CROMVOIRT, Netherlands — Carlota Ciganda delivered the decisive point in a 4&2 win over Jennifer Kupcho to seal Europe's 15-13 victory over the United States and bring the Solheim Cup back to Europe. Standing on the 18th green with her European blue shirt stained darker by champagne, Ciganda said, "I'm not going to bed, I'm just going crazy."
The Spaniard from Pamplona was at the heart of the drama all weekend, her fire antagonizing the U.S. and leading Team Europe. "Mrs. Solheim Cup," Nelly Korda said as she congratulated Ciganda after the 15-13 result. An eight-time veteran with a 5-2-1 record in singles, Ciganda hit the decisive shot when Europe retained the Cup in 2023, and while she officially brought the Cup back this time, she had already clinched at least a half-point against Kupcho when LPGA breakout star Lottie Woad unknowingly holed the Cup winner in her match against Auston Kim. "I love this week. As I said, I love playing for the team, for my teammates, for everyone here," Ciganda said. "I just love it. I mean, I love beating the Americans. And then, yeah, just winning for Team Europe, it's the best feeling."
Sunday was revenge. On Saturday evening, Ciganda and Céline Boutier were 2 up with two to play in the final match when Kupcho, alongside Lindy Duncan, made a 92-foot putt on the 17th and a 29-foot putt on No. 18 to win the full point and leave Day 2 tied 8-8. Kupcho cupped her ear toward Ciganda and screamed "vamos," a direct answer to Ciganda's own "vamos" a day earlier after a messy up-and-down on 18 to earn a half-point against Korda and Lauren Coughlin. By chance, with captains releasing lineups blind, the two were paired Sunday. "I was really happy to see that I was playing against Kupcho," Ciganda said. "She's a fighter, I'm a fighter, and I told her, 'Look, great playing'. I mean, even yesterday what she did was amazing on 17 and 18. But today I knew she had no chance. I was like, I want to kill you."
Europe needed a lift after that Saturday sting, and found it back at the team hotel. Vice-captain Mel Reid, voice nearly gone, said playing Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline" over the speakers in the team room shifted the mood, along with a message sent directly to Ciganda from compatriot and Ryder Cup legend José María Olazábal, captain of the "Miracle at Medinah." "I just felt like it just changed the mood and united us. It was weird, we just forgot what happened, the disappointment, and we just got back on it," Reid said. On Sunday, Charley Hull earned the first point of singles to put Europe in front, despite her all-English partnership with world No. 7 Woad — paired by captain Anna Nordqvist for four matches over the first two days — losing three times for just a half-point. Linn Grant went 4-0-0 for the week, Nastasia Nadaud went 3-1, and Nanna Koerstz Madsen beat Andrea Lee 3&2 and Julia López Ramírez beat Yealimi Noh 3&2 for full points as Woad, draped in an England flag with fellow rookie Mimi Rhodes, shouted, "Europe's on fire, USA is terrified."
As "Sweet Caroline" blared from the first tee speakers, Europe danced toward the trophy presentation from John Solheim, whose family founded the competition in 1990, while U.S. captain Angela Stanford gathered her team for a photo on the 18th green amid beer tops and champagne corks. "I can promise you this hurts more for them than maybe for us because they were the ones playing," Stanford said. "The good news is they can show back up in Kentucky in a couple of years and make it right." Stanford had run onto the team bus Saturday with a crate of beers after Kupcho's heroics, a move she defended by saying, "You don't want to take away from those moments. We're never going to see anything like that again." The next Solheim Cup is in 2028 at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky, where Europe will arrive having held the Cup in four of the last five editions after Nordqvist — cheered by family who traveled from Sweden for the crowning moment of a near two-decade career with three majors — lifted the trophy as blue and yellow smoke filled the air.