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Mallon to Captain 2011 PING Junior Solheim Cup US Team

International team match play event to be held in Trim, Co. Meath, Ireland
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Meg Mallon, a four-time Major champion and a 2009 Solheim Cup U.S. Assistant Captain, has been selected by PING and the American Junior Golf Association to captain the 2011 PING Junior Solheim Cup U.S. Team.

 

The PING Junior Solheim Cup, which biennially features the 12 best female junior golfers (ages 12-18) from the United States against the top 12 junior girls from Europe, will be held Sept. 20-21, 2011, at Knightsbrook Hotel Spa & Golf Resort in Trim, Co. Meath, Ireland.

 

“I’m very excited to have been chosen to Captain the U.S. Team in 2011,” Mallon said. “I was a big proponent of the PING Junior Solheim Cup since it began in 2002. I am really looking forward to working with these talented young players next year in Ireland.”

 

Before retiring from professional golf in July 2010, Mallon was an eight-time Solheim Cup selection and played in every event between 1992 and 2005. She owns a 13-9-7 record and is tied with Juli Inkster as the U.S. Team’s all-time leading point earner.

 

“It's real exciting to have Meg be the captain of the Junior Solheim Cup. She is such a dynamic player and gets so much into her game, it will be fun to watch her work with the girls and show them how to get more out of their game. It gives them a real flavor,” said John A. Solheim, Chairman and CEO of PING, Inc. “To PING, and to me, the Junior Solheim Cup is the most fun part of the week. Seeing those young players, a good number of them will probably play in the full Solheim Cup. There's a special joy seeing those young players come up and challenge.”

 

The 2011 event will mark the sixth PING Junior Solheim Cup, with the U.S. leading the all-time series, 3-2-0. The team hosting the event has won the PING Junior Solheim Cup in all five instances. In 2009, the U.S. prevailed, 15.5–8.5, at Aurora Country Club in Aurora, Ill.

 

In its short history, the PING Junior Solheim Cup already has a reputation for showcasing the world’s up-and-coming female junior golfers. Morgan Pressel, Brittany Lincicome, Brittany Lang, Louise Stahle and Minea Blomqvist all participated before turning professional.

 

Paula Creamer, who was 4-2-0 in two PING Junior Solheim Cup appearances, was the first to go on to play on a Solheim Cup Team and helped the United States win at Crooked Stick in 2005 with a 3-1-1 record. In 2009, the American team featured four former PING Junior Solheim Cup team members – Creamer, Brittany Lang, Brittany Lincicome and Morgan Pressel.

 

The Solheim Cup, the most prestigious team event in women’s professional golf and sponsored by PING golf equipment, is named in honor of the company’s founder, Karsten Solheim, and his family. It is a biennial, trans-Atlantic team match-play competition featuring the best American-born players from the LPGA and the best European-born players from the Ladies European Tour.

 

The U.S. leads the Solheim Cup series, 10-3-0, and has never lost on home soil. The 2011 Solheim Cup will be played Sept. 23-25 at Killeen Castle Golf Resort in Co. Meath, Ireland.

 

The American Junior Golf Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to the overall growth and development of young men and women who aspire to earn college golf scholarships through competitive junior golf. The AJGA provides valuable exposure for college golf scholarships, and has an annual junior membership (boys and girls ages 12-18) of approximately 5,000 junior golfers from 49 states and 30 countries. To ensure scholarship opportunities for all junior golfers who have the skill, the AJGA created the Achieving Competitive Excellence (ACE) Grant program to provide financial assistance to young players in need.

 

PING designs, manufactures and markets a complete line of golf equipment including metal woods, irons, putters and golf bags. The family-owned company was founded in 1959 by the late Karsten Solheim. Solheim is the only person to be inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame as a golf club manufacturer. Today, the Phoenix-based company is under the direction of Solheim’s youngest son, John A. Solheim. PING game-improvement products can be found in more than 70 countries. For more information, visit pinggolf.com .

 

AJGA alumni have risen to the top of amateur, collegiate and professional golf. Former AJGA juniors have compiled more than 400 victories on the PGA and LPGA Tours. AJGA alumni include Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Stewart Cink, Cristie Kerr, Paula Creamer and Morgan Pressel.

 

For more information, please contact Chris Richards (crichards@ajga.org) in the AJGA Communications Department at (770) 868-4200.