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Final automatic qualifying spots filled for 2019 U.S. Solheim Cup team

August 25, 2019
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Brittany Altomare, Angel Yin and Annie Park secured the final three automatic qualifying spots for the U.S. Solheim Cup after the completion of the CP Women’s Open.

Altomare qualified via the Solheim Cup points list. Points are accrued at each LPGA Tour event in the two years leading up to the Solheim Cup, with only finishes in the top 20 receiving points. Points are doubled at majors, and tournaments during the Solheim Cup year are weighted more heavily. For example, a win in a non-Solheim Cup year is worth 40 points, but in a Solheim Cup year is worth 60. Altomare is the last of eight players on the U.S. team to qualify via the Solheim Cup points list.

Yin and Park made the squad off of the World Ranking. Yin played in the 2017 Solheim Cup, but Park and Altomare will be rookies on captain Juli Inkster's team that travels to Gleneagles in Scotland next month.

Altomare has had a strong season, finishing in the top 15 five times on the LPGA Tour in 2019. Park won her first LPGA title in 2018, the ShopRite Classic, and has had three top-10 finishes in 2019. Yin, one of the longest hitters on tour, will once again be the youngest player on Team USA at age 20.

While Altomare and Yin looked like they'd likely secured spots on the team as the tournament played out outside Toronto, the last position was more uncertain. Before the CP Women's Open, Austin Ernst was ahead of Park. But after Ernst missed the cut in Canada, Park moved ahead of her on the World Ranking list by advancing to the weekend.

Seven golfers had already locked up places on the 2019 U.S. Solheim Cup team prior to the CP Women's Open: Lexi Thompson, Danielle Kang, Nelly Korda, Jessica Korda, Lizette Salas, Marina Alex and Megan Khang.

Two spots on the U.S. team remain to be filled. Inkster will announce her captain's picks on Monday. There are several veteran players for Inkster to choose from, notably Cristie Kerr, Stacy Lewis, Paula Creamer, Morgan Pressel and Gerina Piller. Arguments could be made for all of them.

"I am really happy with my 10 players right now," Inkster said on Sunday. "The problem is I have more players who deserve to be on the team than I have spots available."

The European Team has already been finalized. Captain Catriona Matthew will bring the following players to Gleneagles in Scotland:

Celine Boutier (rookie)
Carlota Ciganda
Georgia Hall
Caroline Hedwall
Charley Hull
Bronte Law (rookie)
Caroline Masson
Azahara Munoz
Anna Nordqvist
Suzann Pettersen
Jodi Ewart Shadoff
Anne Van Dam (rookie)