Europe looking for minor miracle as USA maintain advantage

On a Saturday night in Medinah in 2012, Europe’s male golfers discovered their pulse. A seemingly insurmountable 10-4 deficit became 10-6 at the end of the match. Everyone knows what happened next, as Europe turned the tables on an epic Sunday against the US.

Ahead of Sergio García, Luke Donald, Ian Poulter and Rory McIlroy, read Carlota Ciganda, Emily Pedersen, Charley Hull and Georgia Hall. Victories for two European fourball pairs have given Virginia a faint hope of retaining the Solheim Cup. The US need four and a half singles points to win. The ghost of Medinah means Stacy Lewis and her home side won’t be celebrating quite yet.

The 19th Solheim Cup has been ugly for so long. It was ugly for the European team. In a ridiculous episode on Saturday afternoon, it was ugly for every television viewer.

Alison Lee had 86 yards to go with her approach shot to the second hole. Lee and Megan Khang faced Europeans Anna Nordqvist and Madelene Sagstrom. Lee’s wedge shot spun into the hole for an eagle two, which understandably led to wild celebrations. The two American caddies, clearly intent on making this all about them, threw off their shirts and belly-bumped down the middle of the fairway. If looks could kill; Sagstrom, who had yet to play, looked understandably furious. The Solheim Cup has plenty to offer without such moments of attention-grabbing vulgarity. What now? Buttocks on the 18th green?

The problem for Europe was that they had little response to the American bravado until the late surge of Hull and co. Their star of the recent Solheim Cups, Leona Maguire, did not hit a ball in anger on Saturday. The Irish golfer returns for the singles with just one match to her name, an extraordinary situation given her previous appearances in the event.

A 20ft Khang putt on the 11th looked certain to stay above ground until it fell into the hole after a wait of seconds. This kind of break has befallen the hosts countless times. An Andrea Lee bunker shot on the 13th was destined for North Carolina before it hit the flagstick and bounced into the cup. Andrea Lee and Rose Zhang beat Linn Grant and Celine Boutier 6-4. Alison Lee and Khang seemed destined for victory after that chaotic moment on the 2nd. “That was one of the coolest moments of my life,” Lee said. “We celebrated the way we wanted to.” Good Lord. Nordqvist and Sagstrom never led in this match. There was a handshake on the 15th green, the US now on 10 points and could not add to it. Pedersen’s glorious approach to the 17th gave the Dane and Ciganda a 2-1 victory over Ally Ewing and Lexi Thompson. The final act of the day fell to Hull and Hall, who withstood a strong challenge from Allisen Corpuz and Lilia Vu to take a point on the 18th.

A 2-2 draw in the morning foursomes meant progress for Europe after two 3-1 session defeats on Friday. Nelly Korda, who had the luxury of resting Lewis for the fourballs, combined with Corpuz to beat Pedersen and Ciganda by 1 up. Europe responded through Esther Henseleit and Hull, who beat Ewing and Jennifer Kupcho by the same score. The bottom two games were more comfortable for the winners. Thompson and Lauren Coughlin added another US point with a 4-3 win over Maja Stark and Hall. Europe’s 4-3 success went to Nordqvist and Boutier, who beat Lilia Vu and Sarah Schmelzel. The US held an 8-4 lunchtime advantage, making European captain Suzann Pettersen’s first tee dancing as the teams returned to the course more than a little bizarre.

Day two began with a mea culpa from LPGA Tour executive Mollie Marcoux Samaan. Serious shuttle bus problems caused thousands of fans to miss Friday’s opening tee shots, with some forced to wait in line for three hours before being transported to the Solheim venue.

“There were miscalculations and the planning wasn’t adequate for the day,” she said. “The only thing you can do in life is make sure you fix it and get better and make sure it never happens again.”