Solheim Cup Results & Winners 2026: Europe Reclaims the Trophy
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The 2026 Solheim Cup had everything a team golf event should have: momentum shifts, unexpected heroes, dramatic comebacks and a final day that completely changed the picture.
Played at Bernardus Golf in Cromvoirt, the Netherlands, from 11–13 September 2026, the 20th edition of the Solheim Cup brought Team Europe and Team USA together for 28 match-play contests. After two days of remarkably close competition, the teams were tied at 8–8 heading into the singles.
Europe then produced the decisive performance.
Team Europe defeated the United States 15–13 to reclaim the Solheim Cup, with Lottie Woad securing the point that put Europe beyond reach before Carlota Ciganda added the final point.
For European golf, it was a particularly memorable victory: the United States had won the previous edition in 2024, but the trophy is now back in European hands.
Europe entered the final day level with the United States at 8–8. With 12 singles matches remaining, neither side had an advantage, making Sunday’s session effectively a fresh contest.
Europe won seven of the 12 singles matches, while the United States won five. That 7–5 advantage gave Europe the points it needed to reach 15 and lift the trophy.
The victory was Europe’s eighth outright Solheim Cup win. The United States remains ahead in the overall series, but Europe’s recent record has made the competition increasingly difficult to predict.
2026 Solheim Cup Final Score
The final score was: Europe 15 – 13 United States.
The first two days could hardly have been closer. Friday ended 4–4, leaving both teams with four points. Europe then moved ahead during Saturday morning’s foursomes, winning the session 3–1 to take a 7–5 lead.
But the Americans responded immediately in Saturday afternoon’s four-ball matches. Team USA won that session 3–1, bringing the overall score back to 8–8 before the singles. That meant the entire Solheim Cup came down to the 12 matches played on Sunday.
How Did Europe Win the Solheim Cup?
The turning point came early in the Sunday singles.
Europe won several of the opening matches and quickly established a lead. According to Reuters, Europe won six of the first eight singles matches, putting the Americans under increasing pressure.
The Europeans eventually won the singles session 7–5.
This was particularly important because the Solheim Cup uses a point-based match-play system. Each match is worth one point, with a halved match giving each team half a point. With 28 points available in total, Europe needed to reach 14½ points to take the trophy outright.
After entering Sunday at 8 points, Europe therefore needed another 6½ points.
They got them.
Lottie Woad Secures the Decisive Point
One of the biggest moments of the 2026 Solheim Cup came from Lottie Woad, one of Europe’s younger players.
Woad faced Auston Kim in the singles and eventually won the match 2&1.
The decisive moment came on the 17th hole, where Woad holed a short putt to win the hole. That took Europe to 14½ points, meaning the United States could no longer catch them.
It was a fitting moment for Woad after a difficult start to her week. She had struggled in Europe’s earlier matches but produced when her team needed her most.
For a rookie, clinching a Solheim Cup on the final day is the sort of experience that can define a career.
Carlota Ciganda Seals the 15–13 Victory
Although Woad’s result made the victory mathematically secure, Carlota Ciganda provided the final flourish.
The Spaniard defeated Jennifer Kupcho 4&2, adding another full point to Europe’s total and establishing the final 15–13 scoreline.
Ciganda’s role was especially significant because she has already become one of the defining Solheim Cup players of her generation.
Her 2026 victory was also particularly memorable because she had previously secured the winning point for Europe in 2013. Her ability to deliver in another decisive Solheim Cup finish added another chapter to her already impressive record in the competition.
Linn Grant Goes Undefeated at 4–0
While Woad and Ciganda provided the decisive moments on Sunday, Linn Grant was one of Europe’s standout performers throughout the entire week.
The Swedish player finished the 2026 Solheim Cup with a perfect 4–0–0 record, meaning she won all four matches she played.
Grant’s Sunday singles match was particularly convincing. She defeated Angel Yin 4&3, contributing another important point to Europe’s final-day surge.
Her performance was also notable because it represented a dramatic turnaround from her previous Solheim Cup appearance.
The 2026 edition showed exactly why match play can be so different from regular tournament golf: a player who had struggled in a previous team event can return two years later and become one of the competition’s most reliable point scorers.
Alison Lee Produces a Remarkable Comeback for Team USA
The United States ultimately lost the Cup, but Alison Lee produced one of the week’s most impressive individual performances.
Lee finished with a perfect 4–0–0 record, matching Grant’s undefeated record.
Her Sunday singles match against Esther Henseleit was particularly dramatic. Lee was four holes behind before mounting a remarkable comeback to win the match 1 up.
The comeback was reported as the largest comeback in Solheim Cup singles history.
It was an important reminder that the final score does not necessarily reflect how competitive the matches themselves were. Even as Europe began building an advantage, Team USA continued to produce individual performances that kept the contest alive.
2026 Solheim Cup Sunday Singles Results
The final day featured 12 singles matches, with every player representing their team individually.
The results were:
Match
Result
Charley Hull vs Megan Khang
Hull won 2&1
Alison Lee vs Esther Henseleit
Lee won 1 up
Linn Grant vs Angel Yin
Grant won 4&3
Nelly Korda vs Mimi Rhodes
Korda won 4&2
Nanna Koerstz Madsen vs Allisen Corpuz
Koerstz Madsen won 2&1
Nastasia Nadaud vs Andrea Lee
Nadaud won 3&2
Julia López Ramírez vs Yealimi Noh
López Ramírez won 3&2
Lottie Woad vs Auston Kim
Woad won 2&1
Lauren Coughlin vs Leona Maguire
Coughlin won 2&1
Lindy Duncan vs Maja Stark
Duncan won 3&1
Carlota Ciganda vs Jennifer Kupcho
Ciganda won 4&2
Rose Zhang vs Céline Boutier
Zhang won 2 up
Europe therefore won the singles session 7–5.
Who Were the 2026 Solheim Cup Captains?
Team Europe was led by Anna Nordqvist, making her debut as Solheim Cup captain.
The Swedish star was already an experienced Solheim Cup player before taking on the captaincy, and she now adds a winning captaincy to her own history in the competition.
Team USA was captained by Angela Stanford, who led the American side in its attempt to retain the trophy after the 2024 victory.
The contrast between the two captains was interesting: both had extensive Solheim Cup experience as players, but 2026 marked Nordqvist’s first opportunity to lead Europe from the captain’s position.
It was an important milestone for the venue and for Dutch golf because the Netherlands hosted the Solheim Cup for the first time.
Bernardus Golf was designed by Kyle Phillips and opened in 2018. Before hosting the Solheim Cup, the course had already staged the Dutch Open in 2021, 2022 and 2023.
The course therefore had experience hosting professional golf, but the Solheim Cup presented an entirely different challenge: rather than a conventional tournament, Bernardus had to accommodate three days of intense head-to-head match play and the atmosphere of one of women’s golf’s biggest team events.
Why Was the 2026 Solheim Cup So Close?
The final 15–13 score might suggest a relatively comfortable European victory, but the competition was much tighter than that.
The teams were level at 4–4 after Friday and again at 8–8 after Saturday. The Americans even managed to erase Europe’s two-point advantage on Saturday afternoon by winning three of the four four-ball matches.
The difference came down to Europe’s performance in singles.
Rather than allowing the United States to build on its momentum from Saturday afternoon, the European players immediately established control on Sunday. Six wins in the first eight singles matches put Europe in position to reclaim the trophy before Ciganda eventually completed the job.
It was a reminder of one of the defining characteristics of the Solheim Cup: a team can dominate one session and still find itself starting the next day from scratch.
What Made the 2026 Solheim Cup Special?
Several storylines made the 2026 edition stand out.
There was the dramatic return of the trophy to Europe after the United States won in 2024. There was Woad’s emergence as a decisive player in her first Solheim Cup. Grant’s perfect 4–0 record and Lee’s equally impressive undefeated week provided two outstanding individual performances from opposite sides.
And then there was Ciganda.
Her final match against Kupcho was no longer required to determine the winner, but the 4&2 victory gave the European celebrations an emphatic ending.
For European fans, it was also the first Solheim Cup played in the Netherlands — and the home crowd had the perfect ending to its debut as host.
