Three-time major champion Anna Nordqvist will retire from professional golf after this week’s FM Championship near Boston.

Nordqvist, 39, will captain Europe at Bernardus Golf in Netherlands, when they take the United States on 11-13 September in the Solheim Cup.

The Swede has featured in each of the previous nine editions of the biennial contest, helping Europe lift the trophy on five occasions since making her debut in 2009.

That was the same year Nordqvist enjoyed her first major success at the LPGA Championship and she also triumphed at the Evian Championship in 2017 and the Women’s Open in 2021.

In a post on social media, Nordqvist said: “Dear golf, 20 years ago, I came to the US with two suitcases, a golf bag and a dream of one day competing with the best golfers in the world.

“While my dreams never quite took me this far, I am very proud of myself for how far I’ve come and grateful for the dream I’ve been able to live ever since.

“I can’t say it has always been easy, especially being so far away from my family, but they have supported me every step of the way. I’ve fallen so many times, but I never gave up, and I stood up every time I fell.

“I am forever thankful for everything this game has given me, and the people I have met along the way.

“I don’t know how to say goodbye to something that means so much to me, but this is going to be the last week walking inside the ropes, competing on tour.”

Nordqvist has earned $14.1m (£10.36m) during her 18-year professional career, that has included nine victories on the LPGA Tour and five on the Ladies European Tour.

While she is currently ranked 118th in the world, she finished in a tie for seventh in July’s Evian Championship and was tied for 29th in the most recent Women’s Open at Royal Lytham & St Annes.

Nordqvist had a benign cyst removed from her stomach during the summer of 2024, a year after her husband, Kevin McAlpine, died suddenly aged 39, while the couple were going through a divorce.

She added: “I’m not sure what the future has in store for me, but it’s with a grateful heart I have decided to retire from playing professional golf to focus on my health and my family.”