2019 Solheim Cup

With all of the majors now done and dusted, attention in the women's game turns to The 16th Solheim Cup which will be played on the PGA Centenary Course at Gleneagles from 13th to the 15th of September. Here is your GolfPunk guide to all thing Solheimy.

What is the Solheim Cup?

The Solheim Cup is a biennial team competition between the top women professional golfers from Europe and the United States.

Who is this chap Solheim?

The Solheim Cup is named after the Norwegian-American golf club manufacturer Karsten Solheim, who was a driving force behind getting the event staged. He established Karsten Manufacturing, a leading golf club maker which we all know by its brand name of PING.

When was the First Solheim Cup played?

The first Solheim Cup was in 1990 and took place at Lake Nona Golf Club in Orlando, Florida. The winners were team USA who won by a convincing margin of 11½ to 4½.

Hold on it’s biennial, so why did they play in 2002 and again in 2003?

The 2004 Solheim Cup was brought forward by a year to avoid a clash with the Ryder Cup. Following the terrorist attack of 9/11, the Ryder Cup was postponed by a year. As a result, in 2002 both the Ryder Cup and Solheim Cup took place in the September of that year. It was decided to move the Solheim Cup to prevent a further clash of the hugely popular events.

Which team has won most Solheim Cups?

Team USA lead the way with 10 wins to Europe’s 5.

Who won last time?

Team USA won at Des Moines Golf & Country Club in West Des Moines, Iowa by a score of 16½ to 11½.

Oi you at the back stop watching Pepper Pig!

What is the format for the Solheim Cup?

It is a three-day match play event between teams of twelve players with a similar format to the Ryder Cup. The format Gleneagles will be

Day 1 - Four foursome (alternate shot) matches in the morning and four fourball (better ball) matches in the afternoon.

Day 2 - Four foursome (alternate shot) matches in the morning and four fourball (better ball) matches in the afternoon.

Day3 – Twelve singles matches.

There are a total of 28 points on offer and so 14½ points are required to win the Cup, with 14 points being required for the defending champions to retain the Cup.

How are the teams selected?

The United States and European teams are selected in different ways.

Team USA

Team USA consists of

• the leading eight players from the LPGA Solheim Cup points rankings; plus
• the top two players in the Women's World Golf Rankings not already qualified via the points rankings; and
• two team captain’s picks.

LPGA Solheim Cup points have been earned for top-20 finishes on the LPGA Tour over the last two years period ending with the 2019 CP Women's Open (August 19-25). Points are doubled for the major championships and top-20 finishes during the 2019 LPGA Tour season earn more points than those in 2017 and 2018.

A tartan fairway! Only in Scotland.

Team Europe

Team Europe consists of

• the top three players from the LET Solheim Cup standings; plus
• the top five LET members on the Women's World Golf Rankings who are not already qualified via the Solheim Cup standings; and
• four team captain’s picks.

LET points are awarded on a slightly more complicated system but basically points are awarded based on the value of the events with weighting for more valuable events and majors as well as increased weighting for events in 2019.

The qualifying period began immediately following the 2017 Solheim Cup and will end at the conclusion of this week’s Aberdeen Standard Investments Ladies Scottish Open. The full team, including the captain's picks, will be announced on Monday, 12 August, in Scotland.

Who are the captains of the teams?

Juli Inkster will captaining the U.S. team for the third time and Catriona Matthew will captain the European team for the first time.