The United States Golf Association (USGA) today announced Stonewall Links, in Elverson, Pa., as the host site for the 2016 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship. This will be the first USGA championship held at Stonewall Links. The dates of the championship are Sept. 10-15.
“The USGA is pleased to bring the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship to Stonewall Links for the first time,” said Thomas J. O’Toole Jr., USGA vice president and Championship Committee chairman. “Stonewall’s two courses complement each other and will provide an exciting and competitive setting for stroke play and match play. Mid-amateur golfers are central to the USGA’s mission and Stonewall Links will be a fine host for both the players and championship.”
Stonewall Links is located in Chester County, 50 miles northwest of Philadelphia, and will host the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship on its Tom Doak-designed Old and North Courses. The Old Course’s design challenges players from tee to green and emphasizes accuracy and distance, while the North Course features more difficult green complexes and requires a more exacting short game.
The Old Course opened for play in 1993. It will be used for both stroke-play qualifying and the match play portion of the championship. The course has hosted the 2003 Pennsylvania Open, the 1996 Philadelphia Open and two Philadelphia Amateurs. The North Course, which opened in 2003, will be the companion stroke-play course for the U.S. Mid-Amateur.
“The members and staff of Stonewall Links are pleased to host the 2016 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship,” said Frank Foster, who serves as both championship chairman and club vice president. “Stonewall has two championship courses which are ready to test the players. The championship committee has already begun preparations for what promises to be an exciting event. We look forward to welcoming all the participants, officials and spectators.”
The U.S. Mid-Amateur will be the 85th USGA championship held in Pennsylvania. In 2016, the state will host three USGA championships, including the U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club and the U.S. Women’s Amateur at Rolling Green Golf Club, in Springfield.
The U.S. Mid-Amateur was first played in 1981. The championship is open to male amateurs age 25 and older with a USGA Handicap Index® not exceeding 3.4. In 2013, the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship will be played at the Country Club of Birmingham (Ala.) from Oct. 5-10. The 2014 championship will be played Sept. 6-11 at Saucon Valley Country Club in Bethlehem, Pa. John’s Island Club, in Vero Beach, Fla., is the host site for the 2015 championship, scheduled for Oct. 3-8.
Nathan Smith, of Pittsburgh, became the first four-time U.S. Mid-Amateur champion when he won at Conway Farms Golf Club, in Lake Forest, Ill., last year. He surpassed Jay Sigel, a southeastern Pennsylvania native who captured three Mid-Amateur titles in the 1980s.
The 2016 U.S. Mid-Amateur will be the first USGA championship for Stonewall Links in Elverson, Pa. (Courtesy Stonewall Links)
By USGA
June 25, 2013
http://www.usga.org/news/2013/June/2016-U-S--Mid-Amateur-To-Stonewall-Links/