Solheim Cup: American and European rankings update

Going into the 90-day countdown to final selection, Solheim Cup American and European team top-10s firm up.

The 2017 Solheim Cup countdown clock just passed 100 days. American and European players who are on the bubble are pushing themselves hard to inch into the top tier of the Solheim Cup points rankings, and nobody is pushing harder than Michelle Wie and Mo Martin.

Team USA will hold a 9-5 advantage over Team Europe coming in to the 15th edition of this biennial match play extravaganza at Des Moines Golf and Country Club, Des Moines, Iowa, August 14-20. But it’s match play, so historical advantage probably won’t mean much when the teams face off.

Although the 12-player teams won’t be finalized until the conclusion of the Ricoh Women’s British Open, August 4-6, and selection criteria differ for the American and European teams, there’s a tightening in the rankings as players push to squeeze out every advantage in these final 90+ days before team selection.

Team USA

Embed from Getty Images

Of the 12 Americans who will don red, white, and blue in Des Moines in August, 8 will qualify for the team on the basis of Solheim Cup points accumulated between the 2015 CN Canadian Women’s Open and the 2017 Ricoh Women’s British Open. Two not already qualified by Solheim Cup points will be selected on the basis of their Rolex Rankings position, and 2 will be selected by Captain Julie Inkster.

So where do things stand right now? Let’s look at the top 15 Americans in the Solheim Cup points/Rolex Rankings:

Lexi Thompson – 492 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 5
Stacy Lewis – 377.5 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 16
Cristie Kerr – 338.5 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 13
Gerina Piller – 313 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 21
Jessica Korda – 282.5 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 22
Brittany Lang – 241 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 28
Austin Ernst – 210.5 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 39
Angela Stanford – 182.5 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 59
Brittany Lincicome – 177 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 37
Mo Martin, Michelle Wie – 155.5 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: Martin (35), Wie (58)

Team Europe

Embed from Getty Images

While the 2-year ranking period is essentially the same, the Team Europe selection criteria is a bit different from that for Team USA. The 12-player European team is selected from current Ladies European Tour players: the top 4 in the Solheim Cup LET rankings, the top 4 in the Rolex Rankings who aren’t qualified through the Solheim Cup rankings, and 4 captain’s picks.

Among the Europeans, this is how the rankings are shaping up going into the last 90 days of the 2-year qualifying period:

More from Pro Golf Now

Georgia Hall – 107.25 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 93
Florentyna Parker – 103.5 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 78
Melissa Reid – 89.25 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 79
Anna Nordqvist – 81.0 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 11
Suzann Pettersen – 77 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 20
Charley Hull – 74.25 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 19
Emily Kristine Pedersen – 63.25 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 120
Nanna Koerstz Madsen – 52.5 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 77
Caroline Hedwall – 44.13 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 123
Klara Spilkova – 43.5 Solheim points, Rolex Rank: 191

It’s worth noting that there are some highly experienced Europeans who are not showing on the official top-10 rankings list: Carlota Ciganda, Karine Icher, Jodi Ewart Shadoff, Caroline Masson, and Azahara Munoz. Annika Sorenstam and her management team have much greater flexibility than the Team USA management team when it comes to captains picks. We’re certain to see Sorenstam tap some of these players who have proved their worth when it comes to match play.

Next: Golf rules: 20 that aren't in the book

We’ll update the 2017 Solheim Cup rankings after the next major, the KPMG Women’s PGA Championship, June 29-July 2.

Home/Ladies European Tour