Leona Maguire surprisingly only played two matches in the 2024 Solheim Cup.
She was a standout for Europe in 2021 and 2023, but this time she missed the opening foursomes and sat out all of day two after losing with Georgia Hall on Friday afternoon.
The absence of Maguire on Saturday raised questions. However, she clarified it wasn’t due to injury or poor form—she showed her skill by beating Ally Ewing 4&3 on Sunday.
Maguire found it hard to accept being benched and said that captain Suzann Pettersen “didn’t give much reason” for the decision, though she had her suspicions.
“I felt like I played great golf today,” Maguire remarked. “I’ve been playing well all week in practice. It was tough not playing as many sessions, but I wanted to prove myself today.”
Captain’s Decision:
Maguire shared that Pettersen suggested she was too short and didn’t make enough birdies. But Maguire believed she proved herself by making plenty of birdies that day.
Fans might think this decision was a bit unfair given Maguire’s past performances.
“Captain’s call. I’m a team player, so I just focused on winning my point today,” said Maguire.
Form is temporary, class is permanent
💪🏼🇪🇺 🦁— Leona Maguire (@leona_maguire)
Maguire admitted there was extra motivation to win and show Pettersen she could still score points, which she did with five birdies in 15 holes.
“It’s Solheim Cup; no extra motivation needed,” she added. “But yeah, maybe a bit more drive was there.”
Pettersen addressed the decision during her post-Solheim press conference: “It’s extremely difficult to sit any players on this team. The way it turned out, that’s how it turned out.”
Maguire is expected to be part of Team Europe again in 2026 when the Solheim Cup moves to Bernardus Golf in The Netherlands.
What do you think about the captain’s choice?
