The 121st U.S. Women's Amatuer will be held at Westchester Country Club August 2nd through the 8th with a full field of 156 of the world's best female amateur golfers.
The Westchester Country Club West Course will be set up at 6,488 yards and will play to a par of 36-36–72 for the championship.
WESTCHESTER COUNTRY CLUB (WEST COURSE) HOLE BY HOLE
Hole 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Total
Par 3 4 4 4 5 3 4 4 5 36
Yards 176 372 405 385 546 129 322 435 475 3,245
Hole 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Total
Par 4 4 5 4 3 4 3 4 5 36
Yards 316 428 487 379 138 418 198 351 528 3,243
Note: Yardages subject to change.
ABOUT WESTCHESTER COUNTRY CLUB
Three-time U.S. Amateur champion Walter J. Travis laid out the two 18-hole golf courses at Westchester Country Club, just 30 miles outside New York City, that opened in 1922. The courses were built by the Philadelphia-based architectural firm of Toomey and Flynn who built the modern course at Shinnecock Hills toward the end of the same decade. The club joined the USGA on Jan. 13, 1922, several months before the courses opened for play that summer.
The West Course has hosted many memorable golf events over its history. Beginning with the 1923 U.S. Women’s Amateur, the course went on to host 44 PGA Tour events. The Thunderbird Classic came to Westchester in 1963, with Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus winning two of the first three years. The Thunderbird continued annually until 1967 when it became the Westchester Classic.
Ben Hogan played his final competitive round at the Classic on July 5, 1970. The event morphed again and was re-named the Westchester Buick Classic and later, The Barclays. These events were considered “tune-ups” for the U.S. Open with hard, fast greens, tight fairways and high rough. But members and pros alike continue to enjoy the course for its beautiful landscaping, premier conditioning and perpetual challenge.
Most recently, Westchester Country Club hosted the 2011 Senior Players Championship and the 2015 KPMG Women's PGA Championship, won by Inbee Park.
Winding its way through terrain dotted with rocky outcroppings, the West Course is hilly and heavily wooded, rolling through thick stands of pine, oak, and maple and features many blind spots which add to the complexity and difficulty of the course. Four holes on the West Course, Nos. 2, 3, 6, and 17, rated among the toughest on the PGA Tour during the course’s long tenure as a host on golf’s top professional circuit.
The roster of architects who have tweaked Travis’ design include Perry Maxwell in 1939, Rees Jones in 1982, Ken Dye in 2000 and, most recently, Tom Fazio.
WESTCHESTER COUNTRY CLUB NOTES
Notable present/past members include Kenneth Chenault (CEO of American Express), Johnny Carson (Tonight Show host), Carol Burnett (actress/comedian), Ralph Branca (MLB pitcher), Jackie Gleason (actor/comedian), John Mara (NY Giants co-owner), Jimmy Roberts (NBC Sports broadcaster), Ed Sullivan (TV host), Gene Tunney (heavyweight boxing champion).
The West Course was designed for championship play, while the South Course was originally designed for higher handicap golfers. Around 1997, the South Course was reconstructed with longer tees, new sand and grass bunkers, water hazards, and some new greens, becoming more competitive with the West Course.
ENTRIES
The championship is open to female amateur golfers who have a Handicap Index® not exceeding 5.4. The 2021 championship set a record-high 1,560 entries when applications closed on June 16. The previous record was 1,468 entries in 2018.
QUALIFYING
A year after conducting the U.S. Women's Amateur with an all-exempt field due to COVID-19 health concerns, the 121st edition of the championship staged eighteen-hole qualifying at 23 sites nationwide between June 23 and July 15.
Qualifiers took place in 17 states and Canada. Florida, Ohio, and Texas hosted two qualifiers each, and California hosted three. To view a full list of qualifying results, visit usga.org/womensam.
CHAMPIONSHIP FIELD
A starting field of 156 players will compete in the U.S. Women’s Amateur. Following 18-hole rounds of stroke play on Aug. 2-3, the field will be cut to the top 64 players for match play. Five 18-hole rounds of match play will determine the finalists who will square off in a 36-hole championship match on Aug. 8.
SCHEDULE OF PLAY
Practice rounds will take place July 31 & Aug. 1, and the championship schedule is as follows:
Aug. 2 (Monday): First round, stroke play
Aug. 3 (Tuesday): Second round, stroke play
Aug. 4 (Wednesday): Round of 64, match play
Aug. 5 (Thursday): Rounds of 32 and 16, match play
Aug. 6 (Friday): Quarterfinal round, match play
Aug. 7 (Saturday): Semifinal round, match play
Aug. 8 (Sunday): 36-hole championship final, match play
2020 CHAMPION
Rose Zhang, 17, of Irvine, Calif., defeated defending champion Gabriela Ruffels, a rising senior at the University of Southern California from Australia, in 38 holes at Woodmont Country Club in Rockville, Md. Ruffels was vying to become the first back-to-back champion since Danielle Kang in 2011. Zhang got up and down for par from the rough on the 36th hole to force extra holes and then won the match when Ruffels lipped out a short par putt. The championship featured an all-exempt field due to health concerns from the COVID-19 pandemic.
TELEVISION COVERAGE
Golf Channel and Peacock will broadcast the 2021 U.S. Women's Amateur Championship. All times EDT.
Wednesday, Aug. 4 Golf Channel 2-5 p.m. Round of 64
Thursday, Aug. 5 Peacock 2-5 p.m. Round of 16
Friday, Aug. 6 Peacock 2-5 p.m. Quarterfinals
Saturday, Aug. 7 Golf Channel 2-5 p.m. Semifinals
Sunday, Aug. 8 Golf Channel 2-5 p.m. Final
CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY
The U.S. Women’s Amateur Championship is one of the United States Golf Association’s original three championships. It was first conducted in 1895, shortly after the inaugural U.S. Amateur and U.S. Open. The Women’s Amateur has been conducted every year since, except 1917-18, when it was suspended due to World War I, and 1942-45, when it was suspended due to World War II.
The most decorated champion is Glenna Collett Vare, a lifelong amateur who won the Cox Trophy a record six times. Second to Vare is JoAnne Gunderson Carner, who won five U.S. Women’s Amateur Championships. Combined with her two wins in the U.S. Women’s Open and one victory in the U.S. Girls’ Junior, Carner’s eight USGA titles are tied with Jack Nicklaus and eclipsed only by Bob Jones and Tiger Woods, who have each won nine.
U.S. Women’s Amateur champions seem to possess a remarkable facility to repeat. Beatrix Hoyt, Alexa Stirling, Vare, Virginia Van Wie and Juli Inkster have all won the U.S. Women’s Amateur three consecutive times. Another seven champions – Genevieve Hecker, Dorothy Campbell, Margaret Curtis, Betty Jameson, Kay Cockerill, Kelli Kuehne and Danielle Kang – have won two in a row.
The U.S. Women’s Amateur has long identified some of golf’s greatest female players, many of whom have gone on to successful professional careers. Along with the champions listed above, Patty Berg, Babe Didrikson Zaharias, Louise Suggs, Marlene Stewart Streit, Anne Quast Sander, Barbara McIntire, Catherine Lacoste, Carol Semple Thompson, Beth Daniel, Morgan Pressel and Lydia Ko have secured a place in golf history.
WHAT THE WINNER RECEIVES:
A gold medal and custody of the Robert Cox Trophy for one year
Exemption from qualifying for the 2022 U.S. Women’s Open
Exemption from qualifying for the next 10 U.S. Women's Amateurs, if eligible
Exemption from qualifying for the next 10 U.S. Girls' Juniors, if eligible
Exemption from qualifying for the next 15 U.S. Women's Mid-Amateurs, or 15 years from the time the player becomes eligible
Exemption from qualifying for the next 15 U.S. Senior Women's Amateurs, or 15 years from the time the player becomes eligible
USGA AND WESTCHESTER
This is the second USGA championships held at Westchester Country Club, and the first in nearly a century. Westchester hosted the 1923 U.S. Women’s Amateur won by Edith Cummings.
OTHER NOTABLE EVENTS AT WESTCHESTER
1963-1965 PGA Tour Thunderbird Classic (Notable winners: Arnold Palmer, 1963; Jack Nicklaus, 1965)
1967-2007 PGA Tour Westchester Classic, later Buick Classic and Barclays*
2011 Constellation Energy Senior Players Championship (Fred Couples)
2015 KPMG Women's PGA Championship (Inbee Park)
(Notable winners: Jack Nicklaus, 1967 & 1972; Arnold Palmer, 1971; Johnny Miller, 1974; Gene Littler, 1975; Curtis Strange, 1980; Raymond Floyd, 1981; Seve Ballesteros, 1983 & 1988; Hale Irwin 1990; Vijay Singh, 1993, 1995 & 2006; Lee Janzen, 1994; Ernie Els, 1996-97; Sergio Garcia 2001 & 2004; Padraig Harrington, 2005; Steve Stricker, 2007)
USGA CHAMPIONSHIPS IN NEW YORK
The 2021 U.S. Women’s Amateur will be the 74th USGA championship conducted in New York. Last September, Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck hosted the 120th U.S. Open Championship where Bryson DeChambeau won his first major championship title with a six-stroke victory. The championship was postponed three months due to the COVID-19 pandemic, making it the first U.S. Open held in September in 107 years.
The first USGA championship in the state of New York was the inaugural U.S. Women’s Amateur, played on November 9, 1895, at Meadow Brook Club in Jericho. There were 13 entries to the championship. Lucy Barnes Brown won by two strokes over Nellie Sargent.
The last U.S. Women’s Amateur played in the Garden State was in 2014 when Kristen Gillman defeated Brooke Henderson, 2 up, at Nassau Country Club in Glen Cove. This will be the 11th U.S. Women’s Amateur held in New York.
Upcoming USGA championships in New York include the 2023 U.S. Mid-Amateur at Sleepy Hollow Country Club in Scarborough, the 2026 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton, and the 2027 U.S. Amateur at Oak Hill Country Club in Pittsford.
USGA Championships in New York (Since 2010)
2010 U.S. Mid-Amateur: Atlantic G.C., Bridgehampton (Nathan Smith)
2013 U.S. Women’s Open: Sebonack G.C., Southampton (Inbee Park)
2013 Walker Cup: National Golf Links of America, Southampton (United States)
2014 U.S. Women’s Amateur: Nassau C.C., Glen Cove (Kristen Gillman)
2016 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball: Winged Foot G.C., Mamaroneck (Benjamin Baxter & Andrew Buchanan)
2018 Curtis Cup: Quaker Ridge G.C., Scarsdale (United States)
2018 U.S. Open: Shinnecock Hills G.C., Southampton (Brooks Koepka)
2020 U.S. Open: Winged Foot G.C., Mamaroneck (Bryson DeChambeau)
U.S. WOMEN’S AMATEURS IN NEW YORK
1895: Meadow Brook Club, Jericho (Lucy Barnes Brown)
1898: Ardsley C.C., Ardsley-on-Hudson (Beatrix Hoyt)
1900: Shinnecock Hills G.C., Southampton (Frances C. Griscom)
1914: Nassau C.C., Glen Cove (Katherine Harley)
1923: Westchester C.C. (Edith Cummings)
1927: Cherry Valley Club, Garden City (Miriam Burns Horn)
1931: Country Club of Buffalo, Williamsville (Helen Hicks)
1962: Country Club of Rochester, Rochester (JoAnne Gunderson)
2002: Sleepy Hollow C.C., Scarborough (Becky Lucidi)
2014: Nassau C.C., Glen Cove (Kristen Gillman)
FUTURE U.S. WOMEN’S AMATEUR SITES
Aug. 8-14, 2022 – Chambers Bay, University Place, Wash.
Aug. 8-13, 2023 – Bel-Air Country Club, Los Angeles, Calif.
Aug. 5-11, 2024 – Southern Hills Country Club, Tulsa, Okla.
Aug. 3-9, 2026 – The Honors Course, Ooltewah, Tenn.
TBD, 2025 – Bandon Dunes Golf Resort, Bandon, Or.
TBD, 2032 – Bandon Dunes Golf Resort, Bandon, Or.
TBD, 2041 – Bandon Dunes Golf Resort, Bandon, Or.
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