The same-age friends from Skåne must be a nightmare to face for the Americans this week. The Swedish pair don't make many mistakes and have a relaxed, nice atmosphere out on the course.
Lauren Coughlin and Megan Khang forced Stark and Grant to play the 17th hole at Bernardus Golf for the first time. But that was where the best-ball match ended when Stark sank another birdie putt to secure victory by 2/1.
We have such a great atmosphere between us. We don't put any strange pressure on each other, we never say sorry for strange shots. We just accept that golf is difficult sometimes and encourage each other, says Linn Grant.
“They are cruel”
After the hug party at the 17th green, captain Anna Nordqvist stood and showered praise on her compatriots.
They are awesome. It felt like a pretty obvious pairing for this week, in my eyes there was never any hesitation. It was great to see them deliver when it mattered most, says Nordqvist.
After defeating world number one Nelly Korda and Allisen Corpuz in the foursomes in the morning, the toughest opposition imaginable awaited in the afternoon. Coughlin was undefeated so far in her two Solheim Cups and Khang had nine straight matches without a loss.
But now it is instead the Swedes who have started to build a powerful streak with three straight victories.
Eagle on the first hole
Maja Stark gave the best-ball match an unlikely start when she holed a wedge for eagle from 76 metres on the first. The shot of the competition so far.
Then it took until the eleventh before the Swedes won a hole again, when Linn Grant rolled in a birdie to make the match completely even.
Grant followed up with a great drive on the 12th, so close to the pin that she was gifted the birdie putt. And so Stark and Grant, who had never played best ball together in the Solheim Cup before, had the lead again.
The Swedes shuffled and gave up at the end, but never lost control. They played perfect best-ball and covered for each other when their teammate got into trouble.
Their point was needed on an afternoon when everything else was going the USA's way. Jennifer Kupcho closed out the final match with two huge birdies to turn the game around and make the score 8-8.
The Solheim Cup concludes on Sunday with 12 singles matches. If the score is 14-14, the United States will retain the title as the reigning champions.
Foursome:
Maja Stark/Linn Grant – Allisen Corpuz/Nelly Korda – Europe won 3/2.
Leona Maguire/Esther Henseleit–Rose Zhang/Jennifer Kupcho – Europe won 1/0.
Mimi Rhodes/Nastasia Nadaud–Andrea Lee/Auston Kim – Europe won 3/2.
Charley Hull/Lottie Woad–Alison Lee/Lauren Coughlin – USA won 6/5.
Best ball:
Stark/Grant–Megan Khang/Coughlin – Europe won 2/1
Hull/Woad–Yealimi Noh/Andrea Lee – USA won 1/0.
Nadaud/Maguire–Zhang/Kim – USA won 3/2.
Carlota Ciganda/Céline Boutier–Kupcho/Lindy Duncan – USA won 1/0.
