The 16th Solheim Cup at Gleneagles this week may be among the closest we have observed in its own 29-year history, states Ewen Murray…
The bookies have Team USA as marginal favourites, but a lot of them believe Europe have the advantage in two or three areas – house edge, and just three rookies compared to the six in the line-up of Juli Inkster.
I’ve never been an advocate of this”rookies are a problem” talk. You have got to become a beginner at a certain point in your profession, and also the vast majority of debutants of years in the Solheim Cup and Ryder Cups have performed.
It appears one-sided in favor of the Americans this week when you have a take a look at the world ranks, but rankings can be disregarded when the contest starts. It is about heart and the two teams possess those characteristics across the board.
The group need a big player to step up, and that may be Charley Hull this past week. Although she is going to be disappointed with her career has developed since, she was amazing on her introduction a few years back.
I’m certain than her results suggest, Charley is a much superior player, and I think she’ll be among the stars of this show at Gleneagles. She has proved in her three Solheim Cup appearances that she has the heart and courage to get the job finished.
There appears to be a very wonderful balance in the team. They have a mixture of experience and youth, but it’s a challenge to prevent the Americans winning three in a row.
Captain Inkster knows precisely what she is doing, and only three have played with with a Solheim Cup in Europe, although team USA may have these half-dozen rookies. Nine times three times a captain, each player, Juli is the individual.
At the day’s end, knock it onto the greens, you have got to find the fairways and then hole a few drops. There are 24 players here who are world class, and we’ve seen many times before in team competitions that variant and world rankings mean very little.
The week started eventfully when Stacy Lewis was forced to pull out with a back injury and was replaced by Ally McDonald – another debutant. Lewis had been fighting with the injury for a few weeks, and a few suggested a week she should have removed.
But if she felt she had a probability of enjoying, Stacy was well to give it a go and Inkster was appropriate to give her chance. Ally McDonald ready to step into and was at Gleneagles, so no harm done .
Inkster additional expertise because her wildcard selections with Morgan and Lewis Pressel and had five rookies within her team when qualifying completed, so she’d have been keen to give Lewis as possible to recuperate.
But it became apparent during practice the rookie had as much time as the remainder of her team, together with McDonald already practicing and, that Lewis was not going to have the ability to make it.
With such a tight competition in shop, the 16th Solheim Cup is likely to be lost and won on the greens. Than the gamers are utilized to on the LPGA 22, these will probably be authentic, but a good deal slower.
It is a great length for those women when it stays wet and soft, even though it will play. Length is not a problem for the majority of the planet’s best women golfers these days, so it is going to boil down to who knocks in the many putts, and in the right moment.

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