How much importance does Stacy Lewis, the 2012 Rolex Women’s Player of the Year, put on the Solheim Cup?
So much so that we’re still two months out from the event at Colorado Golf Club in Parker, and she’s already made three separate trips to play the course. And, mind you, this is a competition in which no prize money is distributed.
The most recent of those trips came over the weekend, when roughly half of the likely American team that will face defending champion Europe in the Aug. 16-18 match play event came to Colorado Golf Club to prepare.
“The last Solheim (in Ireland in 2011), we couldn’t get over and play” ahead of time, Lewis, the top American player, said on Monday at a Solheim Cup media event at the club. “I talked to Meg (Mallon, the U.S. captain) and she’s played here and she said, ‘It’s a golf course you need to play a lot. You need to learn it. There’s quirky things about it. You need to play it.’ And I’m listening to her.
“It’s a course that I love. It’s different every time you play it. That’s what I think is the good part about it. But more than anything for me, I know how busy that week is going to be, so I want to have the golf course preparation stuff out of the way so that week I can go do the extra stuff and just play.”
Make no mistake: Anytime a top-tier player makes three special trips to a tournament site, the event must be special.
“I was in Dallas (in late April) and Meg called,” said Lizette Salas, who is looking to play in her first Solheim Cup. “She said, ‘I’d like to invite you to practice (at Colorado Golf Club) in June’, and I said, ‘I’m there.’ The Solheim has been a goal of mine this year. I was so excited to come here. Packing, I thought, I need more red, white and blue. It’s just been a great experience.”
It’s Crunch Time for Aspiring Solheim Cup Players: Starting with the Wegmans LPGA Championship earlier this month, American players had six tournaments left to qualify for the Solheim Cup team, and three of those were major championships where players earn double the normal number of Solheim points.
“You can just tell the Solheim Cup is on their minds,” American captain Meg Mallon said of the players. “That’s the exciting part for me. Not only are they playing to win major championships or golf tournaments, but they’re playing to represent their country. This is going to be a lot of fun, these last five weeks, to see how this team plays out.”
The 12-player U.S. team will consist of the top eight golfers on the Solheim points list through the Women’s British Open (Aug. 1-4), the next two highest-ranked Americans from the Rolex Rankings, and two captain’s picks divulged by Mallon on Aug. 4. But Mallon made it clear on Monday that no one should rely on being a captain’s pick.
“I’ve played on eight teams and I was never a pick for any of those teams; I made it on my own points” she said. “I tell them I don’t have any sympathy for you if you don’t make the team. And don’t expect to make the team if you don’t make it on points.”
The Europeans’ roster will be made up of the top four players from the Solheim Cup points list, the four next-best Europeans from the Rolex Rankings, and four captain’s picks announced on Aug. 4 by Liselotte Neumann.
Here are the Solheim Cup standings for the AMERICANS and for the EUROPEANS.
Solheim Cup Making Donation to Colorado Firefighters: In the wake of recent fires throughout the state, Solheim Cup officials pledged on Monday to donate 15 percent of tickets sold through solheimcup.com for the remainder of June to the Colorado Professional Fire Fighters Foundation.
The Foundation helps area fire fighters and their families, as well as dependents who are victims of tragedies.
“The players were so thrilled and excited to be able to do something to help,” U.S. captain Meg Mallon said.
Information about the Fire Fighters Foundation can be found by CLICKING HERE. To purchase Solheim Cup tickets, CLICK HERE.
Military Day Set for Eve of Solheim Cup Competition: Thursday, Aug. 15, the day before the first competition at the 2013 Solheim Cup, has been designated Military Day at the event. On that day, active-duty and retired service men and women with military identification and an e-ticket will receive free admission for themselves and one guest. They’ll also have access to discounted tickets on the Solheim Cup’s three competition days, Aug. 16-18.
To order Military Day tickets, CLICK HERE.
