Europe falter as hosts dominate the fourballs
Americans take charge in the Solheim Cup Sorenstam’s side fail to make advantage count
An opening day of the Solheim Cup which began so brightly for Europe was enveloped in gloom by the late afternoon.
Having “won” the morning foursomes, Annika Sorenstam’s team were in danger of suffering an unprecedented whitewash in the fourballs.
As dusk fell on Des Moines Country Club, so the cries of “U.S.A, U.S.A” rang out.
What a turnaround the vast Iowa galleries were witnessing. Sorenstam’s hopes of leading the blueand-gold brigade to a third win in four matches are still not doomed. But they will require a very good Friday.
Certainly, it seemed a long time back to the first session and Catriona Matthew’s remarkable win in the morning foursomes. The 47-year-old travelled over to the 15th Solheim Cup expecting to be fulfilling backroom duties in the role of assistant captain and learning the ropes for her expected promotion at the 2019 match at Gleneagles.
Instead, the veteran Scot found herself at the forefront of the action, winning the point which took Europe into a 21/2-11/2 lead following the foursomes.
So much for Sorenstam’s mission to win back the Cup being focused solely on the youngsters.
Matthew, who was only told she was playing on Wednesday after the withdrawal of Suzann Pettersen with a back injury, showed just how much experience matters by shrugging off her poor form coming in by leading France’s Karen Icher to a win on the 18th over Stacey Lewis, the former world No 1, and Gerina Piller.
“I could not have imagined this last week,” Matthew said. “I was all set to be cheering them on from the sidelines.
‘The all red scoreboard is one of the most beautiful things I’ve seen’
“It was tough what happened to Suzann and no one likes to see that. But I stepped in and I had a good partner today.
“You’ve got to take your chances and I guess that is where the experience counted, to deal with that kind of upheaval.”
Matthew did not even have her own caddie – who just happens to be her husband Graeme – in her corner, having to use Pettersen’s bagman, but the fact Mike Scott is also Scottish assisted with the communication.
Matthew, the former Women’s British Open champion, has always been known for her calm persona and how useful this was in the febrile atmosphere produced by the partisan support.
But having witnessed their team fight back to make it 11/2-11/2 with the last match out on the course, Matthew and Icher put a silencer on their exuberance, birdieing the 13th and 14th to pull back to al square.
They went ahead with a par on the 16h, before a brilliant Matthew bunker shot on the 17th ensured they would retain the advantage down the last.
Piller had the chance to make it a 2-2 session, but her four-footer slid left. “We were a little fortunate there, but we’ll take it,” Matthew said.
It was the start Sorenstam, the Europe captain had envisaged. She went with the tried and trusted in the sport’s most volatile format and was rewarded for her astuteness.
The only rookie she went with was Georgia Hall and the 21-yearold from Bournemouth did not let her down. Hall and Anna Nordqvist, Sorenstam’s fellow Swede, saw off Paula Creamer and Austin Ernst 3&1.
The only Europe pair to taste defeat was Carlota Ciganda and Caroline Masson, who watched Danielle Kang hole an eight-footer on the 18th.
The opening match featuring Charley Hull and Mel Reid tackling Lexi Thompson and Cristie Kerr inevitably drew the most fans. Most watching agreed it was all but certain to be a classic, but in the end it proved to be anything but on these lightning greens.
Hull and Reid looked home and hosed when Hull chipped in on the 16th to go two up with two to play. But then Thompson holed a nerveless six-footer on the 17th for a par
to keep the game alive and then, Kerr converted a 12-footer to claim the half.
“All I was thinking was ‘there is no way I’m missing this’.” Kerr, 39, said. “We played the perfect hole on the 18th and it was very necessary.”
Both captains decided to blood all of their players and it was Juli Inkster’s juggle of her pack which paid the dividends.
Angel Yin and Lizette Salas crushed Ciganda and Emily Pedersen 6&5, while the Kang, the extremely impressive rookie, paired up Michelle Wie to beat Jodi Ewart Shadoff and Madelene Sagstrom 3&1. In the third fourball, another Englishwoman in Flo Parker joined Germany’s Caroline Masson but fell 3&2 to Brittany Lincicome and Brittany Lang.
“That board this afternoon is beautiful,” Lang said. “It’s all filled with red. It could be one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen.
With the scoreline at 51/2-21/2, the last match out took on enormous significance; as much from a psychological perspective as anything else.
Hull and Hall were pitted against Lewis and Piller but were one down with three remaining as they stood against an American whitewash.