The 123rd U.S. Amateur Championship kicks off next week.
Cherry Hills Country Club will be set up at 7,394 yards and will play to a par of 35-36–71. Colorado Golf Club, which will serve as the stroke-play co-host course for the two rounds of stroke play, will be set up at 7,560 yards and play to a par of 36-36–72.
THE COURSES
Built on 272 acres of a former cherry orchard, Cherry Hills was designed by renowned course architect William Flynn. The course, which opened in 1923, meanders down the hillside away from the clubhouse to the banks of Little Dry Creek offering panoramic views of the Rocky Mountains. The course features one of the most unique routings with the opening nine weaving as a figure eight on the inside of the property while the second nine runs in a counterclockwise circle around the perimeter. Since 2007, Tom Doak and Eric Iverson of Renaissance Golf has been restoring much of the course back to Flynn’s original layout including the final phase in 2022 bringing the creek back into play on several holes including a key stretch of holes on the back nine 14, 15, and 16. Cherry Hills has hosted 14 championships including Arnold Palmer’s only U.S. Open victory in 1960.
Designed by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw, Colorado Golf Club opened for play in 2007. The 1,700-acre property was once an Arabian horse ranch and features views of Colorado’s Front Range, dominated by Pikes Peak, Mount Evans and Longs Peak. The course plays through open meadows, foothills of ponderosa pine, natural gullies and streams.
COURSE RATING AND SLOPE
Based on the course setup for the championship, the Course Rating™ for Cherry Hills Country Club is 76.3 and its Slope Rating® is 149. The Course Rating™ for Colorado Golf Club is 76.6 and its Slope Rating® is 154.
ENTRIES
The USGA accepted a U.S. Amateur record 8,253 entries in 2023. The previous record was 7,920 in 1999. The championship is open to amateur golfers with a Handicap Index® not exceeding 2.4. In 2022, the USGA accepted 7,749 entries.
QUALIFYING
Qualifying for the 2023 U.S. Amateur Championship took place at 93 U.S. sites and two international sites between June 26 – July 25. Qualifiers were conducted in the U.S., Canada, Mexico and Puerto Rico. To view a full list of qualifying results, visit usamateur.org.
CHAMPIONSHIP FIELD
The starting field of 312 players will play 18 holes of stroke play on Aug. 14 and 15, one round on each of the two qualifying courses, after which the field will be cut to the low 64 scorers. Six rounds of match play begin on Aug. 16 and the championship concludes with a 36-hole championship match on Aug. 20.
EXEMPT PLAYERS
There are currently 63 players who are fully exempt from qualifying in the U.S. Amateur. The list includes seven reigning USGA champions – Wenyi Ding (2022 U.S. Junior Amateur champion), Aaron Du (2023 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball champion), Gene Elliott (2021 U.S. Senior Amateur champion), Hugh Foley (2022 U.S. Mid-Amateur runner-up), Matthew McClean (2022 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion), Rusty Strawn (2022 U.S. Senior Amateur champion) and Sampson Zheng (2023 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball champion)
SCHEDULE OF PLAY
Practice rounds will take place Aug. 12-13. The championship schedule is as follows:
Aug. 14 (Monday): First round, stroke play (18 holes)
Aug. 15 (Tuesday): Second round, stroke play (18 holes)
Aug. 16 (Wednesday): Round of 64, match play
Aug. 17 (Thursday): Rounds of 32 and 16, match play
Aug. 18 (Friday): Quarterfinal round, match play
Aug. 19 (Saturday): Semifinal round, match play
Aug. 20 (Sunday): Championship match (36 holes)
WHAT THE CHAMPION RECEIVES
Among the benefits enjoyed by the U.S. Amateur champion are:
►A gold medal and custody of the Havemeyer Trophy for the ensuing year
►An exemption from local and final qualifying for the next U.S. Open (2024)
►An exemption from qualifying for the next 10 U.S. Amateurs
►An exemption from qualifying for the next Open Championship, conducted by The R&A
►A likely invitation to the next Masters Tournament (2024)
2022 CHAMPIONSHIP
Texan Sam Bennett, No. 3 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking, held off upstart Ben Carr, of Columbus, Ga., 1 up, in the 36-hole championship match at The Ridgewood Country Club in Paramus, N.J. Carr was the lowest-ranked player (No. 70) that Bennett, a rising fifth-year senior at Texas A&M, faced en route to his title.
USGA CHAMPIONSHIPS AT CHERRY HILLS COUNTRY CLUB
1938 U.S. Open (Ralph Guldahl)
1960 U.S. Open (Arnold Palmer)
1976 U.S. Senior Amateur (Lewis Oehmig)
1978 U.S. Open (Andy North)
1983 U.S. Mid-Amateur (Jay Sigel)
1990 U.S. Amateur (Phil Mickelson)
1993 U.S. Senior Open (Jack Nicklaus)
2005 U.S. Women's Open (Birdie Kim)
2012 U.S. Amateur (Steven Fox)
USGA CHAMPIONSHIPS IN COLORADO
The 2023 U.S. Amateur Championship will be the 34th USGA championship conducted in Colorado and the 10th at Cherry Hills Country Club.
Cherry Hills C.C., Cherry Hills Village (9)
1938, 1960, 1978 Open
1976 Senior Amateur
1983 Mid-Amateur
1990, 2012 Amateur
1993 Senior Open
2005 Women’s Open
STATES HOSTING MOST USGA CHAMPIONSHIPS
90 Pennsylvania
87 California
74 New York
63 New Jersey
61 Illinois
60 Massachusetts
OTHER CHAMPIONSHIPS AT CHERRY HILLS
1941 PGA Championship (Vic Ghezzi)
1985 PGA Championship (Hubert Green)
2014 BMW Championship (Billy Horschel)
BROADCAST COVERAGE
The 123rd U.S. Amateur will receive at least 18 hours of broadcast coverage on Golf Channel, Peacock and NBC. Rolex is the exclusive presenting partner of coverage for eight USGA championships in 2023, including the U.S. Amateur. Rolex’s commitment will allow an uninterrupted broadcast of these championships, providing fans with hours of continuous live action.
Aug. 16/Wednesday, 5-6 p.m., Peacock; 6-8 p.m., Golf Channel
Aug. 17/Thursday, 6-7 p.m., Peacock; 7-9 p.m., Golf Channel
Aug. 18/Friday, 5-6 p.m., Peacock; 6-8 p.m., Golf Channel
Aug. 19/Saturday, 3-4 p.m., Golf Channel; 4-6 p.m., NBC
Aug. 20/Sunday, 3-4 p.m., Golf Channel; 4-6 p.m., NBC
CHAMPIONSHIP TROPHY
Like the U.S. Open and U.S. Women’s Amateur championships, the U.S. Amateur has been contested since the USGA’s first championship season in 1895. The trophy was initially presented to the USGA on March 28, 1895, in honor of the association’s first president, Theodore A. Havemeyer.
The original Havemeyer Trophy, an ornate silver trophy produced by J.E. Caldwell and Company in Philadelphia, was presented to C.B. Macdonald at Newport Golf Club after his 1895 victory. The prize was then passed to each successive U.S. Amateur champion until Nov. 22, 1925, when it was lost in a massive fire at the home club of Bob Jones, East Lake Country Club in Atlanta, Ga.
Rather than replicate the original, the USGA decided to produce an entirely new trophy with an extended base to accommodate additional engraving. The new Havemeyer Trophy, a tall steeple cup designed in solid gold, was formally presented in January of 1926 by USGA Treasurer Edward S. Moore. It was retired in 1992 and was stolen from the USGA Golf Museum in the spring of 2012, and never recovered. A copy of the trophy, produced in 1992, is passed from champion to champion. In 1996, the USGA replicated the original silver Havemeyer Trophy using two existing photographs. A second replica was produced for display at East Lake.
The U.S. Amateur Trophy is on display at the USGA Golf Museum in Liberty Corner, N.J.
FUTURE U.S. AMATEUR SITES
Aug. 12-18, 2024 – Hazeltine National Golf Club, Chaska, Minn.
Aug. 11-17, 2025 – The Olympic Club (Lake and Ocean Courses), San Francisco, Calif.
Aug. 10-16, 2026 – Merion Golf Club, Ardmore, Pa.
Aug. 9-15, 2027 – Oak Hill Country Club, Pittsford, N.Y.
Aug. 12-18, 2030 – Atlanta Athletic Club, Johns Creek, Ga.
Aug. 11-17, 2031 – The Honors Course, Ooltewah, Tenn.
TBD 2032 – Bandon Dunes Golf Resort, Bandon, Ore.
Aug. 15-21, 2033 – Chambers Bay, University Place, Wash.
TBD 2041 – Bandon Dunes Golf Resort, Bandon, Ore.
TBD 2047 – Oakland Hills Country Club, Bloomfield Hills, Mich.
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