SOLHEIM CUP 2011:DO, OR die? The DNA of the Solheim Cup is one of contrasts, with a giddy and fun-loving outer persona masking an assassin's inner steel.

Make no mistake about it, appearances can be deceptive: this is serious business! And Europe’s quest to end the dominance of the United States provides an added, much-needed edge to this 12th edition of the biennial match here at Killeen Castle, in the historic townland of Dunsany, Co Meath.

Without a win since 2003, the Europeans have been competitive without emerging victorious in any of the past three Solheim Cups, and there is little doubt the event – at a time when Asian players, who obviously can’t play in this showpiece, are taking an ever-stronger grip on the US LPGA Tour – needs the sustenance of, firstly, a tight match and, secondly, a home win.

For sure, it is a task easier said than done. Many of the USA players have made public protestations as to why they shouldn’t be considered favourites, but the truth is they are overwhelming favourites to extend the sequence to a fourth win on the trot.

The Americans appear stronger – with seven players in the top-20 of the world rankings compared to Europe’s one – and the weight of history is on their side as they set out to conquer the Jack Nicklaus-designed course.

And yet . . . And yet . . .! Perhaps the time has come for a European uprising of sorts, a show of defiance even.

“I think we’ve been a bit unlucky over the last few years, the last few events. It’s been a lot closer than the actual results,” observed Karen Stupples, a captain’s “wild-card” pick who has been asked to ride shotgun for debutante Mel Reid in the opening series of foursomes.

Indeed, the European build-up – with messages of support from some of their Ryder Cup counterparts including Ian Poulter along with motivational videos and a general feel-good factor in the team room – would appear to have ticked almost every box.

Now, it is down to what happens on the course over the next three days.

As Catriona Matthew put it, “there’s no point in being here if you don’t believe you can win”.

Although it remains to be seen just how influential the home support will be, or if the Americans can quieten them from the off, one advantage that Europe undoubtedly have is a familiarity with the course.

Players love nothing better than to return to a course where they have performed well and, in world number two Suzann Pettersen and Sophie Gustafson, the home team have the past two winners of the Irish Open played on this course.

Good vibes, to be sure.

What’s more, Europe’s captain Alison Nicholas yesterday showed a willingness to do the unexpected in announcing her foursomes pairings. If the world and its mother – well, at least USA captain Rosie Jones – expected Nicholas to send out Pettersen in the top foursomes, the surprise was that the Norwegian was actually paired with Gustafson in the fourth and bottom foursomes against veteran Juli Inkster and Brittany Lang.

Jones could barely conceal her surprise at the move, whilst Nicholas could hardly contain a chuckle. “Strike one (to Nicholas),” conceded Jones.

But perhaps that’s the sort of thinking outside of the box that Nicholas – and her vice-captains Annika Sorenstam and Jo Morley – have brought to the table for this Solheim Cup.

Could it make all the difference? If Pettersen and Gustafson can lay down a marker and get the roars of the galleries floating across the fairways to the matches ahead, it could be a very clever ploy indeed.

If Europe are to win the Solheim Cup, much of the damage – you suspect – will need to be inflicted in the foursomes and fourballs, four on each today and tomorrow. That’s 16 available points before the singles shoot-out on Sunday, where the Americans traditionally carry the stronger hand.

The comings and goings in the foursomes and fourballs will be critical in determining who is in the driver’s seat come Sunday’s singles cavalry charge. “You’ve got to go out there and play. This is the deepest the European team has ever been,” claimed Inkster, the oldest player – at 51 – to play in the match and fulfilling a dual role as player and vice-captain.

The omission of Laura Davies from the foursomes wasn’t too much of a surprise, with the English woman – making a record 12th appearance in the match – expected to start her contribution in the afternoon fourballs. Perhaps more surprising was the absence of in-form Caroline Hedwall, although the young Swede cannot expect to be left on the sidelines for too long. She is the secret weapon in Nicholas’s armoury.

“I have a master plan, and I’d like to stick to that as much as possible,” said US captain Jones.

But the best-laid plans of mice and even women can sometimes be influenced by outside factors. The weather. The course. The opposition.

Nicholas – with some unfinished business from the loss to the Americans in Chicago two years ago – will hope that her time, and that of Europe, has finally come.