Angelus Stanford, who has competed as a player six times for the Solheim Cup and has served as vice captain of the past three, will captain the US team when he wins Europe in the Netherlands next year, the LPGA announced on Thursday.
Stanford has included a major title from the 2018 Evian Championship in seven LPGA Tour wins and retired from full-time competitive golf after the 2024 season.
The next Solheim Cup will be held from September 11th to 13th, 2026 at Bernardus Golf in Chromboart, Netherlands.
“Being an American living in this country has given you the opportunity to not know where you are anywhere else in the world,” Stanford told ESPN. “I came to live this dream to become a professional golfer, and now I can represent red, white and blue again. I love being an American, I love to play in my country, and I love to represent my country again.”
Stanford will replace Stayseys, who led the US team to a 1-0-1 record in the last two Solheim Cups. The Americans have won 15½-12½ at Robert Trent Jones Golf Club in Gainesville, Virginia in September since 2017.
The American team has a record of 11-7-1 since 1990, while the American team has a record of 3-6 outside the US
“We don’t win much there,” Stanford said. “I wanted to be a foreign captain for the challenge it presents. I love the feeling of ‘it’s against the world’ and I look forward to it. You know it’s going to be a rough crowd.
Stanford, 47, competed in 98 consecutive major championships from 2002 to 2024, following only Jack Nicklaus (154) in consecutive majors played in professional golf.
“Angela Stanford will certainly be a great captain for the US team in the 2026 Solheim Cup,” interim LPGA commissioner Liz Moore said in a statement. “Angela has always been a spark on and off the course, a true leader and a dedicated partner of her teammates. It’s now time to take the helm of the US team. There’s no doubt that she’ll lead her team into a successful week in the Netherlands.”
Sweden’s Anna Nord Qvist, vice captain of the last two Solheim Cup matches, was named captain of the European team on February 24th.