Maja Stark and Linn Grant broke the unbeaten run of Nelly Korda and Allisen Corpuz, propelling Team Europe to a 7‑5 advantage over Team USA after Saturday's foursomes session, even as Charley Hull and Lottie Woad endured a record‑tying defeat. The opening day at Bernardus Golf saw the two sides dead‑locked, a rarity that has occurred only once before in Solheim Cup history.
Nevertheless, the European hosts seized the momentum on Saturday morning by securing three of the four available points, giving them a slim but crucial edge. Korda and Corpuz entered the day with a perfect 100‑percent record in foursomes, having won five consecutive matches together.
Their streak was halted when Stark and Grant opened the morning round for Europe, delivering a decisive 3&2 victory that set the tone for the session. Anna Nordqvist’s much‑talked‑about pairing of Hull and Woad failed to produce any points. Instead, American veteran Alison Lee captured her third consecutive win, teaming with Lauren Coughlin to post a 6&5 triumph – the joint‑largest margin ever recorded in Solheim Cup foursomes. Their dominant performance included a run of four straight holes won from the fourth through the seventh, leaving the English duo struggling to recover.
Rookie teammates Mimi Rhodes and Nastasia Nadaud continued their flawless start, dispatching Andrea Lee and Austom Kim 4&3. Their victory marked the first time a rookie duo had won two matches together in a single Solheim Cup, and they did so with the widest winning margin ever for a debutant pair in a foursomes format.
Leona Maguire and Esther Henseleit clinched the final point of the session with a dramatic finish, winning on the last hole after a series of tightly contested holes. Their resilience ensured that Europe walked away with the session win and extended their overall lead. Nordqvist’s decision to field an all‑Swedish partnership paid immediate dividends.
The Swedes opened strongly, matching an American birdie on the second hole and then responding to a loss on the third by taking the fourth. They kept control throughout, adding a birdie on the seventh and then seeing Stark chip in an eagle from just off the eighth green. A steady par on the ninth gave them a third consecutive hole and a four‑shot lead at the turn. Korda and Corpuz attempted a comeback, winning back‑to‑back holes from the tenth onward to halve the deficit.
However, Stark’s eight‑foot birdie putt on the sixteenth sealed the end of the Americans’ perfect foursomes record, cementing Europe’s advantage. "It’s the best feeling ever," Stark said after her decisive putt.
"We’ve been playing solid golf both days, avoiding bogeys and making the most of our opportunities." Hull and Woad were kept together despite a modest half‑point from two matches on Friday. The English pair fell behind early when Lee and Coughlin captured four consecutive holes starting at the fourth. Woad managed a close‑range birdie on the eighth to level the match briefly, but Lee and Coughlin responded with back‑to‑back birdies on the back nine and closed out the round with a par on the thirteenth, securing an emphatic win. "We both hit the ball very solidly today," Lee remarked, reflecting on her third point of the week.
"I could almost sit back and watch Lauren [Coughlin] work her magic. She hit incredible shots into the green and sank some fantastic putts." Rhodes and Nadaud’s performance was historic.
Not only did they become the first rookie pair to notch two victories in a single Solheim Cup, but they also never fell behind during their match, ultimately winning by the largest margin ever recorded for a debutant foursomes team. "We didn’t expect to be playing this morning," Nadaud admitted. "Yesterday was a pleasant surprise.
We played very sensibly, found plenty of fairways and greens, and created our own chances." In another fluctuating match, Kupcho and Zhang surged two up after six holes, only to see Henseleit miss three short putts from inside five feet. Maguire and Henseleit rallied, taking three of the first four holes on the back nine to regain the lead. Team USA fought back, winning consecutive holes from the 14th onward, but Maguire’s birdie on the 16th leveled the match.
Europe ultimately clinched the point when Zhang’s approach clipped the lip of a bunker on the final hole, resulting in a closing bogey. "We knew we weren’t doing anything terribly wrong," Maguire reflected. "We started strong, just like yesterday, and they answered with a birdie on three.
We had to stay patient, keep creating chances, and the turning points came on holes ten, eleven and twelve." The Solheim Cup now heads into its final day, with the singles matches slated to begin at 10:10 a.m. on Sunday. Fans can tune in live on Sky Sports Golf from 9 a.m., or stream the action via NOW without a contract. The competition remains wide open, and every point will be crucial in determining which side lifts the coveted trophy.
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