3-Peat?
The feeling has lingered for two years. It’s hard to forget, an 18-10 trouncing on their home soil that was as much shocking as it was disheartening for the Americans. It was a loss that was not only unexpected but also marked the first time the European team had both defending The Cup and also won on American soil. In the two years since, the Americans have vowed to get The Cup back while watching as their male counterparts got easily ousted a year ago when facing a similar task as the one they face this week at St. Leon Rot in the 2015 Solheim Cup.
As always, on paper the Americans are the favorites, but in this competition, the paper means as much as it’s written on, and the Europeans have a shot to win the Solheim Cup three consecutive times for the first time in the history of the event.
Each Captain - Juli Inkster for the Americans and Carin Koch for the Europeans - have had as distinguished playing careers in this event as either side has to offer in the captain’s seat. Inkster’s won more points in the Solheim Cup than any American in history and with a 15-12-7 record in nine Solheim Cups, Inkster surely knows what it’ll take to get it done in Germany. Same goes for her counterpart, Koch, who is a brilliant 10-3-3 in Solheim Cups including a spectacular 4-0-1 record in 2002. But like their matches back in the day, this is a zero sum game and both can have all the strategy in the world but only one will leave with the Cup.
Arriving In Style
Stacy Lewis may be the unquestioned leader of the American team as the top-rated member on this year’s 12-player squad arriving from France. But when it comes to who is playing the best on the red, white and blue side, there’s no question that honor goes to Lexi Thompson. Not only did she win two months ago at the Meijer LPGA Classic, but she’s followed it up with three consecutive top-10 finishes including a solo second at last week’s Evian Championship, the season’s final major. At No. 4 in the recently released Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings, Thompson is currently ranked the highest she’s ever been to this point in her career.
There’s not an event on the schedule that means more to Thompson than the Solheim Cup. She was admittedly thrilled to play in 2013 at only the age of 18 but left disappointed in her performance with only a 1-2-0 record. That seems like simply an anomaly though considering Thompson’s proven a wizard in match play in previous competitions. She was not only exceptional at the Curtis Cup, with a 4-0-1 record, but also won the 2008 U.S. Girls’ Junior, which is a match-play format.
Thompson will surely be looking to avenge last year’s International Crown where she failed to make a birdie on the first playoff hole and, as a result, had to deal with the lingering disappointment that came with the United States failing to advance into the final round group singles play for the Crown as the nation’s best golfing country.
The Naivety of Youth
As a 17-year-old rookie at the 2013 Solheim Cup, Charley Hull became the youngest competitor in Solheim Cup history. She also may have issued the most lasting memory of that European victory when after beating Paula Creamer resoundingly with a 5&4 win, Hull asked Creamer to sign her golf ball “for a mate back home” that was a “big fan” of Creamer.
At 19 now and making her second Solheim Cup appearance, Hull is no longer new to the stage and has continued to prove herself as one of the finest young players in the world. She’ll be looking to build on a fine opening act after posting a 2-1-0 record in her debut in 2013.
How Will Creamer Respond
It may not be by design but it’s inevitable. Whenever captain’s picks are involved in a team competition, they’re going to come with scrutiny - both for the captain and the players picked. Paula Creamer will surely get her taste of it this week after needing a captain’s pick from Inkster for the first time in her career. Creamer’s 12-6-5 record in five prior Solheim Cups was impossible to ignore for Inkster. After four consecutive missed cuts, Creamer arrives to Germany trying to rediscover the game that’s left her over the past two months. In a brilliant 10-year career, Creamer’s only missed the cut 13 times but with four of them coming in recent weeks there has to be concern about how her game - and psyche - will respond heading into Germany.
Coming Home
Sandra Gal has awaited this moment since she first heard the announcement that the Solheim Cup would head to her home country of Germany for the first time in Solheim Cup history. Gal, who grew up in Cologne, played in the 2011 Solheim Cup with 0-2-1 record but missed qualifying for the 2013 Solheim Cup.
Gal won’t be the only German on the team in front of the home fans either. Caroline Masson, a Gladbeck, Germany native, was selected as one of four captain’s picks for the team.
The Rookie
Alison Lee’s goal as an LPGA rookie wasn’t to win. It wasn’t to finish inside a certain target on the money list. Her goal was to make the United States Solheim Cup team. She had played in the 2014 Curtis Cup, posting a 3-1-1 record, and desperately wanted to earn her way onto the Solheim Cup team even if she only had eight months to do so.
She succeeded, joining Paula Creamer as only the second player ever to play her way onto the United States team during her rookie season. Lee earned her way onto the team via her No. 27 ranking in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings after starting the year ranked No. 483. Lee’s quickly asserted herself as one of the finest young players America has to offer though with six top-10s in 2015 including three consecutive top-10 finishes entering this event. Lee posted a tie for sixth last week at the Evian Championship, her finest finish to date in a major championship.
Among 24 Solheim Cup participants this year, Lee is the only rookie; although she does have experience playing in the Junior Solheim Cup.
Veterans Trip
Whichever team ends up on the disappointing losing team’s side certainly won’t be able to blame it on a lack of experience. The United States team has six players - Cristie Kerr (8th), Angela Stanford (6th), Paula Creamer (6th), Morgan Pressel (5th), Brittany Lincicome (5th), Michelle Wie (4th) and Brittany Lang (4th) - set to make at least their fourth start in the Solheim Cup. The European squad doesn’t have near as much experience with five players on the team making only their second Solheim Cup start and three other players making their third Solheim Cup start.
By comparison, the United States team has 36 Solheim Cup starts under their belt while the Europeans have just 31. Experience hasn’t translated into success though with a combined record of 54-62-23 for the Americans while the European roster’s produced a combined record of 59-40-22. So while the Americans may be the favorites on paper with 62 combined LPGA wins to the European’s 26, that hasn’t translated to success in the match-play format of the Solheim Cup.
Also of note is the fact that the Europeans are 4-2 in the biennial competition when it has been played on European Soil. This is the first time in the history of the event that the Europeans have the opportunity to defend the Cup in Europe and the first time ever that the Europeans have an opportunity to win three straight Cups.
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