Solheim Cup on Scotland’s radar

• Scotland looking at possibility of staging 2019 Solheim Cup
• ‘We will review documentation in the coming weeks’
• Match has taken place in home of golf twice before

The dust is still settling from the Ryder Cup but plans are already afoot to look into bringing another top team matchplay competition to Scotland in the near future, with EventScotland announcing it is exploring the possibility of bidding to host the 2019 Solheim Cup .

The bidding process for the match, which has been staged twice previously in Scotland, was unveiled last week by the Ladies European Tour. Tenders are being invited from prospective host countries, with a view to staging the biennial contest between Europe’s top female professional golfers and their American counterparts.

Having successfully staged this year’s Ryder Cup match, EventScotland appears keen to play host to golf’s leading ladies, although its chief operating officer, Paul Bush, stopped short of confirming a bid would be made just yet.

Scotland was the first European country to stage the Solheim Cup, when the second edition of the match took place at Dalmahoy.

“We are grateful to have been sent the Tender Guide for The 2019 Solheim Cup, in which the Ladies European Tour outlines the proposed bidding process for this world class event,” said Bush in a statement. “We will review this documentation in the coming weeks before making any decision as to whether Scotland will make a formal bid for The 2019 Solheim Cup.”

Scotland was the first European country to stage the Solheim Cup, when the second edition of the match took place at Dalmahoy, on the outskirts of Edinburgh, in 1992. On that occasion, Mickey’s Walker ‘home’ side claimed an 11½-6½ victory over their US counterparts, having lost the inaugural match at Lake Nona two years earlier.

The match returned to Scotland for a second time in 2000, when Loch Lomond played host. Once again, Europe ran out winners, Dale Reid captaining the team to a 14½-11½ win, above.

Scotland previously submitted a bid to stage the 2011 match, before Killeen Castle in Ireland got the nod.

Of the 13 Solheim Cup matches played to date, the US has won eight and Europe five.

The 2015 match will take place at St Leon-Rot in Germany before going to Des Moines Golf and Country Club in Iowa in 2017.

Another Solheim Cup in Scotland :: Your thoughts

Would you be in favour of seeing the 2019 Solheim Cup come to Scotland? More to the point, which course do you think it should be played on? Leave your thoughts in our ‘Comments’ section below.

Michael McEwan is the Deputy Editor of bunkered and has been part of the team since 2004. In that time, he has interviewed almost every major figure within the sport, from Jack Nicklaus, to Rory McIlroy, to Donald Trump. The host of the multi award-winning bunkered Podcast and a member of Balfron Golfing Society, Michael is the author of three books and is the 2023 PPA Scotland 'Writer of the Year' and 'Columnist of the Year'. Dislikes white belts, yellow balls and iron headcovers. Likes being drawn out of the media ballot to play Augusta National.

Deputy Editor