The USGA’s announcement that Sand Valley Resort in Nekoosa, Wis., will host four USGA amateur competitions starting with the U.S. Mid-Amateur in 2026 is just another chapter for the Keiser family’s relationship with the Association. Bandon Dunes in southwest Oregon, a resort Mike Keiser created and now features five 18-hole layouts, has been the site of eight previous USGA amateur championships and will host 12 more between 2025 and 2042.
With three current 18-hole layouts and a fourth being constructed, Sand Valley is positioning itself as one of the great golf destinations in the U.S. The Lido, a private course that offers limited outside play to guests of the resort, opened last year as an homage to one of the country’s great lost venues. It is a near-replica of the course that legendary architect C.B. Macdonald designed in 1917 in Hempstead, N.Y., but closed in 1942. The Lido has been selected as the primary host venue for the 2026 U.S. Mid-Amateur and 2029 U.S. Junior Amateur.
Senior staff writer David Shefter chatted with Mark Hill, who oversees future site selection for the USGA, about Sand Valley and why it made sense to bring four future competitions to this relatively new central Wisconsin resort.
What made Sand Valley so appealing from a USGA perspective to bring four championships to the resort?
Hill: It starts with the golf courses. We knew about Sand Valley from a variety of sources, primarily the Keiser family through Bandon Dunes. Sand Valley, Mammoth Dunes and The Lido all offer the test that we want. We went last October – about 14 months ago – and then again this summer while we were [in the area] for the [U.S.] Senior Open at SentryWorld [in Stevens Point about 45 minutes from the resort]. On our first visit, we saw all the courses and stayed on property. It’s a great setting there. Once we started talking about the possibility of going there, it started to get some traction.
The pictures of The Lido look incredible and media reviews have been heavily positive as well. What excites you about the venue?
Hill: I’m not an architecture scholar, but I have seen a lot. But there are a lot of people who are, and those that are in that world, The Lido is like the Holy Grail of lost golf courses. [C.B.] Macdonald built it [in 1917] after he built National [Golf Links of America in Southampton, N.Y.]. He and [Seth Raynor]. Over its brief lifespan, which was bout 23, 24 years, it developed this mythical reputation of being the ultimate test, etc. It was on Long Island on the western end. Like a lot of clubs during the Depression, it was a little cash-strapped and the U.S. Navy ended up acquiring it. The project — and [architect Tom] Doak speaks to this — was basically a full-on restoration. It was literally as close as they possibly could to put the golf course back. It wasn’t Doak coming in and doing interpretive work. That, in of itself, makes it kind of a unique story. But all that aside, the golf course is outstanding. It features the template holes. The Redan Hole there is amazing. The Punch Bowl Hole is great as well.
How much did the USGA’s success at Bandon Dunes shape your thinking for Sand Valley?
Hill: Our perspective was shaped with our relationship with the Keisers. At Bandon, the golf courses are amazing, and we’ve had wonderful championships on the courses, but it’s also the culture, the environment and the vibe. It’s just thegenuine sense of warmth and welcome that is part of the Bandon experience, whether you are a customer or a player in our championships. We’re confident that will be the case at Sand Valley as well. It checks a lot of boxes.
Obviously the eight highly successful previous USGA championships at Bandon Dunes, starting with the 2006 Curtis Cup, and the 12 future events coming to the Oregon facility had to factor heavily in deciding to bring USGA events to a resort that is relatively new.
Hill: The golf courses stand on their own very well. The experiences of the championships at Bandon have all been phenomenal, both on and off the golf course. Namely, the Keisers have respect for amateur golf and have respect for us at the USGA and our championships. We’ve seen that. The golf course experience is part of that, but the big part is just the overall experience at Bandon. We definitely have a similar sense with Sand Valley.
While Sand Valley doesn’t have the backdrop of the Pacific Ocean, the resort and its remote location is quite similar to Bandon. The USGA must have felt comfortable enough with the infrastructure – nearby Wisconsin City has a number of hotels – to conduct a championship featuring 264 competitors.
Hill: That’s part of it. Particularly with a two-course championship like the Mid-Amateur or the Junior Amateur where you have 264 players in those fields, between what is available at the resort combined with accommodations in a couple of nearby cities, we are confident we can pull it together.
Currently, there are three 18-hole layouts – with a fourth on its way in 2024 – to choose from. You’ve already announced The Lido as the match-play venue for the 2026 Mid-Am and 2029 Junior Amateur. Have you decided on a stroke-play co-host for those two championships and a course for the U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur and U.S. Girls’ Junior for 2030 and 2034, respectively?
Hill: We’ve committed to The Lido for the match-play course for the Mid-Amateur and the Junior Amateur, and comfortable in doing so after making two trips and walking around The Lido. We think it will present a wonderful test in the match-play portion. For the stroke-play co-host, we’ll make that decision mutually and together just like we’ve done at Bandon. In the case of the Mid-Amateur, we’ll make that decision at least 18 months in advance, and for the Junior Amateur, at least a few years in advance. For the Women’s Mid and the Girls’ Junior, we’ll make that within a few years of the championship. That’s the same approach we took with the Bandon announcement.
Do you see The Lido as the ideal match-play course?
Hill: For match play, I think our set-up teams will have a lot of fun there.
What kind of reaction do you anticipate from the players to this announcement?
Hill: I would hope they would love it. For us to make the commitment that we have, we believe that they’ll be a great host and the golf courses will offer a great challenge. I think Sand Valley, and the resort itself, in a relatively short order has established itself with a very solid reputation. And then there is the whole golf in Wisconsin thing. Combine that with our track record at Erin Hills, bringing the U.S. Women’s Open there in 2025, and SentryWorld [for the 2019 U.S. Girls’ Junior and 2022 U.S. Senior Open]. A lot of good things are happening in Wisconsin.
David Shefter is a senior staff writer for the USGA. Email him at dshefter@usga.org.
