Solheim Cup vice-captain Anna Nordqvist is full of excitement heading into this week’s Big Green Egg Open as she prepares to defend her Dutch title just two weeks before the biennial showdown in Spain.
Nordqvist enjoyed a memorable week at this event last year as she kept her cool on the final day to fend off Sarah Schober and land a fifth Ladies European Tour (LET) title – her first individual one outside of the Majors.
Now back in the Netherlands to defend her crown at a new track in Hilversumsche Golf Club, the Swede is brimming with excitement ahead of a huge month of action.
“I’m feeling pretty good,” Nordqvist said, who will also tee up at this year’s Solheim Cup after landing automatic qualification. “I’m excited to be back. I have really good memories from last year. It’s great to be part of the tournament and see all the initiatives they do for women’s golf over here in the Netherlands.
“Different course this year. There’s not a lot of driver holes off the tee. There’s a lot of heather out there. You’ve got to place the ball out there a little bit and get a lot of run outs. I always enjoy coming back on the Ladies European Tour.”
Nordqvist was last seen in action at the AIG Women’s Open where she placed T18 following a strong finish on the weekend.
Heading into this week as the highest ranked player in the field – Nordqvist is currently 38th in the Rolex Women’s World Rankings – the Swede is feeling good following her automatic qualification into Suzann Pettersen’s arsenal of stars.
“I’ve been working really hard on my game,” she continued. “I’ve been playing a little bit less lately, I took some time off to go back to Sweden, but my consistency has been huge this year. I haven’t felt like I’ve made as much on the greens, I guess that’s been the biggest difference of not playing as many events, but I played really solid in the majors.
“Automatically qualifying [for the Solheim Cup] was a big goal of mine so I feel like I’m doing a lot of good things and I’ve excited to tee it up this week.”
As for this week’s stop on the LET schedule, the Netherlands, Nordqvist has been impressed with the country’s enthusiasm to grow women’s golf ahead of the 2026 Solheim Cup, which will played at Bernardus Golf.
The three-time Major winner explained: “I’ve spent some time with the Dutch juniors, talking to them and seeing where they’re at. It’s really nice that there’s lots of things happening and that the Netherlands is making a push for women’s golf. Them getting the Solheim Cup in 2026 is going to be huge for them.
“Anne van Dam is obviously a great inspiration for a lot of young girls coming out to play. I got to play Bernadus yesterday – what an amazing facility. It’s just nice to hear how much passion and hard work goes into it. I mean we’re on the corner of the 2023 Solheim Cup and we’re still hearing about how many plans they have [for 2026] already.”
But while talk of 2026 is at the back Nordqvist’s mind this week as she gets set to defend her Big Green Egg Open title, the excitement of this year’s event continues to build with the 2023 Solheim Cup now just two weeks away.
“I’m enjoying being a vice-captain for the Solheim Cup this year,” the 36-year-old said. “Being part of everything which is being done. It was a big dream of mine to qualify on top of the vice captaincy. Seeing the team come together has been great, seeing how excited everyone is. There’s no other tournament which brings out that atmosphere and excitement.
“There’s some days where it’s harder to go to practice because it’s raining outside or whatever, but then you think about the Solheim Cup, the first tee shot and the atmosphere, coming down those last few holes, it changes your mindset. It’s not really hard to go to practice then knowing that the hard work you put in is going to pay off. Playing in Europe in a couple of weeks with all the support of the European fans is going to be amazing.”
