Solheim Cup 2024: Who is playing, how does qualification work and will Team Europe retain the trophy?

When is the Solheim Cup and where is it being held? How do players qualify to feature for Team Europe? All you need to know ahead of the 2024 contest, live on Sky Sports.

When is the 2024 Solheim Cup?

The biggest team tournament in women’s golf, where Team USA face Team Europe, starts on Friday September 13 and finishes on Sunday September 15.

It is the second successive year the Solheim Cup has taken place and the first time in an even-numbered year since Team USA’s victory in 2002.

Why has the date changed?

The biennial contest has switched back to even-numbered years to avoid clashing with the Ryder Cup, which moved to odd-numbered years after being postponed in 2020 due to the Covid-10 pandemic.

Both events took place in successive weeks on European soil in 2023, with the Solheim Cup now taking place in back-to-back years, before reverting to a biennial contest again from 2026.

Where does the event take place?

Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Gainesville, Virginia is the venue for the 2024 contest, having previously hosted four Presidents Cups in the men’s game and the 2015 Quicken Loans National on the PGA Tour.

Bernardus Golf in the Netherlands will be the venue of the 2026 contest, the course used for the Dutch Open on the DP World Tour, with future sites – alternating between the United States and Europe – yet to be confirmed.

Who are the current holders?

Team Europe still has the trophy after a dramatic 14-14 draw in last September’s contest at Finca Cortesin in Spain, following on from a narrow win at Gleneagles in 2019 and successful defence on American soil in 2021.

There have been 18 editions of the Solheim Cup since its inception in 1990, with Team USA coming out on top on 10 occasions, while Europe have won seven of them and the 2023 contest being the only tie.

Who will captain the two teams?

The two captains from last year’s contest in Spain retain their roles once again, with Suzann Pettersen leading Team Europe and Stacy Lewis serving as USA captain for a second time.

Pettersen has kept Anna Nordqvist, Dame Laura Davies and Caroline Martens as vice-captains for this year’s event, with Mel Reid also named after previously taking the role for Catriona Matthew in 2019.

Paula Creamer and Brittany Lincicome serve as Team USA assistant captains for a second successive Solheim Cup, with Morgan Pressel and Angela Stanford completing Lewis’ backroom line-up.

How does qualification work?

Time is running out for players to secure their Solheim Cup spots on their own merit, with the final qualifying event for both teams being the AIG Women’s Open at St Andrews from August 22-25, ahead of the teams being confirmed the following week.

Team USA will contain the leading seven players in the Solheim Cup points standings, based on earning points from LPGA Tour events, with the next two available players in the world rankings and three captain’s picks completing the team.

The European side is made up of the top two players in the European Solheim Cup points list, earned from performances on the Ladies European Tour, along with the next six players in the world rankings and four captain’s picks.

Who is due to feature as things stand? (As of July 8)

Nelly Korda and Lilia Vu are the top two in the standings and are already guaranteed a spot in Team USA, while Ally Ewing, Allisen Corpuz, Megan Khang, Andrea Lee and Rose Zhang currently occupy the other automatic spots on the US points list.

A victory is worth 450 points and those ranked seventh to 15th on the points list are separated by just 379.5 points, so a strong performance could significantly boost qualification hopes.

Alison Lee and Angel Yin would currently be the two qualifiers via the world rankings, while Lexi Thompson and Jennifer Kupcho are among those just outside the automatic spots.

The six Rolex Rankings qualifiers for European Team are currently Celine Boutier, Maja Stark, Leona Maguire, Carlota Ciganda, Madelene Sagstrom and Georgia Hall, with Esther Henseleit and Anna Nordqvist the two closest challengers.

Charley Hull and Linn Grant hold the two spots via the European Team points standings.

What is the format and when does play start?

There are 28 matches played over the three days, under three different types of match play – foursomes, fourballs and singles, with each match worth one point to the team total. The team who gets to 14.5 points first will win the Solheim Cup, while Europe will retain the trophy again if the tournament ends in another 14-14 draw

Foursomes sees two golfers from Europe compete against a pair from the USA, with team members alternating between shots and each team using one ball. Four matches are played on Friday morning and four on Saturday morning, beginning at 7.05am both days (12.05pm BST) and going off in 12-minute intervals.

Fourballs also sees two golfers from each team compete, but each player uses his own ball. The lowest score from each pair will count for the score for their side. There are four fourball matches each afternoon for the first two days. These are due to begin at 12.05pm (5.05pm BST) both days at 15-minute intervals.

The final day sees all 24 players compete in singles matches, where every member from the USA team plays against a European opponent in a head-to-head contest. The opening match is set to start at 8.50am (1.50pm BST) and the last at 10.40am (3.40pm BST), with matches out every 10 minutes.

Who will win the 2024 Solheim Cup? Watch live from September 13-15 on Sky Sports! Stream the LPGA Tour, Ladies European Tour, majors and more with NOW.