Lauren Coughlin is one of the oldest members of Team USA. She is also a beginner.
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GAINESVILLE, Va. – Lauren Coughlin has never played on a national team before. Not in miniature golf. Not in amateur golf. And not in her eight-year professional career.
That changes this week.
When Coughlin steps on the roof first Friday morning at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club, she will do it Solheim Cup debut – and she will do so in her home state.
“(It’s) only an hour and 10 minutes from my house,” Coughlin said. “You go to that light, turn left and go about 65 miles, and there’s my house. So that’s pretty awesome.”
Coughlin was born in Minneapolis but grew up in Chesapeake, Va., about 200 miles south of this week’s Solheim Cup outside Washington, D.C. She played on the University of Virginia golf team from 2011 to 2016, winning the ACC individual title in her final year of eligibility and become an All-American in the process. Now, nearly a decade later, she’s back competing in her home state wearing the red, white and blue.
Being a local favorite comes with its perks, but it also makes for a busy schedule. There are friends and family to greet, fans to sign autographs and media to talk to. These weeks are always busy, and Coughlin’s local celebrity only adds to that.
“I thought I was pretty prepared for it, but I wasn’t,” Coughlin said. “It’s been fantastic, and I’m excited to get going on Friday.”
Even 12 months ago, the thought of Coughlin playing on her home state’s Solheim Cup team was almost unthinkable. When the Americans and Euros battled it out last September at Finca Cortes, Coughlin was ranked 119th in the world. Her only win as a pro up to that point was at the Symetra Tour in 2018. If you were to compile a list of favorites to do this year’s listCoughlin’s name certainly wasn’t near the top.
But despite those long odds, there Coughlin was Wednesday morning at RTJ Golf Club, playing a practice round with Allisen Corpuz and Ally Ewing along the shore of Lake Manassas. Her caddy, Terry McNamara, joined her, as she did her husband, John Pond. Among those in the gallery was her best friend.
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“Many of my friends just bought tickets; he didn’t even ask me,” Coughlin said. “I’ve had a lot of people say they’re going to be here in one form or another.”
After the year Coughlin has put together, the buzz is understandable. In April, she earned her first top 10 with a third-place finish at the Chevron Championship. Later in the summer she picked up her first LPGA win at the Canadian Open, which came just one week after her. the second Main Top 10 with a fourth place in Evian. She continued the hot streak a few weeks later when she won again, this time running away from the field at the Scott Open.
“It’s been kind of a whirlwind,” Coughlin said. “But in the best way. It’s been super fun and I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.”
Not only did her play merit Solheim Cup consideration, but it earned her a full spot on the team. She finished third in the standings behind top winners Nelly Korda and Lilia Vu. Coughlin may enter this week as a rookie, but if the Americans hope to end their winless drought, Coughlin will be a key piece of the puzzle.
But first, she will have to conquer her first nerves. The jitters before an opening shot are always present — even for the pros — but in a team event like this, those feelings reach a fever pitch. Add the butterflies of being a local favorite and it’s sure to be one of the most memorable photos of her life.
“It’s something I’ve thought about and prepared for,” Coughlin said. “All I can do is control myself and my process, and that’s all I’m going to focus on.”
After years of preparation, Coughlin’s wait to represent her country is almost over. Friday can’t come soon enough.
