It’s time to forgive Suzann Pettersen for Solheim Cup incident

Suzann Pettersen, who continued her Solheim Cup mea culpa tour with an appearance on Golf Channel’s Golf Central Wednesday night, has, in the wake of the incident in Germany, been blamed for unsportsmanlike conduct, poor golf etiquette, global warming, violating the spirit of the game of golf, and not being contrite enough after her egregious deed.

Well, maybe not the climate-change thing. But, as Pettersen wondered aloud to Tim Rosaforte during a 45-minute interview, can you conceive of what would have happened if the Americans had not staged the greatest comeback in Solheim Cup history and Europe had won the contentious matches almost two weeks ago? After the controversy that erupted on the 17th green that Sunday morning when American rookie Alison Lee picked up her ball after mistakenly believing the Euros had conceded the 18-inch putt?

“I can only imagine, had we won by half a point, how this would have turned out,” Pettersen said.

Not nearly so well as it has, that’s for sure, even though the self-described fiery competitor actually did nothing wrong when she insisted that she and teammate Charlie Hull did not give the putt to Lee. Lost in the firestorm of criticism that has rained down on Pettersen since the incident — and which she may be apologizing for forevermore — is the fact that Lee was the one at fault for lifting her ball without confirming it was a gimme.

“We’re having a discussion about the difference between sportsmanship and gamesmanship,” Geoff Shackelford reminded viewers during a post-interview roundtable analysis of The Apology. “We need to remember that Alison Lee made a big mistake; she started this whole mess.”

That may well be, but the court of public opinion — which includes European Solheim Cup legend Laura Davies — came down with a verdict and pronounced Pettersen guilty.

The defendant herself wishes she could have a mulligan for her actions.

“You can’t win [at] all costs,” Pettersen told Rosaforte. “Obviously, the sportsmanship and the integrity of the game I felt were left on the sideline. That’s kind of what really hurts me, because I don’t want to be remembered as someone who just gave it all and couldn’t care about the integrity of the game, because that means more to me.”

In the episode that is certain to eclipse the Americans’ thrilling rebound, Lee missed a 15-foot birdie putt that would have given her and Brittany Lincicome a 1-up advantage with one hole to go. The putt went almost two feet long and Lee — believing her opponents, who were already walking off the green, had conceded the putt — fetched her ball.

Chaos, tears, and finger-pointing ensued, with almost the entirety of the golf world castigating Pettersen for her disgraceful, shameful pettiness.

The Golf Channel sit-down was Pettersen’s most recent attempt to put the Solheim Cup finale fracas behind her. After initially defending her actions, Pettersen issued a sincere apology the next day on Instagram:

I’ve never felt more gutted and truly sad about what went down Sunday on the 17th at the Solheim Cup.

I am so sorry for not thinking about the bigger picture in the heat of the battle and competition. I was trying my hardest for my team and put the single match and the point that could be earned ahead of sportsmanship and the game of golf itself! I feel like I let my team down and I am sorry.

To the U.S. team, you guys have a great leader in Juli , who I’ve always looked up to and respect so much. Knowing I need to make things “right,” I had a face to face chat with her before leaving Germany this morning to tell her in person how I really feel about all of this. I wanted her also to know that I am sorry.

I hope in time the U.S. team will forgive me and know that I have learned a valuable lesson about what is truly important in this great game of golf which has given me so much in my life.

To the fans of golf who watched the competition on TV, I am sorry for the way I carried myself. I can be so much better and being an ambassador for this great game means a lot to me.

The Solheim Cup has been a huge part of my career. I wish I could change Sunday for many reasons. Unfortunately I can’t.

This week I want to push forward toward another opportunity to earn the Solheim Cup back for Europe in the right way. And I want to work hard to earn back your belief in me as someone who plays hard, plays fair and plays the great game of golf the right way.

Pettersen said she has had conversations with “icons” of the game, including U.S. captain Juli Inkster and player Michelle Wie, Euro assistant captain Annika Sorenstam, and Phil Mickelson. Lefty, who sparked his own controversy after the 2014 Ryder Cup when he criticized U.S. skipper Tom Watson’s leadership, was especially helpful.

“One of the first players to reach out to me was Phil on Sunday night,” Pettersen said. “I don’t know how I can thank him enough for the words and the hours on the phone, the conversations we had for the good and bad.

“This went both ways,” she added. “He wasn’t just trying to pat me on the shoulder, `Oh, this will be fine.’ He asked me some critical questions, and I had to answer them.”

Pettersen has yet to speak with Lee but said she planned to during the LPGA Tour’s Asian swing, which starts next week.

“She will be one of the first people I will try to reach out to once we get to Asia, and I see her in person,” Pettersen said.

Here’s hoping the face-to-face atonement will put an end to the recriminations and vitriol.

In the meantime, Pettersen has taken enough heat and beaten herself up thoroughly, for the way she “handled the situation” and not for standing firm on Lee’s error.

“I just wish it never happened,” she said, “and I wish nobody will ever be put in that situation ever again.”

If anything should go awry when the Americans meet the internationals in next week’s Presidents Cup, perhaps it will be Mickelson seeking Pettersen’s counsel.