Solheim Cup 2026 Schedule: Team USA Chases Repeat Title Against Europe at Bernardus Golf in the Netherlands

CROMVOIRT, Netherlands — The 20th Solheim Cup gets underway Friday at Bernardus Golf, where the United States will try to become the first American team to win back-to-back editions since 2017 while Europe looks to reclaim the trophy on home soil for the first time on Dutch turf.

The biennial team match-play competition, pitting the top 12 professionals from the U.S. against their European counterparts, runs from Friday, Sept. 11, through Sunday, Sept. 13, following practice rounds that began the week of Sept. 7. It marks the first time the event has been staged in the Netherlands, with the course set in North Brabant near Eindhoven and 's-Hertogenbosch.

Schedule and format

Play unfolds over three days using the same match-play format as the men's Ryder Cup, with 28 total points up for grabs.

Friday, Sept. 11 opens with four foursomes, or alternate-shot, matches in the morning session, followed by four fourball, or better-ball, matches in the afternoon. Eight players from each 12-woman roster compete in every session.

Saturday, Sept. 12 repeats the structure — four foursomes matches in the morning and four fourball matches in the afternoon.

Sunday, Sept. 13 concludes with 12 singles matches, sending every player from both teams out in head-to-head competition to settle the cup. A team needs 14½ points to win outright; 14-14 would allow the defending U.S. side to retain the trophy.

Defending champions look to make history

The United States enters as the defending champion after a 15½-12½ victory at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Virginia in 2024, a win that snapped a run in which Europe won the Cup outright in 2019 and 2021 and retained it with a 14-14 tie in 2023. Should the Americans prevail again this week, it would be their first repeat title since 2015 and 2017.

Standing in their way is a Europe side chasing a different piece of history. Europe has not lost the Solheim Cup on home soil since 2015, and the continent's players will be looking to draw on raucous home galleries for the first time in a country that has never hosted the event.

The United States holds an 11-8 advantage in the overall Solheim Cup series, though the margin has tightened as Europe has controlled much of the past decade. In 2024, a birdie from Lilia Vu on the 18th hole at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club ultimately clinched the Cup for the U.S. team.

Team USA: Korda headlines a mix of veterans and rookies

Angela Stanford, in her first year as U.S. captain, finalized her 12-player roster after the CPKC Women's Open concluded the American qualification period. World No. 1 Nelly Korda headlined the nine automatic qualifiers, a group that also includes Angel Yin, Jennifer Kupcho, Yealimi Noh, Auston Kim, Lauren Coughlin, Allisen Corpuz, and both Andrea Lee and Alison Lee, who claimed spots via the world rankings.

Stanford rounded out the side with three captain's picks: Solheim veterans Rose Zhang and Megan Khang, along with 35-year-old rookie Lindy Duncan. Zhang, despite slipping outside the top 60 in the world rankings this year, went unbeaten across four matches in 2024, and Stanford is banking on her tapping back into that form under pressure.

Reflecting on the difficulty of trimming her roster, Stanford said, "It's been so much fun. Of course, we had our tough times, and it's about getting down to the moment that we have to tell people they did not make it."

Team Europe: Home continent, new captain, four debutants

Anna Nordqvist, a nine-time Solheim Cup player now leading the European side for the first time, filled out her roster with eight automatic qualifiers and four captain's picks. Charley Hull topped the LET Solheim Cup points list to secure her an eighth consecutive Solheim Cup appearance, while Esther Henseleit finished second on that list. Lottie Woad, Maja Stark, Celine Boutier, Carlota Ciganda, Linn Grant and Nanna Koerstz Madsen rounded out the automatic qualifiers via the world rankings.

For her wild cards, Nordqvist turned to experience and fresh talent alike. Ireland's Leona Maguire, Spain's Julia Lopez Ramirez, France's Nastasia Nadaud and England's Mimi Rhodes were named as her four picks, giving the European side four Solheim Cup debutants overall, according to team trackers. England's Lottie Woad will make her debut as the highest-ranked European in the world rankings, having won on both the Ladies European Tour and LPGA Tour since turning professional roughly 13 months ago. Sweden's Maja Stark and Linn Grant are back for a third consecutive Solheim Cup appearance.

Nordqvist's backroom staff includes vice-captains Caroline Hedwall, Mel Reid and Dutchwoman Anne van Dam, with Hedwall bringing five prior playing appearances and Reid four, plus prior vice-captain experience.

The venue

Bernardus Golf, a course that has previously hosted the Dutch Open on the DP World Tour, was named the host site in a deal that runs well beyond this year's matches. The 2026 edition is the first Solheim Cup to be run by IMG, appointed by the Ladies European Tour as the delivery partner for the European-hosted competition from 2026 through 2038, signaling a long-term commitment to expanding the event's footprint on the continent.

What's at stake

Beyond the trophy, Sunday's singles session carries extra weight for both captains. A strong American start could put the U.S. within reach of consecutive titles for the first time in nearly a decade, while a European statement in the opening foursomes would set the tone for a raucous home crowd looking to reclaim bragging rights on Dutch soil for the first time in the event's history.

Play begins Friday morning at Bernardus Golf, with all three days of foursomes, fourballs and singles matches expected to draw large galleries to North Brabant.