Rose Chan played well on Saturday, opening the match with an eagle on the drivable par-4 first hole.
However, her putter, which was bright red on Friday, cooled down midway through the match, ultimately costing her and Andrea Lee the match.
On Saturday afternoon, Madeleine Sagström and Emily Pedersen defeated Zhang and Lee 2&1 to give Team Europe their seventh goal in the Solheim Cup.
On the par-4 16th, Zhang went for a 10-foot birdie to win the hole. At that point, she and Lee were hopeless. They trailed the Europeans by two down and needed a ferocious rally over the final three holes.
But her birdie putt didn’t fall and slid low to the right, guaranteeing the Europeans at least a half point. Thanks to Zhang’s mistake, they were 2 up with two holes left to play from the 16th green.
On the next hole, the short par-3 17th, Zhang went for a 16-foot birdie to extend the match. Like her putt on the previous hole, it didn’t fall either as Sagstrom and Pedersen won the match on the spot.
On Saturday, her putter abandoned her, but on Friday, it saved her.
The day before, Chan’s flat stick proved to be huge in matches against Gemma Dryburgh and Sagstrom. She made a few clutch putts on the back nine, helping her and Megan Kang break the match in half.
Overall, Chan and Lee’s play wasn’t bad. They just got hit by a buzzsaw.
“I think I was 10 under today, so it was pretty solid golf all round,” Pedersen said after his round.
“I think we’ve bounced back…well, you know? Just say, ‘F, that’s it,’ and then go at it.” That’s what I did and so far with pretty good results. ”
Pedersen has played like any other Solheim Cup player so far. Her spectacular hole-in-one on Friday shocked the entire tournament and helped turn the tide for her Team Europe.
Sadly, Chan will be heading into Sunday’s singles match looking for his first Solheim Cup win. Her record so far is 0 wins, 1 loss, and 1 draw. But her putting magic will need to return if she is to earn points for the U.S. team.
Jack Mirko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko Cover more golf.Be sure to check it out @_PlayingThrough Too.
