Last week, I went to my first Solheim Cup and it was incredible. The energy at Finca Cortesin in Spain was electric – so much so that I’ve got goosebumps as I remember the moments that made me fall in love with golf even more.
There’s something different about watching world-class golf unfold in front of your eyes. To see the shots that stop and spin by the pin. To hear the whoosh of that little white ball fly through the sky. Or, to stand in a sea of golfers, who are collectively holding their breath, waiting for that putt to drop.
Jess Ratcliffe gets close to the action
(Image credit: Jess Ratcliffe)
The passion from the crowd was unlike anything I’ve been a part of before. It’s that beautiful balance of respectful silence while the player is preparing to hit and then celebratory cheering when it’s happened. With that anticipatory pause in between, leaning in to see if the approach has hit the green or if the drive has found the fairway.
Coming away from the Solheim, I’ve never felt more inspired to work on my game and become the best golfer I can be. It feels like my energy reserves have been refilled and my practice refocused.
(Image credit: Jess Ratcliffe)
In fact, I’m surprised by the shots that inspired me the most. Heading to the Solheim, my plan was to hang out around the tee boxes, eagerly eyeing up the swings on show, hoping to spot the moves that make their swings so epic.
But instead, I found myself drawn to the green. Watching their approaches with awe and their short game shots with my jaw on the floor.
I’ll forever remember watching Celine Boutier, surrounded by the crowd, float a pitch into a downhill green with such finesse it landed like a butterfly and rolled towards the hole, almost dropping.
Also, Rose Zhang’s bunker shot – when her approach went long – with the ball below her feet, that she sticks to a tap in. Oh and the sound that erupted when Linn Grant and Emily Pedersen drove the green on the 1st…a par 4.
Out of all the swings I saw last week, it’s those superstar short game shots, along with the putts that dropped, that have stayed with me. And that feeling, of witnessing someone who has honed their craft…
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