Sunday started with nothing short of controversy and heartbreak but it ended in pure elation for the United States women at the Solheim Cup.
The American side overcame the largest deficit ever in Solheim Cup history to take a miraculous come-from-behind victory over the Europeans at the St. Leon-Rot Golf Club in Germany.
The Europeans held a 10-6 lead going into the singles thanks to a decision by Suzann Pettersen that gave her and Charley Hull a controversial point in the continuation of their Saturday match with Brittany Lincicome and Alison Lee.
The European players were walking off the 17th green as if they had conceded Lee’s short 18-inch par putt. Lee picked it up and Pettersen insisted to the match referee that the putt was not conceded. It caused an explosion of emotions for the American squad and may have been the catalyst for the afternoon singles rally.
In those singles matches, the Americans won eight of the 12 matches.
In a moment of payback, Angela Stanford parred to the 17th to beat Pettersen 2-and-1 and tie the matches at 13 1/2-all. There was only one match left on the course and Paula Creamer came through in a big way. She had a four-up lead on Sandra Gal with four to play then won with a par at the 15th hole to win the Cup for the Americans.
The biggest putt of the afternoon, however, came from Gerina Piller. At the 18th hole, her opponent, Caroline Masson missed a 15-foot birdie putt that would have earned a halve and kept the Cup for the Europeans. Piller still had to hole a 14-footer for par to save the valuable point. She hit it right in the center of the hole to prevent the European win and set the stage for the huge upset.
“Oh my God,” exclaimed winning U.S. Captain Julie Inkster. “From the emotions of the morning to the emotions of this afternoon, my team played so damn good. I was on ’em all week. I told them ‘you gotta play with heart and fire in your belly.’ It’s such a great feeling.”
It was a great feeling also for Paula Creamer, who some thought was a controversial captain’s pick by Inkster. But Creamer, playing in the anchor position, came though with the huge win over Gal.
“I’m so proud of our team and so proud of our captain,” Creamer said with a huge smile on her face. “Julie deserves this!”
One Comment
Nandy H Tiongson
God always work in some mysterious way. Good captain’s pick for Paula Creamer and a great win for the US team after such controversy.