosed location.
“I kept it as a surprise from the team because I thought it would be cool,” Inkster said. “Some people figured it out. And then the bonus was Mrs. Bush being there. And then actually having dinner where they live. One side is the museum and the other side is where they are living. It was more than I expected.”
Juli Inkster has her work cut out for her as she looks to make the final selections for Team U.S.A. And both Ernst and Salas are looking to make a final push to make the team. Salas was a member of the American team for the 2013 Solheim Cup, but Ernst is striving to make her first appearance representing the U.S.
“It would be a dream come true,” Ernst said. “this is the biggest honor we can have in professional golf, being able to represent the United States.”
Salas has an edge on Ernst and hopes to use her experience in 2013 to give her an advantage gearing up to this year’s Solheim Cup.
“It’s going to be a week full of emotion,” Salas said. “A lot of ups and downs and you just kind of have to pace yourself…this year Juli (Inkster) has really tried to emphasize the fact that we just play our own game, everyone should just complement each other and not adapt, so that’s what I’m really trying to take from last Solheim Cup.”
The American players are not the only ones preparing for the big showdown this Summer, Captain Juli Inkster is still taking notes and learning from past leaders such as Former President George W. Bush.
“He led by example,” Inkster said. “He never shied away from things that he maybe didn’t think were right. He stood up for what he believed in and he followed his heart. That’s what I’m trying to get my team to do – believe in themselves and follow their heart.”
More Wins, More Press
For the two-time LPGA Champion, Sei Young Kim, the 2015 season has been a dream come true. The LPGA Rookie has played in nine events and made eight cuts so far on the season.
Following a missed cut at the first event of the season (Coates Golf Championship), Kim was able to use that as motivation as she clinched her first LPGA title at the Pure Silk Bahamas LPGA Classic. Not too far after, during the LOTTE Championship presented by HERSEY Kim chipped her way into a playoff and had an unbelievable eagle to add yet another win to rookie season.
The Korean player knew that more wins meant one thing; more media. And four months into the season she has been gaining ground on becoming more comfortable in front of the press.
“My spare time I’m working on my English,” Kim said through a translator. “Now I have quite a bit of media requests and I’m just trying to accommodate it and working on it.”
When asked what she has been doing to work on her English and speaking with the media, she had one response.
“Watching TV,” Kim said through a translator. “American Drama, Modern Family, I like that.”
Thinking Her Way Around
Sei Young Kim looks to continue her level of play this week as she takes on Las Colinas Country Club for the Volunteers of America North Texas Shootout. The 2015 Rookie ranks No. 2 on the Money List and in the Race to CME Globe and will be taking on this course for the first time this week.
“When I go to the tournament site,” Kim said through a translator. “I think about what the course architects are trying to accomplish here…so I try to understand that. I try to approach in that way.”
Following a practice round Tuesday, Kim thinks that the par-71 course will set up nicely for her game and will work toward her advantage. Kim currently leads the LPGA in birdies(150) on the season and expects to mark quite a few of them on her scorecard this week.
“The green conditions is really good,” Kim said. “I can read the greens quite well here. So I can just commit to what I read and I can put a good score up.”
Numbers to Know
3 - Sei Young Kim has now posted three consecutive top-10s and has six top-10s in nine starts.
4 - Brooke Henderson emerged from a four-way playoff for one spot in the qualifier Monday to earn her way into the field..
13 - Lydia Ko’s number of weeks at No. 1.
70 - Brooke Henderson’s score in the qualifier, which finished Tuesday morning.
Quote of the Day
“I’m still trying to get used to all the travel, and I miss home a lot, I miss my family back at home, my mom, but I have golf I want to accomplish here. Because of that, I can deal with all the homesickness.”
- Sei Young Kim on her rookie year
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