Ryder Cup action is a completely different beast than your typical golf tournament. For this one event, the sport’s usual quiet intensity replaced by a more unrestrained feel.
Erica Shepherd got a chance to bask in that over the past two days.
"It’s more like a football game than a golf match," she said of the atmosphere at Disneyland Paris. "We’re all yelling and clapping and screaming. … A regular golf match is not what you get here."
The Center Grove senior lost her Junior Ryder Cup singles match, 2-up, against Emilie Alba-Paltrinieri of Italy on Tuesday, but her two wins in doubles action on Monday helped give the United States just enough to hang on for a 12 1/2 to 11 1/2 victory over Europe.
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It was the sixth consecutive victory for the Americans.
"I think I played really solid, especially the first day," Shepherd said. "Overall, it was one of the best weeks of my life."
Shepherd never had the lead on Tuesday, but she battled throughout. She dropped the second hole but came right back with a win on the third, and after being behind by two after the 11th hole, she won the 12th and 15th to square the match.
Alba-Paltrinieri, though, pulled back ahead to stay by taking hole No. 16, and she put it away by taking the 18th as well. Shepherd said she was pleased with how she played in defeat, giving credit to Alba-Paltrinieri for putting together an exceptional round.
Having had a chance to celebrate the Cup win with her U.S. teammates, Shepherd will play in an exhibition today at the Albatros Course of Le Golf National, which hosts the men’s Ryder Cup this weekend. She’ll then spend her last day in France sightseeing before returning home.
Next up for Shepherd on the golf course will be the PING Invitational Oct. 5-8 in Stillwater, Oklahoma.
