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Melissa Reid, 25, from Derby, was a member of Europe’s victorious Solheim Cup team at Killeen Castle in Ireland and earned a memorable four-ball victory with Laura Davies on day two. She is currently ranked 14th on the European points list from which the top four players will qualify come August 4 at St Andrews and a second Solheim Cup appearance, at Colorado Golf Club near Denver, is most certainly on the young English star’s mind.
Melissa, how big a goal is making that Solheim Cup team this year?
It’s a huge goal, obviously. We had a lot of fun last time and I really don’t want to miss another one throughout my career. My main goal is to get back in that team.
Do you have a sense of what you have to do?
It’s taking it a tournament at a time. I’m quite aware that I didn’t have a great season last year and had a lot of time off so I’m quite aware that I need to win basically. I need to be coming into form in June, July, time to get into the team or at least get into a position to get picked. I’m going to tackle every tournament like I always do and prepare as well as I can. I’ll just give myself my best chance of winning.
As part of the winning team last time, can you talk about how it helped you as a golfer?
I loved being in a team again. I’ve always grown up playing in team sports and I’d say I’m a social person so it’s a bit odd for me to play golf for a living. I just love being in a team again and getting a buzz off everyone and you know, it’s very different to what you think. I thought I was going to be very nervous and I was, but I used it as a strength and I absolutely just thrived on it. To have that many people, it was just a great experience and to beat the Americans was even better.
Going over there, do you have a sense of how much of a challenge that is?
I would say one of the main reasons we won was because we had the crowd behind us. The Americans are pretty loud as it is, so to play over there is going to be extremely loud, but as the European team we need to focus on ourselves and prove that we can do it and I’m sure that we can do it again.
For more information, contact:
About The Solheim Cup www.solheimcup.com
The Solheim Cup combines the tradition and prestige of the game of golf with passion for one’s country. This biennial, trans-Atlantic team match-play competition features the best U.S.-born players from the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) Tour and the best European members from the Ladies European Tour (LET).
The Solheim Cup is named in honor of Karsten Solheim, the founder of Karsten Manufacturing Corporation, which makes PING golf equipment. In 1990, the Solheim family, in conjunction with the LPGA and the LET, developed the concept and became the title sponsor for The Solheim Cup, professional golf’s international match-play competition for women. Held every two years, the event has grown into the most prestigious international women’s professional golf team event. The Solheim Cup is the most highly coveted trophy in women’s professional golf team competition; some of the most memorable moments in the sport have happened during one of The Solheim Cups, and berths on the U.S. and European teams are highly sought after by players from both organizations. In addition to founding sponsor PING, Rolex is also a Global Partner of The Solheim Cup.
The 2013 Solheim Cup will take place Aug. 13-18 at Colorado Golf Club in Parker, Colo. The European Team enters the competition holding the Cup and will need 14 points to retain it, with the U.S. Team needing 14½ points to regain the coveted Waterford Crystal prize. The U.S. team holds an 8-4 lead in the matches, which began in 1990.
The 2015 Solheim Cup will take place at Golf Club St. Leon-Rot nr Heidelberg Germany a European Tour Destination venue www.gc-slr.de
For more information about The Solheim Cup and updated standings for each team, log on to www.solheimcupeurope.com www.ladieseuropeantour.com | 
