U.S. wins Solheim Cup
Europe makes it close, but Vu gets winning half-point
Lilia Vu made a two-foot birdie putt on the final hole, and the United States won the Solheim Cup for the first time since 2017, beating Europe on a tense Sunday of singles matches at Gainesville, Va.
Megan Khang, Rose Zhang and Allisen Corpuz moved the
U.S. to the brink of victory with blowout wins, and the Americans got just enough from the back half of their lineup to prevent Europe from capturing the cup for a record fourth straight time.
The final score: United States 151/2, Europe 121/2, the biggest margin since the U.S. won by five points seven years ago in Iowa.
Europe fell behind 6-2 on the first day and trailed 10-6 entering singles. Captain Suzann Pettersen said her team needed a “miracle,” and while that never appeared likely, the Europeans kept it interesting, denying the Americans the clinching point on the 18th hole in three straight matches.
It finally ended when Vu stuffed a wedge in close at the par-4 18th and Albane Valenzuela came up short on her long birdie putt.
Valenzuela did not concede Vu's birdie, giving the American the chance to savor the tap-in that tied their match and gave them the 141/2 points they needed. Vu's teammates, some with American flags around their shoulders, ran onto the green and mobbed her.
“Grit — that's what this event is about. It's about toughness. It's about grit,” U.S. captain Stacy Lewis said. “The golf is just so good on both sides that it's one putt, one shot here and there, and that's what brought us here today.”
The U.S. is 11-7-1 in the competition that began in 1990.
LIV GOLF
Jon Rahm ended his first year in the LIV Golf League by closing with a four-under 66 to win the final individual event Sunday and the season points title with its $18-million US bonus.
Rahm missed a pair of short birdie putts on the back nine that kept Joaquin Niemann and Sergio Garcia in the mix. But then he holed a 12-foot birdie putt on the 17th hole that gave him a three-shot going to the last at Bolingbrook Golf Course.
Rahm won for the second time in the Saudi-funded league, adding to his title in England last month. In between those wins, he lost in a playoff to Brooks Koepka.
EUROPEAN TOUR
Rasmus Hojgaard birdied his last three holes Sunday for a six-under 65 to win the Irish Open, and hand Rory Mcilroy another dose of disappointment before a raucous gallery at Royal County Down in Newcastle, Northern Ireland.
Mcilroy had a two-shot lead on the back nine until Hojgaard put together a stunning charge down the stretch to win for the fifth time on the European tour and deny Mcilroy a victory in his home country.