Alison Lee swings. Ball lands on the green. Ball spins back. Ball drops in the hole.
Crowd goes wild. Caddies go wilder.
What in the world just happened?
After Lee, making her first appearance at the Solheim Cup in nine years for Team USA, holed her approach shot at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club’s second hole from 86 yards, her and partner Megan Khang’s caddies both ripped their shirts off in the ensuing frenzy.
You have to see this one to believe it.
The eagle gave Lee and Khang an early 1 Up lead in their Saturday afternoon fourball match with Team Europe’s Sweadish duo of Anna Nordqvist and Madelene Sagstrom. But, perhaps more unlikely, their caddies’ celebration was choreographed just moments earlier.
According to Golf Channel’s Kay Cockerill, Khang’s caddie, Jack Fulghum, pitched a wager on the second tee. The best was that if either of the American players holed out during the match, the caddies would pay out $500.
Cockerill reported Lee immediately countered.
“No, if we hole out, you guys [the caddies] take your shirts off,” Lee said.
Just a few minutes later, Lee’s wedge dropped in the cup and her caddie Taylor “Shota” Takada and Fulghum had to pay up.
At first, Takada runs over to Lee, screaming before Khang joins in on the celebration. Takada keeps running around for a moment before disappearing from the NBC camera shot.
That’s when Fulghum walks over, Khang’s bag in one hand, his shirt and bib in the other with the kind of sheepish grin that you can only have when you lose a bet in the most thrilling way possible.
By the time Takada comes back in the shot, his shirt is gone as he goes for a hug with Fulghum. Khang started bursting with laughter.
“Well hang on a minute,” NBC broadcaster Terry Gannon said, stunned, but also having fun with the moment. “Stop right there. That’s enough.”
It was later when Cockerill came on to share the backstory behind the celebration.
“Low and behold, five minutes later, they’re down in the fairway doing just that,” Cockerill said. “They couldn’t believe that they propositioned that and it happened all in the same hole.”
And as NBC’s Tom Abbott pointed out, Lee’s version of the bet saved each of the caddies $500 too!
The U.S. team will look to keep up that energy level through the rest of Saturday’s matches. The Americans entered the fourth of five sessions leading the Europeans 8 points to 4 as they look to regain possession of the Solheim Cup for the first time since 2017.
