For many U.S. Senior Open competitors, the quest for the Francis D. Ouimet Memorial Trophy will begin when they tee it up to earn a spot in the 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.
“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.”
The 2016 U.S. Senior Open Championship, to be played August 11-14, 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.
Don Pooley (2002) 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.
Founded in 1916, championship host site Scioto Country Club, in Columbus Ohio, will also host sectional qualifying 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.
| Date | Site | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Tuesday, June 14 | Great Oaks Country Club | Rochester, Mich. |
| Monday, June 20 | Wynlakes Golf & Country Club | Montgomery, Ala. |
| Monday, June 20 | Arrowhead Country Club | Glendale, Ariz. |
| Monday, June 20 | Annandale Golf Club | Pasadena, Calif. |
| Monday, June 20 | Vista Valley Country Club | Vista, Calif. |
| Monday, June 20 | Belleair Country Club (West Course) | Belleair, Fla. |
| Monday, June 20 | University of New Mexico Championship Golf Course | Albuquerque, N.M. |
| Monday, June 20 | The Homestead (Cascades Course) | Hot Springs, Va. |
| Tuesday, June 21 | Colonial Country Club | Thomasville, N.C. |
| Tuesday, June 21 | Bent Tree Country Club | Dallas, Texas |
| Tuesday, June 21 | Gold Mountain Golf Course (Olympic Course) | Bremerton, Wash. |
| Wednesday, June 22 | Northmoor Country Club | Highland, Ill. |
| Wednesday, June 22 | Applebrook Golf Club | Malvern, Pa. |
| Thursday, June 23 | River Ridge Golf Club (Victoria Lakes Course) | Oxnard, Calif. |
| Monday, June 27 | Golden Ocala Golf & Equestrian Club | Ocala, Fla. |
| Monday, June 27 | White Columns Country Club | Milton, Ga. |
| Monday, June 27 | St. Clair Country Club | Belleville, Ill. |
| Monday, June 27 | Scioto Country Club | Columbus, Ohio |
| Monday, June 27 | Daniel Island Club | Charleston, S.C. |
| Tuesday, June 28 | Dennis Pines Golf Course | East Dennis, Mass. |
| Wednesday, June 29 | Indian Hills Country Club | Mission Hills, Kan. |
| Wednesday, June 29 | Upper Montclair Country Club | Clifton, N.J. |
| Thursday, June 30 | Willoughby Golf Club | Stuart. Fla. |
| Thursday, June 30 | Dellwood Country Club | Dellwood, Minn. |
| Thursday, June 30 | North Hills Country Club | Menomonee Falls, Wis. |
| Tuesday, July 5 | Diablo Country Club | Diablo, Calif. |
| Tuesday, July 5 | Brickyard Crossing | Indianapolis, Ind. |
| Wednesday, July 6 | Lake Valley Golf Club | Niwot, Colo. |
| Wednesday, July 6 | Westmoreland Country Club | Export, Pa. |
| Wednesday, July 6 | The Club at Carlton Woods (Nicklaus Course) | The Woodlands, Texas |
| Monday, July 11 | Rancho Murieta Country Club (North Course) | Rancho Murieta, Calif. |
| Monday, July 11 |
Leilehua Golf Club | Wahiawa, Hawaii |
| Monday, July 11 |
Waverley Country Club | Porland, Ore. |
| Monday, July 11 |
Foxland Harbor Golf & Country Club | Gallatin, Tenn. |
