Suzann Pettersen had had enough time to reflect before declaring it was a fitting ending for her career on holing the winning putt in the Solheim Cup.
Pettersen held her guts to make her six-foot putt for the birdie which clinched a sensational triumph at Gleneagles for Europe, justifying her selection as a captain’s pick that was met with some criticism as soon as the Norwegian was added to the group with Catriona Matthew.
The 38-year-old, that has played small aggressive golf over the past two years after taking the time away from the match due to the birth of her child, then revealed her intention to retire, bringing to an end to her 19-year professional career which yielded two main victories among her 22 wins worldwide.
“I feel this is an ideal closing, the end for my Solheim livelihood as well as a pleasant’the end’ for the professional career,” said Pettersen at a jubilant European media conference. “It doesn’t get any better than this.
“And to do it with those girls, I never believed I was going to be here four months ago until I satisfied Beany (Matthew) this summer. And also to have the assurance out of Beany to provide the go to me that is it. I am completely done.”
Pettersen’s baby son was Gleneagles along with her husband, and that she added:”Clearly life has changed . In all honesty, once I stepped on this tee , you forget about everything . Matters are just cared for.
“I can not really walk on the course considering him even though he’s with me . However, to watch him afterwards, it is just surreal. I mean life’s changed a lot for me personally within the previous year. He’s clearly. But now I know exactly what it feels like to triumph as a mother, and I’m going to leave it just like this.”
Pettersen confessed she didn’t understand together with the scores having levelled within Ally McDonald along with her triumph back on the 17th moments before that her putt would determine the outcome of the Solheim Cup.
“I believed Bronte was in behind me in the fairway, but she is really good, she sticks out it on 17,” Pettersen added. “So I actually didn’t know it had been the putt.
“I mean, how can you ask for more? The previous putt to win the Cup, when it close? History was produced, to win here in front of the Scottish crowd. I couldn’t in a thousand miles fantasy of something such as this.”
Anna Nordqvist, a Solheim Cup team-mate of all Pettersen’s who thrashed Morgan Pressel in the match, was nominated to lead the tributes to her retiring friend and colleague.
“I think I am talking to everybody on this team; Suzann has been a large role model for all of the last couple of decades, and more importantly,” she explained. “I recall my very first Solheim Cup in 2009, I must play alongside a lot of my idols growing up.
“It was Laura Davies, Helen Alfredsson, it was Beany, it had been Mimmi Hjorth and Suzann Pettersen. I got to be paired together with Suzann my game and it was very cool. It was certainly one of my greatest highlights of my profession.
“She is going to be overlooked. But she is such a rock superstar. And Hedwall becoming paired with Suzann and Beany in July and me I knew that was one of the very last times I’d play both of them. Therefore this was a experience. But she is just such a wonderful character and a major role model for every one of us.”
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