Cristie Kerr (USA) - © ASO / P.Ballet

Seventeen career victories on the LPGA Tour including two Majors, a world number one place occupied for several weeks during the year 2010, and for three days a fifth Solheim Cup on the clock: here is in short the list of achievements, for the less eloquent, by Cristie Kerr. It is therefore one of the best players of the XNUMXst century, quite simply, who this year honors the Lacoste Ladies Open de France with her presence. “It's very important for me to be here! I was supposed to come last year, but I had to cancel at the last minute because I was injured. So I'm very happy to finally be here! " declares the fifteenth player in the world.

Brilliant last week at the Solheim Cup, where her 3,5 points scored in four games played a major role in the stunning victory of the Americans over Europe (14,5 to 13,5), Cristie Kerr approaches with serenity her favorite status this week at Chantaco. “It's not easy to come back to an individual tournament after playing as a team last week,” she concedes, “but I managed my start to the week well, resting on Monday and Tuesday, with just a little practice. I feel good, I played well today in the pro-am, so I'm up for the tournament! The field of players is excellent, and I can't wait to play ”.

Among her main rivals on paper, Kerr will notably find four players from the European Solheim Cup team: the Englishwoman Charley Hull, whom she beat 3 & 2 in singles Sunday, the Spanish Carlota Ciganda and her compatriot Azahara Muñoz, double title holder, and the French Gwladys Nocera. The star part of the first two rounds will also bring together Kerr, Muñoz and Nocera from 9:29 am Thursday. Nocera will carry hopes of a French victory, which would be the first since that of Stéphanie Arricau in Arras in 2005, just like the 19 other Tricolores involved, including four amateurs.

Ahead of the tournament, the traditional pro-am Richard Mille, who took part this Wednesday at the Chantaco golf course, brought together athletes from different Olympic disciplines who came to show their support for the return of golf to the Rio 2016 Olympics. them athletes Marie-José Pérec and Muriel Hurtis, handball player Guillaume Gilles, snowboarder Paul-Henri de Le Rue, table tennis players Damien Éloi and Sébastien Jover, disabled skier Vincent Gauthier-Manuel and rugby player Dimitri Yachvili, whose discipline will be she also returns to the Olympics next year in Brazil