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ENGLEWOOD, Co. – The 2013 PING Junior Solheim Cup was awarded to Team USA as they defeated Team Europe 14.5-9.5. The day began in a 6-6 tie, but the Americans claimed seven singles matches and halved three to capture the Cup for the third year.
The PING Junior Solheim Cup is a biennial, trans-Atlantic team match play competition featuring the 12 best female junior golfers (ages 12-18) from Europe and the United States. Matches include four-ball, foursomes and singles. The 2013 event is hosting the seventh PING Junior Solheim Cup, in which Team USA leads the all-time series, 4-2-1.
The fate of the Cup was not obvious at any point during the day. A majority of the Singles Matches came down to the final holes and featured multiple lead changes. Team USA’s Casie Cathrea of Livermore, Calif., and Team Europe’s Shannon Aubert of Annecy, France, swapped leads throughout the match until Aubert birdied No. 15 to go all square. It looked as if the point would be split until Aubert made par on No. 18 and Cathrea was faced with a 25-foot birdie putt. The future Oklahoma State Cowgirl stepped up and rolled it in to win 1-up and give the United States the overall lead at 8.5 to 7.5.
“In these tournaments, it’s all about who plays better in the final day,” said Bronte Law of Stockport, England. “Today didn’t go our way, they got the putts today and we didn’t. I’m sure we will all take a lot of experience from the week. We have all enjoyed ourselves and gotten on well as a team.”
Another close match ended in Team Europe’s favor. Karolin Lampert of Sandhausen, Germany, squared off against Ashlan Ramsey of Milledgeville, Ga. The two matched each other stroke-for-stroke and were all square through the front nine. Ramsey ended the standoff when she rolled in a 10-foot birdie-putt on No. 10 to go 1-up. The American held the lead through No. 15, but Lampert would not give up. She made birdies on Nos. 16 and 17 to go 1-up, and then held the lead through No. 18. Lampert sealed the 1-up win with par on No. 18.
“It’s different than what we are used to,” Aubert said. “We have to rely on each other. We wanted to make it a fight for the Cup and not just give it away.”
Team USA controlled the match 11-8 when the deciding point fell on the No. 18 green with the United States’ Krystal Quihuis of Tucson, Ariz. She was pitted against Virginia Elena Carta of Udine, Italy, and led 1-up through No. 7. Carta battled back with birdies on Nos. 9 and 10 to take a 1-up lead of her own. Quihuis rolled in a long birdie on No. 11 and the match was all square through No. 16.
Sticking with the motif of the day, the pair left the decision until the last two holes. This match was one of seven that ended on either No. 17 or 18. Carta bogeyed No. 17, giving Quihuis the 1-up advantage. Quihuis missed the green on No. 18 and was faced with a birdie-putt from the fringe. She poured it in from 25 feet, winning 1-up and giving the United States the final point it needed to claim the Cup for the third-straight year.
One player from both Team USA and Team Europe remained undefeated throughout the tournament. Bethany Wu of Diamond Bar, Calif., finished with a 3-0-0 record. She won all of her matches in less than 18 holes capping off the perfect record by defeating Law of Cromer, England, 5 and 3.
Lampert also produced a spotless record in the 2013 PING Junior Solheim Cup. She won all of her matches 1-up.
The PING Junior Solheim Cup was especially meaningful to those playing in their last junior event. Team USA’s younger players were happy to send their graduated teammates off with a win.
“We played our best today, I was glad we were able to do it during singles,” said Alexandra Kaui of Las Vegas. “We played solid and really had a lot of heart out there. We couldn’t be more proud this week. For those of us who graduate, it was the best way to end our junior career.”
About PING
The tournament title partner, PING, designs, manufactures and markets a complete line of golf equipment including metal woods, irons, putters and golf bags. The family-owned company was founded in 1959 by the late Karsten Solheim. Solheim is the only person to be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame as a golf club manufacturer. Today, the Phoenix-based company is under the direction of Solheim’s youngest son, John A. Solheim. PING game-improvement products can be found in more than 70 countries. For more information, visit www.ping.com.
About the AJGA
The American Junior Golf Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the overall growth and development of young men and women who aspire to earn college golf scholarships through competitive junior golf. The AJGA provides valuable exposure for college golf scholarships, and has an annual junior membership (boys and girls ages 12-18) of approximately 6,000 junior golfers from 49 states and more than 50 countries. To ensure scholarship opportunities for all junior golfers who have the skill, the AJGA created the Achieving Competitive Excellence (ACE) Grant program to provide financial assistance to young players in need.
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ENGLEWOOD, Colo. – Day one results from the PING Junior Solheim Cup conducted by the American Junior Golf Association at The Bridges of Rancho Santa Fe. Par: 35-35-70. Yardage: 6,572. Rating/Slope: 78.2/149.
TOTAL — United States 14.5, Europe 9.5
Day One – Morning Four-Ball Matches: USA 3.5, Europe 2.5
Day One – Foursomes Matches: USA 4.5, Europe 1.5
Day Two results – Singles matches –USA 8.5, Europe 3.5
Casey Danielson, Osceola, Wis. (2013) USA vs. Georgia Hall, Bournemouth, England (2013) EUROPE, halved
Nicole Morales, South Salem, N.Y. (2014) USA def. Amber Ratcliffe, Cromer, England (2013) EUROPE, 3 & 2
Karolin Lampert, Sandhausen, Germany (2014) EUROPE def. Ashlan Ramsey, Milledgeville, Ga. (2013) USA, 1-up
Samantha Wagner, Windermere, Fla. (2015) USA vs. Emily Pedersen, Smörum, Denmark (2016) EUROPE, halved
Casie Cathrea, Livermore, Calif. (2013) USA def. Shannon Aubert, Annecy, France (2014) EUROPE, 1-up
Alexandra Kaui, Las Vegas, Nev. (2013) USA def. Anyssia Herbaut, Saint-Raphael, France (2013) EUROPE, 2 & 1
Krystal Quihuis, Tucson, Ariz. (2014) USA def. Virginia Elena Carta, Udine, Italy (2015) EUROPE, 1-up
Andrea Lee, Hermosa Beach, Calif. (2016) USA vs. Linnea Ström, Göteborg, Sweden (2015) EUROPE, halved
Karen Chung, Livingston, N.J. (2013) USA def. Harang Lee, Cantabria, Spain (2013) EUROPE, 3 & 1
Bethany Wu, Diamond Bar, Calif. (2015) USA def. Bronte Law, Stockport, England (2013) EUROPE, 5 & 3
Anne van Dam, Arnhem, Netherlands (2015) EUROPE def Amy Lee, Brea, Calif. (2015) USA, 3 & 1
Alison Lee, Valencia, Calif. (2013) USA def. Jessica Vasilic, Partille, Sweden (2013) EUROPE, 3 & 1
