Lpga: USA win Solheim cup
solheim America's women golfers followed last week's successful defence of the amateur Walker Cup with a brilliant winning display at the Solheim Cup at Halmstad in Sweden today.

Even though Laura Diaz and Sherri Steinhauer, the two players called "choking freaking dogs" by former star Dottie Pepper on Saturday, could not hit back in the way they had hoped, their team-mates simply dazzled in the singles.

From one point down after losing the morning fourballs 3-1 and after Scot Catriona Matthew's had put Europe two points ahead when she won the opening singles game against Diaz, the United States came storming back to take the session eight and a half to three and a half and the match 16-12.  They now lead the series 7-3, but this was only the second time Europe have been beaten at home and, just like St Pierre in Wales 11 years ago, all the good work done in the foursomes and fourballs was then undone.

On that occasion the Americans trailed by two and ended up winning 17-11.

Laura Davies, an ever-present since the event started in 1990, and Swede Linda Wessberg were Europe's only other winners, although Wessberg's victory over US Women's Open champion Cristie Kerr came after the issue had already been decided.

Davies crushed Brittany Lincicome four and three, while the most notable American point came from 19-year-old Morgan Pressel, who grabbed her first win by beating Annika Sorenstam two and one.

That stopped Sorenstam being the top European points-scorer for the fourth match in a row.

She finished with two and a half out of five, leaving Matthew at the head of the points table for Helen Alfredsson's side with three out of four.

"I definitely played my best golf today - I think the rest yesterday helped me," said 38-year-old Matthew, who became a mother last December and yet less than four months later was runner-up in a major.

America's top scorer was 21-year-old Paula Creamer, with two wins and three halves for a personal tally of three and a half points, while 47-year-old Juli Inkster contributed three and beat Iben Tinning four and four for her sixth singles victory in seven appearances.

The distinction of retaining the trophy fell to Nicole Castrale when she defeated Bettina Hauert three and two and then Creamer made the match safe by overcoming Maria Hjorth two and one.

That was entirely fitting as Castrale had turned in a best-of-the-week 32 and Creamer a 33.

Welsh debutant Becky Brewerton did halve with Steinhauer in the fifth game, but the writing was on the wall by then.

Yet it had all looked so promising in mid-morning.

Because of the time lost to the strong winds on Saturday morning the fourballs resumed at 7.35am with Europe behind by a point in the match, but up in three and level in the other game out on the course.

They ended up taking the session 3-1 and as on the first two days the Americans let things slip after turning things in their favour.

Great putting by Creamer took her and Lincicome one ahead with two to play on Wessberg and Hjorth, but they missed from six and five feet respectively to lose the 17th and had to settle for a half.

Sorenstam and Pettersen, unbeaten as a partnership, went away impressively from Kerr and Pressel to win three and two and Tinning's chip-in birdie at the 17th earned her and Johnson a half with Inkster and Prammanasudh after they had fallen behind.

Davies and Brewerton resumed one up with eight to go and were still in that position when Davies fired in a brilliant approach to four feet on the last. She did not even have to putt to clinch the point that took Europe ahead for the first time.
 

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