Golf tournament
Golf tournament
The
U.S. Women's Amateur
is the leading
golf
tournament in the
United States
for female amateur golfers. It is played annually and is one of the 13 United States national golf championships organized by the
United States Golf Association
(USGA). Female amateurs from all nations are eligible to compete and there are no age restrictions. It was established in 1895, one month after the men's
U.S. Amateur
and
U.S. Open
. It is the third oldest USGA championship, over a half century older than the
U.S. Women's Open
, which was first played in 1946. Along with the
British Ladies Amateur
, the U.S. Women's Amateur is considered the highest honor in women's amateur golf.
Robert Cox Cup
[
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]
Since 1896 the Robert Cox Cup has been awarded annually by the USGA to the winner. The trophy was donated by Robert Cox of
Edinburgh, Scotland
, a member of the
British Parliament
and a golf course designer. It remains the oldest surviving trophy awarded for a USGA championship. Along with a gold medal, a replica of the 2-foot-high (0.61 m) silver case of
Etruscan
design is given to the tournament winner. The original trophy is on permanent display at the
USGA Museum and Library
. The Robert Cox Cup is the only USGA trophy donated by someone from another country.
The first tournament attracted a field of 13 and was played over 18 holes. As in the case of the men's U.S. Amateur, entry was originally restricted to members of USGA-affiliated private clubs (and, presumably, international players who were members of clubs affiliated with their nations' golf governing bodies); this policy remained in place until the 1979 tournament.
[1]
Several thousand women now enter the event, and the USGA conducts sectional qualifying to reduce the number of contestants to a more manageable number. The main tournament opens with two rounds of
stroke play
. The leading 64 players then compete in a
match play
competition. The matches are played over 18 holes except for the final, which is played over 36 holes.
In 1956,
Ann Gregory
became the first
African American
to compete in the Championship, held that year at the Meridian Hills Country Club in
Indianapolis
.
There are no age restrictions on entry. Players must have a
handicap
index of 5.4 or less.
Morgan Pressel
qualified as a 13-year-old in 2001 and won in 2005 at the age of 17. The 2006 winner Kimberly Kim was only 14 years old, breaking the record previously held by
Laura Baugh
. In 2007,
Pearl Jin
and
Alexis Thompson
became the first 12-year-olds to qualify and the first to advance to match play. Jin and Thompson faced one another in the third round match play. Thompson beat Jin, but then lost in the quarterfinals.
Because the tournament is dominated by teenagers and college-age players who are working toward careers as
tournament professionals
, the USGA introduced a separate tournament in 1987 for players age 25 and over, called the
U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur
. It gives older amateur players an opportunity to compete among themselves for a national title; entrants must have a handicap index of 9.4 or less.
The USGA rates
Glenna Collett Vare
as the most noteworthy champion who won the Robert Cox Cup a record six times. Several U.S. Women's Amateur champions who have gone on to become leading professionals including
Patty Berg
,
Babe Zaharias
,
Louise Suggs
and
Beth Daniel
.
The two finalists win exemptions to the ensuing
U.S. Women's Open
, and the winner also wins exemptions to
The Women's Open Championship
and upon turning 50, the
U.S. Senior Women's Open
(one year exemption for players who eventually turned professional, and five years for players who did not turn professional).
Winners
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]
Multiple winners
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]
Nineteen players have won more than one U.S. Women's Amateur, through 2023:
- 6 wins:
Glenna Collett-Vare
- 5 wins:
JoAnne Gunderson Carner
- 3 wins:
Beatrix Hoyt
,
Margaret Curtis
,
Dorothy Campbell
,
Alexa Stirling
,
Virginia Van Wie
,
Anne Quast
,
Juli Inkster
- 2 wins:
Genevieve Hecker
,
Katherine Harley
,
Betty Jameson
,
Barbara McIntire
,
Beth Daniel
,
Kay Cockerill
,
Vicki Goetze
,
Kelli Kuehne
,
Danielle Kang
,
Kristen Gillman
Seven players have won both the U.S. Women's Amateur and
Open
Championships, through 2023:
- Patty Berg
: 1938 Amateur; 1946 Open
- Betty Jameson
: 1939, 1940 Amateurs; 1947 Open
- Babe Zaharias
: 1946 Amateur; 1948, 1950, 1954 Opens
- Louise Suggs
: 1947 Amateur; 1949, 1952 Opens
- Catherine Lacoste
: 1969 Amateur; 1967 Open
- JoAnne Gunderson Carner
: 1957, 1960, 1962, 1966, 1968 Amateurs; 1971, 1976 Opens
- Juli Inkster
: 1980, 1981, 1982 Amateurs; 1999, 2002 Opens
Eleven players have won both the U.S. Women's and
British Ladies Amateur
Championships, through 2023:
^ Won both in same year.
Future sites
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]
Year
|
Edition
|
Course
|
Location
|
Dates
|
Previous championships hosted
|
2024
|
124th
|
Southern Hills Country Club
|
Tulsa, Oklahoma
|
August 5?11
|
1946
|
2025
|
125th
|
Bandon Dunes Golf Resort
|
Bandon, Oregon
|
TBD
|
|
2026
|
126th
|
Honors Course
|
Ooltewah, Tennessee
|
August 3?9
|
|
2027
|
127th
|
Pinehurst Resort
|
Pinehurst, North Carolina
|
TBD
|
1989
|
2028
|
128th
|
Brae Burn Country Club
|
West Newton, Massachusetts
|
August 7?13
|
1906, 1975, 1997
|
2029
|
129th
|
Oakland Hills Country Club
|
Bloomfield Hills, Michigan
|
TBD
|
1929
|
2030
|
130th
|
Olympic Club
|
San Francisco, California
|
August 5?11
|
|
2031
|
131st
|
Baltimore Country Club
, East Course at Five Farms
|
Baltimore, Maryland
|
August 4?10
|
|
2032
|
132nd
|
Bandon Dunes Golf Resort
|
Bandon, Oregon
|
TBD
|
2025
|
2034
|
134th
|
The Country Club
|
Salt Lake City, Utah
|
TBD
|
|
2035
|
135th
|
Atlanta Athletic Club
|
Johns Creek, Georgia
|
August 6?12
|
|
2037
|
137th
|
Country Club of North Carolina
|
Pinehurst, North Carolina
|
TBD
|
|
Saucon Valley Country Club
is slated to host in 2038.
Canterbury Golf Club
is slated to host in 2039.
Bandon Dunes Golf Resort is also slated to host in 2041.
Pinehurst Resort is also slated to host in 2044.
Oakmont Country Club
is slated to host in 2046.
Source
[4]
Notes
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]
- ^
"Changes Made to USGA Championship Roster"
(Press release). United States Golf Association. February 11, 2013. Archived from
the original
on February 13, 2013
. Retrieved
February 19,
2013
.
- ^
"Miss Bishop Wins Golf Championship. Defeats Mrs. Sanford in Final Match by 5 Up and 3 to Play. Played in Merion Links. Winner is from the Brooklawn Club of Bridgeport. Large Gallery Sees"
.
The New York Times
. October 16, 1904
. Retrieved
April 18,
2011
.
Miss Georgianna Bishop, representing the Brooklawn Golf Club of Bridgeport, Conn., won the women's golf championship of the United States to-day by defeating Mrs. E.F. Sanford of the Essex County Country Club of Orange, N.J., by 5 up and 3 to play. ...
- ^
The 1895 tournament was an 18-hole stroke play event; match play did not begin until the following year.
- ^
"2023 U.S. Women's Amateur Fast Facts"
. United States Golf Association
. Retrieved
January 30,
2023
.
External links
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]
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Current
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Past
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Related
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See also
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U.S. Open
| |
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Ryder Cup
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Presidents Cup
| |
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Open Championship
| |
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Other events
|
- Phoenix Open
(CBS Super Bowl years 2007, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021)
- The Honda Classic
(1987?present, except Winter Olympic years in 2018 and 2022)
- WGC-Mexico Championship
(2017?present)
- Valspar Championship
(2007?present)
- Arnold Palmer Invitational
(1987?present)
- Shell Houston Open
(2007?present)
- Valero Texas Open
(2012?present)
- WGC-Cadillac Match Play
(2007?present, except Winter Olympic years 2010 and 2014)
- The Players Championship
(1988?present)
- Deutsche Bank Championship
(2007?present)
- The Northern Trust
(alternates with CBS, 2022-)
- BMW Championship
(2007?present, alternates with CBS, 2022-)
- The Tour Championship
(2007?present, alternates with CBS, 2022-)
- Mayakoba Golf Classic
(2020-present)
- Hero World Challenge
(2007?present)
- QBE Shootout
(2007?2013, 2017?present)
| Majors and
special events
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Former events
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Key figures
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Related articles
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