Suzann Pettersen has sprung a shock as Europe begin their defence of the Solheim Cup by omitting Leona Maguire for the opening foursomes session in Virginia.

Pettersen has turned to Charley Hull to lead Europe off at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Club on Friday morning. Hull and the European debutant Esther Henseleit will raise the curtain on the event against the world No 1, Kelly Korda, and Allisen Corpuz. Pettersen’s faith in Hull comes after the 28-year-old was pictured lighting up a cigarette with the assistance of a spectator on Thursday.

“She is old enough to make those decisions,” said Pettersen of Hull’s tendency to smoke when competing. “She is interacting great with the fans around this place. She found exactly what she needed in that one guy standing there. So she is having a ball.

“Charley and Esther are a very good match. They are good friends, they get along great. It is nice to get Charley going; she doesn’t like to sit around and wait. It is a great combination between the two of them.”

The absence of Maguire is certain to turn heads, including among the US side. The Irish golfer has the best record of Europe’s current Solheim Cup team, having won seven of her 10 matches in the competition. Maguire was the star of Europe’s last win in the United States, claiming four and a half points in Toledo in 2021.

Yet Pettersen could point towards Maguire’s individual record in 2024; she missed the cut in three of her five majors and posted a best finish of tied 24th.

“We have a great team,” Pettersen explained. “That is the best thing about it. All the players stand behind the decisions that are made. Of course players are disappointed when they don’t get paired straight off the bat but this is not a sprint. There are lots of matches to be played. I am sure you will see Leona on the course but it is just about how it all pieced together this time around. She has a great record and she is a feisty Solheim player. We all know that but you will see her.

“You have got to look at a little bit of gut feel. To sit Leona in a foursome, it’s a little bit of a tough call but at the same time you have to go with your gut. You have other ones who are very aligned on paper.”

In match two, Europe’s Céline Boutier and Albane Valenzuela will take on Rose Zhang and Lauren Coughlin. Ally Ewing and Jennifer Kupcho will combine for the US in the penultimate foursomes clash against Emily Pedersen and Maja Stark. The session is completed by the European duo of Linn Grant and Carlota Ciganda facing Lilia Vu and Sarah Schmelzel.

The clear aim of the US captain, Stacy Lewis, is to break a horrible Solheim run. Europe triumphed in 2019 and 2021 before last year’s tie in Spain – the Americans enjoyed a clean sweep on Friday morning – was sufficient for Pettersen and her players to retain the trophy. Only two members of the US team, Alison Lee and Lexi Thompson, have sampled Solheim victory.

“That is our biggest challenge this week,” said Lewis. “The majority of this group hasn’t gotten over the hump. The girls have been talking about it. They won Junior Solheims, they have been on winning Curtis Cup teams. They have been on other winning teams before. They understand what it takes. A lot of them have won a lot of matches, too. We are getting more experience every year and experience is what you need in this event. So I like the direction we are going in.”

Lewis, who is known for her statistical approach to pairings, admitted she has placed great faith in Korda at the head of the field. “I wanted to send some experience out first,” said the US captain. “There is no one better than No 1 in the world. That pairing was very successful last year and they are comfortable together. So I have a lot of confidence in them.”

Hull caused an element of European alarm on the eve of the competition by receiving treatment to her hip on the driving range. She later played down the incident. “I was just getting it cracked back into place,” Hull said. “It always pops out. We have a physio here with us all week, so I thought I’d make the most of it.”

Pressed on her occasionally unorthodox approach to time spent in the spotlight, Hull added: “If I like things, I like them for myself. If other people don’t like it, well, it’s not their life. I live my life the way I want to live it, not how anyone else wants me to live it. I think I just live like a normal person.”