From incorrect decisions, controversial concessions and more, these are some of the most controversial Solheim Cup moments in history.
Getty Images
Nine years ago, Alison Lee was an LPGA rookie playing in her first Solheim Cup. She doesn’t remember much of it, although there was one incident that it can be hard for anyone to forget.
“I missed the opening gala because I had food poisoning that week. I had no family there. I didn’t know anyone on the team. I just felt like such an outsider,” Lee said Tuesday in the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Gainesville, Va., where they will play in the 19th edition of the Solheim Cup later this week. It’s also her first time back in the event since 2015. “So to be able to play on the team now, getting to know all the girls more and being really good friends with all of them, even though it’s my second time, I feel like a veteran here because I’ve been on Tour for so long and played alongside these girls for a long time. Definitely a very different experience.”
What about that incident in 2015? Let’s look back at that (and more) as we recap the biggest Solheim Cup controversies in the event’s history. Will we see more memorable moments on Friday? We can’t wait to find out.
A controversy accepted with ease
In perhaps the most famous Solheim Cup controversy, Lee and Brittany Lincicome squared off against Suzann Pettersen and Charley Hull in a four-ball match that concluded Sunday morning at the 2015 Solheim Cup in Germany. With the match tied, Lee missed a birdie putt on the 17th hole and got it from about 18 inches away. She thought Europe agreed, but Hull and Pettersen informed regulations officials that they did not.
“I could have sworn I thought I heard someone say, ‘That’s good,'” Lee said at the time. “It could have been from the stands, I don’t know. I looked at the putt and it was close, it looked good. And Charley was coming off the fairway, and Suzann was already off the green, so there’s no doubt in my mind that it was fine. I didn’t have to think twice about it, I just took it.”
As it was not technically accepted, Lee and Lincicome lost the hole and later the match, 2 up, and Europe led 10-6 going into singles play. American captain Juli Inkster said of her team, “They’re fired up, but you know what? They had been shot before.” The Americans responded with the biggest comeback in Solheim Cup history, winning 8 1/2 of 12 singles points and winning the Cup with a 14.5-13.5 victory.
Lee, who fought back tears after the controversy, won her singles match 3 and 1 over Gwladys Nocera. Pettersen, the captain of this year’s European team, also apologized for her handling of the situation the following Monday, posting on Instagram and saying: “I’ve never felt more upset and really sad about what happened on Sunday. on the 17th at the Solheim Cup.”
A wrong decision
At the 2013 Solheim Cup at Colorado Golf Club, Stacy Lewis and Lexi Thompson were tied with Pettersen and Carlota Ciganda after 14 holes of their Friday four-ball match, but Ciganda hit her second shot into the water on the par 15 -5 and one A long delay of over 30 minutes ensued. She was allowed to drop about 40 yards past the putt — which the LPGA later clarified was the incorrect decision — and still made par. The US pair was heating up, and Europe went up 1 on the 16th hole and won the match.
“We regret that an incorrect decision was made and apologize for any confusion that was caused on the field for the players,” the LPGA said in a statement that evening. “Ultimately, Ciganda continued to play according to the final decision given to him and the result of the match does not change.”
Getty Images
The 10 second rule
At Inverness Club in 2021, Nelly Korda barely missed an eagle putt on the par-5 13th, leaving him right on the brink. Madelene Sagstrom of Europe grabbed the ball to accept the birdie putt and tossed it back to Korda. No harm, right? Wrong. In doing so, Sagstrom didn’t allow Korda’s putt the allotted 10 seconds to see if it could still land in the eagle hole.
A rules official approached the group and told them that Sagstrom had violated Rule 13.3b, which states, “If an opponent in match play intentionally lifts or moves the player’s ball over the hole before the timeout expires, the ball the player is treated as holed with the previous stroke.”
The eagle counted, and Korda and Ally Ewing won the hole and later the match, 1 up.
Hot microphone
At the 2007 Solheim Cup in Sweden, Dottie Pepper was a member of the television crew and thought the broadcast had been interrupted for a commercial break when she said that, ahemAmericans Laura Diaz and Sherri Steinhauer were “throwing the scary dogs.” Pepper apologized, and six years later she served as Solheim Cup co-captain for Meg Mallon.
Mulligan
During a four-ball match Saturday at the 2000 Solheim Cup in Scotland, Annika Sorenstam thought she had birdied to tie the match, only to discover she played out of the turn as American Kelly Robbins was actually out. The soon-to-be famous singer had to replay her shot, failed to get in, and Sorenstam and Janice Moodie lost the match 2 and 1 to Robbins and Pat Hurst.
The parade of concessions
The 2003 Solheim Cup was easily won by Europe, but all play came to a surprising halt once Catriona Matthew beat Rosie Jones 3 and 1 to give Europe the 14.5 points needed to win. However, instead of the remaining games being played for accounting purposes, four of the five were conceded by the next players and the Europeans won 17.5-10.5.
“It went into immediate chaos,” said U.S. captain Patty Sheehan. “I didn’t know what was going on.”
