Team USA got a surprise visit from Barack Obama on Monday.
The squad, led by Stacy Lewis, was in Gainesville, Virginia, prepping for the 19th Solheim Cup when Obama showed up. The 44th President is a big golf enthusiast and took time to chat with the whole team before they toured the Pentagon later that day.
Obama has been a member of Robert Trent Jones Golf Club since 2017. That’s also the last year Team USA won the Solheim Cup.
Obama’s Past Visits
In previous years, winning teams visited The White House to meet Obama. For instance, Beth Daniel’s victorious team from 2009 met him in 2010. During Obama’s second term in 2015, Julie Inkster’s team, including Alison Lee and Lexi Thompson, also had the honor of meeting him after their win in Germany.
President @BarackObama surprised the @SolheimCupUSA team at dinner to wish them good luck at @TheSolheimCup this week! pic.twitter.com/YDEkZpUOc1
Interestingly enough, both Obama and Allisen Corpuz share more than just love for golf; they were both born in Honolulu and attended Punahou School . After Corpuz won the US Women’s Open in 2023, Obama congratulated her on X (formerly Twitter), saying: “Congratulations to fellow Hawaiian Allisen Corpuz for winning the U.S. Women’s Open! You make us all proud — and look forward to a round at Kapolei!”
Fans might think it’s cool how these connections keep popping up!
Just a couple of Punahou School alums @allisen_sc | @BarackObama https://t.co/7qwa3xGt8a pic.twitter.com/15u7ERMUCo
Corpuz often gets asked about her connection with Obama. She shared: “Yeah, Barack and Michelle [Obama] are the two Punahou alum that I get talked to about the most. I mean, he’s done a lot in his career. Yeah, that’s pretty special.”
After her strong debut in the Solheim Cup where she scored 2.5 points but couldn’t help Team USA win against Europe at Finca Cortesin in 2023, she hopes for victory next time.
What do you think? Will Team USA win this year?
