Saturday
Aug222009
Europeans keep their heads up
Saturday, August 22, 2009 at 3:26PM
Writing from Sugar Grove, Ill.
Friday, August 21, 2009
When you've been skunked twice in as many matches, it's difficult to keep your head up, but Europe's Suzann Pettersen tried to on Friday.
"I still think we played a lot of great golf," Pettersen said of herself and Sophie Gustafson, beaten twice on the first day of the 11th Solheim Cup Match. "The first match came down to the last hole. In the second, we needed to make putts and didn't make any."
Pettersen will play with Anna Nordquist on Saturday morning, when competiton resumes with best-ball matches. But Davies will sit out.
"She said she wasn't on her game," European captain Alison Nicholas said.
That was evident in the morning on the eighth tee, where Davies, once the biggest hitter in women's golf, hit the ball with the hosel of the driver. It squirted right, going no more than 125 yards.
A Wie argument
As if play wasn't slow enough, it took 15 minutes to determine whether or not Michelle Wie was entitled to relief before taking her third shot on the par 5 18th hole in her morning match. Her second shot landed in an area that officials said would be considered ground under repair, but it wasn't marked as such. The European team objected, and the resulting discussion seemed to involve everybody but the concession workers before Wie was allowed to drop.
"The rules official has said was ground under repair, but wouldn't be marked," Wie said. Her shot, from 155 yards out, didn't reach the green, and she had to settle for an up-and-down par 5 at the last.
On Sky Sports, which carries the Solheim Cup in the United Kingdom, commentators said Wie violated the "integrity of the game," saying she didn't know the rules.
Around Rich Harvest
The lone player left on the bench Friday was Europe's Diana Luna. All 12 Americans played. … It takes 14 points for the U.S. team to retain the cup. The Europeans would have to win 14 1/2 points to take it home. … Sugar Grove police came up with an alternate traffic plan by mid-afternoon, hoping to lessen the long waits fans had to get into the main parking lot. The problem is, all the roads leading to the final two-lane road are also two-lane roads. … At least three people were stung by bees between the 10th and 11th holes when a swarm, perhaps used to a handful of people on the golf course, was disturbed by the cast of thousands. … Saturday's matches begin at 8 a.m.
– Tim Cronin
Friday, August 21, 2009
When you've been skunked twice in as many matches, it's difficult to keep your head up, but Europe's Suzann Pettersen tried to on Friday.
"I still think we played a lot of great golf," Pettersen said of herself and Sophie Gustafson, beaten twice on the first day of the 11th Solheim Cup Match. "The first match came down to the last hole. In the second, we needed to make putts and didn't make any."
Pettersen will play with Anna Nordquist on Saturday morning, when competiton resumes with best-ball matches. But Davies will sit out.
"She said she wasn't on her game," European captain Alison Nicholas said.
That was evident in the morning on the eighth tee, where Davies, once the biggest hitter in women's golf, hit the ball with the hosel of the driver. It squirted right, going no more than 125 yards.
A Wie argument
As if play wasn't slow enough, it took 15 minutes to determine whether or not Michelle Wie was entitled to relief before taking her third shot on the par 5 18th hole in her morning match. Her second shot landed in an area that officials said would be considered ground under repair, but it wasn't marked as such. The European team objected, and the resulting discussion seemed to involve everybody but the concession workers before Wie was allowed to drop.
"The rules official has said was ground under repair, but wouldn't be marked," Wie said. Her shot, from 155 yards out, didn't reach the green, and she had to settle for an up-and-down par 5 at the last.
On Sky Sports, which carries the Solheim Cup in the United Kingdom, commentators said Wie violated the "integrity of the game," saying she didn't know the rules.
Around Rich Harvest
The lone player left on the bench Friday was Europe's Diana Luna. All 12 Americans played. … It takes 14 points for the U.S. team to retain the cup. The Europeans would have to win 14 1/2 points to take it home. … Sugar Grove police came up with an alternate traffic plan by mid-afternoon, hoping to lessen the long waits fans had to get into the main parking lot. The problem is, all the roads leading to the final two-lane road are also two-lane roads. … At least three people were stung by bees between the 10th and 11th holes when a swarm, perhaps used to a handful of people on the golf course, was disturbed by the cast of thousands. … Saturday's matches begin at 8 a.m.
– Tim Cronin
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