Nordqvist bets on youth for the home defense
Anna Nordqvist had four captain’s picks to complete her Team Europe side. She spent three of them on players who have never held a Solheim Cup point. Julia Lopez Ramirez of Spain, France’s Nastasia Nadaud and England’s Mimi Rhodes all earned debuts on Monday, joining Irish veteran Leona Maguire as the final four names for the Sept. 11-13 match at Bernardus Golf in the Netherlands.
The choice reads as a captain trusting form over reputation. Nadaud, 21, has made the cut at every major she entered in 2026. Rhodes, 24, won three times on the Ladies European Tour in 2025 and took Rookie of the Year. Lopez Ramirez, 23, is only in her second LPGA season. Maguire is the counterweight, a fourth straight appearance and a return of 8.5 points from 12 career matches that Europe will lean on once the pressure lands.
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A team built to protect home soil
The rookies fill out a lineup already stocked with major pedigree. Charley Hull and Esther Henseleit booked their places through LET Solheim Cup points. Lottie Woad, Maja Stark, Linn Grant, Celine Boutier, Carlota Ciganda and Nanna Koerstz Madsen round out the 12. It is a group heavy on European tour winners and short on passengers.
History frames the stakes. The United States took the 2024 edition 15 1/2 to 12 1/2 at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Virginia, so Europe arrives as the side trying to reclaim the trophy. The number Nordqvist cares about is older: Europe has not lost a Solheim Cup on home soil since 2015, when the Americans edged them 14 1/2 to 13 1/2 in Germany. Bernardus Golf is meant to keep that record intact.
September looms
Nadaud carries an extra storyline as a French rookie stepping onto European soil for the biggest team event in the women’s game. Six weeks out, Nordqvist has her 12. The waiting starts now.
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