Europe's Solheim Cup captain's picks announced

admin admin | 08-27 08:16

Rookie Albane Valenzuela was among four golfers selected as captain's picks by Suzann Pettersen to compete for Team Europe against Team USA at this year's Solheim Cup.

Ireland's Leona Maguire is among the eight automatic qualifiers for the European team.

England's Georgia Hall, Sweden's Anna Nordqvist and Denmark's Emily Kristine Pedersen were chosen along with Valenzuela, who was born in New York but will become Switzerland's first-ever representative at the event.

"I'm absolutely speechless, I can't believe I'm going to play!" said Valenzuela. "I got to play the Junior Solheim Cup a very longtime ago and ever since then it has always been a dream to make it onto the big team.

"I'm incredibly proud and honored and am very excited to represent Europe. It's going to be an incredible experience. I was definitely surprised when Suzann told me. It was a very emotional moment and I couldn't be happier."

Valenzuela and Pettersen's three other selections round out the 12-member European squad that will take on the Americans from 13-15 September at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Gainesville, Va.

Team Europe has held the trophy at the biennial event for the last five years, winning in 2019 and 2021 before retaining the title in the series' only tie to date last year. The event transitioned to being held in even years to avoid overlapping with the Ryder Cup.

Valenzuela, 26, joins Team Europe as a three-time Olympian, her most recent appearance coming at this year's Paris Games. She joined the LPGA Tour in 2019and has eight career top-10 finishes.

"It's fantastic to bring Albane into the team," Pettersen said after revealing her picks live on Sky Sports. "She has played some solid golf over the last two years and especially this year has proven she's worthy of a spot on this team. She is a great ball striker and brings a lot of good energy to the team room."

Hall, 28, automatically qualified for each of Europe's last four teams before just missing out this year. She has two career victories since joining the Tour in 2018 and tied for fifth at this year's Dow Championship in June.

Nordqvist will make her ninth straight Solheim Cup appearance since debuting in 2009. The 37-year-old will serve as a vice-captain for Pettersen, who played in nine Cups for Norway.

Pedersen, 28, will compete in her fifth Solheim Cup amid a strong 2024 campaign that has featured two top-10 Tour finishes.

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