USGA Announces Sites for U.S. Amateur Championships

The United States Golf Association (USGA) announced Pinehurst Resort & Country Club in the Village of Pinehurst, N.C., and Bandon Dunes Golf Resort, in Bandon, Ore., as the host sites for the 2019 and 2020 U.S. Amateur Championships, respectively. The oldest golf championship in the United States, the U.S. Amateur will celebrate its 120th playing at Bandon Dunes.

“The USGA is thrilled to continue the strong and cherished tradition of the U.S. Amateur Championship at both Pinehurst and Bandon Dunes, two proven partners in supporting and advancing amateur competition,” said Diana Murphy, USGA vice president and Championship Committee chairman. “We are confident these renowned courses will once again provide a worthy test and an enjoyable experience for all when they host the world’s top amateur players in 2019 and 2020.”

Scheduled for Aug. 12-18, the 2019 U.S. Amateur will be the 10th USGA championship and third U.S.

Amateur Championship hosted by Pinehurst, including the 1962 and 2008 U.S. Amateurs, won by Labron E. Harris Jr. and Danny Lee, respectively. Both championships were played on Course No. 2, a Donald Ross design that opened in 1907 and was restored by Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw in 2010. Additional USGA championships hosted on Pinehurst No. 2 include the 1989 U.S. Women’s Amateur, won by Vicki Goetze-Ackerman; the 1994 U.S. Senior Open, won by Simon Hobday; the 1999 U.S. Open, won by Payne Stewart; the 2005 U.S. Open, won by Michael Campbell; and the unprecedented back-to-back 2014 U.S. Open and U.S. Women’s Open Championships, won by Martin Kaymer and Michelle Wie. Pinehurst No. 2 will also host the 2017 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball, May 29-31, with Course No. 4 serving as the companion course.

“We are pleased to welcome the USGA’s oldest championship to Pinehurst once again in 2019,” said Robert Dedman Jr., Pinehurst Resort and Country Club CEO and Owner. “As long as there has been golf at Pinehurst, we have celebrated the amateur’s contribution to the game. To serve as the site of the U.S. Amateur will be an especially proud moment for Pinehurst, and it reflects the passion for amateur golf we share with the USGA.”

The 2020 U.S. Amateur, to be held Aug. 10-16, will mark the sixth USGA championship held at Bandon Dunes since 2006,including this week’s inaugural U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship, which will crown its first champions on Aug. 13 following the final round of match play on the Pacific Dunes course. This will be the first U.S. Amateur held at Bandon Dunes, which is home to four courses, all of which have previously hosted USGA championships.

The Bandon Dunes course, the first of four 18-hole courses at the resort, opened in 1999 and was designed by David McLay Kidd. It hosted the 2007 U.S. Mid-Amateur, won by Trip Kuehne. Pacific Dunes, designed by Tom Doak and opened in 2001, hosted the 2006 Curtis Cup Match, in which the USA defeated Great Britain and Ireland, 11½-6½, as well as this year’s U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball.

Bandon Trails, designed by Coore and Crenshaw and opened in 2005, and Old Macdonald, opened in 2010 and designed by Doak and Jim Urbina, were the host courses for both the 2011 U.S. Amateur Public Links, won by Corbin Mills, and 2011 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links, won by Brianna Do.

The courses to be used for the 2020 U.S. Amateur will be announced at a later date.

“We are honored and delighted to host the 2020 U.S. Amateur Championship at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort and look forward to adding to the storied history of this special championship,” said Mike Keiser, owner and founder of Bandon Dunes. “Amateur golf, both competitive and recreational, has been at the heart of Bandon Dunes since its inception, particularly the Old Macdonald course, which was constructed as homage to Charles Blair Macdonald who fittingly won the very first U.S. Amateur Championship at Newport Golf Club in 1895.”

The U.S. Amateur Championship is open to amateur golfers with a Handicap Index® not exceeding 2.4.

Throughout its history, the U.S. Amateur has been the most coveted of all amateur titles, with notable champions such as five-time champion Bob Jones, three-time champion Tiger Woods, two-time winner Jack Nicklaus, Gene Littler, Arnold Palmer, Lanny Wadkins, Craig Stadler, Jerry Pate, Mark O’Meara, Hal Sutton and Phil Mickelson.

Upcoming U.S. Amateur Championships will be contested as folows:

• Aug. 17-23, 2015 at Olympia Fields Country Club, in Olympia Fields, Ill.;
• Aug. 15-21, 2016 at Oakland Hills Country Club, in Bloomfield Hills, Mich.;
• Aug. 14-20, 2017 at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif.;
• Aug. 13-19, 2018 at Pebble Beach Golf Links in Pebble Beach, Calif.

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 usga.org