It may have been said with a smile on her face but there was no disguising the competitive edge as Suzann Pettersen weighed into the pre-bout posturings ahead of the 16th Solheim Cup at Gleneagles.
Danielle Kang, the exuberant Californian, lit the blue touch paper earlier in the week when she stated that the transatlantic tussle left her wanting to “take souls”, make opponents “cry” and “just crush” the opposition.
Asked for a response to the American’s goading, Norwegian Solheim Cup stalwart Pettersen said: “We’re just going to step on their necks.”
It was a line delivered with good humour but, given the fire in the belly that Pettersen possesses, probably one not to be taken lightly.
Pettersen’s European colleague, Jodi Ewart Shadoff, also picked up on Kang’s comments and admitted that the words have helped to fuel the home side’s desire as Catriona Matthew’s side looks to thwart the USA’s bid for a third successive triumph in the biennial bout.
READ MORE: Pettersen keen to let the clubs do the talking
She said: “I think it’s just extra motivation for us really. I don’t think there will be any tears on our team. Just tears of happiness.”
Pettersen, who was nursing a sore throat ahead of the first day, will not feature in this morning’s opening foursomes but Ewart-Shadoff will.
Matthew has three rookies in her 12-strong team and will plunge two of them – Celine Boutier and Bronte Law – straight into action in the morning exchanges.
“We wanted to try and get as many rookies out as we could on the first morning,” said Matthew, who also has the big-hitting Dutch debutant Anne Van Dam in her ranks. “If they wait to go on any later it’s just a long hang-on. They’re all keyed up, they are ready to go and I want to get them out.”
READ MORE: Korda sisters set to make history at Gleneagles
Matthew singled out Law in particular as the epitome of the coiled spring. The Englishwoman, who made her breakthrough on the LPGA Tour this season, has a fine pedigree in team competition and won five matches out of five during a stirring Curtis Cup display for GB&I in 2016. “Bronte was champing at the bit to go,” added Matthew. “I just wanted to get her out early. The longer both she and Celine wait, the more nervous they are going to get.”
Juli Inkster, the USA captain who has steered her country to victories in the last two meetings of the teams, has six newcomers in her line-up. She will blood five of them – Marina Alex, Annie Park, Megan Khang, Brittany Altomare and Nelly Korda – in the opening foursomes.
And as for Kang’s comments? “I don’t think the Europeans need any more ammunition,” said Inkster. “I’m not sure someone could say anything to me to make me want to hit a shot any better.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here