Juli Inkster ~ "Solheim Superhero"

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JULI INKSTER ~ "America's Solheim Superhero"

by Randall Mell
August 20, 2017

Inkster did what no task force could do. She remade the American team in her image again.

The United States defeated the Europeans 16½ to 11½ at Des Moines Golf and Country Club with a tried and true Inkster formula, a formula no task force could devise. They worked hard, played hard, loved hard and laughed as much as they could along the way.

“Juli said something that really hit home for me,” Cristie Kerr said. “She said it in Germany and she said it here. You play for the person in front of you, you play for the person behind you. It’s not about your individual records. It's for the team. It's amazing how hard you can pull for each other when you have that mentality.”

It isn’t that other captains haven’t said as much.

It’s how Inkster gets her teams to buy into it.


Link to rest of the article:
www.golfchannel.com/news/randall-mell/us-solheim-victory-credit-inkster

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Juli Inkster ~ "Captain America"

By Golf Digest - August 20, 2017


“It was my job to bring fun back to the Solheim Cup.” —Juli Inkster"

ES MOINES, Iowa — As the fifth singles match came through the difficult par-3 17th hole at Des Moines Golf & Country Club on Sunday, the Solheim Cup about to be decided, the numbers were being crunched.

If Angel Yin won, the Americans would have earned 3½ points for the day, enough to secure a tie and retain the prize they had been so desperately pursing in front of the raucous crowds. When she made bogey, and Europe’s Karine Icher made par, the match went on to the 18th all square.

Yin ended up halving her match, so now the focus turned to Lizette Salas, facing Jodi Ewart-Shadoff. Salas was 2 up going into the 17th, so the worst that could come of her match would be a half. That meant the U.S. had its 3½ points, enough to clinch the Cup.

With that knowledge, U.S. captain Juli Inkster, who had been walking back and forth through a patch of rough between the 17th green and 16th fairway, finally appeared at ease. Forget the large five-point lead her team had going into Sunday singles. Inkster was nervous on Sunday. The 57-year-old had seen pretty much everything in her four-plus decades of competitive golf, including her own team come back from a four-point deficit two years ago in Germany, the biggest rally in Solheim Cup history. She wasn’t counting out Europe until it was over."

Link to rest of the article:
www.golfdigest.com/story/solheim-cup-2017-captain-america-how-juli-inkster-became-the-embodiment-of-the-solheim-cup-and-made-the-matches-fun-again

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Juli Inkster adds to her American golfing legacy with second win as Solheim Cup captain

By Danny Lawhon, [e-mail] Aug. 20, 2017

"She didn’t hit a single golf shot, but Juli Inkster and her guiding hand were everywhere this week at the Des Moines Golf and Country Club."

Looking for a party at the jam-packed first tee? There was Inkster, dancing and swaying and DJ-ing and sipping from her Styrofoam cup.

How about on a back-nine green, at the site of a pressure-packed putt? There was the American captain, pacing and staring and turning away and cheering as the ball often found the cup.

And on Sunday’s fairways, when Lexi Thompson, the No. 2 women’s golfer in the world, was on the verge of a meltdown? There was the World Golf Hall of Famer, soothing and consoling and invigorating and inspiring her players to a Solheim Cup win.

Inkster is seemingly everything to each of her 12 victorious troopers, and the Americans’ 16.5-11.5 triumph over Europe all circles back to one omnipresent orchestrator.

Link to rest of the article:
www.desmoinesregister.com/story/sports/golf/2017/08/20/juli-inkster-solheim-cup-captain-golf-legacy/584838001/

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U.S. Solheim challenge: Bringing Inkster back

By
Randall Mell August 21, 2017

WEST DES MOINES, Iowa – On second thought, it is time for the LPGA to form a Solheim Cup task force.

It’s time to bring together the best and brightest minds in the American women’s game to figure out a way to persuade Juli Inkster to captain the United States team for a third consecutive time.

Inkster sounded guardedly open to a possible return when asked after the Americans defeated Europe 16½ to 11½ Sunday, a victory that made Inkster and Judy Rankin the only captains to lead the Americans to victory in back-to-back Solheim Cups, but . . .

“I don’t want to go there,” Inkster said. “I would love to do it, but I think there are other people in line that deserve the chance, but I’ll be there with some hugs.”

Now that’s a problem that needs to be immediately addressed.

No offense to Pat Hurst and Sherri Steinhauer, major champions with winning records in multiple Solheim Cup appearances, logical as potential next ups, but Solheim Cup stock takes a big dive if Inkster doesn’t return.

Dottie Pepper would bring star power, if somehow, some way, she was in consideration, which seems highly doubtful, given the hard criticism she has delivered on this generation of American players, and her insistence that her interests continue to lie elsewhere.

Nancy Lopez would also bring star power, if she’s interested in a return engagement as captain, after being an assistant to Inkster the last two Solheim Cups, a role that has kept Lopez in touch with today’s players, but she isn’t in that line Inkster’s talking about.

Inkster is specially qualified and gifted to keep growing the Solheim Cup’s brand.

Gerina Piller said it Sunday. Inkster’s a “freaking rock star.”


Link to article:

www.golfchannel.com/news/randall-mell/us-solheim-challenge-bringing-inkster-back

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It's official, Juli Inkster is the 2019 USA Solheim Cup Captain

That's Juli Inkster Solheim Superhero!

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