Jan. 19, 2012

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - University of Tennessee women's golf junior Erica Popson was one of the final three players selected to the 2012 United States Curtis Cup the U.S. Golf Association announced on Thursday.

"It feels awesome," Popson said. "It is the highest honor an amateur women's golfer can get so it is amazing to be able to go and represent the United States over in Scotland and play for a team with so much history behind it."

The 2012 Curtis Cup will be played at the Nairn Golf Club in Nairn, Scotland, on June 8-10. Five members of the eight-member team were announced in December: North Dakota State's Amy Anderson, Duke's Lindy Duncan, LSU's Austin Ernst, UCLA's Tiffany Lua and Alabama's Brooke Pancake. Along with Popson, the January selections included Southern Cal's Lisa McCloskey and Arkansas' Emily Tubert.

Popson was named to both the NGCA and Golfweek All-America First Teams. The Davenport, Fla., native boasts four medalist performances, notably winning the 2011 SEC Championship. She followed her conference title with a win at the NCAA West Regional before posting a 14th-place effort at the NCAA Championships.

Popson earned first team All-SEC laurels in 2011 after being named to the SEC All-Freshman Team and SEC Freshman Academic Honor Roll in 2010.

"It is the ultimate goal for a player," noted head coach Judi Pavon. "In amateur golf as a United States player, there is no greater honor and she has worked hard. She deserves it and we are thrilled by it."

Tennessee has never had a golfer named to the Curtis Cup team before.

"I am so pleased that Lisa, Erica and Emily have been named to the 2012 Curtis Cup Team," said USA Team Captain Patricia Cornett, M.D. "I could not have asked for a more talented and dedicated trio of players to have been selected. My congratulations go to each on this honor."

All eight members of the USA Team were named to the National Golf Coaches Association's All-American first or second team in 2011.

The alternates for the USA Team are, in order of ranking: Erynne Lee, 18, of Silverdale, Wash.; and Marina Alex, 21, of Wayne, N.J.

The Curtis Cup Match is a biennial international women's amateur golf competition between eight-player teams from the United States of America and Great Britain and Ireland. The USA won the 2010 Match at Essex County Club in Manchester-by-the-Sea, Mass., 12.5-7.5.

The event consists of six foursomes (alternate-shot) matches, six four-ball matches and eight singles matches over three days of competition. The USA Team has won the last seven Matches and leads the series, 27-6-3.