The only thing that could slow down the U.S. team on Day 1 of the 2024 Solheim Cup was apparently the busses, or lack thereof. While fans waited hours at a nearby music venue to get shuttled over to Robert Trent Jones Golf Club, the American women went to work.
After grabbing a 3 to 1 lead in the morning foursomes sessions, the U.S. side replicated its effort in afternoon four-ball to secure a 6 to 2 lead on Day 1 in Gainesville, Virginia. By winning the first two sessions, the U.S. accomplished a feat that had not been seen since 1998.
With its hot start, the red, white and blue now need just 8.5 more points to raise the trophy for the first time since 2017 after failing to do so in the last three editions of the competition.
"It's been a really good day," U.S. captain Stacy Lewis said. "I saw a ton of good golf, and really things played out the way we were hoping. So, just really happy with the pairings I was able to put out, and the players produced some great shots and some great scores and got us a ton of points."
Friday foursomes
U.S. 3 | Europe 1
| Europe | Score | U.S. |
|---|---|---|
Esther Henseleit & Charley Hull | 3&2 | Nelly Korda & Allisen Corpuz |
Celine Boutier & Albane Valenzuela | 3&2 | Rose Zhang & Lauren Coughlin |
Emily Pedersen & Maja Stark | 2 UP | Ally Ewing & Jennifer Kupcho |
Linn Grant & Carlota Ciganda | 3&2 | Lilia Vu & Sarah Schmelzel |
All three American points came in somewhat similar fashions, as one would imagine looking at the 3&2 scoring differential. Korda & Corpuz gained their first lead late in the front nine and turned with a 2 UP lead. Their margin vanished entirely when Henseleit & Hull carded birdies on Nos. 10, 11 and 13, but just as European team took an American flag off the board, their games fell apart. Back-to-back bogeys coupled with a U.S. birdie on the par-3 16th gave the home team a comfortable win in the first match of the event.
The other two winning matches from the U.S. never trailed. Zhang & Coughlin found themselves in a dog fight with Boutier & Valenzuela as the match teetered between 1 UP and TIED on the front nine. The back nine belonged to the Americans, however, as birdies on Nos. 12-13 gave them enough breathing room to win.
Meanwhile, Europe's lone point did not come without a slight scare. Grabbing a 4 UP lead through the first five holes, Pedersen & Stark were in cruise control. Their margin slowly dwindled as the two teams meandered through the golf course. Ewing & Kupcho hung tough and pushed the match to the last, but the quick start from the Europeans was enough to get a full point on the board.
"It was a great morning," Lewis said. "Obviously you'd like maybe to get that last one, but just the fight that those two showed. I just told them to go as long as they could and keep -- to get the crowd into it and get the crowd ready for this afternoon. In my eyes, they did their job."
Friday four-ball
U.S. 6 | Europe 2
| Europe | Score | U.S. |
|---|---|---|
Georgia Hall & Leona Maguire | 6&4 | Nelly Korda & Megan Khang |
Anna Nordqvist & Madelene Sagstrom | 6&5 | Alison Lee & Lexi Thompson |
Emily Pedersen & Maja Stark | 3&2 | Lauren Coughlin & Sarah Schmelzel |
Linn Grant & Charley Hull | 5&4 | Andrea Lee & Rose Zhang |
While the morning session was tight, the afternoon wave consisted of four uncompetitive matches. The U.S. once again sent out the world No. 1 in the first group, and it proved to be another smart decision. Korda & Khang were on a mission from the start with five front-nine birdies to turn with a 4 UP advantage. The fireworks continued on the inward half where par 4s were driven, and an eagle was had from Korda which ultimately closed out the match on No. 14.
"Honestly, we've been asking for this pairing for quite a while," Khang said. "When Stacy told us we got it, we were pumped. If you couldn't see it on the golf course, you must have been blind. We had so much fun out there. Even when I missed a couple putts early in the round, Nelly and I leaned on each other saying, 'it's okay.' It's awesome to have a front-row seat to see some of the putts Nelly has been making."
Check out the power behind this duo's tee shots 💪@NellyKorda and @megan_khang1023 are not holding back! pic.twitter.com/5hTCZbljyu
— LPGA (@LPGA) September 13, 2024
Europe returned the favor in the second match with a 6&5 drumming by Sagstrom & Nordqvist. After sitting in a tie after seven holes, the Europeans won six straight thanks to five birdies and an eagle over that span. That would be the only European flag to fly in the afternoon, with the last two matches belonging to the U.S.
Zhang & Lee's victory was pretty similar to that of Sagstrom & Nordqvist. They closed out Grant & Hull on No. 14 after being in lockstep through eight holes. The former Stanford Cardinal players combined for two eagles and four birdies over the last six holes to surge past the popular European duo.
With no other matches on the golf course, the final spotlight belonged to the rookies, Coughlin & Schmelzel. Taking their first lead on No. 7, the two kept the American flag on the board the rest of the match and put an exclamation mark on an all-time day with a birdie from the blade of Coughlin on No. 16.
"We have a really great team," Coughlin said. "We had fun this week. I figured, if we can go out and have a good time, good things will happen."
