2021 Solheim Cup by the numbers

The 17th edition of the Solheim Cup begins on Saturday at the famed Inverness Club in Toledo, Ohio. Originally designed by Donald Ross, the championship course features sloped and elevated greens with undulation that will test the top players from the United States and Europe as they each compete for their country. The team match-play competition includes eight foursome, eight four-ball and 12 singles matches.

For the first time in the history of the event, the first-tee atmosphere will also encompass the 10th tee box as teams make the turn for the back nine. The first two American qualifiers, Nelly Korda and Danielle Kang, each clinched a spot earlier this summer, with Ally Ewing joining the U.S. team two weeks ago. Team rosters were completed after the AIG Women’s Open following a two-year performance period. With the excitement building this week, here’s a look at the teams and history of the Solheim Cup.

Host Country

The host country has enjoyed the home-course advantage, winning 12 of the last 16 times or 75% of the time. The Americans are seven-for-eight on home soil, compared to the Europeans record of five-for-eight in their homelands. The lone win for Europe in the United States was in 2013 at Colorado Golf Club, where an eight-point victory still stands as the largest margin of victory for the winning country since the event began in 1990. This will be the sixth time a Midwest state hosts the Solheim Cup and the second time being played in Ohio following a visit to Muirfield Village Golf Club in 1998. The Americans have won by at least three points in each of the previous five playing’s in the Midwest.

Players

The European team has a combined total of 22 appearances entering the 2021 Solheim Cup compared to the U.S. team with 17. This will be the fifth appearance for Lexi Thompson, Lizette Salas, Charley Hull and Carlota Ciganda, who have all played in the previous four Solheim Cups. Anna Nordqvist has the most experience between the two teams, making her seventh appearance since 2009, and is the only three-time Solheim Cup champion among the players this year. Five of the 12 European players have won at least one Solheim Cup compared to four American players.

Captains

Catriona Matthew can become the first European captain to win the Solheim Cup two times. Matthew would join Judy Rankin (1996, 1998) and Juli Inkster (2015, 2017) as captains to win back-to-back Solheim Cups on both home and foreign soil. The previous four Europeans to captain the team at least two times only won once, with the last attempt more than a decade ago. Pat Hurst looks to become the ninth winning American captain after three years as assistant captain for the U.S. teams captained by Inkster.