2015 Solheim Cup: Team USA Crunch Time

With only two events remaining on the LPGA Schedule until team selections for the 2015 Solheim Cup several players who are in the bubble are going to be pumping out the effort this week at the RICOH Women’s British Open.

Players can qualify for team by accumulating Solheim Cup points and the top eight will automatically make the team. Captain Juli Inkster will tap two additional players to fill out her roster.

Here’s how things stand for the top-ranking players going into the Open.

2015 Solheim Cup points & Rolex Rank, Team USA

The first six slots on Team USA seem stable, but Angela Stanford, Lizette Salas, Gerina Piller, Paula Creamer and Jessica Korda are in hot contention for the four remaining spots.

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Jessica Korda and Gerina Piller, along with defending champion Mo Martin, are paired for the first and second rounds. Look for Korda and Piller to pull out all the stops this week.

Korda is particular is in trouble right now. She’s missed the cut at all three majors this year — the ANA Inspiration, the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship and the US Women’s Open — and she can’t seem to put four solid rounds together. I think nothing short of hoisting the cup this week is going to get a second look from Captain Inkster.

Piller’s another matter. With four top-10 finishes this season, one of them coming at the PGA Championship and another at the Meijer LPGA Classic last week, Piller’s game looks to be peaking in the second half of the season. She’ll be putting out every ounce of effort she has this week at Turnberry. I’m looking for her to dominate her threesome.

Angela Stanford, paired with Florentyna Parker and Ritsuko Ryu Thursday and Friday at Turnberry, is slightly better positioned than Jessica Korda but not by much. However, even in the points bubble Stanford’s four Solheim Cup appearances could figure into Captain Inkster’s decision-making equation. Let’s see how she plays Thursday and Friday.

Lizette Salas, paired with Hyo Joo Kim and Teresa Lu Thursday and Friday, is in a slightly stronger position than Korda and Stanford and, as I see it, running about even with Piller as we come up on the first round tee times at the Open.

Salas missed the cut at the ANA Inspiration but her game seems to be heating up going into the 2nd half of the season. She and Piller shared runner-up last week at the Meijer LPGA Classic. Time’s running out for Salas but a victory or a top-10 this week would put her in a solid position for a team spot. She knows that. Watch for her to pump out her best game. Playing alongside Hyo Joo Kim could work to Salas’s advantage.

A United States Solheim Cup team without Paula Creamer doesn’t seem possible, but the numbers say otherwise right now. The Pink Panther and five-time Solheimer, is struggling. It happens. Creamer’s a superb competitor and a solid team player but 2015 may not be her Solheim year.

Julie Inkster told Golf Channel the decisions she’s facing are “a headache waiting to happen.” They are, indeed, but they are decisions that will have to be made soon.

But for now, it’s almost tee time at the 2015 RICOH Women’s British Open. As you can see, player excitement’s reaching a fevered pitch. Fore!

Next: RICOH Women's British Open Featured Groups

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