Angela Stanford has always relished playing away, whether in a basketball gym or on foreign soil. Only three U.S. teams have won overseas, and Stanford played on two of them (2015 and 2007). To get ready for this year's competition in the Netherlands, Stanford called the three captains who have won in Europe: Judy Rankin, Betsy King and Juli Inkster.
Now it's her turn to try and join that short, illustrious list. Stanford's keys to success: good putters and chemistry.
For the 20th playing of the Solheim Cup, Stanford takes a team led by world No. 1 Nelly Korda, a 19-time winner on tour and one of only two Americans on this team to win in 2026. Lauren Coughlin is the second.
On Monday, Stanford announced her three captain's picks, which include
Lindy Duncan, the oldest Solheim Cup rookie in 25 years. The last player to nab an automatic qualifying spot was Alison Lee, who came back from maternity leave earlier this season and played the 2024 Solheim Cup while pregnant.
Six players on the team have played in the past two Cups. Pick Megan Khang joins good friend Korda in boasting the most Solheim appearances with four.
Here's a look at Stanford's 12-player roster:
2026 U.S. Solheim Cup team
Nelly Korda
Age: 28
World Ranking: 1
Solheim Cup appearances: 4 (2019, 2021, 2023, 2024)
Solheim Cup record: 10-5-1
Qualified via: Solheim Cup points
A four-time winner on tour this season, including two major titles, Korda comes into this year's Cup with a world of confidence. Two years ago, Korda embraced more of a leadership role and was immersed in the team atmosphere. The world No. 1 has found a strong foursomes partner in Allisen Corpuz. They are 4-0. Korda will go to Bernardus blind after skipping the team's practice session in July.
Angel Yin
Age: 27
World Ranking: 24
Solheim Cup appearances: 3 (2017, 2019, 2023)
Solheim Cup record: 5-3-1
Qualified via: Solheim Cup points
One of the best putters on Team USA, Stanford would like to rely heavily on Yin, but she remains a big question mark after falling ill at the KPMG Women's PGA in late June and essentially disappearing off the tour. Yin is expected to play next week in Boston.
Jennifer Kupcho
Age: 29
World Ranking: 31
Solheim Cup appearances: 3 (2021, 2023, 2024)
Solheim Cup record: 3-5-2
Qualified via: Solheim Cup points
Kupcho has had a bit of a mixed bag of late. Whlie she hasn't contended late this season, she does have eight top-20 finishes dating back to April. She finished on a high note in Canada: T-11.
Yealimi Noh
Age: 25
World Ranking: 35
Solheim Cup appearances: 1 (2021)
Solheim Cup record: 2-1-0
Qualified via: Solheim Cup points
Noh won her first title in early 2025 but struggled mightily for much of 2026 until - she nearly won the AIG Women's British Open. Noh found something that week, ultimately missing out on a playoff by one shot to finish solo third. She also represented the U.S. at the International Crown last fall.
Auston Kim
Age: 26
World Ranking: 23
Solheim Cup appearances: Rookie
Solheim Cup record: N/A
Qualified via: Solheim Cup points
The only rookie to automatically qualify, Kim played collegiate golf at Vanderbilt before qualifying her way to the LPGA through the Epson Tour. Kim had back-to-back top-3 finishes early in 2026 and then solidified her spot with a pair of top 10s at the majors: fifth at the KPMG Women's PGA and ninth at the Amundi Evian.
Lauren Coughlin
Age: 33
World Ranking: 17
Solheim Cup appearances: 1 (2024)
Solheim Cup record: 3-0-1
Qualified via: Solheim Cup points
Coughlin played team golf at Virginia but hadn't represented her country until the 2024 Solheim. She took the role seriously and came up big for the Americans, going undefeated. Coughlin was 3-0 in team golf with three different partners that week. She won her third LPGA title earlier this spring at the Aramco Championship.
Allisen Corpuz
Age: 28
World Ranking: 43
Solheim Cup appearances: 2 (2023, 2024)
Solheim Cup record: 5-2-1
Qualified via: Solheim Cup points
The even-keeled 2023 U.S. Women's Open champ, who can make some putts, has proved to be a superb foursomes partner for Nelly Korda. They are 4-0. Corpuz was on the 2021 Curtis Cup team with Rose Zhang, and they were undefeated in the four-ball format.
Andrea Lee
Age: 28
World Ranking: 37
Solheim Cup appearances: 2 (2023, 2024)
Solheim Cup record: 3-2-2
Qualified via: Rolex rankings
A consistent 2026 LPGA campaign for Lee though nothing flashy, with only one top-10 finish dating back to March. Lee finished eighth on Solheim Cup points and qualified through her Rolex Ranking. The former Stanford star went 2-0 with another Cardinal alumna in Zhang in four-balls two years ago.
Alison Lee
Age: 31
World Ranking: 59
Solheim Cup appearances: 2 (2015, 2024)
Solheim Cup record: 2-5-0
Qualified via: Rolex rankings
The only player on Team USA with experience winning overseas, Lee was actually eight weeks pregnant at the 2024 Solheim and dealt with morning sickness. After coming back from maternity leave in 2026, she's playing some of the best golf of her career. She finished T-3 at the Mizuho Americas Open on Mother's Day, led the U.S. Women's Open going into the weekend at Riviera and tied for fifth at the KPMG Women's PGA.
Rose Zhang
Age: 23
World Ranking: 66
Solheim Cup appearances: 2 (2023, 2024)
Solheim Cup record: 4-2-1
Qualified via: Captain's pick
It's been a memorable year for Zhang – off the course, at least – as she fulfilled a longtime goal of graduating from Stanford. The extra workload meant fewer starts for Zhang, who has only two top-10 finishes on the season. One of those top 10s came recently at The Standard Portland Classic, where she tweaked her back. Zhang went 4-0-0 in 2024, winning all four matches decisively. Stanford said they haven't talked about her back in over a week.
Captain says: "She brings that executive nature to a room. She just has a presence about her, She’s just really good in the team room because she’s so solid, there’s an ease about her too. … But then we start talking about how she plays golf, just kind of listened to a lot of people talk about how her finishes weren’t there, and again, if you know professional golf, sometimes you don't see the finishes, and we were watching her stats, and you could see it coming. We saw what was coming in Portland. Every tournament she has played since April, she has gained in approach. We knew it was coming, and the good news is, she’s still rising."
Megan Khang
Age: 28
World Ranking: 85
Solheim Cup appearances: 4 (2019, 2021, 2023, 2024)
Solheim Cup record: 7-3-3
Qualified via: Captain's pick
It's been a rough stretch for one of Team USA's most spirited leaders. Khang has missed the cut in six of her last seven starts. Her best finish all season is a T-12 at the Mizuho Americas Open. And yet, it's hard to deny Khang's Solheim Cup record of late. She's 3-0-1 in singles play and 7-0-1 over her last eight Solheim Cup matches. Her energy and willingness to go out early and set the tone is hard to replace.
Captain says: "She is the battery. She’s the one that makes it go. When you play in Europe, you need a level of energy and she brings that, and it’s genuine. It’s authentic. She doesn't have to try to do it, it’s who she is. We know she’s trending upwards."
Lindy Duncan
Age: 35
World Ranking: 63
Solheim Cup appearances: Rookie
Solheim Cup record: N/A
Qualified via: Captain's pick
For a long time, it looked like Duncan might not need a pick to get on Stanford's team. But as Alison Lee kept climbing up the Rolex Rankings, Duncan did little to hold her back. It's been a tough summer for Duncan, who hasn't cracked the top 30 since the Ford Championship in March. She missed the cut in four of the five majors. The oldest player to make her Solheim Cup debut since Nancy Scranton at age 39 in 2000, Duncan played collegiate golf at Duke, where she was the national player of the year in 2012, and represented the U.S. on the 2012 Curtis Cup team. At the 2026 Dow, Duncan teamed with European Solheim Cup player Leona Maguire to finish 27th.
Captain says: "When it came right down to it, I wanted to stick to what I believed from the start, and what I believed from the start is it’s going to take really great putting and chemistry to win in Europe. That’s kind of what did it. If you stack her on this team, she’s one of our best putters statistically. Chemistry-wise, I know she’s a rookie, but she’s a very mature rookie. She has an awareness about herself and to me, that tells me she can blend in this team room. She’s not going to create drama."
Beth Ann Nichols is a Golfweek senior writer covering the LPGA and women's golf.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: These are the 12 members of the 2026 U.S. Solheim Cup team headlined by Nelly Korda
