On a topsy-turvy final day, one marked by lead changes and momentum swings amidst multiple stoppages of play due to terrible weather, it was Team Europe that emerged as the 2011 Solheim Cup winners.
The final score was Europe 15, USA 13. It was Europe's fourth win in the history of the Solheim Cup; that record is now 8-4 in favor of USA.
And hopefully this victory for Europe will put to rest talk of changing the Solheim Cup format to add a third team or to rejigger the team makeups in order to get more of the international stars of women's golf involved. I never understood that talk, anyway: Yes, the USA had dominated Solheim Cup entering the 2011 matches, but recent matches were close and exciting. If fan interest is growing, and TV ratings are growing, why mess with it? As I wrote after the 2009 Solheim Cup (when similar sentiments were making the rounds), don't change the Solheim Cup, clone it.
No, Europe is doing just fine in women's golf. It's true that the LET is a very weak tour compared to the LPGA, but that's in large part because all of Europe's best golfers play on the LPGA.
At Killeen Castle on Sunday, the outcome came down to two late matches: Suzann Pettersen beat Michelle Wie, 1-up, with a birdie on the 18th hole - Pettersen's third straight birdie; and Caroline Hedwall forced a halve with Ryann O'Toole after O'Toole had been 2-up with two to play.
Controversial captain's pick O'Toole wound up 2-0-2, earning three points. It will be a shame if she leaves this experience feeling bad about giving up that half-point rather than feeling great about her overall play.
And what's up with Oklahoma State golfers defying dormie? Recall that at the 2010 Ryder Cup, Rickie Fowler was 3-down with three to play against Edoardo Molinari, but clawed out the halve. Now, his OSU mate Hedwall has done the same thing (albeit with two holes to go).
Of course, a lot of the talk in the aftermath will center on Cristie Kerr's injury and the decisions to play Kerr in all four sessions the first day. Kerr told captain Rosie Jones she was fine and wanted to play in all four of those sessions; Jones ignored warning signs that maybe Kerr's wrist was in worse shape than Kerr was letting on.
And then on Sunday Kerr was forced to concede her singles match to Karen Stupples when she was in too much pain to properly hold onto her clubs.
Should we criticize Kerr and Jones for not resting Kerr early on? Maybe. I don't think either deserves to be pilloried. Kerr could have sat out the Saturday afternoon session, woke up Sunday feeling great, and then lost 5 and 4 to Stupples. Or she could have sat out and had the exact same injury occur. And had she sat out on Saturday, that could have taken points off the board for the USA on Saturday (Kerr earned 1.5 points on Saturday). It was just an unfortunate occurrence for Kerr that she couldn't play on Sunday - and for Stupples, too, who surely hated not being able to play her singles match.
Congratulations to Europe for a well-deserved win, and to both teams for a hard-fought, entertaining Solheim Cup.
See our 2011 Solheim Cup page for complete match scores, as well as player win-loss records.
The final score was Europe 15, USA 13. It was Europe's fourth win in the history of the Solheim Cup; that record is now 8-4 in favor of USA.
And hopefully this victory for Europe will put to rest talk of changing the Solheim Cup format to add a third team or to rejigger the team makeups in order to get more of the international stars of women's golf involved. I never understood that talk, anyway: Yes, the USA had dominated Solheim Cup entering the 2011 matches, but recent matches were close and exciting. If fan interest is growing, and TV ratings are growing, why mess with it? As I wrote after the 2009 Solheim Cup (when similar sentiments were making the rounds), don't change the Solheim Cup, clone it.
No, Europe is doing just fine in women's golf. It's true that the LET is a very weak tour compared to the LPGA, but that's in large part because all of Europe's best golfers play on the LPGA.
At Killeen Castle on Sunday, the outcome came down to two late matches: Suzann Pettersen beat Michelle Wie, 1-up, with a birdie on the 18th hole - Pettersen's third straight birdie; and Caroline Hedwall forced a halve with Ryann O'Toole after O'Toole had been 2-up with two to play.
Controversial captain's pick O'Toole wound up 2-0-2, earning three points. It will be a shame if she leaves this experience feeling bad about giving up that half-point rather than feeling great about her overall play.
And what's up with Oklahoma State golfers defying dormie? Recall that at the 2010 Ryder Cup, Rickie Fowler was 3-down with three to play against Edoardo Molinari, but clawed out the halve. Now, his OSU mate Hedwall has done the same thing (albeit with two holes to go).
Of course, a lot of the talk in the aftermath will center on Cristie Kerr's injury and the decisions to play Kerr in all four sessions the first day. Kerr told captain Rosie Jones she was fine and wanted to play in all four of those sessions; Jones ignored warning signs that maybe Kerr's wrist was in worse shape than Kerr was letting on.
And then on Sunday Kerr was forced to concede her singles match to Karen Stupples when she was in too much pain to properly hold onto her clubs.
Should we criticize Kerr and Jones for not resting Kerr early on? Maybe. I don't think either deserves to be pilloried. Kerr could have sat out the Saturday afternoon session, woke up Sunday feeling great, and then lost 5 and 4 to Stupples. Or she could have sat out and had the exact same injury occur. And had she sat out on Saturday, that could have taken points off the board for the USA on Saturday (Kerr earned 1.5 points on Saturday). It was just an unfortunate occurrence for Kerr that she couldn't play on Sunday - and for Stupples, too, who surely hated not being able to play her singles match.
Congratulations to Europe for a well-deserved win, and to both teams for a hard-fought, entertaining Solheim Cup.
See our 2011 Solheim Cup page for complete match scores, as well as player win-loss records.
Comments
That was an exciting weekend of golf. I had Sunday’s results on my PVR because of a tournament commitment. I gave it an extra hour and a half and missed the last twenty minutes, which really frosted my cookies.
I predicted a Euro win because I saw they were playing better going in. I’m a Canuck so I was cheering for the USA, and it was disappointing. Still, there was some great golf being played and it was super entertaining.
I think the LET is a little weak because it is still fairly young and doesn’t have enough sponsorship money yet. I’m certain it will get better and that can only be better for women’s golf. I can hardly wait for the next Cup in two years in America.
Does anyone know where I can find video of the last half hour?