Solheim Cup Controversy: Suzann Pettersen 'Gutted' By Her Poor Etiquette Against Alison Lee [VIDEO]

Suzann Pettersen is backtracking on her decision to penalize American golfer Alison Lee for incorrectly picking up her ball on the 17th hole of their fourball match that turned a potential victory, or at least a halved match, into a loss.

Lee came up just short on a birdie putt, and when she saw Pettersen walking away from the hole she believed the hole had been conceded. Pettersen said she was simply was going to consult with her partner about conceding the hole, and then demanded Lee be penalized. The penalty cost the Americans the hole, and the match. She initially defended her decision, but has made an enormous U-turn a day later.

 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.

A photo posted by Suzann Pettersen (@suzannpettersen) on Sep 21, 2015 at 1:20am PDT

The Americans wound up winning the prestigious Solheim Cup anyway behind some strong play from Lee, who was reduced to tears by her penalty. Lee said the dust-up over halving the hole motivated her to play well going forward.

''Definitely after everything that happened, it definitely fired us all up to go and pretty much kill it, kill it this afternoon,'' Lee said.

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