In less than a week the stars of The 2019 Solheim Cup will line up during the Opening Ceremony ready to do battle at Gleneagles.
Juli Inskter’s Team USA are looking for their third victory in a row as they take to the PGA Centenary Course against Catriona Matthew’s Team Europe.
Each side chose their personnel last month with Europe announcing their 12 selections at Gleneagles after the Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open.
The Netherlands’ long-hitting Anne Van Dam was the only rookie of the eight automatic qualifiers after she finished second in the Solheim Cup rankings behind Spain’s Carlota Ciganda.
Five team members in Ciganda, Sweden’s Caroline Hedwall, Germany’s Caroline Masson, England’s Charley Hull and Spain’s Azahara Munoz are making their fourth appearance in the competition.
England’s Georgia Hall, part of the 2017 team, will be playing on European soil in the competition for the first time and Sweden’s Anna Nordqvist is back for her sixth successive appearance.
For her Captain’s picks Matthew decided upon England’s Bronte Law, the highest-ranked British woman on the World Rolex Rankings at 26th, and France’s Celine Boutier, who finished in sixth place at the AIG Women’s British Open, as well as the experienced duo of England’s Jodi Ewart Shadoff and Norway’s Suzann Pettersen.
After naming one of her Vice-Captains on the team, Matthew also explained that three-time Solheim Cup player Mel Reid was replacing Pettersen in that role.
The United States announced their team two weeks later at the conclusion of the CP Women’s Open where 10 members of the side had already been decided.
Of those who secured their automatic places, five are rookies as Nelly Korda, Megan Khang, Marina Alex, Brittany Altomare and Annie Park all make their debut on the Solheim Cup stage.
They will be joined by two-time winners Lexi Thompson and Lizette Salas, plus Danielle Kang, Jessica Korda and Angel Yin who will all be making their second appearance.
With her Captain’s picks, Inkster opted for two vastly experienced players to help balance the team as she picked Morgan Pressel, who will be making her sixth appearance, and Stacy Lewis, who will be playing for Team USA for the fifth time.
A scintillating contest awaits as the competition heads to Scotland for the third time in its history and Gleneagles joins an exclusive club of venues to have hosted both The Ryder Cup and The Solheim Cup.
With a record crowd expected, the final countdown is on until one of the biggest sporting events in Scotland in 2019 kicks off.
