Tournament Info

Tournament Information

Competition: The Solheim Cup is a biennial, trans-Atlantic team match-play competition featuring the best U.S.-born players from the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour and the best European members from the Ladies European Tour (LET).   The U.S. Team leads the competition, 8-3, and has never lost The Solheim Cup on home soil.  In 2009, the Americans kept their untarnished home record intact at Rich Harvest Farms with a 16 to 12 final score against the Europeans.

Dates:

September 23rd - 25th, 2011

September 21st - 22nd 2011 PING Junior Solheim Cup

Site: Killeen Castle, County Meath, Ireland 

Format: Three-day, match-play competition.  The first two days of competition feature two sessions each day, with a total of eight foursomes and eight four-ball matches over the two days.  The final day consists of 12 singles matches.

The foursomes format features two-member teams, with players hitting alternate shots using the same ball.  At the end of the hole, one score is recorded for the team.  In contrast, a four-ball match has each player playing her own ball throughout the entire match.  At the end of each hole, the best score of the two teammates is recorded; only one score from each team is recorded for each hole.

For the singles competition, one U.S. and one European player compete against one another.  Each plays her own ball throughout the round and records her own score.

Scoring: Scoring is based on a points system, with 28 total points available over the three days of competition.  One point is awarded for each match won, and half a point is given to each team for matches that end in a tie.  The defending champion needs 14 points to retain the Cup, while the other team would require 14-1/2 points to win the event.

Team selection:

European Team
The European Team is selected by taking the top five players from the LET points standings, followed by the next top four European LET members appearing on the Rolex Rankings at an agreed cut-off date, plus three Captain’s Selections.

U.S. Team
For the 12-person squad, 10 players qualify for the U.S. Team by earning points for wins and top-20 finishes over a two-year qualifying period, with two players selected by the captain.