Golf

The Solheim Cup between the U.S. and European women golfers is this week, so I thought I'd do a comparison of the teams.

U.S.A. Europe Favored Comments

1. Cristie Kerr vs. Annika Sörenstam (Sweden) - Sörenstam - Pretty straightforward.
2. Meg Mallon vs. Laura Davies (England) - Davies - Seems be having a better year than Mallon, as long as accuracy is not key.
3. Juli Inkster vs. Ludivine Kreutz (France) - Kreutz - The stats favor Europe again.
4. Rosie Jones vs. Maria Hjorth (Sweden) - Hjorth - She's been playing well, and, hey, she went to school in Scotland.
5. Pat Hurst vs. Iben Tinning (Denmark) - Hurst - Both ladies have played excellently this year, but Hurst gets extra confidence points for coming in fresh off of a win.
6. Natalie Gulbis vs. Trish Johnson (England) - Gulbis - Johnson just hasn't shone much this year, and Natalie's stats are great.
7. Christina Kim vs. Gwladys Nocera (France) - Nocera - Kim has been unimpressive this year.
8. Paula Creamer vs. Carin Koch (Sweden) - Koch - I think this is the best matchup on the list. Koch is having a great year, and she did go to school here in Tulsa after all. Creamer is on fire in her rookie year. (Note: What is it about the intials PC and comments related to U.S. vs. Europe team golf events?) Anyways, I decided Koch gets experience points.
9. Michele Redman vs. Catriona Matthew (Scotland) - Matthew - These two are pretty well matched but I pick Matthew not because of her homeland but because her last two showings were stronger than Redman's.
10. Laura Diaz vs. Suzann Pettersen (Norway) - Diaz - Neither has been impressive. Diaz gets my vote just because she's played all season, and Petterson was out for much of it.
11.Wendy Ward vs. Sophie Gustafson (Sweden) - Ward - Both have been hit and miss, but Ward did better in this year's match play.
12. Beth Daniel vs. Karen Stupples (England) - Daniel - Similar records, but Daniel gets the experience vote.

In summary, Americans 5, Europeans 7. Translated to points, my pick is Europe 16½ over U.S.A. 11½. Don't get me wrong, I'm still cheering for the American team all the way. The Europeans just look a little stronger.