Solheim Cup: Stacy Lewis credit win to KPMG Efficiency Insights

Stacy Lewis arrived on the Robert Trent Jones Golf Membership for final month’s Solheim Cup as assured as ever.

She knew her American group had performed higher than her European counterparts all through the summer season. She additionally felt extremely ready, due to numerous hours of finding out potential pairings, potentialities, and information.

However the People had misplaced three straight Solheim Cups, together with the final one held on American soil in 2021. Then, with Lewis on the helm in 2023, the Euros retained the cup at Finca Cortesín in Andalucía. An undercurrent of strain permeated the U.S. group, particularly into Lewis’ thoughts, as she felt destined to snap the U.S. shedding streak and get the job accomplished this time. She assured herself that her group would, however minor traces of hysteria lingered.

“What if now we have to reply the query as to why we misplaced 4 in a row?” was a query that lurked behind her thoughts.

That query by no means needed to be answered, although. The People cruised to a wire-to-wire victory, profitable for the primary time in seven years. The U.S. raced out to a 6-to-2 lead after Friday’s Foursome and Fourball classes and by no means appeared again, profitable 15.5 to 12.5 as Lilia Vu clinched the profitable level on Sunday afternoon.

An enormous cause for his or her success was by analytics, as KPMG’s Efficiency Insights helped Lewis make the correct selections.

“The insights have been the idea of every little thing we did, from deciding on the group and who made the group to my picks, pairings, and the way they performed all through the week,” Lewis mentioned to SB Nation.

“They have been integral to every little thing we did.”

Computer systems spat out numbers, creating preliminary pairings. She felt assured in her “formulation” on Wednesday morning, when she scribbled out her plan primarily based on what the numbers recommended. She then made slight modifications primarily based on type, really feel, and camaraderie however nonetheless leaned closely on the analytics general.

But, Lewis desperately needed to place an all-star pairing collectively throughout alternate shot. She needed Nelly Korda to group up with Lexi Thompson, a duo that may be a formidable drive and ship shockwaves of pleasure throughout the property.

“I feel all people would have liked to have seen Nelly and Lexi,” Lewis defined.

“I used to be attempting to get them to determine alternate shot, and the golf balls they play are simply too totally different than I initially thought they might be. So Lexi was going to need to make some fairly huge concessions. We had different good choices due to the numbers, which clearly labored nice, however I want we might have made that pairing occur for the followers.”

The Efficiency Insights additionally performed an important position in serving to Lewis make her three captain’s picks. On the finish of August, the numbers pointed to Sarah Schmelzel, Jennifer Kupcho, and Thompson, the three gamers Lewis chosen to affix the U.S. group.

“I made my captain’s picks primarily based on how we arrange the golf course, which we have been in a position to set as much as the energy of my group primarily based on the stats,” Lewis mentioned.

Picture by Amy Lemus/Getty Photographs

“Actually every little thing we did revolved round it.”

KPMG has partnered with the LPGA for fairly a while. The agency additionally serves because the presenting sponsor for the KPMG Ladies’s PGA Championship, one of many 5 majors on the LPGA annually. Amy Yang claimed her first main title at Sahalee this previous June on the 2024 KPMG Ladies’s PGA Championship.

However KPMG continues to play a extra distinguished position inside the LPGA. They supplied Lewis—and the gamers—with important info for gamers to dissect and perceive, which in flip helped their general efficiency. The 2024 Solehim Cup is proof of that.

KPMG will proceed to take action going ahead.

“We now have a blueprint. Between myself and a woman from the LPGA, we’ve been engaged on a ebook we’re placing collectively for the subsequent captain, saying, ‘That is what we did.’ Listed below are examples of stuff that we used,” Lewis defined.

“We wish to attempt to make issues the identical for the gamers going ahead, so we don’t reinvent the wheel each time, and KPMG helped make this all occur.”

The Solheim Cup will happen in Holland for the primary time in 2026. The U.S. group will face a troublesome process, as profitable a cup on the highway is among the most difficult issues in golf. At the very least KPMG and its efficiency insights will assist alleviate that problem.

Maybe Lewis will return for a 3rd consecutive stint as captain, making this tall process extra manageable.

She didn’t rule out that chance.

“We haven’t had the conferences but, so we’ll most likely get to that within the subsequent few months,” Lewis mentioned of her 2026 prospects.

“Some gamers and their dad and mom have already requested if I’d do it once more. I’d have a tough time saying no, simply because I loved it a lot.”

Regardless, the U.S. Solheim Cup group has an amazing system in place, thanks partially to the Efficiency Insights supplied by KPMG. Due to that, each future U.S. captain ought to arrive on the Solheim Cup feeling as assured as ever—simply as Lewis did this previous September.

Jack Milko is a golf employees author for SB Nation’s Taking part in By. Make sure to try @_PlayingThrough for extra golf protection. You’ll be able to comply with him on Twitter @jack_milko as nicely.