GAINESVILLE, Va. — The Americans will be the overwhelming favorite to win the Solheim Cup on Sunday, an opportunity to send out Lexi Thompson a cup winner.
With a 10-6 lead over the Europeans entering Sunday singles, the U.S. needs 4.5 points from 12 matches to win the cup for the first time since 2017. The charge has been led by world No. 1 Nelly Korda, who gained 7.5 shots on the field yesterday; Lauren Coughlin, undefeated as a rookie; and Rose Zhang, who has only lost one of her last 21 holes. All three are 3-0 so far.
But do not discount the impact of Thompson this week, on the course and in the team room. She and Coughlin stomped Maja Stark and Georgia Hall in foursomes on Saturday morning, 4&3, for the day’s first point. Later, Thompson made a late-match push against the fiery duo of Carlota Ciganda and Emily Pedersen, stressing the Euros for a point they had to have.
Now the question is whether Thompson can do something special in Sunday singles, where she’ll be matched against Celine Boutier in the seventh match of the day. To do so would end her competitive Solheim Cup career on her terms. It would only make sense.
Thompson, 29, announced this summer at the U.S. Women’s Open that she’ll step back from the professional game in 2025. She hasn’t explicitly defined her future, but she’s been considering reducing her pro golf schedule for longer than the public ever knew. “I’m not going to sit here and say it hasn’t crossed my mind in past years,” Thompson said at Lancaster Country Club. She hasn’t used the word “retirement,” but the decision has been difficult for Thompson. During the announcement, she got emotional speaking about mental health and the grind of pro golf. It’s time for Thompson to get away.
“A lot of people don’t realize a lot of what we go through as a professional athlete,” she said. “I’ll be the last one to say, like, throw me a pity party. That’s the last thing I want. We’re doing what we love. We’re trying our best every single day. You know, we’re not perfect. We’re humans. Words hurt.”
The lows in Thompson’s career — struggling to close out majors, rules controversies included — have been paired with plenty of highs. This event is one of them. The 2024 Solheim Cup is her seventh appearance on the U.S. team and she holds a 10-9-7 match record, 4-0-4 during the 2015 and ‘17 American wins and tied for sixth all-time in points. Thompson has always asserted that making the U.S. squad is her top priority as a player, and this year was no different. She only has a handful of LPGA starts left this calendar year: She’ll play in Cincinnati and Arkansas the following week. Then she’ll play the Florida swing for the last time. But Thompson still put the necessary work into her game all season long: She wanted to add Gainesville to her calendar.
“Coming into the year, even though I had my announcement on my mind, I wanted to be here on U.S. soil being able to represent my country. That was my number one goal,” Thompson said on Thursday.
LEXI THOMPSON CHIPS IN FROM THE EDGE OF THE BUNKER 🤯 pic.twitter.com/rdAS7lVjHo
— LPGA (@LPGA) September 14, 2024
Thompson was chosen as an at-large pick by U.S. captain Stacy Lewis, who has always believed deeply in Thompson’s relationship with the Solheim Cup. Lewis even picked Thompson in 2023, when she was in danger of losing her LPGA Tour card — a highly controversial decision. Lewis swears the event livens Thompson’s game, and brings the best out of her, physically, when it comes to ball-striking, and emotionally. On Sunday at Finca Cortesin, Lewis put Thompson out last. She was the anchor when the Americans headed into the final day tied with the Europeans, 8-8. Team Europe retained the cup when the score resulted in a 14-14 tie, but Thompson won her match against Pedersen, 2&1. It was her third point of the week.
When asked what Thompson’s Solheim Cup legacy is, Lewis replied by saying that the Solheim Cup is Thompson’s legacy. She then gave a friendly piece of advice to the undetermined future U.S. captain: Keep Lexi around, you won’t reget it.
“It’s a massive void. Whoever is the next captain, they need to get her on as an assistant, that’s all I can say. Lexi needs to be there in the team room. She needs to be around these girls. She’s just great energy to have around,” Lewis said on Wednesday.
That void may be felt most potently by the fans.
Thompson clinched her morning foursomes win with Coughlin and immediately spotted a young girl walking as a volunteer inside the ropes, waiting tentatively for a potential autograph. She walked directly over to the girl, sporting a red visor, and signed it, unprompted.
“Don’t be shy,” Thompson said. The 11-time LPGA Tour winner then made a proposition: “Let’s take a photo. Thank you for being out here.”
Later, walking down the 13th fairway, one down to Ciganda and Pedersen, Thompson veered out of her way to high-five two more young girls, who proceeded to squeal with excitement. That’s just what Thompson does. That is why she plays the game, she says. The Solheim Cup embodies everything she still enjoys about professional golf.
“It’s been very important to me,” Thompson said. “Some of my best memories are at Solheim Cup. It’s important to represent my country. I did it as a junior and amateur at Junior Solheim. To tee it up and represent my country alongside my teammates, there’s nothing like it. To be on U.S. soil, it’s a huge honor to be part of it.”
Now it’s time to go out the way she wants to: As a winner.
(Top photo: Gregory Shamus / Getty Images)
