Laura Davies was asked a number of times to take the Solheim Cup captaincy, only to repeatedly turn it down. Despite playing in the tournament more than anyone, she has her reasons, as Alex Perry found out.
Mickey Walker. Pia Nilsson. Dale Reid. Catrin Nilsmark. Helen Alfredsson. Alison Nicholas. Lottie Neumann. Carin Koch. Annika Sorenstam. Catriona Matthew. Suzann Pettersen. Anna Nordqvist. A who’s who of Solheim Cup royalty has captained the European team. But one name is notable in its absence.
Laura Davies played in the first 12 editions of the biennial showdown against the United States, putting 25 points on the board from 46 matches. No one has ever topped any of those three numbers – and perhaps never will.
After her final appearance as a player, Davies had no involvement in the tournament until 2019, when she was invited by Matthew to serve as one of her assistants at Gleneagles. Now a four-time vice-captain, a spell which has yielded two wins, one defeat and a tie to retain the trophy, the 62-year-old will play an advisory role to Nordqvist for the 20th Solheim Cup at Bernadus Golf in the Netherlands on top of her punditry work for Sky Sports.
“I just never got excited about the thought of being a Solheim Cup captain.”
So when TG sat down with the icon, who was awarded a Damehood in 2014 for her services to this wonderful game, we were keen to know why she had never taken the top job. The answer, it turns out, is two-fold. The first is good old-fashioned stubbornness.
“The trouble was,” she begins, “when I was being asked initially, I was still trying to get in the team thanks to that crazy ambition that us players have. And then when I stopped being a consideration for the Solheim Cup, and I knew I was never going to get in another one, I was still trying to play on the tour. If you’re still wanting to be a professional golfer and still play at a highish level, you just can’t do it. And I was never going to be captain with one eye still on my playing career.
“So you could say it’s selfish, or you could say I just I just wanted to get the most out of my game as possible. Then by the time I started doing TV and I was asked seriously, I had been away from the game a little bit. I’ve done the vice captain’s role, so I know a lot of the players thanks to that, but I’ve never really had any interaction with some of the young players coming through.”
It wasn’t the only reason, though.
“It’s not really my thing anyway,” Davies says with a knowing smile.
How so?
“Being center of attention, and the all the other things that go with it. I just never got excited about the thought of being a Solheim Cup captain. Being involved in the team – like this time I’m a helper and the last four as a vice-captain – have been absolutely brilliant. You have a little bit of input with meetings in the 18 months beforehand, but then it’s all about the actual week for the vice-captains – and that’s what I really enjoy about it.
“My time’s gone now, and I don’t regret it at all because it was my decision not to do it.”
European captain Anna Nordqvist played in the Solheim Cup nine times. (Getty Images)
Nordqvist was happy to take the reins, though, and Davies is in no doubt that the now-retired Swede is the right person for the job. “She’s quiet, but she’s such a strong character,” Davies says. And it means the “players don’t have to worry about being a leader”.
“Maybe I’m wrong and someone will step up,” she continues. Contenders include Charley Hull and Carlota Ciganda, who will each be making their eighth Solheim Cup appearance in the Netherlands, and Celine Boutier, who will playing in her fifth.
“They’re not particularly vocal players, but they have brilliant Solheim Cup records,” Davies explains before focusing on Hull.
“Charley leads with her golf clubs. She’s very much her own person and she will do what she does – and that’s best for her because she’s a little bit different. I love the way she goes about it. I love her free spirit. Her attention span’s not the best to be involved in a team environment, and sometimes in team golf you could criticize someone like that, but Charley’s so natural, so just let her go.”
Will the lack of vocal support in the team room affect the performance, though?
“Personally, I don’t think so,” Davies admits. “I certainly wasn’t. I was like Charley in that I tried to lead with my golf clubs.
“I would never be one for rousing speeches. But over the years, players have done that. I remember at Loch Lomond [in 2000] when [the US won four of the first five singles matches] before the rain delay, and Catrin Nilsmark gave this big speech in the team room, and it really made a difference. So if players naturally like being like that, then I think I think it’s great if they do.”
Laura Davies expects Charley Hull to “lead with her golf clubs”. (Getty Images)
Instead, ‘Damo’ expects a much more vibes-based atmosphere.
“Looking at this year’s team, I would say it was quite a quiet group,” she explains. “Other than Lottie, I don’t really know a lot about the rookies, but from what I’ve heard, they’re lively characters and really good fun. So maybe, rather than leading with rousing speeches, they will bring their energy to the team room, and that’s the most important thing.”
She also singles out one of Nordqvist’s vice-captains for praise.
“Do you know who else is really good for that? Mel Reid. She can definitely get a team going.”
While the European team have three of the top five, Angela Stanford’s US side is once again the dominant force when it comes to the Rolex Rankings, with her 12 players averaging 39th in the world to the hosts’ 54th. But it’s not a concern for Davies, who notes that one of Nordqvist’s rookies is 22-year-old Lottie Woad, who will head to the Solheim Cup as the World No.7 with four wins and five major top-ten finishes on her resumé.
“I say ‘rookie’ with an asterisk,” Davies smiles. “Back in the day, a rookie meant a genuine rookie. Now, the players come through the college system and they play a lot of high-level individual and team golf.
“Lottie will go into the Solheim Cup feeling super confident and it will be interesting to see, when she stands on that tee for the first time, whether her face changes at all. But she does seem extremely calm. I spoke with Leona [Maguire] the other day and she said all the girls pretty much know who they’re playing with. It’s not a pod system, and I can one hundred percent see Lottie play with another rookie because she’s not your average rookie.”
Anyway, Davies says world rankings and experience are mere minor worries when you throw home advantage into the equation. That, she explains, is where the fans play their part.
“You know that if you hole a putt, the noise level and the energy goes up and that gets you going,” she explains.
“At an away Solheim Cup, it’s the complete opposite, because you’re trying to shut the crowd up – and that will be the American’s job this time. They will have some fans there, but it will be overwhelmingly in favor of the European crowds, and they need to silence them. If you can just keep the keep the momentum going in your direction, the crowd get more and more into it.
“And sometimes you might get that extra eight inches out of a putt you might normally roll up to the hole because you’re hitting them with more authority. I used to putt my best at a Solheim Cup – absolutely no question about it. It’s the excitement of it. So that’s your home advantage.”
As for who she thinks will win, Davies was only ever going to give one answer – even if it was far more specific than we anticipated.
“I think Europe will win by a point,” she says. “Who’s going to play late on Sunday? Someone like Carlota, so I’ll say her to hole the winning putt for 14 and a half to 13 and a half win.”
Laura Davies’ Solheim Cup record
No one has played in more Solheim Cup matches or put more points on the board than Laura Davies, who played her part in the victories of 1992, 2000, 2003 and 2011. Here is her full record in the blue and yellow of Team Europe…
YEARMATCHESTOTAL
W-L-HFOURSOMES
W–L–HFOURBALLS
W–L–HSINGLES
W–L–HPOINTS199032-1-01-0-00-1-01-0-02199233-0-01-0-01-0-01-0-03199431-2-01-0-00-1-00-1-01199653-2-01-1-02-0-00-1-03199853-1-11-1-01-0-11-0-03.5200041-2-11-1-00-0-10-1-01.5200252-3-01-1-01-1-00-1-02200341-2-10-0-10-2-01-0-01.5200553-2-01-1-02-0-00-1-03200742-1-10-1-01-0-11-0-02.5200920-1-10-0-00-1-00-0-10.5201131-1-10-0-01-1-00-0-11.5TOTAL4622-18-68-6-19-7-35-5-225
Watch every moment of the Solheim Cup live exclusively on Sky Sports and Now from September 11-13.