If anyone were to claim Rose Zhang as the most fearless member of the 2026 U.S. Solheim Cup team, her teammates — 11 courageous, decorated competitors in their own right — might not give much push back.
As long as the skies are clear.
Those were the conditions last week when the self-described adrenaline junkie went skydiving — saving news of her trip for captain Angela Stanford until her feet were safely back on the ground.
“I didn’t tell Angela until after I jumped, I should have just texted in the group chat, ‘I landed,’” Zhang told media Wednesday in the Netherlands.
“But we were also joking about it the previous week in Boston [at the FM Championship] that if one of the Europeans came and drove the plane, it would not be good,” she added laughingly.
Rose Zhang is an ADRENALINE JUNKIE!
— Brentley Romine (@BrentleyGC) September 9, 2026
Should arrive on the first tee Friday morning like this.@redbull https://t.co/JpFhmdcJ6m pic.twitter.com/3vN4hVNWRT
Zhang was supposed to jump back in March but the opportunity — through a partnership with Red Bull — got bumped.
Last week was Zhang’s only week off where she “could essentially jump out of an airplane.”
“It was extremely fun,” said Zhang, who also loves riding roller coasters. “It just felt fitting to do it right before a Solheim.”
The 23-year-old Stanford grad is making her third Solheim appearance, bringing in a 4-2-1 record. She was perfect in 2024 at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club, helping boost the Americans to a 15 1/2 to 12 1/2 victory over their European counterparts.
“I personally don’t feel like a veteran, I feel like in the team room I’m this baby that everyone keeps joking about,” Zhang said.
“We make fun of her all the time,” teammate Andrea Lee admitted.
“She’s a little baby, but she’s also a veteran, so it’s weird.”
One of the areas for fodder in the clubhouse is song references and taste in music.
Lee said there’s always jokes being made if Zhang knows a track from the 2000s (she was born in May 2003).
“Once you guys hit the ‘90s, I’m lost,” Zhang said.
For her part, Zhang said everyone enters this Solheim week at Bernardus with the same blank-slate record — whether it’s someone making their second international Solheim appearance or a rookie like Lindy Duncan, who Zhang sat with during Wednesday’s press conference.
“I think everyone plays a role on this team — in the team room, on the golf course, all the same,” she said. “And I think we push each other to become better and this is the one week where we can really get to know each other and our personalities get to vibe, get to have this same inherent goal of trying to win the cup.”
Personality fit
Lee, who was Zhang’s Solheim teammate in both 2023 and 2024, said their personalities match as “cool, level-head California girls.”
The 28-year-old Lee revealed there’s one element that has challenged both of their games — something that’s a bit of a surprise for someone with absolutely zero objection to heights like Zhang.
“She described us as the ‘cream puffs’ today on the course,” Lee told reporters.
“California cream puffs,” Zhang inserted.
According to the Americans, they couldn’t handle the cold, rainy conditions.
“Andrea and I have always just done really well, just being cool and levelheaded, apart from when it’s pouring rain,” Zhang said.
