The United States Golf Association (USGA) today announced sectional qualifying sites for the 2016 U.S. Senior Open Championship, to be held at Scioto Country Club, in Columbus, Ohio, Aug. 11-14. Scioto Country Club is hosting its second U.S. Senior Open and its fourth USGA championship.
Conducted over 18 holes, sectional qualifying will be held at 34 sites across the United States between June 14 and July 11. Player registration is available now and continues through Wednesday, June 8, at 5 p.m. EDT (www.usga.org/champs/apply).
“The U.S. Senior Open is senior golf’s most prestigious championship, and we appreciate the support of state and regional golf associations that allows sectional qualifying to be conducted nationwide,” said Stuart Francis, USGA Championship Committee chairman. “The USGA is pleased to return to Scioto Country Club for the first time in 30 years, when it hosted its first Senior Open, and on the occasion of the club’s centennial.”
Founded in 1916, Scioto Country Club will also host Ohio’s sectional qualifier for this championship on Monday, June 27. This is the third time in U.S. Senior Open history that the championship course will also serve as a sectional site. Oak Hill Country Club, in Rochester, N.Y., and Scioto were the other courses that hosted both, in 1984 and 1986, respectively. Dale Douglass won the 1986 Senior Open at Scioto, by one stroke over Gary Player.
Sectional qualifying for the 37th U.S. Senior Open will be held on The Homestead’s Cascades Course, in Hot Springs, Va., for the 13th time since 2002. The club is the site of eight USGA championships, including the 1967 U.S. Women’s Open and 1988 U.S. Amateur. Sam Snead, a four-time U.S. Open runner-up, was The Homestead’s golf professional for nearly six decades.
Waverley Country Club, in Portland, Ore., is hosting Senior Open sectional qualifying for the fourth time since 2002. The club will host the 2017 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur, its seventh USGA championship. Waverley was the site of the 1970 U.S. Amateur, won by Lanny Wadkins, and the 1993 U.S. Junior Amateur, won by Tiger Woods.
Gold Mountain Golf Club’s Olympic Course, in Bremerton, Wash., and The Club at Carlton Woods’ Nicklaus Course, in The Woodlands, Texas, are among four other 2016 U.S. Senior Open sectional qualifying sites that have hosted USGA championships. Gold Mountain was the site of the 2006 U.S. Amateur Public Links and the 2011 U.S. Junior Amateur. The Club at Carlton Woods hosted the 2007 USGA Men’s and Women’s State Team championships and the 2014 U.S. Junior Amateur. Annandale Golf Club, in Pasadena, Calif., was the host site for the 1967 U.S. Women’s Amateur, while Indian Hills Country Club, in Mission Hills, Kan., hosted the 2001 U.S. Girls’ Junior.
For the fourth time in 13 years, Wynlakes Golf and Country Club, in Montgomery, Ala., is hosting U.S. Senior Open sectional qualifying. Diablo (Calif.) Country Club is a sectional site for the fourth time since 2000.
California has the most sectional sites with five. Three sectional qualifiers are scheduled in Florida, while Texas, Illinois and Pennsylvania will each host two qualifiers. There are qualifying sites in 25 states.
Don Pooley (2003) is the lone player to win the U.S. Senior Open after qualifying through sectional play. Last year, 24 players who advanced through sectional qualifying made the 36-hole cut in the Senior Open at Del Paso Country Club, in Sacramento, Calif. Grant Waite, who tied for third, was the top finisher from that group. It marked the fifth consecutive year that a sectional qualifier has posted a top-10 finish.
The 2016 U.S. Senior Open Championship will be the fifth contested in Ohio. To be eligible, a player must have a Handicap Index® not exceeding 3.4, or be a professional, and be 50 years of age at the start of championship play.
2016 U.S. Senior Open Sectional Qualifying Sites (34)
Tuesday, June 14 (1)
Great Oaks C.C., Rochester, Mich.
Monday, June 20 (7)
Wynlakes G. & C.C., Montgomery, Ala.
Arrowhead C.C., Glendale, Ariz.
Annandale G.C., Pasadena, Calif.
Vista Valley C.C., Vista, Calif.
Belleair C.C. (West Course), Belleair, Fla.
University of New Mexico Championship G.C., Albuquerque, N.M.
The Homestead (Cascades Course), Hot Springs, Va.
Tuesday, June 21 (3)
Colonial C.C., Thomasville, N.C.
Bent Tree C.C., Dallas, Texas
Gold Mountain G.C. (Olympic Course), Bremerton, Wash.
Wednesday, June 22 (2)
Northmoor C.C., Highland Park, Ill.
Applebrook G.C., Malvern, Pa.
Thursday, June 23 (1)
River Ridge G.C. (Victoria Lakes Course), Oxnard, Calif.
Monday, June 27 (5)
Golden Ocala Golf & Equestrian Club, Ocala, Fla.
White Columns C.C., Milton, Ga.
St. Clair C.C., Belleville, Ill.
Scioto C.C., Columbus, Ohio
Daniel Island Club, Charleston, S.C.
Tuesday, June 28 (1)
Dennis Pines G.C., East Dennis, Mass.
Wednesday, June 29 (2)
Indian Hills C.C., Mission Hills, Kan.
Upper Montclair C.C., Clifton, N.J.
Thursday, June 30 (3)
Willoughby G.C., Stuart, Fla.
Dellwood C.C., Dellwood, Minn.
North Hills C.C., Menomonee Falls, Wis.
Tuesday, July 5 (2)
Diablo C.C., Diablo, Calif.
Brickyard Crossing, Indianapolis, Ind.
Wednesday, July 6 (3)
Lake Valley G.C., Niwot, Colo.
Westmoreland C.C., Export, Pa.
The Club at Carlton Woods (Nicklaus Course), The Woodlands, Texas
Monday, July 11 (4)
Rancho Murieta C.C. (North Course), Rancho Murieta, Calif.
Leilehua G.C., Wahiawa, Hawaii
Waverley C.C., Portland, Ore.
Foxland Harbor G. & C.C., Gallatin, Tenn.
About the USGA
The USGA conducts the U.S. Open, U.S. Women’s Open and U.S. Senior Open, as well as 10 national amateur championships, two state team championships and international matches, attracting players and fans from more than 160 countries. Together with The R&A, the USGA governs the game worldwide, jointly administering the Rules of Golf, Rules of Amateur Status, equipment standards and World Amateur Golf Rankings. The USGA’s reach is global with a working jurisdiction in the United States, its territories and Mexico, serving more than 25 million golfers and actively engaging 150 golf associations.
The USGA is one of the world’s foremost authorities on research, development and support of sustainable golf course management practices. It serves as a primary steward for the game’s history and invests in the development of the game through the delivery of its services and its ongoing “For the Good of the Game” grants program. Additionally, the USGA’s Course Rating and Handicap systems are used on six continents in more than 50 countries.
For more information about the USGA, visit www.usga.org.
