Solheim Cup 2021: The teams, the captains, the course, and more

Published: 23 August 2021 Last updated: 21 September 2022

Inverness Club

We preview the Solheim Cup as Europe look to defend the trophy they won two year ago at Gleneagles…

Inverness Club (in Ohio, not Scotland) will stage the 17th Solheim Cup, from September 4-6, when Catriona Matthew looks to become the first European captain in history to win home and away.

Like their Ryder Cup counterparts, Team USA lead the overall head-to-head but have failed to live up to their billing as pre-tournament favourities in recent years. In fact, Europe have won three of the last five Solheim Cups, including last time out at Gleneagles, and will arrive in Ohio with pretty much the same backroom team, led by Catriona Matthew.

Juli Inkster had captained the Americans in three consecutive competitions, but that responsibility now falls on Pat Hurst for the first time, and she’s surprisingly selected two rookie assistants, Michelle Wie West and Angela Stanford, alongside Stacy Lewis.

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Of course, Hurst does have the added advantage of setting up the course as she pleases – and we all saw at the 2018 Ryder Cup at Le Golf National how effective that can be.

But there are still plenty of reasons to think that the Europeans could achieve a first victory on America soil since 2013…

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Solheim Cup preview: Could the course actually favour the Europeans?

A lot has changed since Ohio’s Inverness Club hosted the 2011 US Senior Open, let alone the 1993 PGA Championship.

The course was radically altered by Andrew Green four years ago, undoing much of the remodelling work undertaken by George and Tom Fazio in the late ’70s.

Green replaced the 3rd, 4th, 5th and 8th holes with new ones in the style of original designer Donald Ross, and maintained many of the mounds, humps and valleys that were put in a century ago.

The layout still finishes with five par 4s – sometimes referred to as ‘murderer’s row’ – but the postage-stamp greens and fescue have added a new level of charm to what had become a very traditional American parkland course.

“It is certainly a very different course compared to what we have in Ohio,” admits John Zimmers, Course Superintendent. “The new holes have opened the property up, so it’s essentially wide open now.

I mean, I’ve never worked anywhere where the wind can be such a factor.”

As well as adding considerable length (the unofficial yardage for the Solheim Cup is 6,887), all 85 bunkers have been restored to the original design and more than 3,000 trees have been felled and replaced by thick rough.

It’s been likened to a US Open course, but it actually looks and feels more like a links because of the elevation changes and how fast and firm it plays.

“It’s not a links, but it’s getting awfully close,” adds Zimmers. “There’s a ton of fescue and we saw last year how players can have a hard time just holding on to the greens.

“There’s also a lot of big drop offs and deep bunkers, so there’s plenty going on to put a real premium on accuracy. All those things are going to come into play and they should, we hope, add a level of unpredictability which is a perfect for matchplay.”

Uncle Sam’s secret weapon

As if being cheered on by around 20,000 fervently partisan Americans each day won’t be intimidating enough for Team Europe, Inverness Club has dedicated two months to building the largest grandstand in LPGA history and creating a stadium atmosphere around a number of holes.

The two-deck, 72,000sqft pavilion will provide a 300-degree view of golf for up to 7,500 ticket holders, who will be able to watch the action on the par-3 5th and 12th holes, as well as the greens on holes 4, 11, 14 and the 15th tee.

Catriona Matthew will captain Europe for a second time in the Solheim Cup

Solheim Cup preview: Can Catriona Matthew get her picks right again?

Matthew could be forgiven for still basking in the glory of leading Europe to a memorable 14 ½ to 13 ½ victory at Gleneagles two years ago. It was her pick, and close friend, Suzann Pettersen who was the hero after holing a seven-foot putt to seal the win on the 18th hole. It was a fairy-tale finish which vindicated her selection and made Matthew the logical pick to skipper the side again this summer. She’s now got the chance to become the first European captain to win back-to-back Solheim Cups – and she plans to do it by remaining faithful to the same core group of players who, she believes, are hitting form at just the right time…

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You’re in a unique position of being able to pick half your team. Is that a good or a bad thing?

I think that’s a good thing. Because of the situation we’re in, a lot of players haven’t played much over the last year and didn’t earn many ranking points, so it’s the fairest solution.

One player whose experience you will be missing is Suzann Pettersen. Who are you looking towards to help fill that void?

You’ve got players like Carlota Ciganda, Anna Nordqvist and even Charley [Hull] and Georgia [Hall]. Even though they’re still quite young, this will be Charley’s fourth Solheim. Mel [Reid] is also playing well and she’s moving from vice-captaining to playing again.

Of the players available to you, who’s impressed you the most this year?

Well, Emily [Kristine Pedersen] had a fantastic year last year. She made her debut at Des Moines [in 2017], but then really went into a bit of a slump. To come back like she has and return to the top of the game shows great spirit and grit.

How much will home advantage be a factor?

We’ve seen at all Ryder Cups and Solheim Cups that it is more difficult to win away from home. I can’t see many European fans being among the 20,000 [spectators] each day. That will make it extra tough for us, but that can also be a motivation for our team.

What were your first impressions of the course?

It’s actually quite linksy. That was one of the first things Laura [Davies] and
I thought when we went there and saw all the fescue grass and lack of trees. It’s got a very British look to it. Hopefully, that will help us.

So, are you confident you can do the double?

Yeah, I think we’re going to have a really good team. A lot of them are hitting form. We know we’re going to be up against it, but there’s no reason why we can’t pull off another victory.

Solheim Cup preview: Who’s in the teams?

On paper, you could make a strong case for the home team being overwhelming favourites. The Americans have won six of 16 events on the LPGA this season, and currently have seven players in the world’s top 25, including new No.1 and Olympic champion Nelly Korda. Europe, by contrast, only have one (Women’s Open champion Anna Nordqvist).

Matthew will also have more rookies on her side after naming three debutants, all 26, among her six captain’s picks. Leona Maguire is perhaps the standout name, and will become the first Irish player to represent Team Europe in the Solheim Cup.

Maguire, who has six top 10s from 15 starts on the LPGA Tour this season, is joined in the line-up by Matilda Castrena, the American-born player from Finland, with Nanna Koerstz completing the trio. Sophia Popov, the 2020 Women’s Open champion, is the fourth rookie after qualified automatically through the World Rankings, where she sits 30th.

Madelene Sagstrom from Sweden has also been called-up after finishing tied-second at Carnoustie alongside Georgia Hall, who qualified automatically. Anna Nordqvist booked her place after besting both of them by a shot at the Women’s Open.

Charley Hull, Emily Kristine Pedersen and Carlota Ciganda complete the list of automatic qualifiers, and will be joined by Mel Reid who will be competing in her fourth Solheim Cup after taking the role of vice-captain in 2019.

Frenchwoman Celine Boutier also returns to the team, two years on from winning all four matches on her debut.

On the America side, the Korda sisters are two of eight players retained from the side that was beaten 14 ½ to 13 ½ in Scotland. The others include Lexi Thompson, Danielle Kang, Ally Ewing, Megan Khang, Lizette Salas, and wildcard Brittany Altomare.

Austin Ernst features for the first time since America’s victory in 2017, while Jennifer Kupcho is the only rookie to qualify automatically. Fellow newbies Mina Harigae and Yealimi Noh complete the line-up after being handed wildcards by Hurst.

Team Europe: (WC) Celine Boutier, (WC) Matilda Castren, Carlota Ciganda, Georgia Hall, Charley Hull, (WC) Nanna Koerstz Madsen, (WC) Leona Maguire, Anna Nordqvist, Emily Kristine Pedersen, Sophia Popov, (WC) Mel Reid, (WC) Madelene Sagstrom.

Team USA: (WC) Brittany Altomare, Austin Ernst, Ally Ewing, (WC) Mina Harigae, Danielle Kang, Megan Khang, Jessica Korda, Nelly Korda, Jennifer Kupcho, (WC) Yealimi Noh, Lizette Salas, Lexi Thompson.

Solheim Cup preview: The inside view

“It is a very tough golf course. It’s all about placement. You want to be in the fairways and get as much height as you can into those greens, so that way you don’t have to play for too much bounce-out. I would say keeping it straight off the tee is the main focus because distance isn’t super key there. A lot of run-outs are about 270-ish.”
Lexi Thompson

“One of the biggest defences that this golf course has is you have to be a great ball-striker off the tee and into the second shots. Even if somehow you have a great shot, it’ll roll just over the green or just off. That chip is not an easy chip. If you’re a foot off the green, a solid eight-foot par putt might be strongly in play.”
Danielle Kang

“It’s more of a tee-shot golf course, especially if the greens are firm. I’m not sure you want clubs coming out of the rough into these greens, because it is very important to stay below the hole on most of them. The greens have just enough slope in them to really make you pay attention. You can’t let your guard down at any point.”
Angela Stanford, vice captain

Solheim Cup preview: Can Europe stop the Kordashians?

Had things worked out differently, Jessica and Nelly Korda – AKA ‘Team Jelly’ – could have been representing Team Europe.

Though they were born in Florida, they are the daughters of Czech Republic’s Major-winning tennis player, Petr. Jessica even played in the Women’s World Amateur Team Championship for the Czech Republic as a teenager.

Ultimately, the ‘Kordashians’ felt more comfortable wearing the Stars and Stripes and made history by becoming the first set of sisters to partner each other in the Solheim Cup at Gleneagles.

They wasted little time in filling the void left by Lexi Thompson and Cristie Kerr, the most successful US pairing in Solheim Cup history, and were responsible for handing out the two biggest thrashings in the foursomes, beating Caroline Masson and Jodi Ewart Shadoff 6&4 and then Carlota Ciganda and Bronte Law 6&5.

Rookie Nelly’s record of three wins and one draw, matched by older sister Jessica, was the
best among all Americans and the precursor to a run of form which has seen her win six times – including her maiden Major at the Women’s PGA – in 31 starts since.

She even ended Jin Young Ko’s 701-day reign at the top of the World Rankings and is already a lock to reprise her partnership with Jessica, the current World No.17,
at Inverness Club.

They warmed up by playing together in the Dow Great Lakes Invitational event in July and will form the cornerstone of a US team with far more experience – and proven winners – than in 2019.

Nelly and Jessica Korda

A perfect pairing

Initially, 2019 captain Juli Inkster was sceptical about pairing the Kordas together at Gleneagles – and had to be convinced by the sisters at the 11th hour.

“They actually asked me to play together,” said Inkster. “I wasn’t too keen on it. But the more I thought about it, it would be stupid not to play them.”

While their personalities are very different, their stats are remarkably similar. This year Jessica’s average driving distance is 275 yards, Nelly’s is 274 yards.

Jessica hits 66 percent of fairways, Nelly hits 74 percent. Jessica hits 76 percent of greens in regulation compared to Nelly’s 75 percent. They even take the same number of putts per green in regulation.

The biggest difference compared to 2019 is that Nelly is a Major winner and Olympic gold medallist now, but we can’t see that upsetting the dynamics of what is clearly a very effective foursomes pairing.

Solheim Cup preview: Inverness Club’s key holes

Par 71 | 6,434 yards

Hole 4: Par 4, 398 Yards

This dog-leg left presents a multitude of risk and reward options. A brook running down the left side crosses the fairway approximately 80 yards from the green, while bunkers on the right side pinch the landing area. The approach shot plays to an elevated green, divided by two levels and protected by bunkers on both sides. Anything short finds a steep slope bringing the ball back down the fairway.

Hole 7: Hole 4, 434 yards

Inverness’ signature hole, which ranked as the toughest during the LPGA Drive On Championship. This tight driving hole brings a creek and mounds into play from the elevated tee, which offers spectacular views. The approach requires a mid- to long-iron into a raised green, with a steep slope off the right side and false front. Like the 4th, you could see balls flying 100 yards back down the hill.

Hole 8: Par 5, 560 Yards

The first of two par 5s and the longest hole at Inverness. The corner of the dog-leg is guarded by bunkers either side, with a creek crossing the fairway at the bottom of the slope, some 185 yards from the two-tier green. Another cluster of bunkers comes into play when laying up, though this hole still played as the second easiest during the LPGA event last summer.

Hole 9: Par 4, 358 Yards

Traditionally played as the 18th for members. A collection of bunkers frame the putting surface, which rests in a natural amphitheatre and could be driveable if they push the tees up. There is a sharp swale bordering the right side of the green, which creates a razor’s edge between a putt for birdie and an almost impossible up and down.

Solheim Cup preview: Running order

Friday, September 3

Opening ceremony, with Gwen Stefani performing.

Saturday, September 4

4 x Foursome matches, 4 x Fourball matches.

Sunday, September 5

4 x Foursome matches, 4 x Fourball matches.

Monday, September 6

12 x Singles matches.

Solheim Cup preview: How to watch all the action from Inverness Club

Live TV coverage will be shown on Sky Sports Golf with highlights after each day’s play. BBC Radio 5Live will also keep you up-to-date with all of the key moments across the three days.

Non-Sky subscribers can keep up with The Solheim Cup with a NOW TV pass, which is contract free and costs £20 for the month or £9.98 per day, including a month of mobile membership. Get your pass here