The much-anticipated week of Solheim Cup festivities is now upon Toledo.
After years of preparation, Inverness Club is opening its gates for the prestigious United States-vs.-Europe women's golf tournament.
Organizers hope this year’s attendance will break the Solheim Cup record of 124,426 people.
The tournament begins Tuesday with practice sessions for both Team USA and Team Europe.
Volunteer co-chair Meg Ressner said the tournament drew 2,000 volunteers.
The Solheim Cup is the largest team event in women's golf.
Seeing the high volume of activity around Dorr Street, standing on one of the pavilions, or listening to the sounds emanating from the area, Inverness Club feels almost like a city within a city.
"They're building almost a town within the club," Ms. Ressner said. "Having been at the previous tournaments and now standing in our structures, it's really exciting to imagine what this is going to be like over the next few days."
As president and chief executive officer of Destination Toledo, Lance Woodworth's mission during the past few years has been largely focused on promoting the city's capability to host the Solheim Cup and other large-scale events. The effort has included cooperation from multiple industries, local government entities, Inverness, the LPGA, and community partners.
A number of major Toledo-area businesses, including Marathon, Dana, ProMedica, and Owens Corning contributed to the bid process.
Mr. Woodworth said the Solheim Cup will play a role in Toledo investment for years to come.
"We'll definitely use this as a feather in our cap to sell Toledo in the future, just to say, 'Hey, look what we did with the Solheim Cup and look at how we brought the community together,'" he said. "It's one thing to say those things and not have the track record of doing it. Now we're going to have done it."
The Solheim Cup is held every two years, with sites alternating between the United States and Europe.
Inverness Club won the bid in 2016. Officials visited the Des Moines tournament in 2017 as well as Scotland in 2019 to learn more about what needs to be done.
Inverness Club historian and Solheim Cup chair of operations Mike McCullough said the tournament has more than 60 drivers and a fleet of cars to help shuttle players, caddies, and other personnel from Detroit Metropolitan Airport to Toledo. More than 30 pickups are planned for Monday.
On Sunday afternoon, final touches were going onto the course, which is adorned with red, white, and blue seating.
"We want Toledo to look at its best and brightest because this is an international stage," Mr. McCullough said. "There are eyes upon us, not just in the United States, but overseas as well, so we want Toledo and Inverness Club to look their best."
Preparations extended beyond just the course.
A number of development projects in Toledo were tied directly to the Solheim Cup timeline, including the restoration of Summit Street and the completion of a Dorr Street interchange on I-475, both of which are now completed and operational.
Though the coronavirus pandemic has not changed the tournament's schedule thus far, virus precautions continue to be a factor during preparation.
The Solheim Cup, LPGA, city of Toledo, and ProMedica issued a joint statement Friday saying that full vaccination is encouraged but not required to attend the tournament, at which the majority of activities will be outside.
Fans will be required to wear masks on shuttles to and from Inverness.
Though officials said distancing will be possible, they recommended that unvaccinated attendees wear masks throughout their visit.
"Masks will be encouraged and for those who are not fully vaccinated, we recommend wearing a mask at all times, and particularly in public indoor settings," the statement said.
The Solheim Cup also will include other events beside the tournament throughout the week.
Solheim after Sundown will begin at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Hensville downtown.
A celebrity golf match is scheduled for 2 p.m. Wednesday, and Promenade Park on Friday will play host to both the opening ceremony and Fan Fest featuring a performance by Gwen Stefani.
Tournament play is slated to begin Saturday morning with foursome matches between the two teams.
Mr. Woodworth said it felt like yesterday that the group was in Scotland with the Toledo tournament two full years away.
"It seemed like we were just packing up the boxes in Scotland at the booth that we had, and it seemed like two years was so far away," Mr. Woodworth said. "And here it is, kicking off on Tuesday. It's a little bit surreal, but all that hard work that was invested is going to pay off big-time."
After all the planning, there is no more waiting.
The long-awaited week is here.
"When we were in Scotland, or even in Des Moines in 2017 before that, it seemed far away," Ms. Ressner said. "We were doing our best to really think about the best practices that we learned from being at both of those tournaments, then building on that and having Toledo really set the standard for future Solheim Cups to come.
"I think you'll see we have done that, and it's going to be really exciting for everyone to be a part of."
First Published August 29, 2021, 9:36 p.m.
