If there’s such a thing as a Solheim Cup bump, Cheyenne Knight is enjoying one.
On the heels of her Solheim Cup debut, Knight is well-positioned heading into the final round of the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship presented by P&G following opening rounds of 67-66.
While physically Knight is in Arkansas, she must have felt at times like she never left Spain, perhaps even had a case of Solheim Cup deja vu as she made her way around Pinnacle Country Club while spending the last two days being grouped alongside the U.S. Solheim Cup Captain Stacy Lewis and European Team member Georgia Hall.
“It was an incredible experience. It was so awesome. I had the best week,” Knight said about competing in her first Solheim Cup. “Wasn't obviously the result we wanted, but I feel like a lot of positives to build on.”
Through the first two days in Arkansas, Knight has managed to carry on that momentum with her from Spain, where she earned two and a half points for the Americans en route to their tie with Team Europe.
The Solheim Cup came at a welcome time for Knight, who had missed the cut in three of her four prior starts before making the trip overseas. It was a surprising change in form for Knight who got off to a strong start to her season with three consecutive top 10s through April and May and then earned her second career win alongside teammate Elizabeth Szokol at the Dow Great Lakes Bay Invitational in July.
But, perhaps, the trip across the pond gave Knight just the break she needed to be able to regroup and reset as she enters the closing stretch of the year. Through the first two rounds of the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship her ball striking was on point, she missed just three greens and two fairways through 36 holes.
“Last two days I've hit it really well. Had a lot of birdie opportunities yesterday; just didn't really make a few,” said Knight, whose balky putter resulted in 60 putts through two rounds. “I'm not really making a ton of mistakes. Of course I would love to get a few more putts to go in just because you kind of have a lot of birdie opportunities on this golf course.”
On Monday evening, Knight arrived home in Dallas from the Solheim Cup and on Wednesday made the six hour drive north to Rogers, Ark. for this week’s tournament. Like Lewis, it’s an event Knight didn’t want to miss, despite the jetlag and fatigue having spent the past week competing in Spain.
“I really like this tournament. I love this golf course. That's why I played this week,” Knight said Saturday. “I mean, on this golf course you just have to make a ton of birdies.”
It will take a slew of birdies for any player atop the leaderboard to have a chance of hosting the trophy at the 54-hole sprint to the finish known as the Walmart NW Arkansas Championship. Sunday, Knight won’t be the only Solheim Cup member chasing down the trophy as her fellow teammate, Lexi Thompson, is enjoying a little Solheim Cup bump of her own after a lackluster season that saw her find a spark in Spain where she earned three points for the Americans.
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