The United States Golf Association (USGA) has named Fox Chapel Golf Club in Pittsburgh, Pa.; San Diego Country Club, in Chula Vista, Calif.; and Tacoma Country & Golf Club in Lakewood, Wash., as future host sites of the U.S. Senior Women’s Open Championship.
The championships will take place on the following dates:
Fox Chapel Golf Club — Aug. 1-4, 2024
San Diego Country Club — Aug. 21-24, 2025
Tacoma Country & Golf Club — Aug. 19-22, 2027
“As we celebrate the fourth iteration of this championship this week at NCR Country Club, the USGA could not be more pleased to secure a strong future for this event over the next few years,” said John Bodenhamer, chief championships officer at the USGA. “Having an exceptional lineup of championship sites only furthers our commitment to providing ideal stages to showcase and celebrate these legends of the game who are still top competitors. We look forward to continuing to make history at these venues in the years ahead.”
Fox Chapel Golf Club will host its first USGA Open championship and fourth USGA championship in 2024. In 1965, the club hosted the U.S. Senior Amateur, which was won by Robert B. Kiersky, who defeated George Beechler in 19 holes in the final. The club also hosted the 1985 U.S. Women’s Amateur, in which Michiko Hattori defeated Cheryl Stacy, 5 and 4, to become the only player from Japan to win a USGA title. The 2002 Curtis Cup Match was also held at Fox Chapel, with Carol Semple Thompson of the USA Team making her 12th and final appearance in the event. Semple Thompson, a Pittsburgh-area native, sank a 27-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole to secure the USA’s 11-7 victory over Great Britain & Ireland.
Commissioned in 1923, Fox Chapel was designed by Seth Raynor, who took inspiration from the best holes in Scotland and Europe. Brian Silva renovated the course in 2001 prior to it hosting the 2002 Curtis Cup. Fazio Design performed an extensive restoration in 2019-2020 and reintroduced a variety of original greens and bunkers.
“We plan to welcome this talented group of golfers with a best-in-class experience,” said James “Lock” Walrath, president of the board of directors at Fox Chapel. “Our staff, membership and community look forward to working with the USGA to put together a truly memorable week for all in attendance.”
The 2025 U.S. Senior Women’s Open will be the fourth USGA championship contested at San Diego Country Club. In 1964, the club hosted the fourth and final U.S. Women’s Open victory in the legendary career of Mickey Wright, which she captured in an 18-hole playoff over Ruth Jessen on the course where she learned the game. The U.S. Women’s Amateur was held at San Diego Country Club in 1993 and 2017, with Jill McGill defeating Sarah LeBrun Ingram, 1 up, in 1993, and Sophia Schubert prevailing over Albane Valenzuela, 6 and 5, in 2017.
San Diego Country Club was established in 1897 and opened at its current location in 1921 with a course designed by William Watson (later remodeled by William P. Bell). The club hosted the PGA Tour’s San Diego Open (now the Farmers Insurance Open) in 1952 and 1953, with Ted Kroll and Tommy Bolt, respectively, taking home victories. In addition, the club has hosted numerous U.S. Open and U.S. Senior Open championship qualifiers.
“To have the best players in the world come to our club to experience our course and community is truly an honor,” said Christopher Booth, president of San Diego Country Club. “We look forward to continuing to support and bring awareness to the growth of the game of golf for all.”
Tacoma Country & Golf Club was founded in 1894 by a group of Scotsmen and Englishmen who sought to play the game of their homeland. By 1896, the original 18-hole course and an additional nine-hole course were built on pastureland. Tacoma Country & Golf Club was one of the founding clubs of the Pacific Northwest Golf Association, the fifth-oldest golf association in North America.
The 9th U.S. Senior Women’s Open will be the club’s fifth USGA championship. It has previously hosted the 1961 U.S. Women’s Amateur, won by Washington native Anne Quast Sander; the 1984 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur, won by Constance Guthrie; and the 1994 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur, won by Sarah LeBrun Ingram for her third victory in the championship. Ingram has gone on to captain two winning USA Curtis Cup Teams, in 2021 and 2022. Most recently, the club hosted the 2007 U.S. Girls’ Junior, won by Kristen Park.
“The community of Lakewood, Pierce County and our membership are looking forward to hosting a USGA championship once again,” said Rich McEntee, president of Tacoma Country & Golf Club. “From the arrival of the players through to the moment we crown a champion, we know this will be a special championship for all involved.”
The U.S. Senior Women’s Open is open to professional females, and amateur females with a Handicap Index® not exceeding 7.4, who have reached their 50th birthday as of the first day of the championship. The field will include 120 players, who will earn entry into the championship via qualifying at various sites nationwide or through an exemption category.
The format is a walking-only, 72-hole stroke play competition over four consecutive days with a 36-hole cut to the top 50 players, including ties. Laura Davies won the inaugural playing of the championship in 2018 at Chicago Golf Club, followed by Helen Alfredsson winning in 2019 at Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club in Southern Pines, N.C. Making her championship debut in 2021, Annika Sorenstam won the 3rd U.S. Senior Women’s Open by eight strokes at Brooklawn Country Club in Fairfield, Conn.
The 4th U.S. Senior Women’s Open will be held this week at NCR Country Club in Kettering, Ohio, and the fifth installment of the championship will be contested Aug. 24-27, 2023, at Waverley Country Club in Portland, Ore. Spyglass Hill Golf Course in Pebble Beach, Calif., will host the U.S. Senior Women’s Open in 2030, along with that year’s U.S. Senior Open.
No comments:
Post a Comment