Sublime Solheim restores lustre to competition

"The need was even greater for a Solheim Cup largely ignored by British newspapers."

It wasn't just largely ignored by newspapers, Iain. I struggled to find much coverage on the BBC Sport web-site during the event, and even after the victory it wasn't exactly top-billing on the site. Very disappointing I would say.

It was a stunning finish to the event. Europe seemed dead and buried with just the last 3 matches on the course. The last 3 European players produced fantastic golf and no little nerve to pull off a stunning win.

Well done, ladies!

I am not a big golf fan in general and even less interested in ladies golf, but the Sky coverage of the last few games yesterday had me intrigued.

Had a wry chuckle at how little comment the invasion of the 18th green by Europe's players when there was still a game on 17th caused, compared to the outright harrumphing aimed at the male Yanks in the War on the Shore.

#2 I think you mean the Battle of Brookline in 99 not Kiawah Island in 1991 (War on the Shore). The difference was that the final outcome had not been decided in Brookline. Olazabal still had a chance to keep the contest alive with a long range putt that the Americans trampled all over the line of. That was not the case yesterday.

I don't watch much women's golf but the whole match was absorbing and the last few holes showed the women digging really deep for victory. My hero was Caroline Hedwall who has been a little overlooked but her half from being two down showed real character under immense pressure.

It was great to watch for the skill shown (Munoz on 17, Hedwall and Petterson on 18 stand out for me) and the build up of tension over the afternoon.

Agree with the blog. I've never been much into the women's game, but watching this weekend, I kept thinking this is absolutely briliant. This is now my second favourite golf competition, after the ryder cup. Congratulations to all the players for creating a great advertisement for women's golf.

Only one point, is the competition slighlty devalued by the fact that many of the world's best players, namely the Asians, are excluded?

Still no cure for Luke Donald Disease

I think its a shame the BBC could not afford any coverage on the Solheim Cup. BBC not only lacks golf coverage but is minimal on ladies golf. This event is as exciting as The Ryder Cup, why should Sky have the monopoly?.

It's a shame the BBC only took notice of the Solheim Cup once it was won. The lack of coverage -website, TV, radio - was deplorable. The website couldn't even be bothered to post scores, let alone provide commentary. For the three days all there was was a link to the external Solheim Cup website (which wasn't working properly).
I haven't been able to find a highlights program either.
The BBC's coverage of women in sport has become disgraceful. I recommend the BBC have a women's sport section on the website, which groups together all reports on women's sport: then you'd realise just how pitiful the coverage is. A Question of Sport illustrates this very well: on average, women make up 11% of the panellists. The Wimbledon special this year didn't even have any women on it! And no, Sue Barker doesn't count

#5 Do you think Asians etc. should be involved in the Ryder Cup? Because that is effectively what the Solheim Cup was set up to emulate. If Asia wants to have a team to play USA or Europe then fine, but it should be separate competition.

#8 I agree entirely. BBC coverage very, very lightweight, and the Solheim Cup page was soooo slow I couldn't see any scores on Friday/Saturday.

Agree whole heartedly with post 1 re bbc coverage.
Link for scores was via external site.
On Monday morning the headline on the bbc website was tiger woods has a new caddy!
It has become typical of BBC sport where if they don't have cover on tv, despite the number of bbc personnel at the event, there is little if any up to date info on the website.
I was down for the day watching and the quality of the golf was outstanding.
But honestly i would hate to play in a saturday fourball with many of the americans because they take their time!
After 1 if the rain breaks we were at a par3 waiting on wie to arrive.
Pettersen was there waiting and captain nicholas arrived. They played keepie up for 5 mins and to me this was a turning point.
A relaxed Pettersen turned on the magic from there on in!
Well done europe!

Wonderful, exciting and ultimately a fantastic conclusion to a great weekend. I was lucky to watch all three days on the Golf Channel here in Chicago from start to finish. However on all the media today they lead with the same story as the BBC website.....Tiger`s new caddy !!! Shame on them

Just spent six days at the solheim cup. Had a wonderful time, three days of practise where the ladies of both teams allowed a surprising amount of interaction with the fans, photos and autographs. Then three days of great intense competition with a dramatic finale. These ladies are a class act and deserve much better coverage than they get.

#13 Iain, yes you provided some comments on Twitter, but that is not what I would call coverage. I don't use Twitter myself and find the pithy coverage deeply annoying. You surely can't deny the BBC's coverage was at best half-hearted?

What an amazing gesture by Europe's Ladies to bring a picture of SEVE up on the stage for the cup presentation, a very emotional moment just to show what he meant to us all. A fantastic tournament as is the Ryder Cup, brilliant Golf, marvellous entertainment.

It was great, the 'S' cup, really enjoyed it. Let's not downplay the news about Tiger's new caddy, though. Definitely merits a headline.

What does everyone think about the continued use of Belly Putters in the game? Disgraceful amount being used. Its embarressing. John Hawksworth was saying last night they should be banned cause they are ruining the game.

Lots of comment about BBC coverage, which I agree was very poor - even after the win on Sunday, the main topic on Monday was that Tiger Woods had appointed a new caddy!! Even Hass' win was outstripped by Tiger doing something quite inconsequential. Sky provided great coverage of the tournament and the final stages were a fabulous sporting spectacle- even had Europe lost, it was great sport to watch. And don't even get me on the cycling - Mark Cavendish wins a world title and the BBC Sport website leads with football or F1!

#18 I don't recall any of the ladies using one. What's the issue with them? If they were so good then many majors would have been won using one, but so far only one has (US PGA 2011). I don't have a problem with them at all.

i have blogging now for the last four blogs and i have been telling everyone about an up and coming star who will be in the ryder cup team next year! A certain mickweir and jeffkenna told me my knowledge and this person was a nobody and wouldnt win anything. look through the last blogs people!! his name is...... ill say it again....... KENNETH FERRIE!!

did anyone else see john daly slap his caddie??

Well done, Europe, the victory would have been better if Stupples had conceded a half for Kerr. Who wants a win against someone who is too injured to play??

No doubt in my mind that the golfing performance of the weekend was from Suzann Pettersen. I don't ever remember anyone combine so much focus and determination into such incredible performance under such tension as she did over those last three holes. It's so common to crumble under pressure but she rose to it superbly.

The Playoff finale in the States was an anticlimax. None of the players grabbed hold of the tournament and Luke hung around like he always does. The main problem comes from the format itself though. The US commentators (NBC so not saying much) didn't seem to have a clue and it's just not fun watching an opaque tournament. In the end, Bill Haas's one and only win of the season allowed him to win the $10 million dollar bonus. It needs a total rethink. What about a 15 round tournament over 5 weeks with players being cut each week? At least you'd know who'd won at the end!

congrats to europe on solheim win...tough break for christie kerr her heart was so crushed that she couldn't play...can't wait for '13!!!

Everyone complaining about the lack of coverage needs a reality check on what makes the world go round - money.

People just aren't interested in women's golf, it is boring. Not because of the standard of play (it is at times brilliant), but because of the pace of play and the fact that men are better.

Plus the FedEx is ruining world golf. The PGA tour is intent on destroying the Ryder Cup and weakening the European Tour, all for it's own gains. When will American's wake up to the fact they are no longer the dominant force in world golf.

Fair do's Iain,
You correctly suggested a European win and the ladies delivered superbly.
As for the pace of play, even Dottie Pepper on Golf Channel coverage said that Pressell and Creamer were going slow deliberately in their match w/Davies and Reid to try and slow down and unsettle Dame Laura (it worked). And the Wie ruling (on Saturday?) must have taken 25 minutes - time to blame the officials for that one.

Lots of speculation that Webb Simpson will play either the McGladrey's and/or Disney to try and wrest the money title from St.Lukey . . . . . . Not a done deal yet by any means.

Thanks for the Solheim coverage.

@givemeabreak..there are loads of Pro's using Belly Putters now. Peter Aliis the great man even spoke out about them, he called them utterly embarressing and a disgrace to the good game of Golf.
mickysausage....i think you'll find it was me harping on about Kennith Ferrie the whole time! As for John Daly it wasnt a slap, my mate was there and he says he pushed his caddy over and them gave him a bit of a kick in the back as he was down.

I think people need to stop whinging about the coverage! The coverage was perfect on Sky Sports so i dont see what the fuss is? The reason the coverage was bad on the BBC is because they dont have the rights to it and Sky obviously outbid them for those rights! The only major coverage the BBC have ownership of is the British Open. So yes guys the BBC coverage is obviously poor seeing as they dont have ownership of the Solheim cup coverage!!

Did anyone see Kenneth Ferrie's breathtaking victory in the Austrian Open?? hit a pinseeker out the rough in the playoff hole, now thats nerves of steel fo you!

@5 RickyM, this is a competition for Europe and the USA, just like the Ryder cup, why would there be Asians in it?? Its like say why are there no british playing in the African cup of nations!

@Give Me A Break! Belly putters are embarrassing for the game of golf and this as been outlawed by favorites such as Peter Alliss, John Hawksworth, Arnold Palmer and Bob Bubka over recen weeks. Its obviously a game henancer as all the top pro's seem to be going down this route, Mickleson becoming the latest. Peter Alliss i heard is starting a campain to Ban Belly Putters, Iain is this correct??

have to agree with mickysausage on the Belly Putters. we need to get them banned. Lets start a campaign. we need to hear from Don247 on this please.

just a reminder of how much we should respect John Hawksworth's opinion about Belly Putters.....
Hawksworth had about 220 Yards to the green and he was on a tight lie on a downward slope, the ball was about 8 inches below his feet. he was hitting directly into the wind. it was a very stiff breeze, about 30mph i'd say. Hawksworth played a low punched 3 iron that pierced the wind and flew straight and true and finished about 2 foot from the pin. without doubt the best shot in the world ever.

"The need was even greater for a Solheim Cup largely ignored by British newspapers."

Whereas, until the final score, the BBC's contribution was "Solheim Cup Latest (External Link)".

@Mickeysausage, RickyM is clearly aware of the reason there are no asians. His question is a legitimate one: if some of the world's best golfers, namely the asians, are not present, is it really a showcase of the best of the Ladies' game? It's the same as asking what the value of the Commonwealth Games is when neither the USA or China are present.

Mr Carter, lets be serious, there was a link to the external website (poster #35 has just made this valid point above me) and that was pretty much it, but that is okay. I was actually waiting to see if this website would have an article looking back after the event, and was pleasantly surprised to see your piece today, the ladies deserve it.

However, I wont condemn you or the Beeb like others in this blog, who, exactly like you, only got interested in the Cup once it started to dawn on everyone that, well, these women can play, and that something worth reporting on was happening! A lot of posters have said as much...and it is perhaps asking alot of the Beeb to try and compete with sky sports for complete coverage of basically everything.

I must admit, when I saw the opening ceremony, completely copying/attempting to recreate the opening of the Ryder cup, listening to the two captains speeches, I was thinking "these guys aren't serious right?"

But I was - and I accept it is completely my fault at being so ignorant - in for a massive surprise, the golf was top notch and the drama was unbelievable!!! A great tournament and more importantly a great opportunity by the ladies to showcase their game was grabbed with both... well, 24 pairs of hands! I dont think I will start watching ladies tour golf after this really, but I am certainly looking forward to the next Solheim Cup!

One last point, as the tide was turning in those last few matches I couldn't help but feel that the result tied into the whole theme this year of the rise of the EUROPEANS, be it men, women, team golf ; Team Europe is on the up and the Americans know it!

And yes, I agree with a few posters that Luke Donald's love affair with finishing from 2nd - 5th in just about everything is getting a bit tedious for me; maybe very harsh to say but it really is time to step up.

Hoping he wins the PGA money list though!! another accolade stripped from an american!

yottskry, i agree with you, the BBC was a disgrace with coverage. They let us all down very badly. i felt very let down by the BBC. The only good thing going for the BBC right now is Iain Carter and his blogs. He seems to be the only one at BBC interested in covering |Golf and providing some useful and informative information. Iain Carter is a legend.

I agree with BiloMcT about Iain Carter, he is the only person at the BBC who seems to care and provide in-depth opinions on golf (womens and mens).
The coverage of the Solheim Cup has been shocking, i know sky have more power to outbid and get these events but nowadays it seems the BBC has just given up and is willing to let Murdoch continue with his monopoly.

On a seperate note, what was John Daly doing in the Austrian open kicking his caddy after slapping him to the ground?
He's a disgrace. Throwing his iron into the lake as well? (maybe he heard how the solheim was going?!)

Congratulations to Kenneth Ferrie and mickeysausage.

I'd like to hear from jeffkenna and mickyweir about the John Daly incident. i'd also like to hear what kwiniaskagolfer on this please.

I think the quality of the golf of the solheim cup has taken everyone by surprise, lets be honest. Im sure that in 2013 there will be much more coverage, including from the Beeb.

Every competition has its "watershed moment", when it breaks onto the consciousness of the "general/occasional" fan and makes a name for itself. The Solheim Cup has never had this moment, as Iain states, most media outlets gave it little attention.

But the ladies took their chance and made believers out of a lot of us, I say it is better to celebrate this fact than to have a go at the Beeb for not covering an event which was, at the beginning of the week, deemed of far less interest than the PGA Tour Playoff - which is, I agree with some people, and absolutely awful thing. Who on earth is Bill Haas? Ok I know who he is, but all these rankings and points are an absolute nonsense if a guy just rocks up wins his first tournament of the year and takes the lot?? Strange.

I can't believe people are harping on about Asian golfers in a tournament that's played between the USA and Europe?
They may have some decent golfers but that is irrelavent when they are not involved, some joker has mentioned the credability of the commonwealth games??
just because the best nations aren't there doesn't mean to question if the event should take place, otherwise what's the point of the six nations or the euro's in football etc..

Grest finish by Europe's women at the end. What did people think about Wie's charge across I think the 14th green into the arms of her teammates after she had holed a long putt - even before Suzann Petterson had lined up her putt for a half. For a second I thought she was going to take her shirt off and whirl it above her head soccer style. Crazy. Thankfully Suzann holed for a half.

@ yottskry

This cup has got nothing to do with the Asians and the point is a stupid one. And your commenwealth point is ridiculous. The answer is in your question. The Solheim Cup is a cup between Europe and America. The Calcutta cup is a Rugby match between England and Scotland .... but maybe the All Blacks should be invited to play is that what your saying?

The list of Cups that exclude someone is endless.

Sounds like a wet argument "lets include everyone but there are no losers as everyone played well".

Its just not cricket!!

Well well well..... congratulations to Europe on a magnificent victory. People criticising Iain over BBC's coverage- Iain provided regular updates for five live, tweets and a summary of each day's play, also he published an interesting blog prior to the event. Iain does not decide the priority rating/place that the event is given on the website. Keep up the good work Iain and thanks for the new blog.

Mickeysausage- Kenneth "Stenaline- Making Good Time" Ferrie won the Austrian Open, fair play to him but if i remember correctly you have predicted him for Major glory and referred to him as one of England's leading golfers so I will bide my time before donning my hat to your superior powers of prediction- I am confident that in 20 years time Ferrie will have racked up the same number of majors as myself, none.

Loads of belly putters at the Solheim Cup by the way.

Iain Carter is a legend and i hope he thinks about following Peter Alliss in joining Sky because his talents are wasted on the BBC who are obviously not too interested in anything that doesnt have 4 wheels and does 76 laps a week.

@Redbud you have hit the nail on the head because @ yottskry is talking pure trash, should we invite KJ Choi, Y E Yang and Ernie Els into the next Ryder cup, @Yottskry maybe you should put your idea forward for a World Cup of golf if you are so bothered about these world class Asian women missing out on a Europe vs USA tournament. You are obviously a wind up!!

JEFFKENNA, what is your opinion on Belly Putters and what Peter Allis said about them?! and your thoughts on John Daly please

@Jeffkenna technically you gotta say Ferrie is the best British player at the minute because he is the last British player to win a tournament? He obviously isnt as bad as chokers and bottlers like Westwood and Donald who constantly choke when the heat is on. Kenneth showed in the playoff that even after a shocking tee off he as the skills and game to power through to victory! Well done Kenneth Ferrie!

Love all the posts ,however I am surprised that no one has mentioned the stunning gutsy performance of the rookie Christel Boeljon.she got overlooked a bit.but she held on to a one shot lead for it seemed an eternity.must have thought the finishing line would never arrive.and then it did with a stunning shot to the 18th to 4 ft sealed the deal.if she had not won ,all the later dramatics would have been in vain.Well done Christel-wonder if she has ever met Rory!

Thoughts from Saturday at the Solheim- firstly the pace of play was amismal, I have seen icebergs move quicker. It needs to be addressed. The involvement of the caddies was intriguing. For many of the ladies the caddy fulfils the various roles of both mother and father figure, sports psychologist, swing coach, alignment technician, putting guru, friend, enemy, flight controller and so on........

Not just being biased here (as my good friends from previous blogs may suspect!) but I was very impressed with Paula Creamer. She doesn't hit the ball near as far as most of the others but strikes her irons supremely well, putts brilliantly and is a gritty, gutsy competitor, as shown in her 3.5 from 4 points on first two days. However on the Sunday she obviously had her mind elsewhere (a certain suave debonair jauntily clad charming Irishman by the name of Jeffkenna who worked his powers of seduction) I'm not one to kiss and tell but ......................

John Daly is a disgrace, smoking and drinking on the fairways and causing havoc, he should be banned for life, i thought golf was a gentlemens sport, watching this joker was like watching hurricane Higgins back in the 80's. How can you play golf like that! And to treat your caddie like that is a joke. Who else thinks Daly should be banned from the tour?

Player I was most impressed by was Caroline Hedwall (brilliant ball striker- maybe even better than Brian "once thought of as the greatest ball striker in the Milky Way- but then CERN found that Neutrino which seems to move faster than the speed of light so that throws everything up in the air" Davis). Expect big things from her.

Apart from the slow play another area that I was not impressed by with many of the ladies was the lower level of sports(wo)manship and respect for their opponent that is (for the most part) evident in the men's game. Too much whooping and hollering before the opponent has had a chance to respond, displays of obvious delight on seeing misfortune befall their opponent and many times a mere token handshake with nothing spoken upon conclusion of the match.
There is a sour undertone to this competition and that is something that I don't enjoy. As Payne Stewart said- "in the end it's still a game of golf, and if at the end of the day you can't shake hands with your opponents and still be friends, then you've missed the point."

Daly should be banned. You should never physically attack your caddy in the manner Daly did. i'd say that caddy had a pretty bruised back after that shcoking attack.
jeffkenna....kiss and tell please!
Ferrie is Englands best, he isnt a massive choker like Lee Westwood or Luke Donald. I heard Lee Westwood is such a choker he once choked on a baked bean.

I agree with the blog and was terrific sport to watch which was marred for me by 2 things. One which has rightly been pointed out and needs addressing which is the pace of play which was excruciatingly and often deliberately slow. I am only a club golfer but believe me high handicappers copy what they see on the tv! Paula Creamer was clearly the worst culprit and on Saturday afternoon completed the first 9 holes in 3 hours, o schedule for a 6 hour round which is outrageous. On Sunday she deliberately kept Matthew waiting while practicing her putting.

The other point which concerns me about the Ladies game is that so many of them use their caddies to "line up! for a shot. I have seen this on putting before but many of the ladies do it on every single shot. Again Paula Creamer has her caddie perform a technique to straighten her body posture on the tee prior to her shot. How close is all this to on course coaching and therefore close to cheating, eradicating this behaviour would speed the game up dramatically too.

Jarv...well said mate. thats the most sensible thing i've heard on here. i find your idea's intriguing. what are your thoughts on the increasing use of Belly Putters?

I totally agree with all the comments about BBC coverage.

The recent Walker Cup coverage was absolutely shocking, it was moved to the Red Button on the Saturday to be replaced on BBC 2 by a repeat of Coast, and on Sunday while the matches were still being played the coverage was stopped.

I did write a couple of complaints but all I got back was bumff about 'not being able to justify an extra hour of coverage on BBC2 on a Saturday night' and 'on Sunday they had already over-run by 30 minutes when they went off air, and the match had been won, blah blah blah, didn't know exactly how long it would run, blah blah blah, all the important people had been interviewed blah blah blah''.

No word on the presentaition ceremony or celebrations, give me Sky anytime, total coverage until the final putt, until the presentation, until the Closing Ceremony, until the END!!

Waken up BBC!!!!!

Bob Bubka was fuming on Sky Sports on Saturday at how the Belly/Chin/Helmet Putters are dominating the world of golf at the minute, he said its making a mockery of the sport!

Bob Bubka was going nuts about the Chin/Belly Putters! he is right though. I remember being at the Open Championship a few years back with my Dad and Vijah Singh was using a full Chin Putter and we heard Ian Baker Finch Say " That is the stupidest golf club in the world. Shouldnt be allowed "

@57....youwhat, are you in anyway annoyed about the BBC Golf Coverage?!

I agree with Jarv and jeffkenna on the points of slow play and gamesmanship.
Team US of A wre trying dirty delaying tactic's and the genral tone of the tournament as jeffkenna mentioned seemed to be vey sour.

I would rank belly/helmet putters and john Daly all in the same category, absolute disgraces that should be out of the world of golf.

P.S. jeffkenna - your charm came through on Sunday, Creamer's mind was definatley elsewhere......

Yes, BBC coverage was poor. Whilst updates via twitter and breaking news may have worked for some, this was not very evident or well advertised and if you are not on twitter.....

Did the BBC do a summary programme following the Ryder Cup? Is one planned?

Team Europe now hold Walker, Solheim & Ryder Cups, only the Curtis Cup is missing from the "Team" Trophy cabinet, so surely this is worthy of more column inches?

The girls played some fantastic golf as a team to win the Solheim. It was close to theft in the manner that the last 3 matches swung and took the trophy out of the Americans back pocket. A Truly great way to shut up the "U.S.A. all the way" brigade. If only to have been there to sample the atmosphere.... and the guinness! Well played Ladies.

The Fedex Cup scoring system is wrong and ill conceived. Congratulations to Bill Hass for winning a (one) tournament, but picking up a massive bonus when he only had 7 top 10's can't be right. Webb Simpson should have won this after 2 wins and 10 top 10's, followed by Luke Donald with 1 win and 13 top 10's. All the Fedex Cup proved is that Bill Haas "peaked" at the right time, but he was not the most consistant performer over the whole season. Spend it wisely you Bill, I can help if you like...!

Oh, and Tiger has a new caddy - Whoopy. If Tiger can recapture his passed form Joe La Cava will become a rich man (if he wasnt already having already caddied for the likes of Freddie Couples), but this is surely only worthy of comment after all the winners of various competitions, European Tour included.

Roll on to the Race to Dubai. "R2D all the way!"

I'm not sure Donald and Westwood will lose much sleep over some of these comments. Kenneth Ferrie after 12 years on tour has not pulled up too many trees and I'm not holding my breath. Steady player, mind...

cfcboy23- if you get the time to look through some previos blogs you will see that some of our fellow bloggers have a habit of championing distinctly average players such as Kenneth "Stenaline- Making Good Time" Ferrie, Robert "because I'm worth it" Rock and Brian "the greatest ball striker of all time and that includes that Golden Bear fella and some chap called Eldrick (what kind of nameis that?) Tont Woods" Davis, suggesting that they are a better crop of English talent than LW, LD, IP, PC JR. It's rather amusing.

cfcboy23....are you claiming Lee ' No Majors ' Westwood isnt a massive Bottler and choker?!
jeffkenna....hasnt Kenneth Ferrie just proved you wrong!? myself, Sumo82 and mickysausage know the game well, wait and see the man rise further to a major now.

Sumo- what is it they say about the cat that got the Cream(er)!? The first two days PC was a ruthless (Panther-like if you please) winning machine (though her pace of play resembled more of a movement of the intercontinental plates than the stealthy animal). On Sunday however, she resembled our good friend from NI Rory "apple cheeks" McIlroy, a love-sick puppy. Once she stepped on to the first tee and saw the shamrock shaped bunker it brought her mind spinning back to the magical moment the previous evening when she first set her eyes on the charming debonair Irishman (sporting a fedora hat pink tie and freshly picked shamrock) who goes by the name Jeffkenna.

Bilomct- no he hasn't proven anything, merely that he happens to win a fairly miniscule low ranking European event once every 5 years or so. On these blogs this journeyman has been preposterously championed as a future major winner and England's finest while you constantly berate English players who actually achieve high level of success (e.g LD- no1 in world deservedly, top of European AND US money lists)

jeffkenna, do you not find it odd that these men we big up ( maybe for a laugh ) end up winning after all the slagging!? maybe some struggling Pro's should start to contact myself, mickysausage and Sumo82 and then they will find themselves in the winners enclosure!
You never knwo...we might see John Hawksworth make a comeback to his glory days.

Hawksworth had about 220 Yards to the green and he was on a tight lie on a downward slope, the ball was about 8 inches below his feet. he was hitting directly into the wind. it was a very stiff breeze, about 30mph i'd say. Hawksworth played a low punched 3 iron that pierced the wind and flew straight and true and finished about 2 foot from the pin. without doubt the best shot in the world ever.

Hawksworth = Legend.

What are everybodies views on the John Daly incidents this weekend?
I've heard his wedge is on Ebay now?

Sumo82, did you see what John daly actaully done? from what i could tell he pushed the caddy over and kicked him in the back/ Disgraceful. he should be booted off the tour.
i looked for the club on e bay but its not there.

Muchos Kudos to mickeysausage, we should have shared your belief that Ferrie would do the business, did that earn you a nice dollar? Let's hope he can do it in the second rate events that this win will now get him into!

I quite enjoyed the Solheim Cup, plenty of nice stuff on show and a great finish. Di Dougherty was great durng the rain delay, too.

Sorry folks - hasty post earlier.
I wasn't commenting on my views of LJW or LD... though I am a massive fan of the former. I am also a huge fan of the European Tour rather than the 'target golf' played over the pond. At least the ET represents some of the conditions we get to encounter on the course. For that reason I have greater respect for Westwood who made it to #1 playing predominantly in Europe.
However, I stand by my comments on KF who is not on my radar for greatness one bit though I'll be back to apologise if I'm proved wrong.
If there's an Englishman outside the obvious to win a major, I'd say Dyson... cos he's a Yorkshireman!

To be Fair, you've got to give credit were its due.
BiloMcT and especially mickeysausage have backed Kenneth Ferie to do well in up and coming tournaments and he has just won the Austrian open by holding his nerve in a play-off. Well done to him, whether he goes on to bag a major is yet to be seen, but he is English and he's heading in the right direction.
So maybe some people on here should have a slice of humble pie (me included)

I heard the reason Creamer played so poorly on Sunday was because she was being bothered by some strange man wearing a long rain coat who seems to be in the background where ever she goes!

you guys are actually really annoying, why dont you set up a 4 way skype conference and make all your "funny" and "witty" jokes in the confines of your personal conversation... we are trying to discuss the solheim cup.

Anyway, always great beating the Yanks! Especially when they try all kindsa dirty tactics to throw us off! Ryann O'Toole was a fabulous wildcard pick, but boy did I enjoy seeing her crumble on 18!!

Azara Munoz - just what the ladies european golf game needs to boost profile and increase commercial opportunities, young, talented, driven, gutsy and beautiful! marketing man's dream

I've heard jeffkenna had a little stars and stripes flag painted on his cheek to try and catch the cream's attention. Get in the hole!!

thanks Sumo82. i do feel vindicated after taking so much abuse over backing Kenneth for a while now. Hopefully i can gain the respect of mickyweir, jeffkenna and Don247. Although i dont like Don247 to be honest, he was bullying me in the last blog. i dont think he likes me cause i'm German and i support Martin Kaymer a lot. Now i think about it i dont want respect from Don247 , his opinions are terrible and dont matter to me or anyone. I might get John Daly to take care of Don247 for me with his wedge.

TeniPurist please accept my humblest apologies, as your wishes, I shall not darken the doors of this blog again.

Daffy, no need to apologise to Tenipurist....they are a poor blogger. just ignore them.
Daffy what are your thoughts on the John Daly incident?

77.At 12:05 27th Sep 2011, TeniPurist wrote:

Azara Munoz - just what the ladies european golf game needs to boost profile and increase commercial opportunities, young, talented, driven, gutsy and beautiful! marketing man's dream

Just you wait till mickeyweir reads that!!!

You sexist pig !

Daffy - it wasnt really aimed at you.

I am both confused and intrigued by Bilo's efforts to pluralise me. Or should I say us?

sumo82 - I apologise if commercial/marketing realities are too grown up for your immature mind.

tenipurist, no need to be sexist. there is no place on here for that sort of behaviour.

Tenipurist - This blog isn't purely for the Solheim Cup, there were also two other tournaments this weekend that also had talking points

the finale of the Fedex cup - Shock win for Haas

The Austrian Open - Ferrie winning/ J Daly's tantrum

these were tournaments that other bloggers had made predictions on and also have opinions on. So lighten up misery guts!

things have got out of hand here. we need mickyweir on here ASAP! or Mr Iain Carter for once?????!!!!!!!!

"They may have some decent golfers but that is irrelavent when they are not involved, some joker has mentioned the credability of the commonwealth games??"

That "joker" would be me, only I was questioning the credibility of it, I was using it as an analogy to why people question the validity of the Solheim Cup as a showcase of the world's best female golfers. I thought I'd made that clear the first time. Apparently not clear enough for you.

"only I was questioning the credibility"
That should say "wasn't questioning", obviously.

Fellow bloggers- it seems as if some are doing a John Daly ie. throwing a tantrum, attacking fellow bloggers.... Let's restore a modicum of calm. As i pointed out in an earlier post Payne Stewart said "if at the end of the day you can't shake hands with your opponents and still be friends, then you've missed the point." Similarly in this blog, we compete (give opinions) yet in the end we must always be respectful to our opponents (fellow bloggers). As golf fans we are supposed to be above this mindless bickering, leave that sort of behaviour to the mindless rabble of football fans.

@redbud. You've missed the point entirely. Never mind, I shan't explain it again. Go back, reread and get someone to draw you a picture. I never said that the commonwealth games wasn't important because of the lack of USA or China, I said that questioning the validity of a tournament without Asian players is
"the same as asking what the value of the Commonwealth Games is when neither the USA or China are present." Not that it was my opinion, but that the question was a legitimate one. That what the first poster was asking was THE SAME AS ASKING that. Honestly, I'm not sure why I bother posting on here when there are so many barely literate half-wits who can't understand something unless it's totally black and white.

Is the Solheim Cup a showcase of the best in Ladies' Golf? No, because some of the best golfers are missing. Is it still a worthwhile tournament? Yes, of course it is.

Is that clear enough for you?

The Solheim Cup hasn't been portrayed as a tournament just for the best female golfers in the world, it's a competition between USA and Europe, it just so happens that they contain the majority of the best players around at the moment.

jeffkenna...the new Don247?!
yottskry...dry your eyes mate and get the toys back in the pram!

"The need was even greater for a Solheim Cup largely ignored by British newspapers."

Then Iain spends over 1/3rd of the ariticle talking about mens golf .. hmmmm typical BBC standards of hypocrisy.

Anyway brilliant result for the Ladies they can all be extremely proud of themselves and long may they stay at the top of their game.

It was a great pity that Christie Kerr could not play her match on Sunday, a tough blow and that match could have been the difference maker in the whole event. The fact that her match was conceded automatically- what does everyone think of this? Surely this goes against the 'spirit' of the competition? Though given the behaviour of some of the ladies over the years this is hardly surprising- as I have previously mentioned this competition has a sour undertone to it....................cont...................

.....................This Solheim Cup rule had been agreed previously but would it not be more fitting were they to follow the example of the men in the Ryder Cup-

If a player is injured and cannot compete in the singles, the captain of the opposing team nominates a corresponding player from his own line-up to stand down and not take part.

The 'match' is considered halved and the point is shared, irrespective of which team has the injured party.

Golf is supposed to be a sporting good gestured game and the Solheim Cup in many ways, and this is another example, goes against this grain.

jeffkenna - watching the majority of the matches i found that there was no love lost at all, in fact some of the girls actually hate each other i think !!
It seems a lot of the match ups had an extra edge to them, but this made it more intruiging and i found myself cheering more shots on as i knew how much it meant to the player, but on the flip side, the reputation of the sport will be under question if they can't even congratulate an opposing player.

I fully appreciate the beeb's problems regarding finance but a lot of coverage seems to revolve someone sitting in an office watching Sky. The headline on Sunday night was about Mark Cavendish but I would have thought winning the Solheim cup warranted as much coverage.

On a lighter note it was great to see how much the cup meant to the dutch lass, Christel Boeljon. To be a standard bearer for your country's sport at such a young age must be something special. Congrats to all the team.

i thought the behaviour of the Caddy Chris Deverdie was shocking, think he caddies for Michelle Wie

BiloMcT:

I see that your "tip for stardom" Paul Cutler (from Portstewart in Norn Iron) is playing at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship this week. Last time out, at the Austrian Open (won by micksausage's fave rave Kenneth Ferrie ..... who da man?), young Culter tried his hardest but failed miserably to qualify (... supposedly because he was carrying a go-karting-induced injury???)

Now, BiloMcT (self-confessed, bullied German??!! who usually predicts all the results after the event has actually finished), this is your big chance. What will Paul Culter do this weekend?

Furthermore what will Herr "Lauewarm-Düscher" Kaymer do (.... now that he's decided to re-emerge in public after playing at being a "boy racer" and trying to emulate that other young Teutonic who is actually recognised by almost everyone throughout Germany, unlike Kaymer, ..... i.e. Sebastian Vettel!!)?

jerrykenna:

You were supposed to distract Paula Creamer on Saturday with your exalted presence! What happened? PC just steamrollered over every opponent until she met her match (6&5) in Catriona Matthew (a true "Flower of Scotland") on Sunday, who showed her a thing or two about playing in inclement weather. Catriona certainly "sent her homeward to think again!"

In fact, Catriona Matthew was so good she could even show Rory "Ireland's not-so-favourite-son-no-more" McIlroy how golf should be played in the wind and rain! (Were you watching Rory?.... No chance! He was giving another of his now-infamous "putting masterclasses" to some faceless corporate banker somewhere in a sunny Spain, no doubt!)

sumo82:

The winning Solheim Cup Team should now have a match-up against the S.E. Asians, e.g. Korea, China and Japan, where more and more of the leading and up-coming women players are from. The event would certainly generate a lot of interest... especially if it were played in Korea or China!

P.S. - If you haven't noticed already, I mentioned Azahara Munoz in an earlier blog long before you got on her trail. BBFF or not, summo82, you're always after "my" girls; first of all, it was Melissa Reid and now it's my "little Latino" AM!!