Solheim Cup legend Anna Nordqvist will have the chance to lead Europe to victory as captain in 2026.
The Swedish star has been revealed as leader of the blue and gold team that lost the Solheim Cup to America in 2024, having been unbeaten for three consecutive renewals.
As well as winning three major titles and 16 professional trophies, Nordqvist made nine appearances for Europe on the spin from 2009, and she was a playing vice-captain in 2023 and 2024.
Her playing role gradually merged into the leadership hot seat, and she will look to win the Solheim Cup when Bernardus Golf welcomes the 12 best Europeans and Americans to the Netherlands in September.
“I am so honoured to be appointed as the 2026 European Solheim Cup Captain,” she said. “Whether we were winning or losing, the Solheim Cup has played such a huge part in my career ever since I made my debut in 2009 in Chicago.
“The friendships I have made, and the memories created during the nine matches I’ve played, make it so incredibly special to be given the opportunity to be European Captain at my tenth Solheim Cup.
“I feel especially fortunate to be the Captain at Bernardus Golf. It’s a superb course for match play with fantastic facilities and a stunning clubhouse so we couldn’t ask for a better stage for the 20thedition of the Solheim Cup.
“It’s also super close to Amsterdam so I think the fans are going to have an amazing experience enjoying its rich culture and the famous warm Dutch hospitality.”
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Nordqvist turned professional in 2008 and joined the LPGA Tour and the Ladies European Tour in 2009. She was born in Eskilstuna in Sweden on June 10, 1987.
Just before turning professional, she made the cut at the Women’s Open in 2007 and 2008, winning the Smyth Salver twice as low amateur. Her first win on the LPGA Tour happened to be at the 2009 McDonald’s LPGA Championship, her first major win.
She took the Evian Championship in 2017 and won the AIG Women’s Open by one shot in 2021 at Carnoustie. Nordqvist has nine wins on the LPGA Tour and five on the Ladies European Tour. Her last professional win came at the Big Green Egg Open in 2022, but she recorded a seventh-place finish in this year’s Evian Championship.
She could’ve been a four-time major champion if she hadn’t lost to Brittany Lang in a playoff at the 2016 US Women’s Open. Given her success, it is no surprise she has been a Solheim Cup stalwart.
Nordqvist has won the Solheim Cup five times and has won 17 of her 35 matches against the United States. In 2024, she earned two points from four matches, with the highlight coming with a 6&5 win with Madelene Sagstrom in the Friday foursomes.
The Swede announced prior to last week’s FM Championship that it would be her last event competing on the LPGA Tour. The three-time major champion will now shift focus to Bernardus Golf in the Netherlands, as Europe seeks to reclaim the Solheim Cup on home soil.
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