The European team will defend its crown in the Solheim Cup 2023 at Finca Cortesin after winning for the seventh time the tournament at the Inverness Club course, in the town of Toledo in the US state of Ohio. Europe won by 15-13 at the end of the third day, with both teams sharing the points (6-6).
It was time to suffer and they suffered, as it could not be otherwise. The 9-7 that started the final day, the twelve singles, foreshadowed a day of nerves in which Catriona Matthew’s players would have to avoid speculating with the score; the best way to defend the result is attacking.
The twenty-four golfers went for every point with a knife between their teeth. Among them, Carlota Ciganda, who now has three victories in five appearances at the Solheim Cup. This Monday it was her turn to defend her point against Brittany Altomare, who thwarted the mission of the Spanish in the final stretch of the duel.
The American, behind until the 13th hole, took the point on the 17th hole to lead a desperate reaction of her team, but it was too late, as shortly after Matilda Castren holed a putt on the 18th to defeat Lizette Salas and, in the process, put the 14th point in the European team’s locker, which thus ensured the retention of the title.
To round off the evening, night already closed in Europe, the Danish Emily Pedersen closed the fifteenth point with all her teammates on the edge of the green waiting to start a well-deserved party. Not in vain is the second victory on U.S. soil after the one obtained in Colorado in 2013.
The final analysis of the competition will reflect the important role of Carlota Ciganda, who has scored a point and is already a veteran reference for the new generations, and the indispensable contribution of players such as Ireland’s Leona Maguire, a magnificent breath of fresh air for the Solheim.
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Europe, always in the lead
The European team, which the Spanish Carlota Ciganda described in a press conference as the best in history a few hours before the start of the competition, showed its credentials in the opening round. Three points of advantage constituted the appreciated and appreciable trophy after a first day in which Catriona Matthew’s pupils performed at a very high level, dismantling at times the resistance of an American team that found it difficult to find the tools to minimize the impact of the European thrust.
Europe’s gale was especially evident during the foursomes that opened the competition, which resulted in a resounding 0.5-3.5 score that generated all kinds of fears in the U.S. team.
Forced to react, the Americans put on a better show in the subsequent fourballs, a phase of the competition that they managed to end in a two-point draw to bring the first day’s score to an unsettling but not devastating 2.5-5.5 for the Europeans.
Carlota Ciganda did not make her debut by decision of the captain until the afternoon fourballs of the first round. The player from Navarre shared the match with the German Sophia Popov to face the Americans Jennifer Kupcho and Lizette Salas. The duel, tremendously evenly matched throughout its development, moved between a tie and a one-hole advantage for the Americans during the 18 holes. Four birdies, two bogeys and twelve pars were the contribution of Carlota Ciganda to an extreme match, one of those that explain and justify the celebration of a Solheim Cup, decanted on the U.S. side on the last hole thanks to a timely birdie by Lizette Salas.
The second day also ended with a favorable score for Europe (9-7). And also on this second day Carlota Ciganda did not perform in the morning foursomes, which ended with a partial 3-1 in favor of a North American team guided by the large crowd that came to Inverness. The point scored by Daniella Kang and Austin Ernst on the 18th hole was decisive for the hosts to go to the short break with a broad smile on their lips.
However, the fourballs returned the European color to the tournament (2.5-1.5). On this occasion Carlota Ciganda not only participated, but also played a key role in the victory achieved in the company of the Danish Nanna Koerstz Madsen on the 18th hole against Jessica Korda and Megan Khang. That point was decisive to leave the European team in the lead on the eve of a final day in which the party has been for the visitors.
Competition track record
Ten victories for the North American side, seven for the European side – four of them in the last six editions – constitutes the record of the competition so far, with a special mention for Europe’s victory in 2019 after staging an epic comeback on the final day on the Scottish course at Gleneagles.
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