England’s Mel Reid returns to Team Europe for her fourth Solheim Cup appearance and is excited to play under captain Catriona Matthew.
Back in 2019, Reid didn’t make the team but was still involved after Matthew made her an assistant captain for Gleneagles.
The English star made sure to soak in the whole experience but worked hard to earn a spot on the 2021 team.
“It’s nicer than giving out water bottles, if I’m being honest, to most of the players. I think that [being an assistant captain] gave me a different perspective of the Solheim Cup, which I think is what I needed, and it was a huge honour being asked to play that role,” admitted Reid.
Being able to help the winning European side alongside captain Matthew gave the Englishwoman the opportunity to be a part of the success.
It drove her to get better and after her win on the LPGA Tour in 2020, she played her way into securing a Captain’s Pick.
“Honestly, she’s by far the best captain that I’ve ever been part of as a team, and I was just hugely impressed with her at Gleneagles,” she said. “I texted her straight after saying I want to be a player with you as a captain. I tried my hardest to get in this team, and luckily, I did. She’s just honestly a huge honour to play under. She’s just a fantastic woman, fantastic career, and a fantastic Solheim Cup captain.”
Reid has firm belief in Matthew’s values and ability as a captain and appreciates her approach to leading Team Europe again this year.
“Catriona is so laid back. I think one of her biggest assets is she lets the players do what they want. She says ‘hey, you want to play 18, play 18; you want to play nine, play nine; you want to play 12, play 12’. She knows we all know how to prepare,” Reid explained.
“I just think she does it so well in creating a team but allowing the players to be individual at the same time and prepare how they would normally prepare. She’s a very approachable lady, she’s just one of the nicest and she’s surprisingly funny for a Scottish. She’s just a fantastic captain.”
Having had the experience as an assistant captain, Reid is excited to kick off the Solheim Cup on Saturday morning and believes her team consists of elite players.
“It is a great team and the strongest one we have had. If I was to write 12 players, this is the 12 players I would have picked. The majority of our players play on the LPGA, and they have played against the best in the world, and they’re not intimidated,” she said.
“Plus, we have got Emily [Pedersen] who basically won everything in Europe, and she is still playing in a certain amount of events in America. All these girls, they’re not scared of the American team.”
Being a Solheim Cup rookie ten years ago in 2011, Reid believes in the capability of the newcomers, as well as the fiery spirit of the experienced players on Team Europe.
Reid added: “We’ve had a few rookies already win on Tour that are in this team. I just think that goes miles. I think the belief in the rookies, I think they’re completely fearless, and that’s just amazing to have on a team. And then we’ve obviously got the players like Charley [Hull], Georgia [Hall], Carlota [Ciganda], Anna [Nordqvist], I mean, the British Open could not have set up any better for us.”
