Solheim Cup recap: Stars falter again in Friday foursomes, though Europe takes first lead

CROMVOIRT, Netherlands – Until the last few holes of Saturday morning’s foursomes session, it appeared, for the first time ever, that the Solheim Cup would see three splits in as many sessions for the first time ever.

But Leona Maguire and Esther Henseleit won two of their final three holes against Rose Zhang and Jennifer Kupcho to turn a likely 6-6 tie into a 7-5 advantage for Europe entering Saturday afternoon’s fourballs at Bernardus Golf.

Both Solheim Cup captains, for the most part, stuck to their guns Saturday morning.

U.S. skipper Angela Stanford and her European counterpart Anna Nordqvist each made just one change for the second and final foursomes session. Stanford subbed 35-year-old rookie Lindy Duncan with her other rookie, Auston Kim, alongside Andrea Lee, while Nordqvist finally benched her 0-2 pair of Celine Boutier and Nanna Koerstz Madsen and threw in rookie duo Mimi Rhodes and Natasia Nadaud opposite Kim and Lee.

The rest of the tweaks were merely order.

Nordqvist had only one decision backfire in what was a 3-1 session victory. She sent out top-10 players Lottie Woad and Charley Hull, 0-1-1 through two sessions as the leadoff pair, in the anchor match and switched the holes that they tee off as well, with Woad getting the even holes this time. It was an attempt to spark the superstar partnership that still couldn’t ignite.

Meanwhile, Stanford’s stallion, world No. 1 Nelly Korda, dropped to 1-1-1 on the week and for the first time in six matches lost a match alongside her foursomes partner, Allisen Corpuz.

“Alternate shot’s hard enough,” Korda said after her 3-and-2 loss, “but when you’re playing against a group of girls that are playing really, really well, it’s even harder.”

Rhodes and Nadaud, who were sent out for the first time as foursomes partners because of a gut feeling by Nordqvist, improved to 2-0, while Alison Lee remained unbeaten through three matches, the only person on either side to be 3-0 after as many sessions.

“I have to say we didn’t really expect to play this morning foursomes,” Nadaud said. “Like, it was a great surprise yesterday. But yeah, as Mimi said, we played very sensible and had loads of fairways and greens and gave ourselves opportunities.”

The Swedish pair of Maja Stark and Linn Grant continued to roll as well. While the slides of Zhang and Kupcho continued; Zhang is 0-4-1 in away Solheim matches, and Kupcho is 1-7-2 in her last 10 matches.

Solheim Cup 2026 – Round One

Solheim Cup 2026: Day 2 foursomes pairings, how to watch

Here’s a look at the Day 2 morning alternate-shot session at Bernardus Golf in the Netherlands.

Here is a recap of all four foursomes matches Saturday morning in Netherlands:

Match 1: Maja Stark/Linn Grant (Europe) def. Allisen Corpuz/Nelly Korda, 3 and 2

With Corpuz and Korda looking to go 6-0 in this format, the Swedes had other plans early. Stark brough she and Grant to 1 up with a short birdie make at the par-4 opening hole.

Corpuz converted an 8-footer for birdie at the par-4 third to tie the match back up, but the Europeans then won three of the next five holes. Korda hit a poor tee shot at the par-3 fourth that ended well short and found a lie in the heather so gnarly that Corpuz couldn’t find the green with her chip. The Europeans won that hole with par and then the par-4 seventh on a 5-foot birdie make by Stark.

Korda appeared to have stolen a little momentum back by driving the par-4 eighth green, but Stark chipped in for eagle to stretch the lead to 3 up. They’d go 4 up through nine holes following an American bogey, running their total to 9 under on the front nine in two foursomes matches.

Corpuz’s 10-foot birdie, which felt like a must-make, at the par-5 10th clawed a hole back, and Korda finally got one to fall, birdieing the par-3 11th from 20 feet to reduce the deficit to 2 down.

But the U.S. duo couldn’t do anything else, and after Corpuz fatted her second shot from the fairway at the par-5 16th into the water short of the green, it was over.

“It’s kind of hard to beat where you’re not making any bogeys,” said Stark, who is now 3-1 with Grant in foursomes, with three of their matches, including both this week, being bogey-free performances.

Match 2: Leona Maguire/Esther Henseleit (Europe) def. Jennifer Kupcho/Rose Zhang, 1 up

Maguire put blue on this board with a 10-foot birdie make at the par-4 first. But the Americans quickly took control, winning Nos. 3, 4 and 6, the latter two holes with par, to flip the match to 2 up in their favor.

Zhang’s birdie at the par-4 third came from 20 feet.

The Europeans cut the lead in half after Zhang missed a 5-footer for par at the par-5 10th, and they had a chance to tie the match at the par-3 11th, but Henseleit missed a 5-footer for birdie.

Maguire hit the shot of the morning from a fairway bunker at the par-4 12th to 3 feet, and Henseleit made that one to tie the match. Maguire then gave her side its first lead since the second hole by hooping a 15-foot birdie putt at the par-4 13th.

From another fairway bunker, this time at the par-4 14th, Maguire fatted her approach shot into the junk and the Europeans’ double bogey handed the hole to the U.S. while bringing the match back to tied.

The bad shots began to pile for Maguire, who came up short with her tee shot at the par-3 15th, rinsing the shot, which eventually led to a conceded American birdie after Henseleit was unsuccessful hitting out of the water and new 1-up lead for the U.S. pair.

But Europe didn’t quit, getting up and down for birdie after a deft chip by Henseleit at the par-5 16th and then winning the par-4 18th with par after Zhang’s second from the fairway bunker caught the lip.

“I think we did a really good job at sort of balancing each other out today and just tried to keep as much pressure on them as we could the whole way around,” Maguire said. “A little short game master class from Esther on 16 and 18. So, yeah, really proud of what we did today.”

Match 3: Mimi Rhodes/Nastasia Nadaud (Europe) def. Andrea Lee/Auston Kim, 4 and 3

The European rookie tandem, who sat Friday morning, jumped on the Americans early in this one as well, marking the third straight match where Europe won the first hole with birdie. With Lee driving her ball nearly into a bush and she and Kim looking at likely bogey at the par-4 first, Nadaud drained a 25-foot birdie putt to get the scoring started. She then added a 10-footer for birdie at the par-5 second to double the lead to 2 up.

But the U.S. got a hole back after Kim stuck her tee ball to 5 feet at the par-3 sixth and Lee rolled in the short birdie putt.

Rhodes regained a 2-up lead with a 5-foot birdie conversion at the par-4 eighth before a bogey at the par-4 ninth quickly reverted the Europeans’ lead to 1 up. The back-and-forth continued with a conceded birdie to the Europeans at the par-5 10th and another 2-up lead for the two home-side rookies.

Nadaud’s iron play has been impressive, and she threw a dart into the par-4 12th green that allowed Rhodes to roll in the 5-foot birdie for a 3-up advantage.

Rhodes closed out the match with a 10-foot birdie at the par-3 15th.

Match 4: Alison Lee/Lauren Coughlin (U.S.) def. Charley Hull/Lottie Woad, 6 and 5

It took a while for a hole to be won here, but when that finally happened, it was the Americans putting their foot on the gas.

Hull and Woad combined to three-putt from 15 feet at the par-3 fourth, which they lost to a par. Coughlin then drained an 18-footer for birdie at the par-5 fifth, and Woad rinsed her tee ball at the par-3 sixth before another American birdie was conceded. Coughlin set up a fourth straight won hole by hitting her approach to 6 feet, and Lee did the rest to move their advantage to 4 up.

Coughlin hit a nice pitch into the par-5 10th green to give Lee a short birdie look, which she made to extend the lead to 5 up. Coughlin stayed hot, rolling in a 12-footer for birdie at the par-3 11th to move to 6 up.

The 6-and-5 win tied the foursomes record for margin of victory, the sixth such result. Lee is the first player to go 3-0 this week while Coughlin improved to 5-0-2 in her Solheim career.

“To be fair, Lauren played some incredible golf today,” Lee said. “I just felt like all I did was sit in the passenger seat. I just was kind of there and participated when I could. But she made some incredible putts, incredible approaches.”