Jensen Castle (left) and Rachel Kuehn helped lead a USA surge on Day of the Curtis Cup at Conwy Golf Club. (Oisin Keniry/USGA)
The USA staged a stirring comeback on the second day of the 41st Curtis Cup at Conwy Golf Club in Wales on Friday. Trailing Great Britain and Ireland by three points after the opening day, the Americans, led by Captain Sarah Ingram, fought back to ensure the match sits level at 6-6 going into the final day singles tomorrow.
The last time a Curtis Cup Match was deadlock going into the final day of competition was 1964 at Royal Porthcawl in Wales, the same country where this year's competition is taking place. In 1964, the sides were deadlocked at 4.5 apiece. The competition went to a three-day format for the 2008 event on the Old Course at St. Andrews in Scotland.
The USA made its intentions clear from the off in the morning foursomes with lead pairing Rose Zhang and Rachel Heck notching a convincing 3-and-2 victory over the Scottish pairing of Louise Duncan and Hannah Darling. Rachel Kuehn and Emilia Migliaccio kept up the resurgence defeating Englishwomen Annabell Fuller and Charlotte Heath by the same margin.
“They were definitely inspired and fired up to play better today and I really didn't have to do much pep talking," said USA captain Sarah Ingram. "I know that they are all real fighters and that they would follow up a tough day with a really good day.
“I saw a ton of birdies. I saw some creativity, different shot making and I just saw a lot of confidence and just everybody having a good time."
The USA didn’t have it all its own way, however, and the English pairing of Emily Toy and Caley McGinty secured an important half point at the last hole against Jensen Castle and Brooke Matthews. Toy holed from 3 feet for a winning par five after McGinty had found the rough to the right of the green with her approach. Just before Toy's putt, Matthews had a chance to win the match, but missed from 9 feet after her partner's long birdie putt was a bit too bold.
That left the score at 5-4 in Great Britain and Ireland’s favor going into the afternoon fourballs.
The USA continued to ramp up the pressure in the fourballs. Kuehn and Castle, the 2021 U.S. Women's Amateur champion, seized the initiative in their match with Duncan and Lauren Walsh to go 3 up after eight and, despite Duncan reducing the deficit to one hole with birdies at the ninth and 11th, the Americans eased to a 3-and-2 win.
The duo has paired together in the past to win two Carolinas Golf Association Four-Ball Championships.
Darling and Fuller continued their successful fourball partnership by clinching a hard-fought encounter with Heck and Kim by 4 and 3. Darling, the Girls Amateur and St Rule Trophy champion, maintained her rich vein of form and her excellent driving was complemented by Fuller’s strong approach play as the match swung in GB&I’s favor after the turn.
In the final match of the day the USA’s Allisen Corpuz carded four birdies in five holes from the third to take control of her and Zhang’s match against Toy and McGinty. The GB&I pairing battled to stay in the match but ultimately Corpuz sealed victory with a lengthy putt from off the green on the 16th.
The match continues on Saturday with the final day singles getting underway from starting at 2:00 a.m. Pacific time.
View results for Curtis Cup
ABOUT THE Curtis Cup
Officially named "The Women's
International Cup," the first Curtis Cup
wasn't officially held until 1932. The
biennial competition features the best
female players from the United States of
America pitted against a similar squad
from Great Britain and Ireland. While it
was hoped that many nations would
eventually join the Match, the Curtis Cup
has remained a two-sided competition.
View Complete Tournament Information