Laura Davies will be vice-captain of Team Europe at the host Finca Cortesin course. Photo: Getty Images/Andrew Redington
Competitive Fire is still mad at Laura Davis. Perhaps not because of her own game, which recently traumatized her to the point where she is considering retirement after 38 years of professional golf, but certainly because of this week's Solheim Cup.
“When it all started, I never thought for a moment that it would ever get this big,” Davis, 59, says. «And no, I probably didn't think Europe would have a chance of beating the Americans three times in a row.»
Britain's greatest female golfer in history was there from the start. Right at the beginning. She and compatriot Alison Nicholas beat Pat Bradley and Nancy Lopez in the top four at the inaugural Solheim Cup in 1990.
If it's possible to get into «huge trouble» in an 18-hole match, this was it. It set the stage for the women's equivalent of the Ryder Cup to build a reputation for organizing transatlantic giant slayings. However, for Davis the resonance was hardly overwhelming.
“It was fun, but honestly it didn’t seem like much to me,” she says. “There weren’t many fans at Lake Nona [the Orlando venue] and it wasn’t even on TV. There were only eight players on each side and there wasn't much interest. We were completely defeated and you were worried whether there was any future for him. And here we are 33 years later. He exploded. There are huge crowds here and amazing TV coverage.
“It's great to be on the continent these two weeks (with the Ryder Cup in Rome next week) and there's been a lot of talk about that this could raise Solheim's authority. I'm not entirely sure. From my point of view, it seems quite large. Either way, this is probably the biggest week in women's golf.»
Davis' status in the Solheim Cup promotion is assured. She played in the first 12, which remains a record for most matches, and scored 25 points, also a record. She was a standout player in 1992 at Dalmahoy, winning all her matches and a European victory considered vital to Solheim's short-term survival. “We were huge underdogs and had no right to be on the same fairway as them, so it was very important for Europe and the prosperity of the match as a whole.”
Davis (center) was part of the 1992 European team that beat the United States in Scotland. Photo: Getty Images/David Cannon
Davis, more than anyone else, kept this first dozen Cups as competitive as possible, losing only 18 of 46 games. Then, after its triumph in 2011, it was abandoned with virtually no protest. “I thought I was going to make the team for 2013, but Lieselotte [Neumann] called and said no, and the team won their first road game in Denver. If I had played, Europe would not have won. I don't know why I didn't participate at all in 2015 and 2017. The captains [Karin Koch and Annika Sorenstam] had good reasons.»
Except that Davies competed in 2015 and her words in the Sky Sports commentary for that match in Germany make her role in Spain as Vice-Captain Suzanne Pettersen is even more unlikely.
Davis acted as the European conscience in the «Gimmegate» controversy, which saw Pettersen demand the hole from Alison Lee, claiming she had not given in to the 16-inch sobbing opener. “I’m disgusted,” Davis said. “How Suzanne can justify this, I will never know. She let herself down and, of course, she let her team down. I'm so glad I'm not on this team.»
Davis says now: «I support it. And Suzanne, although she has apologized over the years, stands firm because, as she later explained to me, Alison had already been warned about this.
“We never had a quarrel. fight about it and it will all go away. You never want to win a game like this, but there has been a lot of controversy over the years, and that's what's going on in Solheim's passion.
“Last time, the Americans were awarded the hole after Madeleine [Sagström] picked up Nellie Korda's ball without waiting 10 seconds for it to fall. I guess it's kind of the needle that helps attract the average sports fan. But I would still prefer it to be a sports match, and I would like it if we didn't have any hot spots this time. Especially in my games.»
Suzanne Pettersen later apologized for not giving Alison Lee her punch and claiming the right to hole after the American Photo: Getty Images/Stuart Franklin
Davies, who was also part of Catriona Matthew's 2019 staff, will be tasked with overseeing the meetings between Charlie Hull, Georgia Hall and Gemma Dryburgh. “I just make sure they and their caddies have everything they need.
“The thing about being an assistant is that you get all the fun without the responsibility. The captain is always a hero and a villain. People keep asking why I wasn't captain and the truth is that although there were indirect approaches through my manager, I was never asked directly. I would still say no. I just don't want to do it.”
Even if the match was held in her home country? “Well, it might be different. It was never played in England, which is incredible to me given the players we had at Solheim and continue to have. Of course, it's about money, but I would like to see it.”
For now, Davis is concentrating on helping Pettersen try to make history with three wins in a row. “The team is probably the strongest in our history and we have home advantage. But unlike recent Ryder Cups (which the home team won by at least five points), Solheim has slid into the last few matches and could slip back into moments. It's not good for the heart, but fans love their loved ones.”
Another interesting woman might even distract Davis from her own travails on the golf course. “I think I’m done playing everything except senior tournaments. It's all in my head, because at the shooting range I shoot normally. On the first tee of the Women's Open [at Walton Heath] last month, I couldn't feel my legs. It's certainly a sign that the time has come.
“I'm due to play my last women's tournament at St Andrews next year and the R&A have contacted me. People told me that I needed a moment on the Swilkan Bridge to wave goodbye and all that. But if I play badly, I won't take the place away from someone more deserving. It would be selfish. At the moment I'm 100 percent sure I'm not playing, but a year is a long time in golf. Solheim shows how quickly things can change.»
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