Georgia Hall finally gets something going. Birdie at 9, and she hits the turn just one behind Lexi Thompson. The American then lets go of her club after hitting her tee shot at the par-three 10th, twirling it in the air like Stevie Nicks in the video for Tusk, before catching it cleanly. She’s disgusted with herself, but that’s professionals for you, because she’s still found the green. The weekend golfer would be thrilled. Birdie putt coming up.
Some truly world-class play on the short par-four 11th. Kang sends her second screeching to 18 inches, a surefire thing for birdie. So Ciganda responds by knocking her ball to 12 inches! A pair of stunning birdies! Back on 6, Van Dam yips from short range to hand a hole back to Salas. And on 7, Hull creams a delicious iron to four feet, but shoves the birdie putt wide right. She’s still a couple down to Khang.
Ciganda A/S Kang (11)
2UP Hedwall v N Korda (10)
Hall v Thompson 2UP (8)
Boutier A/S Park (8)
Munoz v Yin 3UP (7)
Hull v Khang 2UP (7)
1UP van Dam v Salas (6)
2UP Masson v J Korda (5)
Ewart Shadoff A/S Altomare (4)
Pettersen A/S Alex (2)
1UP Law v McDonald (2)
Nordqvist A/S Pressel (1)
Munoz drains a monster on 7 for birdie! The sensational putt looks to have snatched a much-needed hole for Europe in the fifth match … but Yin nails a 15-footer of her own for a half! What classic match-play to-and-fro! And it will have frustrated the hell out of Munoz, who needs something to happen sooner rather than later.
Ciganda A/S Kang (10)
3UP Hedwall v N Korda (9)
Hall v Thompson 2UP (8)
Boutier A/S Park (8)
Munoz v Yin 3UP (7)
Hull v Khang 2UP (6)
2UP van Dam v Salas (5)
2UP Masson v J Korda (4)
Ewart Shadoff A/S Altomare (3)
Pettersen A/S Alex (2)
1UP Law v McDonald (1)
Anne van Dam rolls in a 20-foot birdie effort on 5 to move two holes clear of the 2017 hero Lizette Salas. Jessica Korda misses a tiddler on 4 to fall further behind Caroline Masson. And Bronte Law becomes the latest European to taste success on the opening hole. The hosts have warmed to the 1st, after a fashion.
Ciganda A/S Kang (10)
3UP Hedwall v N Korda (9)
Hall v Thompson 2UP (8)
Boutier A/S Park (7)
Munoz v Yin 3UP (6)
Hull v Khang 2UP (6)
2UP van Dam v Salas (5)
2UP Masson v J Korda (4)
Ewart Shadoff A/S Altomare (3)
Pettersen A/S Alex (2)
1UP Law v McDonald (1)
As If We Didn’t Know Already dept. Kang wedges her third at 9 to kick-in distance. Ciganda, on the green in five, picks up her ball and makes off to the 10th tee. But some better news for Europe: Annie Park has made three bogeys in four holes, allowing Celine Boutier to claw her way back into their match after that cold start.
Ciganda A/S Kang (9)
3UP Hedwall v N Korda (8)
Hall v Thompson 2UP (7)
Boutier A/S Park (7)
Munoz v Yin 3UP (6)
Hull v Khang 2UP (5)
1UP van Dam v Salas (4)
1UP Masson v J Korda (3)
Ewart Shadoff A/S Altomare (2)
Pettersen A/S Alex (1)
Ciganda won’t be leading the opening match for much longer. She mishits her fourth and it surely won’t be long before she’s picking up and moving on. Back on the tee, Hedwall and Nelly Korda, having been made to wait interminably, bash their drives down the middle.
Lexi Thompson’s putter sometimes lets her down over short distances. But she smoothly strokes a four-footer into the cup on 7 to remain two up on Georgia Hall. Meanwhile Brittany Altomare follows a bogey at 1 with birdie at 2. And some trouble for Carlota Ciganda on the par-five 9th, as she flays her drive into thick oomska down the right. There’s no way she can go forward, as she’d be flirting with water. Instead, she’s forced to punch out sideways … and she makes a real hash of it, failing to get her ball back on the fairway. She’ll be hitting four into the green from distance.
1UP Ciganda v Kang (8)
3UP Hedwall v N Korda (8)
Hall v Thompson 2UP (7)
Boutier v Park 1UP (6)
Munoz v Yin 3UP (5)
Hull v Khang 2UP (4)
1UP van Dam v Salas (4)
1UP Masson v J Korda (2)
Ewart Shadoff A/S Altomare (2)
An aggressive chip by Ciganda, just off the back of 8, trundles a good 12 feet past the cup. But she nails the one coming back, salvaging her par and the half. She celebrates as though she made that for the win. It’ll feel like that, Kang having shaved the hole with a birdie attempt. Back on 1, another triumph for Europe, who are finally getting to grips with this opening hole. Jodi Ewart Shadoff birdies to take the lead against Brittany Altomare.
1UP Ciganda v Kang (8)
3UP Hedwall v N Korda (7)
Hall v Thompson 2UP (6)
Boutier v Park 1UP (5)
Munoz v Yin 3UP (4)
Hull v Khang 2UP (3)
1UP van Dam v Salas (3)
1UP Masson v J Korda (2)
1UP Ewart Shadoff v Altomare (1)
There’s been a bit of chat about slow play this week. Ewan Murray has that story. Anyway, Carlota Ciganda and Danielle Kang have been told by the match referee to get a wriggle on. Meanwhile Yin wins yet another hole at 4, Munoz really struggling this afternoon. Hall bogeys 6 to gift a hole to Thompson; the 2018 British Open winner doesn’t look totally happy with her game today either. But a hole back for Boutier at 5 as she halves her deficit against Park.
1UP Ciganda v Kang (7)
3UP Hedwall v N Korda (7)
Hall v Thompson 2UP (6)
Boutier v Park 1UP (5)
Munoz v Yin 3UP (4)
Hull v Khang 2UP (2)
1UP van Dam v Salas (1)
1UP Masson v J Korda (1)
Danielle Kang makes the first bogey in the opening match, allowing Carlota Ciganda to put some blue on the board. Meanwhile Georgia Hall takes full advantage of her lucky break at 5, getting up and down to scramble her par and save the half. That’s a staunch effort, and it’s annoyed Lexi Thompson, who wanders off with a frown, wondering how that one’s got away.
1UP Ciganda v Kang (7)
3UP Hedwall v N Korda (6)
Hall v Thompson 1UP (5)
Boutier v Park 2UP (4)
Munoz v Yin 2UP (3)
Hull v Khang 2UP (2)
1UP van Dam v Salas (1)
1UP Masson v J Korda (1)
Caroline Hedwall is on fire this morning! Her feet slip as she takes her tee shot at the par-three 6th, but her ball takes a kindly kick off a bank to the right of the green, and trundles back towards the hole. She strokes in her birdie putt, and romps into a three-hole lead over Nelly Korda! Birdie for Caroline Masson at 1, and she takes the lead immediately against Jessica Korda. And another birdie for Angel Yin, this time at 3, and she’s in control against Azahara Munoz already. She should really be three up.
Ciganda A/S Kang (6)
3UP Hedwall v N Korda (6)
Hall v Thompson 1UP (4)
Boutier v Park 2UP (4)
Munoz v Yin 2UP (3)
Hull v Khang 2UP (2)
1UP van Dam v Salas (1)
1UP Masson v J Korda (1)
Ciganda fizzes a fine tee shot at the par-three 6th straight at the flag. Five feet away. But she can’t make the birdie putt, and a chance to take the lead in the opening match is spurned. Back on 5, Hall thinks she’s sent her second into the hazard at the front of the green, but somehow her ball squeaks over. She’s still up against it, though, with Thompson – her back having apparently repaired itself – on in regulation. Meanwhile on 1, Anne van Dam knocks her second to four feet, a wonderful shot that pressurises Lizette Salas into a bogey and a concession. A rare victory for Europe at this relatively easy opening hole.
Ciganda A/S Kang (6)
2UP Hedwall v N Korda (5)
Hall v Thompson 1UP (4)
Boutier v Park 2UP (4)
Munoz v Yin 1UP (2)
Hull v Khang 2UP (2)
1UP van Dam v Salas (1)
Birdie for Yin on 2, who doesn’t miss a short one this time. Hall and Boutier both watch in horror as makeable hole-winning putts slide by on 4 and 3 respectively. And on 5, it’s really not clear how birdie putts from Hedwall and Nelly Korda fail to drop. A couple of fine efforts teeter on the edge of the hole. Hedwall rather saucily picked up Korda’s ball the second it stopped rolling, conceding the putt before gravity could pull any delayed stunt.
Ciganda A/S Kang (5)
2UP Hedwall v N Korda (5)
Hall v Thompson 1UP (4)
Boutier v Park 2UP (3)
Munoz v Yin 1UP (2)
Hull v Khang 1UP (1)
Ciganda nearly sends a fat approach into the water guarding the front of the tricky par-four 5th. She gets away with it, but follows that up with a heavy-handed chip, her ball scuttling ten feet past. No matter! When her putter’s hot, it’s red hot, and in goes the par saver. Kang, having parred the hole in much less dramatic fashion, will no doubt feel a tad robbed there. Meanwhile Charley Hull becomes Europe’s latest victim on 1, as Megan Khang strokes a 20-foot birdie effort into the cup. The US are having the best of these early exchanges; they’re up in three.
Ciganda A/S Kang (5)
2UP Hedwall v N Korda (4)
Hall v Thompson 1UP (3)
Boutier v Park 2UP (2)
Munoz A/S Yin (1)
Hull v Khang 1UP (1)
Lexi Thompson is by all accounts suffering from a trapped nerve in her back. Her caddie is having to tee up the ball for her. You wouldn’t know by the way she creamed her second into 3, though. She’s an inch or so away from making the birdie putt, but it stays stubbornly on the lip. And then some more pain for the American, as Georgia Hall channels her 2018 British Open winning form by rattling in a 20-footer to save par. Hall remains in touching distance.
Ciganda A/S Kang (4)
2UP Hedwall v N Korda (4)
Hall v Thompson 1UP (3)
Boutier v Park 2UP (2)
Munoz A/S Yin (1)
Another gift for Europe! Following hot on the heels of Yin’s short miss on 1, Nelly Korda shoves a tiddler right of the cup on the par-three 4th, and Hedwall restores her two-hole advantage.
Ciganda A/S Kang (4)
2UP Hedwall v N Korda (4)
Hall v Thompson 1UP (2)
Boutier v Park 2UP (2)
Munoz A/S Yin (1)
The action – and the wind – is beginning to pick up now. Azahara Munoz and Angel Yin are out and about, the European one of the shorter hitters on tour, Yin one of the longest. Neither find the green in regulation. And like Boutier before her, Munoz can’t wedge her ball up onto the green from the bottom of the swale to the left. She bumps her second attempt up to kick-in distance with a hybrid. Bogey’s good enough, though, Yin failing to get up and down from the front fringe, missing a three-footer for her par. Meanwhile birdie for Park at 2, and she’s off to a flyer against Boutier.
Ciganda A/S Kang (4)
1UP Hedwall v N Korda (3)
Hall v Thompson 1UP (2)
Boutier v Park 2UP (2)
Munoz A/S Yin (1)
Ciganda looks to have made a holy mess of the par-three 4th, leaving her first putt well short. A terrible misjudgement. But she refuses to buckle, rolling in a ten-footer to save her par. Kang needs a six-footer to halve the hole, and she makes it.
Ciganda A/S Kang (4)
1UP Hedwall v N Korda (3)
Hall v Thompson 1UP (2)
Boutier v Park 1UP (1)
Thompson, having left herself with plenty to do from a greenside bunker at 2, gets up and down for a marvellous birdie. Such a good splash out to six feet, having shortsided herself. It salvages a half, Hall having found the green in two and taken two putts for a birdie of her own. Hedwall’s fast start meanwhile comes to an abrupt end, as she yips a short one on 3 to hand the hole to Nelly Korda.
Ciganda A/S Kang (3)
1UP Hedwall v N Korda (3)
Hall v Thompson 1UP (2)
Boutier v Park 1UP (1)
Kang and Ciganda take turns to shave the right edge of the cup at 3, narrowly missing out on birdies. Hole halved. On 1, Boutier sends her second into the swale to the left of the green, then duffs two chips in succession, her ball landing apologetically on the upslope and coming back to her feet on both occasions. She thins a third attempt miles past the hole, and thank goodness this is isn’t a stroke-play event.
Ciganda A/S Kang (3)
2UP Hedwall v N Korda (2)
Hall v Thompson 1UP (1)
Boutier v Park 1UP (1)
Another birdie for Caroline Hedwall! The 30-year-old Swede is the only player on either team to have featured in just one match so far this week, and she’s flown out of the traps in the style of a woman with a point to prove. A textbook traverse up the par-five 2nd, and she pumps the air with her fist, wearing a look of extreme determination. What a start she’s made! A force of nature in the Solheim Cup.
Ciganda A/S Kang (2)
2UP Hedwall v N Korda (2)
Hall v Thompson 1UP (1)
The fourth match, between the rookies Annie Park and Celine Boutier, on the first tee. Park’s drive takes a bounce into the semi-rough down the left … as does Boutier’s. Up on the green, Hall fails to get up and down from the front, having left her bump-and-run well short. Thompson tidies up for a par that takes the hole.
Ciganda A/S Kang (2)
1UP Hedwall v N Korda (1)
Hall v Thompson 1UP (1)
Updated
Kang can’t get up and down from the sand. That gives Ciganda an opportunity to win the hole, the Spaniard having chipped up to ten feet from the swale at the back of the green. She lines the putt up carefully, and rolls it straight into the cup. The opening match is all square! Back on the 1st, Thompson does extremely well to power out of the rough and find the dancefloor; Hall by comparison leaves her second short of the green from the middle of the fairway.
Ciganda A/S Kang (2)
1UP Hedwall v N Korda (1)
Lexi Thompson becomes the first player to miss the fairway with her opening drive. She sends a nervous effort into the thick stuff down the right. Her opponent Georgia Hall flirts with a bunker on the same side of the fairway, but gets a member’s bounce and finds herself in prime position.
Kang’s second at the par-five 2nd is an inch away from perfection. But as it lands on the front of the green, instead of rolling towards the hole and setting up an eagle chance, the ball takes a huge kick left and into sand. That was nearly a stunner. Ciganda meanwhile sends her second over the back, setting up an up-and-down shoot-out. Meanwhile back on 1, Hedwall creams her second to six feet, and is soon punching the air as she rolls in an opening birdie to take an early lead against Nelly Korda.
Ciganda v Kang 1UP (1)
1UP Hedwall v N Korda (1)
Back on the tee, Nelly Korda whips her opening drive straight down the middle. Caroline Hedwall – five points in five matches in 2013 – follows her down. What an atmosphere on this first hole. The stands at the tee are packed, and a heavily populated gallery snakes all the way alongside the fairway. Hedwall’s caddie gees the punters up with a wave of his arms, like they need any encouragement. Gleneagles is delivering again, just as it did at the 2014 Ryder Cup.
Ciganda lags up. The putt’s never going in, but it’s perfectly paced and that’s an opening par. Kang has a gentle right-to-left slider from eight feet for birdie and the hole. She walks it in, and it’s first blood to the USA!
Ciganda v Kang 1UP (1)
Kang throws down the gauntlet immediately. She creams a short iron to eight feet. That’s a sensational opening salvo. Ciganda’s approach is mighty fine, but suffers by comparison, twice the distance out. Back on the tee, Caroline Hedwall, who went undefeated in the 2013 matches, turns up to do battle with Nelly Korda.
Plenty of US support among the Scottish crowd. “Here we go, Danielle, her we go!” The American is up first. She tees it up high, and launches it down the middle, raising both arms in triumph. Always good to get that first drive away. Then it’s Ciganda’s turn. You can suddenly hear a pin drop. And the Spanish star sends a beauty down the middle. This is on! Here we go, indeed.
Here we go, then! Carlota Ciganda, who has enjoyed a fine year in the majors with three top-ten finishes, takes to the first tee. An amazing party atmosphere. Ciganda’s opponent, the 2017 PGA winner Danielle Kang, won’t hear the music that’s blaring out; she’s in her own world with her ear buds in. We’ll be off in a minute!
Ochil aye. Before the action begins, here’s a brief reminder of the road Europe and America’s finest will traverse this afternoon.
Preamble
On Friday afternoon at Gleneagles, Europe looked poised to establish a healthy lead in the 16th Solheim Cup. But the USA, the pre-tournament favourites, ground out a couple of halves on the 18th. And then Saturday belonged to the visitors. So we go into the final day of this to-and-fro tournament all square. Eight points apiece. Have you buckled in? Because here we go!
On paper, the USA should close this out and retain the cup they’ve held since 2015. They’ve got ten players in the world top 50, as opposed to Europe’s six. And as holders they just need to reach 14 points to retain their trophy; Europe need 14.5 to snatch it back. But there’s nothing quite like match-play singles, is there, and the USA have six rookies in their team. And they’re significantly younger, with an average age of 25.5 compared to the hosts’ 28.2. These things shouldn’t matter … but it’s the business end of the Solheim Cup, and you never know how it all comes down until everyone’s out there on their own.
It’s been dramatic enough this week already. But of course here’s where the story really begins. Can Juli Inkster’s side keep a grip on the trophy the USA have won ten times already? Or will Catriona Matthew taste victory on home soil, bringing the cup back to Europe for the sixth time? We’ll find out soon enough. It’s on!
Tee times (BST)
11.40am: Carlota Ciganda v Danielle Kang
11.52am: Caroline Hedwall v Nelly Korda
12.04pm: Georgia Hall v Lexi Thompson
12.16pm: Celine Boutier v Annie Park
12.28pm: Azahara Munoz v Angel Yin
12.40pm: Charley Hull v Megan Khang
12.52pm: Anne van Dam v Lizette Salas
13.04pm: Caroline Masson v Jessica Korda
13.16pm: Jodi Ewart Shadoff v Brittany Altomare
13.28pm: Suzann Pettersen v Marina Alex
13.40pm: Bronte Law v Ally McDonald
13.52pm: Anna Nordqvist v Morgan Pressel