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| From left: Alison Nicholas and Rosie Jones meet on the steps of Killeen Castle |
Solheim Cup captains, Alison Nicholas (Europe) and Rosie Jones (USA) arrived at Killeen Castle today to survey the Jack Nicklaus course and their potential players ahead of this week’s Ladies Irish Open, supported by Fáilte Ireland. The countdown is on with just 50 days to the big battle between Europe and the USA for The 2011 Solheim Cup which will take place at Killeen Castle this September 23-25.
The Ladies Irish Open, supported by Fáilte Ireland, comes on the back of two big tournaments on the Ladies European Tour with the Evian Masters and the Ricoh British Open taking place in the past few weeks. The strongest ever field has assembled for the tournament which takes place on the same course that will host The 2011 Solheim Cup this September 23rd to 25th, and the tee-sheet at Killeen Castle will see a host of Solheim candidates take part. The star studded list of European players include Laura Davies, Melissa Reid, Anna Nordqvist, Catriona Matthew, Maria Hjorth, Sandra Gal and defending champion Sophie Gustafson.
Several Solheim candidates for the American team are also taking advantage of the opportunity including world number 11 Stacey Lewis who will be joined by compatriots Christina Kim, Vicky Hurst and 16 year old sensation Lexi Thompson.
European Solheim Cup captain Alison Nicholas stated; “We are down to the business end of the season of the season and with just 50 days until The 2011 Solheim Cup, every ranking point counts. I am delighted to see so many Solheim candidates play the Irish Open which offers some vital experience on this great course. Let’s hope we can get a confidence boosting European win this week“.
The European team will comprise the top four players from the European points’ list, the next highest four from the Rolex World Rankings and four captains’ picks, so at present, the European team status is:
Top four from European points’ standings:
| Position | Player | LET Points |
| 1 | Laura Davies (ENG) | 176.33 |
| 2 | Melissa Reid (ENG) | 170.83 |
| 3 | Christel Boeljon (NL) | 151.59 |
| 4 | Suzann Pettersen (NOR) | 140.50 |
The next four from the Rolex Rankings are made up of:
| Position | Player | Rolex Points Average |
| 5 | Maria Hjorth (SWE) | 5.47 |
| 6 | Anna Nordqvist (SWE) | 3.94 |
| 7 | Catriona Matthew (SCO) | 3.26 |
| 8 | Sophie Gustafson (SWE) | 3.21 |
The USA team will include the top 10 players from the points system along with two captain’s selections:
| Position | Player | LPGA Points |
| 1 | Cristie Kerr | 750.0 |
| 2 | Morgan Pressel | 447.5 |
| 3 | Stacy Lewis | 446.5 |
| 4 | Angela Stanford | 438.5 |
| 5 | Paula Creamer | 407.5 |
| 6 | Michelle Wie | 358.0 |
| 7 | Brittany Lincicome | 350.5 |
| 8 | Brittany Lang | 270.5 |
| 9 | Juli Inkster | 188.5 |
| 10 | Christina Kim | 150.5 |
The Ladies Irish Open, supported by Fáilte Ireland, takes place from August 5th to 7th at Killeen Castle, Dunsany, Co. Meath. Located just off exit six on the M3, just fifteen minutes from the Blanchardstown M50 turn-off, the event is very accessible to the greater Dublin area and surrounding counties. The event is very family friendly with free tickets for children and senior citizens. Standard tickets are just €10, with season passes for €25. Public parking is available on-site and tickets can be purchased on entry or by visiting www.ladiesirishopen.ie.
For the latest information and to purchase tickets for The 2011 Solheim Cup visit www.solheimcup.com.
