Solheim Cup golfer scores incredible hole-in-one sparking mayhem
Emily Pedersen hit only the second hole-in-one in Solheim Cup history for Team Europe on day one of the 2023 tournament in Spain.
Pedersen, 27, made the ace on the 12th hole at Finca Cortesin after landing her tee shot on the edge of the green before seeing the ball spin sideways back on itself down the slope and straight into the cup. On its descent toward the flag, the ball narrowly misses those belonging to her playing partner Maja Stark and Team USA's Allisen Corpuz and Jennifer Kupcho.
After seeing it go down, Pedersen screams in celebration back up at the tee. She jumps up and down before leaping into the open arms of Stark's caddie, Hadley Trenfield.
Stark herself then comes in for a hug, embracing Pedersen as they both take in the moment. She then double high-fives her long-time caddie, Michael Paterson, before repeating the same gesture with her opponent, Allisen Corpuz, to mark the momentous moment.
Then Suzann Pettersen came in for a hug and another embrace, and the delight on her face was apparent. After all, as Team Europe captain, she chose to pick Pedersen as one of the four wildcards.
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It was far from a foregone conclusion that the Dane would be in that quartet either. Despite having two previous Solheim Cup appearances, she was the lowest-ranked player selected based on the European standings.
Pedersen was as far down as 114th in the Rolex rankings, with only fellow wildcard pick Madelene Sagström lower. She is also one of three teammates with a winning percentage below 50% from previous appearances at the 2017 and 2021 editions.
Pedersen hit her hole-in-one while trailing in her afternoon four-ball (Sky Sports)
The shot spun back on itself and down into the cup (Sky Sports)However, Pettersen put faith in her fellow Scandinavian, which paid off in some style on day one. Despite initially not looking like an inspired decision, with Pedersen and Charley Hull going down 5 & 4 in the morning foursomes, it would turn around in the afternoon four-ball.
The Dane's ace would draw Europe level in their match-up, and that was how it ended to earn one-half point. After being swept in the morning, the Europeans bounced back with two wins and a pair of ties to take the later session 3-1 and end the opening day only 3-5 down overall.
Pedersen's hole-in-one was the highlight of the two sessions. In acing the 12th, she joins Anna Nordqvist in Solheim Cup history as the only two players to achieve such a feat.
A decade ago, the Swede shot the first one in competition history at the Colorado Golf Club. That effort came on the second day rather than the first, but was also part of a fight back, coming with Nordqvist and playing partner Caroline Hedwall were one down with five to play.
Team Europe will also hope it is a good omen for their hopes of retaining the Solheim Cup. A decade ago, Nordqvist's Europe went on to win 18-10.
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