GAINESVILLE, Va. — Nelly Korda danced at the urging of her partner Megan Khang as they made their first appearance together at the Solheim Cup after former President Barack Obama’s lavish speech. He then allowed Khang to raise his arms to cheer the crowd as they walked to the 12th green following another great shot by the world’s top-ranked player.
Korda hasn’t won the Solheim Cup in three tries, but he put the United States in a strong position to end that drought by winning the leadoff match of each session on Friday while helping the Americans to a 6-2 lead over Europe at Robert Trent Jones. The Golf Club.
The Solheim Cup, which began with an unforced error by the organizers, who did not have enough buses to transport fans to the course early in the morning, ended its first day with the biggest one-day lead by any team. The US also took a 6-2 lead in the first event in 1990, when the first eight games were played over two days.
“We played opponents who play amazing golf, that’s No. 1. Sometimes we invite them to play a lot better,” said European captain Suzann Pettersen. “At the same time, we have to face the truth, and we have a lot of work to do.”
In his better-ball match with Khang, Korda played 14 holes in 8 under and made two eagles on the back nine, the first after his 5-iron approach on the 480-yard, par-5 12th landed 2 feet away. Europe’s Georgia Hall agreed, and Korda hit a 10-footer for eagle on No. 14 to close out a 6 to 4 win over Hall and Leona Maguire.
A six-time winner on the LPGA Tour this year, including his second major championship, Korda enters the Solheim Cup with a 7-4-1 record. But Europe took the trophy each time, winning in 2019 in Scotland and 2021 in Ohio before retaining the trophy last year with a draw in Spain. No team has won the trophy four times in a row.
Korda can’t win it alone — the US needs 14 1/2 points over three days — but he’s certainly important to captain Stacy Lewis on a PGA Tour-tested course that favors power and seems to suit him. . Korda won 16 holes in his career, the most by a single Solheim Cup player in one day since 2015.
He knew he could play badly with the intuitive Khang as his partner.
“If you have a very clean teammate, you don’t have to worry. You just send it,” Korda said. “So that was kind of the motto, I was going to go first and send.”
Lewis also got strong hits from her doubles, sending Lauren Coughlin and Sarah Schmelzel both times and watching them win three points. Coughlin and Rose Zhang beat Celine Boutier and Albane Valenzuela 3 and 2 each, while Schmelzel and Lilia Vu edged Linn Grant and Carlota Ciganda by the same score. The rookies paired better ball and beat Emily Pedersen and Maja Stark 3 and 2.
“I don’t think, at least to me, it was a surprise that we played so well, because we’ve been doing it all year,” said Coughlin, a two-time winner this summer.
Zhang, who was winless in his debut last year, went 2-0 on Friday. He shared the afternoon with Andrea Lee, whose approach on the 14th took the cup – just missing the albatross – to seal a 5-4 win over Grant and Charley Hull.
“Things went according to plan today,” said Lewis.
Meanwhile, Pettersen got nothing from his two best players. Boutier, the European ranked first in the world at No. 10, was rested after his morning loss, while the No. 12 Hull went 0-2.
The games began quietly under an overcast sky, with empty stands surrounding first base as European player Esther Henseleit scored the opening goal at 7:05 a.m. Fans complained of being trapped for hours without access to restrooms while waiting to board buses to the venue. A sprawling resort 40 miles west of Washington, DC, it makes for a welcome addition to the LPGA Tour.
Teaming up with Allisen Corpuz in the opening alternative, Korda was settled in the back nine with German rookie and Olympic silver medalist Henseleit faltering. The Americans won the 14th and 15th holes with pars and closed out Henseleit and Hull 3 and 2 when Korda hit his way to 5 feet on the par-3 16th.
Korda and Corpuz became the first American duo to win three consecutive matches after going 2-0 in the process last year.
The stands were packed by the time the afternoon games began, and the crowds tried in vain to cajole Lexi Thompson into what could be her last Solheim trophy as a player. Thompson and Alison Lee lost their best ball match 6 to 5 to the Swedish duo of Anna Nordqvist and Madelene Sagstrom, who wore matching bucket hats and with Sagstrom’s new husband, Jack Clarke, carrying the bag of -Nordqvist.
Nordqvist, the European assistant captain playing in his ninth Solheim Cup, made six birdies in 13 holes as the pair never trailed.
“I feel like I’ve been a wedding crasher lately. I crashed his wedding last week, and this week I’m crashing my aunt Jack’s vacation,” said Nordqvist. “We just had a lot of fun together.”
