The Internationals took six of the first nine singles matches, then held on for a narrow victory Sunday at the Arnold Palmer Cup.
Leading 18.5-17.5 through two days at Tralee Golf Links in Ireland, the Internationals split the 24-point final session to win, 30.5-29.5, and claim the cup for the second straight year, fifth time in the last eight years.
The overall match came down to the end as Texas A&M’s Vanessa Borovilos of Canada lost the final hole to SMU’s Mackenzie Lee yet still earned the clinching half-point for the home side.
“To be able to have all of them sitting there after the match was amazing,” Borovilos said of her teammates who had gathered around the final green. “It is about so much more than the individual. We only get this a couple times a year, so we really try to enjoy it.”
Texas Tech’s Tim Wiedemeyer, the rising senior from Germany who recently claimed the European Amateur, secured the retaining point by defeating Alabama’s William Jennings, the reigning NCAA runner-up, 2 and 1.
Stirling’s George Cannon (Scotland), Duke’s Rianne Malixi (Philippines), Arizona State’s Nguyen Anh Minh (Vietnam), San Diego State’s Harry Takis (Australia), North Carolina State’s Marie Madsen (Denmark) and Oklahoma State’s Marta Silchenko (Latvia) earned full points for the Internationals in the first nine matches. Silchenko took down Texas’ Farah O’Keefe, 2 up; O’Keefe had been on a tear, coming off an NCAA individual win, 5-0 Curtis Cup showing and 2-1 performance over the first two days this week.
LSU’s Arni Sveinsson of Iceland and Arizona State’s Patience Rhodes of England added singles wins for the Internationals. Sveinsson, who has been battling his driver, routed Arizona State’s Connor Williams, 6 and 5.
No players went 4-0 for the event, though Borovilos’ Texas A&M teammate Cayetana Fernadez Garcia-Poggio of Spain and Rhodes each went 3-0-1. Illinois’ Max Herendeen led the U.S. with a 3-0-1 record.
Florida’s Luke Poulter of England received the exemption to compete in next year’s Arnold Palmer Invitational.
Click here to rewatch Sunday’s singles broadcast.