Two rounds are in the books in Canada at the CPKC Women’s Open, and the Solheim Cup picture is starting to become more clear in some situations, but also has never been messier in others. Here is where the status of the team stands:
Allisen Corpuz:
Corpuz was never really on the bubble. She has always been in qualifying position and has a solid enough world ranking to be safely on the team either way. Even if she wasn’t her performance in her two appearances would make her an easy captain’s pick. That being said, she officially became the seventh locked in member of the team yesterday thanks to Andrea Lee missing the cut. That made Corpuz the final player to qualify on the Solheim Cup standings.
Andrea Lee:
Andrea Lee missed the cut, but barring an absolute miracle from Alison Lee and Lindy Duncan, she is safe to qualify for the team on world ranking points. Lee will be the eighth official member on this team thanks to being ranked more than 20 spots higher than Lee and Duncan.
Alison Lee and Lindy Duncan:
This is easily the most intriguing race to watch out for. These players are separated by two World Ranking spots, which will likely be what the ninth place would come down to. Outside of a win from Kiara Romero, who finishes higher here will probably decide who makes the team for sure. Lee is ahead in the Rolex Rankings and is ahead of Duncan on the leaderboard, but just by one stroke. To editorialize for a moment, I do think Alison Lee would have a chance at a captain’s selection, one that Duncan would probably be less likely to receive. If these two do not make the team, they will likely be alternate selections.
Megan Khang:
While Khang missed the cut again, my gut feeling is she will receive a captain’s selection, and it won’t take much thought from Stanford. Khang hasn’t lost in her last eight Solheim Cup matches, a statistic that sounds impossible but is just a credit to how she shows up for this event.
Jenny Bae:
Not a good result for Jenny Bae, who finished +1 for the first two days and missed the cut. This almost assures her of missing the team on qualifying, putting her fate in the hands of Angela Stanford. Bae is a solid player who would give the United States new blood, but its tough to see where she brings more than a player like Kiara Romero, who is younger, has more upside and is in good form this week. Bae’s performance here also puts her in danger of missing out on a pick as an alternate, which with injury and illness concerns for Angel Yin and Rose Zhang, could come into play.
Lucy Li:
While Jenny Bae’s chances of making the team greatly decreased this week, Lucy Li’s feel essentially over. Li shot +1, which had her missing the cut. She didn’t just need a solid week to make the team in Canada, she probably needed a great one. She has shown solid form recently, but she is just too far back in the Rolex Rankings despite being high on the Solheim Cup standings.
Lilia Vu:
Vu’s status on this team probably didn’t come solely down to this week, Angela Stanford probably knew coming in if she had a chance or not to receive a captain’s selection. Her pick would be more for past play and experience in this event. She needed to show some flashes of strong form to justify a selection and her +3 tournament finish was not that. Combine that with adding more injury concerns to a team that already struggles there, she is likely done.
Lexi Thompson:
Thompson probably wanted to play these last two weeks to make a final push, but a +7 finish this week likely ends that hope. Stanford already sounded doubtful of her chances to make the team when she talked to Golfweek and Beth Ann Nichols last week, this certainly will not help her odds. This will probably be the first time since 2011 where Thompson isn’t on the team.
Kiara Romero:
The most exciting storyline of the week has become more and more exciting. Romero is in terrific shape, sitting in a tie for second, though she does trail Miyu Yamashita by five strokes. If Yamashita were to struggle over the weekend, and Romero can win, she does have the potential to qualify on Rolex Rankings points. Even if she doesn’t, a high finish surely would put her in the mix for a captain’s pick.
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