Where and when?
The 19th Solheim Cup will take place at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Virginia, USA.
The tournament will officially get under way with the opening ceremony on Thursday (9.30pm Irish time) before play starts on Friday.
Friday and Saturday will have morning and afternoon sessions of play before Sunday’s individual matches and closing ceremony.
How can I watch?
Live coverage on Sky Sports Golf across the tournament, including the opening and closing ceremonies. Coverage of Friday’s foursome and fourball matches will begin at 5.30pm Irish time, and Saturday’s action will be shown from 11.30am to 11pm. The individual matches will be shown from 1pm, in addition to the closing ceremony at 8pm Irish time.
What do I need to know?
The competition pits 12-player teams from Europe and the US against each other, similar to the Ryder Cup in men’s golf. The venue for each tournament also rotates between Europe and the US.
Norway’s Suzann Pettersen is Team Europe captain and Team USA is led by Stacy Lewis.
Play spans three days. On Friday and Saturday, there are four foursome matches in the morning, followed by four fourball matches in the afternoon, and on Sunday, there will be 12 individual matches.
Each match is worth a point and a total of 28 points are up for grabs across the three days. The team to reach 14½ points or more wins, and in the event of a 14-14 draw, the previous holder retains the trophy.
The fourball matches see each golfer playing their own ball, with the golfer with the best score winning the hole. In the foursomes team-mates play alternate shots with the same ball.
The 2023 Solheim Cup, held in Andalucia, Spain, ended in a 14-all draw, seeing Team Europe hold on to trophy having claimed it with a 15-13 win in Ohio in 2021. Team Europe also won the 2019 iteration, staged at Gleneagles in Scotland, while USA’s last victory was back on home soil in 2017 when they won in Des Moines, Iowa. Overall, Team USA has 10 wins to Team Europe’s seven.
The tournament is being held this year to return the tournament to even years after some Covid-related rescheduling to avoid clashing with next year’s Ryder Cup.
Tell me about the venue
The Solheim Cup is venturing back to the US for 2024, visiting Gainesville, Virginia, about an hour west of Washington DC.
The tournament will be staged at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club – a par 72 course set along Lake Manassas.
Are there any Irish in action?
Leona Maguire will be the only Irish player taking part in the Solheim Cup once again, making her third appearance.
It’s been a tough summer for the Cavan golfer, who has struggled to find her form. Her second Olympics was one to forget, and putting issues saw her fall off the pace at the recent Women’s Irish Open.
However, the 29-year-old has a strong record in the Solheim Cup. From her 10 matches at the last two tournaments, she’s taken seven wins, a draw and just two losses.
What are the teams?
Team Europe: Celine Boutier (France), Carlota Ciganda (Spain), Linn Grant (Sweden), Georgia Hall (England), Esther Henseleit (Germany), Charley Hull (England), Leona Maguire (Ireland), Anna Nordqvist (Sweden), Emily Kristine Pedersen (Denmark), Madelen Sagstrom (Sweden), Maja Stark (Sweden), and Albane Valenzuela (Switzerland).
Team USA: Allisen Corpuz, Lauren Coughlin, Ally Ewing, Megan Khang, Nelly Korda, Jennifer Kupcho, Alison Lee, Andrea Lee, Sarah Schmelzel, Lexi Thompson, Lilia Vu, and Rose Zhang.
Who should I watch out for?
Team USA has some heavy-hitters, most notably the world number one and two, Nelly Korda and Lilia Vu.
Korda won the Chevron Championship on the LPGA Tour back in April and followed it up with victories at the Mizuho Americas Open in May and a joint second-place finish at the British Open last month.
Vu was alongside her team-mate in second at the close of play at St Andrews, and earlier this year placed second at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship in June, a week after taking the win at the Meijer LPGA Classic.
For Europe, Esther Henseleit has had a fine summer, winning silver for Germany at the Olympics in Paris and following it up with another second at last month’s Scottish Open.
And the visitor’s highest-ranked golfer is French woman Celine Boutier, but 2024 has not been her year to date. Outside a second-place finish at the HSBC Women’s World Championship in early March, her best result was 12th at Blue Bay later that month.
Tee times & pairings
Sunday singles matches:
Match 1 – 1.50pm Irish time, Charley Hull (Europe) v Nelly Korda (USA)
Match 2 – 2pm, Emily Pedersen (Europe) v Megan Khang (USA)
Match 3 – 2.10pm, Georgia Hall (Europe) v Alison Lee (USA)
Match 4 – 2.20pm, Anna Nordqvist (Europe) v Allisen Corpuz (USA)
Match 5 – 2.30pm, Carlota Ciganda (Europe) v Rose Zhang (USA)
Match 6 – 2.40pm, Esther Henseleit (Europe) v Andrea Lee (USA)
Match 7 – 2.50pm, Celine Boutier (Europe) v Lexi Thompson (USA)
Match 8 – 3pm, Maja Stark (Europe) v Lauren Coughlin (USA)
Match 9 – 3.10pm, Albane Valenzuela (Europe) v Lilia Vu (USA)
Match 10 – 3.20pm, Madelene Sagstrom (Europe) v Sarah Schmelzel (USA)
Match 11 – 3.30pm, Leona Maguire (Europe) v Ally Ewing (USA)
Match 12 – 3.40pm, Linn Grant (Europe) v Jennifer Kupcho (USA)
How’s the weather looking?
It’s set to be a hot few days in Virginia, with highest temperatures across the three days in the region of 28 to 30 degrees. It’s expected to be cloudy throughout the weekend, bringing a chance of some showers, particularly on Saturday and Sunday.
Winds will hold steady for the duration of the tournament, with a light east/south-easterly breeze throughout the competition.
