After two Solheim Cups in back to back years, it is almost going to be strange to see the USA and European teams not being led by Stacy Lewis and Suzann Pettersen in Netherlands should either not stay on as captain for 2026.
The last two Solheim Cups have almost felt like two acts of the same play, particularly after the incredible tie in Spain in 2023. 19 players played in both events, while Stacy Lewis and Suzann Pettersen captained their respective sides for both, too.
Lewis’ side avenged the disappointment from Finca Cortesin, with the USA winning the trophy for the first time since 2017 at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club last week.
There are now two years before the next Solheim Cup, which obviously gives the two sides much longer to prepare for Netherlands. And with that, the debate over who will captain the two sides has already begun.
Karen Stupples predicts the next two Solheim Cup captains
Pettersen came in for criticism after sitting Leona Maguire out of all of Saturday, and the Norwegian’s critics will point out that Pettersen did not win the cup outright in either of her two attempts as captain.
But who could succeed the pair as captains for two years time? Speaking on Golf Channel, 2004 Open champion Karen Stupples suggested that there are a couple of standout candidates when asked to make a prediction.
“I think for the American side, I think Angela Stanford will be next in line, closely followed by Morgan Pressel. I think those two now have a track record of being an assistant captain, and I think it’s actually crucial to have been in that role, so you understand the working that goes on behind the scenes, of how everything happens during the week, how you put the pairings together, the timing of things,” she said.
“As a player, you don’t really see that, you’re so focused on your game, you can’t just go from being a player to going into that leadership captaincy role. So I think it’s going to be Angela Stanford closely followed by Morgan Pressel.
“And then from the European side, I think it’s got to be Anna Nordqvist. Now I know everybody’s going to say what if she plays? I don’t know, in two years time, a lot can happen in two years, and I think she would actually quite relish the role of being a captain rather than having to put her game on the line and be a player.
“I think she would like that captaincy role, I think there’s a whole bunch of influx of new European talent that’s coming up, waiting to take those spots and those places. You want young, fresh legs on the golf course that if you have to rely on them going five matches, you can.”
Either captain may have reason to think they are not yet ready to step aside
It will be interesting to see whether Lewis or Pettersen feel that they still have unfinished business heading into 2026.
For a competitor like Pettersen, she may be desperate to have a crack at winning the cup back. Pettersen refused to confirm whether she would captain the side again, and there are plenty of factors to take into consideration. But the way her side have started the last two Solheim Cups may well drive her to have another go.
Lewis meanwhile, came so close to winning in Spain, and it is clear just how much her team loved playing under her. So the US’s stance may perhaps be they should not look to fix something which is far from broken.
Angela Stanford has been a vice-captain for the last three events, so she could certainly look to continue Lewis’ excellent work in 2026 if she is given the role.
Meanwhile, Anna Nordqvist captaining the European side at some stage seems inevitable. However, based on a couple of her performances in Virginia, it would seemingly be foolish to rule out the Swede making the team as a player in 2026.
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