A preview of the Solheim Cup, golf's next made-for-TV tournament

Check in every week for the unfiltered views of our writers and editors as they analyze the hottest topics in sports, and join the conversation by tweeting us at @igalofu_com. This week, we preview the Solheim Cup, discuss the newly announced made-for-TV golf tournament and share our picks for the best golf deals. And if you want our writers' thoughts on last week's President's Cup captaincy selection, you can read about that here.

The 19th round of the Solheim Cup will run from Friday through Sunday at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Gainesville, Va. Last year, the US and Europe squared off for the first time in the event's history, allowing Europe to retain the trophy for the third time in a row. meeting. Who is winning this year, and why?

Josh Sens, senior author (@joshsens): Team USA. Partly thanks to the home crowd advantage, but also because—with Lexi playing in what might be his final season, and Korda coming off a historic season, and a team with a good balance of youthful fire and experience—it just feels that way. the spirits of the game may want it written down.

Sean Zak, senior author (@sean_zak): Wow, Josh Sens — what a great guy! Lay your tarot cards down and see who plays well. With Charley Hull, Esther Hensleit and a few Euros standing out right now, the best player is on Team USA, and so is the second best player in Lilia Vu. Andrea Lee played well in St. Andrews and Rose Zhang is in the lead for another front runner herself. Not to mention dawgs that's Lauren Coughlin and Ally Ewing. Team USA is going to win, and I fear it may not be close.

Senses: Sorry. I promise to ditch the 'shrooms before our next round table and stick firmly to the recorded data.

Zephyr Melton, assistant editor (@zephyrmelton): I like the Euros to continue their dominance. The Americans may have a tough stance, but that hasn't helped them much the past few times. When the lights are on at these club events, the Europeans seem to be popping up all the time.

Last year it was Carlota Ciganda of Spain who won the championship, finishing 4-0 defeating Nelly Korda 2 and 1 in each game. Who will be the most important player for each side come next week, and who will be the MVP of the event?

Senses: For more feel-good purposes, I'd say Lexi. But I have a sneaky idea about the selection of captain Jennifer Kupcho, who is hot on the heels of her tough game in Spain. (The caveat is that the records in this format can be deceiving, as they depend a lot on how both your teammates and opponents play. For good reason, the MVP is usually the leading scorer, not the player who always plays. They did the best or the most for their team)

Zak: What's important? Lilia Vu. He can win five games, and he is in good enough form to do it. He went 1-3 last year, the same season he won two majors. That's not cutting it. The MVP will be Nelly Korda, who will play five games and be loved in all of them. He's well on his way back to dominance after a strange summer, and it could all click this week.

Melton: Gimme Leona Maguire from Team Europe. He's had an uneven 2024 so far, but he's been a perfect player in the event in the last two games. I like him to continue that trend and improve his 7-2-1 Solheim Cup record. According to the American players, it will be difficult for them to win unless Nelly Korda and Lilia Vu play well.

The next televised match will see Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler take on Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka in December in Las Vegas. What do you think of this analogy? And is the PGA Tour vs. LIV angle will help with measurements?

Senses: It helps better with ratings because, really, is there another reason for the game? This is designed to fuel a golf civil war, and -outside of the majors, with an agreement between the two hosts nowhere in sight – is as close as the two regions will get to giving the people what they want. It helps, of course, that you have four mega names with a lot of friction/disagreement in their relationship. But more than anything, this is an extension of the ongoing battle in the men's pro game. Fans and media alike will give you all sorts of fanciful interpretations, using the results as evidence of which tour is the most appropriate. The birds will be full. Ratings will be high. And people who already have a lot of money will do a lot by entertaining the masses with an event full of 'meaning' made. The perfect confection for our times.

Zak: It's a compelling combination, putting two of the Tour's three against LIV Golf's best two. Has Mr. Entertainer at Bryson, Mr. Jock at Brooks, Mr. The whole world in Rory and Mr. Best-Since-Tiger in Scottie. It's as compelling a product as you can put without the names Woods, Mickelson and Spieth. I'm sure it will be marketed as a fight of some sort, but hopefully not. Because these guys don't like each other. I hope it is a proving ground for many things. Finally, about 12 or 18 holes of fun game play.

Melton: I'm really excited about the event, and having the LIV-PGA Tour angle should do a great job of adding hype to the game. Will that be enough to generate the much-needed high ratings? I doubt it.

Is the PGA Tour vs. LIV is consistent with the suggestion that the parties may come closer together in the agreement? Or at least learn to live together? How important can small deals like these be to the future of pro golf?

Senses: Does anyone, even the leading actors themselves, have no idea how far or how close they are to this agreement? With so many moving parts and parties to appease, I get the sense that even those directly involved aren't sure what the final deal might look like. At the moment, parallels like this seem to be the search for ways to live together more profitably. Purists may not see it as a good sign of professional golf, but if you look at the game as an entertainment product, it strikes me as a smart way to go.

Zak: Let's call this a small deal then. I think it's important in the sense that the ratings will be improved from the last game: the skin game featuring Rory vs. Lexi Thompson vs. Max Homa vs. Rose Zhang. I think it's important to put the LIV Golfers on the same level as the Tour stars in the month of December (when they may not normally be in the public eye). I think it's important to do it all in a non-major tournament setting, too. Will it bring any “no” from the board closer to the “yes”? I really don't think so.

Melton: I'm tired of analyzing every little thing in golf in the context of the Tour vs. LIV. The truth is that no one knows what's coming next except for a select few in discussions. I don't put too much stock in this event being a doomsayer for things to come.

Speaking of LIV Golf, it has released the dates and venues for its first four tournaments of 2025, and while they will all be played around the world, they will all be played in the same weeks as one of the PGA Tour's biggest events – the WM. Phoenix Open, Genesis Invitational, Arnold Palmer Invitational and The Players Championship. Why would LIV Golf organize these to compete directly with the Tour? Does it matter?

Senses: At first glance, you could read it as a swinging LIV, especially against a strong team at the Phoenix Open, which is probably the closest the Tour has to offer in the atmosphere of an LIV event. But I don't think it's worth giving much explanation to any of it, except to emphasize that LIV is the military, driven by an endless budget, and that those days in those areas are equal enough. As a serious contender for the Tour's biggest audience, it doesn't seem to be more than a breath of fresh air.

Zak: LIV can't compete with the Tour for eyeballs, but I guess they can try to put a dent in the ratings that the Tour prides itself on? It can also be the stage for the best events and produces public clips of players drinking beer without shoes during the weeks when the PGA Tour is cool, calm and comfortable on the Riviera. It won't matter, in the end, to hold tournaments these weeks because the international times when LIV will be playing means they won't be competing directly. And at the end of the day, there are about 10- to 15-odd golfers at LIV that fans really want to watch. And there are at least two to three times on the PGA Tour.

Melton: Truth be told, it doesn't matter when LIV organizes their events as it relates to Tour events. Even though Tour ratings are down, they still dwarf the number of eyeballs LIV has drawn. I'm sure there is a deeper explanation for this editorial decision, but ultimately it doesn't change the fact that LIV doesn't move the needle.

Last week, we released our first-ever list of America's best golf courses to play for $100 or less. What's the best course under this system – whether it's on this list or not – that you've ever played?

Senses: Since I just did this case on our site on Friday, I'll have to stick with George Wright, just out of Boston. A large muni designed by Donald Ross under the care of a miracle worker who made the most of a small maintenance budget. It's a great walk and fun challenge in a green area that takes you away from the hustle and bustle of the city, even though it's less than 8 miles from the city.

Zak: It's hard to think of a better golf course for $35 than Aiken Golf Club, Aiken, SC It's so simple and so beautiful. Driveable par-4s, long par-3s, pinestraw, tight lies, tight greens, long pines and elevation changes. And just a 35-minute drive from Augusta, Ga. If you're bringing clubs to the Masters tour in early April, you better not miss this one.

Melton: Zak is seen in his exploration of Aiken. I played it for the first time this spring and I absolutely love it. As far as the best deals in my neck of the woods, it's hard to beat the $75 greenback for NY residents at Bethpage Black. Being able to make it to a major tournament and host a future Ryder Cup for less than $100 is an incredible benefit.