Sweden’s Liselotte Neumann has been named the Captain of the European team for next year’s Solheim Cup match at Colorado Golf Club in Parker, USA.

The 2013 Solheim Cup takes place from August 13-18, just a few days after the PGA Championship. 

Neumann, who represented Europe on six consecutive occasions as a player, from 1990 to 2000, takes over from England’s Alison Nicholas, whom she assisted at the 2009 match at Rich Harvest Farms in Illinois, USA.

US-based Neumann will seek to build on Europe’s stunning success in 2011 at Killeen Castle in Ireland by leading the team to its first victory in the United States.

Speaking at a news conference ahead of the Kraft Nabisco Championship in California, Neumann said: “I am extremely happy and honoured to have been selected as the European Solheim Cup Captain in 2013.  This event has always been very special for women’s golf and it brings back wonderful memories of my years on the team.  I want to thank the selection committee and the players for placing their trust in me and I look forward to the challenge of defending the title on US soil next year.”

The 45-year-old hopes to benefit from her considerable experiences, which include serving as captain of the 2011 European PING Junior Solheim Cup team in Ireland.

Neumann’s 27 worldwide victories over a 24-year career include the 1988 US Women’s Open and the 1994 Women’s British Open. In 1985, she won her first two titles on the Ladies European Tour, previously named the WPGET.

In 1988, the year she captured her first LPGA victory at the US Women’s Open, she was named LPGA Rookie of the Year and she went on to win multiple titles in 1994, ’96, ’97 and ’98, most recently winning an individual stroke play tournament in 2004. In 2006, whilst partnering Annika Sorenstam, she also won the Women’s World Cup of Golf.

John A. Solheim, PING Chairman and CEO, welcomed Neumann’s appointment, saying: “The Solheim family is extremely pleased to see Liselotte named Captain for the Ladies European Tour Team for the 2013 Solheim Cup. With her experiences as a player and Assistant Captain in previous Solheim Cups, Lotta will bring a great deal of experience to the European Team.  She also was Captain of the 2011 European PING Junior Solheim Cup team that tied the USA PING Junior Solheim Cup team, captained by Meg Mallon.  The 2013 Solheim Cup should be very exciting as Lotta and Meg continue their ‘unsettled’ competition.”

The Ladies European Tour’s Executive Director Alexandra Armas also expressed her delight at Neumann’s appointment, saying: “On behalf of the LET I would like to say how thrilled we all are to see Lotta as the European Solheim Cup team captain. As one of the most iconic figures in the history of European women’s professional golf, she is a natural fit to lead the team as they seek their first away victory in 2013.”

The U.S. Team leads 8-4 through 12 editions of The Solheim Cup and has never lost on home soil. However, after a thrilling, late Sunday afternoon surge last September in Ireland, the Europeans have the momentum and will be full of confidence as they head to Colorado next year.

About The Solheim Cup:

The Solheim Cup is named in honour of Karsten Solheim, and his family, the makers of PING golf equipment. The Solheim Cup is the most prestigious international team event in women’s professional golf. It is a biennial, trans-Atlantic team match-play competition featuring the best U.S.-born players from the LPGA and the best European-born players representing the Ladies European Tour (LET). The U.S. Team leads the competition, 8-4. The 2013 Solheim Cup will be contested at Colorado Golf Club in Parker, Colorado. In addition to founding sponsor PING, Rolex is a Global Partner of The Solheim Cup. For tournament information, log on to: www.solheimcup.com.

About Colorado Golf Club

Set on land that course designer Ben Crenshaw has called “gifted for golf,” Colorado Golf Club – host of The 2013 Solheim Cup – opened in 2006 to national acclaim. The 7,604-yard Coore & Crenshaw course debuted as GOLF Magazine’s Best New Private Course in 2006. Surrounded by more than 1,100 acres of open space, the golf course plays through ponderosa pine forests and open meadows and features dramatic views of the Rocky Mountains. Tom Lehman won the 71st Senior PGA Championship at Colorado Golf Club in 2010. For more information, visit: www.coloradogolfclub.com.