The USA lost Pool A to Sweden but still qualified for the semifinals at the Hanwha LifePlus International Crown on Saturday in San Francisco.
The Americans (3-2-1) dropped a four-ball game and battled back to halve the second game against Sweden (5-0-1) in the team match-play event. The USA clinched a spot in the semis when China lost their second match against England.
The USA will face Pool B winner Thailand in Sunday’s semi while Sweden gets Australia, runner-up to Thailand, the only team undefeated in pool play (6-0-0). Thailand swept Australia on Saturday.
Lexi Thompson opens against Atthaya Thitikul of Thailand on Sunday morning. Patty Tavatanakit will then battle Lilia Vu followed by Moriya Jutanugarn and Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand against Danielle Kang and Nelly Korda.
The International Crown is being played for the first time since 2018 due to the covid-19 pandemic. The top eight countries in women’s golf were determined by last year’s Rolex Rankings and each country sent four of their best players to the unique team event.
Countries were seeded and divided into two pools, with teams competing in four balls (best ball) in a single round-robin format from Thursday to Saturday. One point will be awarded for a win and half a point for a draw, with the top two countries advancing from each pool.
Two semi-final matches will be played on Sunday morning, each consisting of two singles matches and one foursomes (alternate-shot) match. The winning semi-final countries will compete in the final match on Sunday afternoon in semi-final format.
Sweden took Pull A when Anna Nordqvist and Caroline Hedwall defeated Korda and Vu 1 up. Hedwall and Nordqvist went 3-0-0 in four-ball competition.
“You knew it was going to have to be really strong play, and I think (we’re) just proud of ourselves,” Nordqvist said. “We finished really strong yesterday to get some momentum, and we came out shooting pretty strong this morning.”
In the second match, the American team of Thompson and Kang birdied three straight holes (Nos. 14-16) to take the lead before Maja Stark drained a birdie putt on the 18th to halve the match.
“I liked it because it felt like they got mad, and it’s kind of fun,” Stark said of his birdie putt on 18. “I really wanted to make that putt. Just being able to perform under pressure like that is not something I have really felt before because it used to be, everything has only been about myself, but now I’m doing it for my team and for Sweden. It’s really nice to be able to get in the clutch like that at the end.”
In other action on Saturday, South Korea swept both games from Japan while England and China split.
Standings (WL record, points)
Pool A
1. Sweden 5-0-1, 5 1/2 points
2. USA 3-2-1, 3 1/2 points
3. China 2-4-0, 2 points
4. England 1-5-0, 1 point
Pool B
1. Thailand 6-0-0, 6 points
2. Australia 3-2-1, 3 1/2 points
3. South Korea 2-4-0, 2 points
4. Japan 0-5-1, 1/2 point
–Field Level Media
Source: sn.dk