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Shipnuck: Besides Wie, I thought the most impressive player was Anna Norqvist. She didn't get it done in singles but was electric over the first two days. She validated her breakthrough at the Open, and I look forward to watching her in the next 10 Solheims.
Gorant: Good call. I was impressed by Brewerton and Elosegui, too. I'd never seen either of them before.
Van Sickle: No question. Lost in the U.S. win was the fact that Europe has some good, young talent.
Herre: Suzann Pettersen was not her dominant self. If she had been we might've had a different result.
Gorant: She's so streaky, though, that it's not terribly surprising she didn't dominate. You never know what to expect from her.
Bamberger: I thought she would dominate, too. This result is slightly — slightly — similar to the British Open, where Watson won without winning. Europe, in the heart of America-the-beautiful country, with a lesser team on paper, pretty much held its own. That's like a win, and that's why we're all doing so much typing about it.
Van Sickle: In the bigger picture, when was the last time an LPGA tournament, even a major, was a big story or brewed this kind of excitement? The Solheim Cup is the big daddy of women's golf.
Bamberger: That's so true. The LPGA and the Champions Tour want to tell us what the majors are. Doesn't work that way. We (the people) decide. Solheim was a major. Not a major major. But a major golf event.
Gorant: That's true for us golf junkies, but I wonder how much it penetrated the larger sports world?
Friedman: Good point, Jim. It's not the major story either on SI.com or ESPN.com. It's listed among the "headlines" on both sites.
Herre: It wasn't that long ago that the Ryder Cup wasn't shown on network TV. The Solheim Cup has a chance to be a special, crossover event for women's golf.
Van Sickle: Until someone like Wie develops into a true superstar, the Solheim Cup is the LPGA's only hope for a special crossover event.
Bamberger: Alan: Did. C. Kim hurt herself, literally, with her chest-pounding? She's Patty Berg, right down to the funky hat.
Shipnuck: She lost her voice but was otherwise intact.
Evans: Christina Kim is great for golf. But I'm wondering why she doesn't have a bag sponsor? I hope this attention brings a name to her golf bag.
Van Sickle: Funny thing about Kim. I checked her stats and she had only two top 10s this year. Can that be right?
Shipnuck: Both majors, though. She's been tweaking her swing and equipment. This may foreshadow a big second half. (Fingers crossed ...)
Morfit: I love the flag waving, but even more I love the face painting. Wouldn't Boo Weekley look dandy with an American flag on each cheek and a "BOO" ribbon?
Gorant: Juli Inkster had a great line in her post-match interview when they asked her about being a future captain. Something to the effect of: I'd love to, I'd be great at picking out the skirts and the matching hair ribbons. Good stuff.
Van Sickle: Inkster is a lock as a future captain, although Meg Mallon looks like the heir apparent.
Herre: Was great to see Inkster come back to halve her singles match. It was also fun to hear her say that this Cup was her last, and she wasn't going to pull a Favre.
Van Sickle: Maybe it's time to move on to the PGA Tour. The FedEx Cup playoffs are about to start. Can you name your points leader or describe the new format? Will you be watching any of it?
Bamberger: Tiger plays in them all? You'll have great events. But the cumulative build up that the Tour wants? I don't think the public will ever be that into it.
Gorant: I know three things: Tiger is in first; it's harder to win this year if you don't play all four events; and if anyone in the top five going into the Tour Championship wins that event, he wins the Cup.
Van Sickle: Minor tweaks that are better, but as Bambi points out, not enough to build interest. When a guy's point total can change while he stands on a tee box waiting to hit a shot (because someone else moved up on another hole), there's no way for fans or media to follow along. That needs to be addressed, assuming the FedEx Cup continues.
My darkhorse pick to win the Cup: Steve Marino. This guy makes birdies like few in the game. It's just a matter of time before he breaks through. Wouldn't surprise me to see him pull a Villegas and win a couple of the final events and snag the $10 million.
Bamberger: Steve Marino did an odd and interesting thing while playing with Watson in the third round in the British. On the back nine, he took out a camera and snapped a few pictures. Talk about stopping to smell the roses. Nice kid, love the swing, don't know if he has any killer in him, but who does these days?
Herre: Moving the Barclays to Liberty National was a good move — Tiger Woods simply was not going to play Westchester again — but I'm curious to see how the tournament draws this week, and what the TV ratings are. CBS scored big in the last three Tiger events — the Buick, the Bridgestone and the PGA — but I'm not sure the public understands the playoffs.
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