How did Mel Reid’s entourage celebrate an eagle on No. 12 that started a run of five victories in the last seven holes, a 1-up win, a sudden-death playoff and then a Group 9 win on the first extra frame?
“I hit like a half 60-degree, dunked it from 80 yards. I know, it's incredible,” said Reid. “My fiancé Carly was watching, and she was like, ‘I've never seen you do that.’ I was like, ‘Oh, cheers. Thanks.’ She didn't say my golf game is that impressive but enjoyed that one. I think she downed a beer after that.
“She downed two [beers] in the playoff. I made a birdie and I turned around and she's on one knee. That is why I'm marrying her. Found my soulmate.”
Reid used the momentum, and the exhilaration from her gallery of friends and family, to win Nos. 12, 13, 14, 17 and 18 to go from 3-down to 1-up over Hannah Green. She needed a win to force a playoff with two-time European Solheim Cup teammate Azahara Munoz, who defeated Gerina Piller, 2 and 1.
All it took from there for a hyped and focused Reid was one playoff hole to advance to the Round of 16.
“I hit driver off No. 1. Pretty aggressive play but I'm not scared of the right rough, which is obviously the miss. We can carry the hazard on the left, so just hit a nice drive,” Reid said. “Cut it a little bit more than I wanted in the right rough, and we knew from the afternoon match it was rock solid at the front [of the green]. Chipped again, a little half gap wedge. Pitched probably two yards short of the green and rolled up nicely to about 6 feet. Managed to hole the putt, which was nice. I didn't want to play many more holes. I was a bit tired, so I tried to get it done as quickly as possible.
Reid will face Minjee Lee at 7:20 a.m. PT on Saturday with a quarterfinals berth up for grabs.
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