Lexi Thompson, Jennifer Kupcho and Sarah Schmelzel were named Tuesday as captain’s picks for the United States’ 2024 Solheim Cup team.
The three will join the nine automatic qualifiers on captain Stacy Lewis’ team when the event is held Sept. 13-15 at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Gainesville, Va.
For Thompson, this will be her seventh consecutive time playing for the Solheim Cup, tying her for the third-most appearances for the United States.
“Lexi was probably the easiest pick to make of these three, with her experience. I know what Lexi can do at a Solheim Cup and that definitely helped her get a pick,” Lewis said. “She’s somebody who is going to help the team out a lot, on the golf course and also off. With her experience, everybody on the team’s going to be watching what she does to try to learn from her. I am very happy to have Lexi back.”
Thompson, 29, announced in May that she intends to retire from pro golf after this season.
“It means the world to me. To be able to represent my country, it’s the highest honor that you can possibly have,” Thompson said of her selection to the team. “To be there again this year, especially stateside, it’s a dream come true. To be able to play alongside my teammates and under my captains and assistant captains, it’s everything I could ask for.”
Kupcho will be making her third appearance on the U.S. team, while Schmelzel will debut.
“I think Jennifer probably more so than anyone is a great fit for this golf course. I love how high and how straight she hits a golf ball. You can see it in how many strokes she gains off the tee and her ball striking is always what carries her,” Lewis said.
“Sarah’s just super solid and doesn’t beat herself up. She’s a player who can play both formats with a lot of different people. She’s somebody that we’ve been watching for a long time and so we’re excited for her to be playing her first Solheim Cup and teeing it up in Virginia.”
Both players happily accepted the honor.
“I am so happy to be part of the U.S. Team again, back in the team atmosphere,” Kupcho, 27, said. “I’m most excited to be back on U.S. soil and just representing the U.S. in my country is so special to me. I’m so, so excited to do this for my third time and to play under Stacy, who is a great captain.”
“It’s obviously something that I’ve thought about ever since I started getting invited to the Solheim meetings last year,” the 30-year-old Schmelzel said. “It’s something that just kind of sits in the back of your mind, and it’s always there in the back of your mind. It’s always something that you’re working toward, so to finally get to that moment and realize that it had come to fruition, it was honestly really surreal.”
The trio of captain’s picks join automatic qualifiers Nelly Korda, Lilia Vu, Lauren Coughlin, Ally Ewing, Allisen Corpuz, Megan Khang, Andrea Lee, Rose Zhang and Alison Lee. They were selected based on points accrued throughout the season.
The Europeans are the defending champion, winning in 2023 at Finca Cortesin in Spain. The United States holds the all-time lead in Solheim Cup play at 10-7-1.
