Team USA look to retain the Solheim Cup in the Netherlands this month, live on Sky Sports, with Angela Stanford’s experienced side eyeing a rare away win over Team Europe. Stanford has just two rookies in her line-up at Bernardus Golf from September 11-13, with the other 10 having played in at least one previous Solheim Cup and eight returning from their impressive 15.5-12.5 win on home soil two years ago. Four-time major winner Nelly Korda is the headline name involved and topped the two-year qualification campaign, which ran from the 2024 FM Championship to the 2026 CPKC Women’s Open last month. The top seven players on the Solheim Cup points list at the end of the qualification campaign all earned automatic spots, with Korda joined by Angel Yin, Jennifer Kupcho, Yealimi Noh, Auston Kim, Lauren Coughlin and Allisen Corpuz.
Andrea Lee and Alison Lee automatically qualified as the next two available players in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings, before Lindy Duncan, Megan Khang, Rose Zhang took Stanford’s three captain’s picks. We take a closer look at the American players chasing a first away win over Team Europe since 2015 and how they secured their spots… Solheim Cup points: 10.5 points from 16 matches (10 wins, one tie, five losses) Korda has been the dominant force in the women’s game in recent seasons, with the world No 1 having her fifth consecutive Solheim Cup appearance wrapped up with months to spare after four wins during the first half of the year. She has won at least two points from all of her previous four appearances, including an unbeaten debut at Gleneagles in 2019 and three points – before being thrashed by Charley Hull in the singles – during Team USA’s win in 2024. Solheim Cup points: 5.5 points from nine matches (Five wins, one tie, three losses) Yin was part of the joint-biggest fourballs win in Solheim Cup history when her and Ally Ewing beat Anna Nordqvist and Caroline Hedwall 7&5 in 2019, while she holds an unbeaten singles record against Team Europe.
The two-time LPGA Tour has qualified via the points list for the first time, having secured her spot via the world rankings in 2019 and a captain’s pick the other appearances, although sat out of the final two months of the qualification campaign due to illness. Solheim Cup points: Four points from 10 matches (three wins, two tied, five losses) Kupcho was joint-top scorer for Team USA on her debut in 2021, posting 2.5 points before being thrashed by Leona Maguire in the singles, then beat Linn Grant on the final day of Team USA’s win in 2024. She won the Shoprite LPGA Classic last June and added three top-10s in majors this season, including a share of eighth at the US Women’s Open, with Kupcho now an automatic qualifier for a fourth consecutive Solheim Cup appearance. Solheim Cup points: Two points from three matches (two wins and one loss) Noh returns after a five-year absence and faces a first Solheim Cup on European soil, having played in both fourballs sessions and defeated Mel Reid in the singles during Team USA’s 2021 defeat.
She claimed her maiden LPGA Tour title at the 2025 Founders Cup and has four top-20 finishes in the majors during the two-year qualification campaign, including third at the AIG Women’s Open. Kim was in her LPGA Tour rookie year during the last Solheim Cup but will debut for Team USA this time around, having enjoyed two consistent seasons during the qualification campaign. She followed her runner-up finish at last year’s KPMG Women’s PGA Championship by earning second at the HSBC Women’s World Championship earlier this year, where she then added two top-10s in majors to secure her automatic spot. Solheim Cup points: 3.5 points from four matches (Three wins, one tie) Coughlin returns for her second appearance after finishing undefeated in her 2024 debut, winning both foursomes matches and claiming victory with Sarah Schmelzel in fourballs before tying her Sunday singles clash with Maja Stark.
The three-time LPGA Tour winner also featured for Team USA at the Hanwha LIFEPLUS International Crown last year and won the Aramco Championship in April, with Coughlin finding form late in the summer. Solheim Cup points: 5.5 points from eight matches (Five wins, one tie, two losses) Corpuz secured her qualification via the points standings for the third consecutive Solheim Cup, having racked up two top-eight finishes in majors among six top-10s on the LPGA Tour this season. Her and Nelly Korda have won all four foursomes matches together across the last two Solheim Cups, the joint-best foursomes record of any American pair in history, with Corpuz also despatching Anna Nordqvist in the singles two years ago. Solheim Cup points: Four points from seven matches (Three wins, two ties, two losses) Lee qualified via the points lists in the previous two Solheim Cups but gets in via world ranking this time, having led the fairways in regulation percentage on the LPGA Tour the last two seasons and posted 18 top-25 finishes.
She may well play alongside Zhang in the fourballs again in the Netherlands, having won their matches 5&4 and 6&4 when paired together in 2024. Lee also holds an unbeaten singles record, tying both her previous two matches in that format. Solheim Cup points: Two points from seven matches (Two wins, five losses) Lee is the only member of Stanford’s team to also be part of the last winning side on European soil in 2015, with this year’s appearance her first for Team USA since becoming a mother last April. She missed most of the qualification period on maternity leave but still picked up three top-five finishes in this season, including at the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship.
Lee becomes the first mum to compete for Team USA since Cristie Kerr in 2017. Duncan held the second qualifying spot via the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings for nearly two months before dropping out of position late in the qualification campaign, with the 35-year-old now the oldest debutant since Nancy Scranton in 2000. She has amassed 14 top-25 finishes over the past two years, including a share of seventh at the HSBC Women’s World Championship in March, although missed the cut in four of the five majors this season. Solheim Cup points: 8.5 points from 13 matches (seven wins, three tied, three losses) Khang had a disappointing finish to the qualification campaign but returns for a fifth consecutive Solheim Cup appearance, having ended unbeaten in each of the last two editions against Team Europe.
Since beating Sophia Povpov in the Sunday singles of their 2021 loss, Khang top-scored for Team USA two years later before winning all three of her matches in their 2024 victory. Solheim Cup points: 4.5 points from seven matches (Four wins, one tie, two losses) The two-time LPGA Tour winner heads into the Solheim Cup with top-eight finishes in her last two starts, lifting her back inside the world’s top 50 after an inconsistent season. Zhang played a star role in their 2024 victory, top-scoring for Team USA after winning all four of her matches with at least two holes to spare. Expect her dominant fourballs partnership with Andrea Lee to return in the Netherlands.
Who will win the Solheim Cup? Watch Team Europe’s bid to regain the trophy exclusively live on Sky Sports, with all three days live from September 11-13 on Sky Sports Golf.
