There may be smoke.
There was Monday at the Bernardus golf course in the Netherlands. Players walking to the first tee for the Junior Solheim Cup were greeted by cheers, music — and a few puffs from a machine at the end of their entry. It was a nice touch, even if you weren’t ready for it, it caught you by surprise, which you can see. below.
Let’s do that No. 1, then, on this list of “18 things to know about the Solheim Cup”: Starting Friday morning – and well before East Coast time – it should be a scene for the opening tee shots. As for which side will follow the potential smoke with the fire, maybe the words below can help.
Players to watch
2. Let’s start with six players to watch from the American side. No. 1 is the world No. 1 – Nelly Korda. His Solheim Cup record (10-5-1), in four appearances, is good, but his teams have won only one Cup, at the 2024 event. Korda, Jennifer Kupcho and Allisen Korpuz are the Americans with major victories – Korda has four; and Kupcho and Korpuz have one.
3. Lauren Coughlin. He is the next highest ranked American, at No. 17. He made his Solheim debut at the ’24 event and went 3-0-1.
4. Angel Yin. He missed two months of play and lost 35 pounds due to stomach problems, but he said Golfweek’s Beth Ann Nichols she has to play.
5. Lindy Duncan. At 35, he makes his debut in the Solheim Cup.
6. Meghan Khang. Khang will be playing in his fifth Solheim, and is unbeaten in his last two appearances (3-0-0 in ’24 and 3-0-1 in ’23).
7. Alison Lee. Lee will be the first mother to play in the event since 2019, when Suzann Pettersen did.
8. Lottie Woad leads our list of six European players to watch. He is the highest ranked Euro, at No. 7. This will be his debut in Solheim.
9. Charlie Hull. He is the next highest ranked European, at No. 8. This will be his eighth Solheim appearance.
10. Carlota Ciganda. This will also be his eighth appearance. She secured the retention spot at the 2023 event in her home country of Spain – and sounds of Car-lo-ta Ci-gandasung to the chorus of “Seven Nation Army” by the White Stripes, they’re still in our heads.
11. Celine Boutier. He is one of only two European players to have won a major. Boutier won the Evian 2023.
12. Maja Stark. He is the only European to have won a major. Stark won the 2025 US Women’s Open.
13. Lynn Grant. He makes his third appearance at Solheim. He also recently gave GOLF’s Maddi MacClurg approach tips, which you can watch below.
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The captains
14. American captain Angela Stanford. He has played in six Solheims, and his singles win in 2015 completed the biggest comeback in the tournament’s history.
15. European captain Anna Nordqvist. He made nine Solheim appearances. Last month, he also announced his retirement.
The course
16. As mentioned above, the Solheim Cup will be played at the Bernardus golf course in the Dutch town of Cromvoirt, which is about an hour south of Amsterdam. And transportation to the course will be unique, at least for some. The vicinity of Den Bosch will probably be where most fans come from, and they can do so by shuttle – or by bike. Bernardus Golf website he says the bike ride takes 20 to 30 minutes.
As for the course itself, he played public one-day subscriptionsalong with overnight packages. It was designed by the American Kyle Phillips, who also worked at Kingsbarns, the Grove and Yas Links, and hosted the KLM of the DP World Tour in 2021, ’22 and ’22.
And below is an eye to the range.
Predictions
17. So what wins this thing? Our Confidential Tour panel Sunday made predictions and even picked an MVP:
Zephyr Melton writes: Europe and Carlota Ciganda. He is an absolute threat in this event. I hope it continues this week.
Josh Schrock writes: Europe and Esther Henseleit. She showed a ton of moxy at the AIG Women’s Open and I feel like she’s destined to be a problem for the Americans. If the US wins, it will be because Zhang and Yealimi Noh are playing to their roof.
Jack Hirsh writes: Europe and Carlota Ciganda. It’s like Ian Poulter’s version of the Solheim Cup.
The author’s choice?
Let’s have some fun. USA, with new winner Lindy Duncan winning the clinching point. I love a good story.
How to watch the Solheim Cup
18. Here’s how you can watch the game on TV:
Friday: 1:30 a.m. ET, Golf Channel
Saturday: 1:30 a.m. ET, Golf Channel
Sunday: 5 a.m. ET, Golf Channel
