The captains of the two teams that will face each other in the 2023 Solheim Cup will also fight an exciting battle at Finca Cortesín with the aim of leading their respective teams to victory
The European captain, Suzann Pettersen, and the American, Stacy Lewis, have thirteen appearances as players in the Solheim Cup, but, curiously, they have never faced each other in this tournament, neither in pairs nor in singles.
Perhaps because of this and because both are making their debut in the position, there is great expectation to see how they will perform in the Solheim Cup to be played at Finca Cortesin, in Andalusia, from September 18 to 24.
In the case of Suzann Pettersen, her nine appearances in the Solheim Cup make her the second player with the most editions played, along with Scotland’s Catriona Matthew and three of the 12 tournaments played by England’s Laura Davies, one of this year’s vice-captains.
After these nine participations, not forgetting two others in which she was vice-captain, the Norwegian golfer has become the fourth player with the most matches played (36), the third with the most matches won (18) and the fourth with the most points scored (21).
In the balance of the Fourball matches, Suzann Pettersen has played the third most games (13) and among them, she has won the most along with Laura Davies (9) and has scored the second most points (10.5).
Her numbers in Foursome matches also make her one of the most outstanding European players in the competition, as she is third in matches played (14) and has won the third most matches (7).
As for her record in individual matches, the Scandinavian is the second European golfer with the most matches played (9), winning two, losing four and drawing six.
Precisely, it was in her last individual match in the 2019 Solheim Cup played in Scotland when Suzann Pettersen enlarged her figure in this tournament, since with her victory over Marina Alex she initialed the triumph of Europe, something that had not happened since 2013. After that edition, the Oslo player announced her retirement as a professional golfer.
Stacy Lewis, meanwhile, is still active and has four participations in the Solheim Cup, which could have been five if the American had not suffered an injury in the 2019 edition that prevented her from being part of the team, plus another edition in which she served as vice-captain.
In those editions, the Ohio player completed a total of 16 matches, of which she won four, lost 10 and drew one. In Four Ball matches she has a balance of four played, with three wins and one loss; in Foursomes she has a total of eight, with two wins and six losses; and in singles, of her four matches she has lost three and tied one.
Likewise, as for the records of the U.S. team, Stacy Lewis is one of the players with more wins in Fourball matches, with two, and therefore, one of those who has achieved more points in those matches, also with two.
Beyond the Solheim Cup, both captains are tied in Grand Slam tournaments won, with two each, and in total, Suzann Pettersen has 21 professional tournaments to Stacy Lewis’ 13 to date.
In the end, the American golfer reached the world number one ranking twice, while the Norwegian came very close to achieving it by reaching the world’s second place.
With these data, there is no doubt that the Solheim Cup, which is about to be played on the Costa del Sol, will not only be decided in the matches between the 12 players of each team, but will also be decided by the side whose captain makes the best decisions, chooses the best strategy and best transmits her philosophy.
European team: Celine Boutier, Maja Stark, Charley Hull, Leona Maguire, Georgia Hall, Linn Grant, Carlota Ciganda, Anna Nordqvist, Madelene Sagstrom, Gemma Dryburgh, Emily Kristine Pedersen and Caroline Hedwall. Vice-captains: Laura Davies, Caroline Martens and Anna Nordqvist
U.S. team: Lilia Vu, Nelly Korda, Allisen Corpuz, Megan Khang, Jennifer Kupcho, Danielle Kang, Andrea Lee, Lexi Thompson, Rose Zhang, Angel Yin, Ally Ewing and Cheyenne Knight. Vice-captains: Angela Stanford, Morgan Pressel and Natalie Gulbis.
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