US captain Stacy Lewis: Solheim and Ryder Cup should stay in same year

US captain Stacy Lewis is frustrated that golf has wasted a “massive opportunity” in failing to promote the Solheim and Ryder Cups together.

The scheduling issues enforced by the pandemic has meant that, this year, the two duels between Europe and the United States uniquely take place just a week apart.

But the Solheim Cup at Finca Cortesin in southern Spain and the Ryder Cup at Marco Simone just outside Rome have had no crossover whatsoever.

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And Lewis, the youngest Solheim captain in US history, has spoken pointedly about what she considers a shame that golf’s authorities have missed a chance to promote the sport to a wider audience.

“I thought this could have been marketed together as two weeks in Europe, two cups for play,” the 38-year-old said. “I think it was a missed opportunity for the sport of golf.

“I wish that people could get the sponsorship things out of their head and figure out how we can work together because this may not ever happen again, the two cups being in the same year.

“So I thought it was a massive missed opportunity. We tried to do a little bit with the guys and just weren’t really able to move things along the way I would have liked.

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“I just would like to see it for the good of the game. It’s not to further women’s golf, let’s further the game of golf in general.”

While Lewis believes the governing bodies have missed the boat in marketing what is a spectacular double header of team golf, the two-time major winner still sees potential in staging the matches close together.

“I’d like them [to stay] in the same year if we could get some common ground and do them together,” said Lewis.

“I actually think for the good of the game, for the game of golf, I think two weeks like this could be really cool, if we, if we could continue it for the future.”

Lewis has already been confirmed as the US skipper for next year’s match at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Virginia.

The Ryder Cup is now set to remain during odd years, with the Solheim match going back to even years from 2024.

Ben Parsons joined bunkered as a Content Producer in 2023 and is the man to come to for all of the latest news, across both the professional and amateur games. Formerly of The Mirror and Press Association, he is a member at Halifax Golf Club and is a long-suffering fan of both Manchester United and the Wales rugby team.