In this week’s ‘The Starter,’ the Great Britain and Ireland team loses every Sunday foursomes match and still finds a way to win the Walker Cup. The Solheim Cup gets the next turn at Bernardus Golf, with the Presidents Cup waiting later this month at Medinah.

WALKER CUP: Great Britain and Ireland Answers the Sweep

Four Matches Changed the Color

The Americans had not swept a Walker Cup foursomes session since 2007. This one looked especially damaging because only 10 singles remained, and the defending champions needed 3½ points to keep the cup. Great Britain and Ireland had spent Saturday building a 6½-5½ lead. By lunch Sunday, it was gone.

Captain Dean Robertson could change the batting order, so to speak, but he could not hit a shot. He sent U.S. Amateur champion Jack Whaley out early, with local favorite Stuart Grehan behind him and Luke Poulter and Tyler Weaver following. All four won.

Whaley’s 8-and-7 victory over William Jennings matched the second-largest singles margin in Walker Cup history. Grehan came from 2 down to beat world No. 1 amateur Preston Stout 2 and 1. Poulter beat Ethan Fang 3 and 1, and Weaver defeated Jay Leng Jr. 4 and 3. Before the back half of the lineup had settled into its matches, the three-point American cushion had disappeared.

Josh Hill Gets the Last Match

The finish became far less orderly. Niall Sheils Donegan halved his match with Kihei Akina. Eliot Baker birdied the 18th to beat Stewart Hagestad, a five-time Walker Cup participant. Connor Graham also birdied the last, salvaging a half against Miles Russell after standing 3 down through 11.

That left Josh Hill and Tyler Watts in the final match. Hill arrived at the 18th needing a win, then put his approach into a greenside bunker. His next shot stopped 3 feet from the hole. Watts missed from long range, Hill made his putt and the home side had a 13½-12½ victory.

Great Britain and Ireland took the singles session 7-3 and won the cup for the first time since 2015. Five consecutive American victories ended on one short putt. The series record is now 40 U.S. wins, 10 for Great Britain and Ireland and one tie.

Momentum will receive plenty of credit for the comeback. I have never found that word especially helpful after a team match. Momentum did not birdie the 18th for Baker or Graham, and it did not splash Hill’s bunker shot to 3 feet. Players did that after a morning that gave them every excuse to believe the match had escaped.

SOLHEIM CUP: Two New Captains Get Their Teams

Nordqvist Has No Time for a Quiet Retirement

The Solheim Cup begins Friday at Bernardus Golf in the Netherlands, only 12 days after Anna Nordqvist completed the final LPGA Tour round of her career. There was hardly time for a farewell. Pairings, speeches and practice plans were already waiting, along with the responsibility of trying to win the cup back for Europe.

Angela Stanford is also captaining for the first time. Her U.S. team arrives after ending a seven-year winless stretch with a 15½-12½ victory at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in 2024. Nelly Korda heads a roster with considerable experience, while Auston Kim and Lindy Duncan are the two American newcomers.

Europe will bring four first-time Solheim Cup players: Lottie Woad, Julia López Ramírez, Nastasia Nadaud and Mimi Rhodes. Nordqvist also has Charley Hull, Maja Stark, Céline Boutier, Carlota Ciganda, Linn Grant and Leona Maguire among those who already understand how quickly this event gets loud.

Bernardus Will Ask Its Own Questions

The opening holes invite birdies. No. 1 is a short par 4, and the par-5 second can be reached when the wind cooperates. That gives both captains a chance to send aggressive pairings out before the course begins asking for more careful decisions.

The later holes are less generous. Water crowds the par-5 16th, where an eagle chance and a lost hole can come from swings made only a few yards apart. The 18th demands a tee shot between water on the left and bunkers on the right.

When I look at a course for team play, I am interested in where one player’s tendencies can protect another’s. Who keeps the ball in front of her partner? Who wants the tee shot when a hole feels narrow? Those questions matter more in foursomes than stacking two low scoring averages beside each other and hoping the math works.

PRESIDENTS CUP: The Hard Part Starts After Selection

Snedeker Has Every Familiar Advantage

The Presidents Cup follows Sept. 24-27 at Medinah Country Club. Brandt Snedeker’s U.S. roster begins with Scottie Scheffler and adds Cameron Young, Wyndham Clark, Sam Burns, Russell Henley and Collin Morikawa as automatic qualifiers. Patrick Cantlay, Xander Schauffele and Justin Thomas bring extensive team experience among the captain’s picks. Jacob Bridgeman, Chris Gotterup and Jackson Koivun will make their Presidents Cup debuts.

The Americans lead the series 13-1-1 and have won 10 straight. They have spent most recent Presidents Cups choosing among good pairing options. Opposing captains have spent theirs trying to prevent Thursday and Friday from placing the match out of reach.

Ogilvy Cannot Wait for Sunday

Geoff Ogilvy’s International team draws from seven countries. Hideki Matsuyama, Adam Scott, Si Woo Kim and Tom Kim provide a recognizable core. Ogilvy used his selections on Corey Conners, Sungjae Im, Christiaan Bezuidenhout, Nico Echavarria, Ryo Hisatsune and Nick Taylor.

The International team’s usual problem is described as a Sunday problem because that is where the trophy is awarded. The damaging work often occurs earlier. One lopsided session turns every later pairing into a rescue mission and asks the best players to do what more than one match can’t fix.

Lahinch should stay on the captains’ minds. The Americans followed a 4-0 morning with only three singles points, half a point short of retaining the cup. Great Britain and Ireland found seven points across 10 matches, from Whaley’s runaway to the birdies made at the last.

The Closing Thought

Team golf keeps peculiar books. Whaley won by seven holes. Graham needed the 18th to save half a point. Hill faced a 3-footer with the cup depending on it. Three entirely different afternoons all reached the same total.

That is worth remembering as the next two captains arrange their lineups. Nobody gets to choose whether his or her contribution arrives in a runaway, a recovery or one last putt. The team only needs it to arrive.