Aug. 27-Sept. 1, 2022, The Kittansett Club, Marion, Mass.
PAR AND YARDAGE The Kittansett Club will be set up at 6,632 yards and will play to a par of 35-36–71. The yardage for each round of the championship will vary due to course setup and conditions.
THE KITTANSETT CLUB HOLE BY HOLE
| Hole | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Total |
| Par | 4 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 35 |
| Yards | 422 | 398 | 150 | 360 | 405 | 421 | 540 | 200 | 408 | 3,304 |
| Hole | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Total |
| Par | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 36 |
| Yards | 340 | 220 | 390 | 385 | 175 | 543 | 410 | 375 | 490 | 3,328 |
ABOUT THE KITTANSETT CLUB
The Kittansett Club was designed by Frederic C. Hood and William Flynn and opened for play in 1923. Appropriately named from two Native American words meaning “near the sea,” the Kittansett Club is situated in the town of Marion at the end of Butler Point, which extends into Buzzards Bay.
Kittansett hosted the Walker Cup Match in 1953, when the United States defeated Great Britain & Ireland, 9 to 3, and has hosted several Massachusetts Golf Association championships over the years, including the Massachusetts Amateur Championship in 1958, 1978, 1990, 1999, 2008 and 2020 and the WGAM Edith Noblit Baker Trophy in 1954, 1979, 1989, 1995, 2005 and 2015.
Since the 1990s, the course has gone through a series of redesigns by Gil Hanse. After original drawings from Flynn were discovered, Hanse refined his project in 2003, 2014 and again in 2019. Hundreds of trees were eliminated to reveal the original contouring of the course, and nearly all greens and bunkers have been restored to their original design.
WHO CAN ENTER
The championship is open to any amateur golfer who is 55 years old by Aug. 27 with a Handicap Index® not exceeding 7.4. ENTRIESThe USGA accepted 2,865 entries for the 2022 U.S. Senior Amateur, the highest total in the championship’s history by 300 entries. The 2022 total surpassed the previous record of 2,565 in 2021. QUALIFYING Qualifying, conducted over 18 holes, was held between July 12-Aug. 9 at 51 sites nationwide. Click here for a complete list of qualifying results.
CHAMPIONSHIP FIELD
A starting field of 156 players will compete in the U.S. Senior Amateur. Click here for a list of the current field. Practice rounds will be held Aug. 25-26. The championship begins with 18-hole stroke-play rounds on Aug. 27-28. The field will then be cut to the low 64 scorers for match play. Six rounds of match play will determine the champion. The 18-hole championship match will be held on Sept. 1.
SCHEDULE OF PLAY
Saturday, Aug. 27: Round 1, stroke play, 18 holes
Sunday, Aug. 28: Round 2, stroke play, 18 holes
Monday, Aug. 29: Round of 64, match play
Tuesday, Aug. 30: Round of 32 and Round of 16, match play
Wednesday, Aug. 31: Quarterfinals and semifinals, match play
Thursday, Sept. 1: Championship match, 18 holes
ADMISSION
Admission is free. Tickets are not needed for the U.S. Senior Amateur, and spectators are encouraged to attend.
2021 CHAMPION
Gene Elliott, of West Des Moines, Iowa, claimed his first USGA title by rallying to defeat Jerry Gunthorpe, of Ovid, Mich., 1 up, in the championship match at the Country Club of Detroit. Elliott, one of the world’s top senior amateur golfers, captured the U.S. Senior Amateur in his 36th USGA start. To read more, click here.
WHAT THE WINNER RECEIVES
A gold medal and custody of the Frederick L. Dold Trophy for one year
►Exemption from local qualifying for the 2023 U.S. Open Championship
►Exemption from qualifying for the 2023 U.S. Senior Open Championship (if still an amateur)
►Exemption from qualifying for the 2023 and 2024 U.S. Amateur Championships
►Exemption from qualifying for the 2022 and 2023 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championships
►Exemption from qualifying for the next 10 U.S. Senior Amateur Championships
CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY
This is the 67th U.S. Senior Amateur Championship. The Senior Amateur, for amateur golfers of at least 55 years of age, was inaugurated in 1955. The addition of the U.S. Senior Amateur gave the USGA twice as many championships as it had conducted before World War II, when there were just four: the U.S. Amateur, U.S. Open, and U.S. Women’s Amateur, all started in 1895, and U.S. Amateur Public Links (1922). From World War II through 1955, the USGA added four championships: the U.S. Junior Amateur (1948), U.S. Girls’ Junior (1949), U.S. Women’s Open (1953) and U.S. Senior Amateur (1955). The USGA now conducts 15 national championships, 10 of which are exclusively for amateurs. The first U.S. Senior Amateur, at Belle Meade Country Club, in Nashville, Tenn., received 370 entries from 30 states and the District of Columbia. J. Wood Platt, 56, an eight-time Philadelphia Amateur champion, defeated George Studinger, of San Francisco, Calif., 5 and 4, in the final. In 1959, J. Clark Espie, who had won in 1957, became the U.S. Senior Amateur’s first two-time champion. Lewis W. Oehmig, a record six-time finalist, is the only three-time champion (1972, 1976, 1985). Oehmig is also credited as the oldest U.S. Senior Amateur champion, winning the title in 1985 at age 69. A total of 14 players have won the championship multiple times, most recently Paul Simson (2010, 2012). Three players have won the championship in consecutive years, including William C. Campbell in 1979 and 1980. In 2020, the U.S. Senior Amateur was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
CHAMPIONSHIP TROPHY
The U.S. Senior Amateur Championship trophy was donated in 1955 by Frederick L. Dold, of Wichita, Kan., who had retired from the USGA Executive Committee after five years of service. The art-deco trophy, produced by Rogers Brothers, features a gold-plated stem with blue enamel and a distinctive hand-hammered bowl. The trophy serves as an iconic representation of the championship and a fitting tribute to its champions.
USGA CHAMPIONSHIPS AT THE KITTANSETT CLUB
This is the second USGA championship to be conducted at The Kittansett Club. In the 1953 Walker Cup Match, eight past/present/future USGA champions competed, including future U.S. Open winners Gene Littler (1961) and Ken Venturi (1964) as well as future USGA president William C. Campbell, who would win the 1964 U.S. Amateur and a pair of U.S. Senior Amateur titles. Campbell is the last player to successfully defend his Senior Amateur crown (1979-80).
USGA CHAMPIONSHIPS IN MASSACHUSETTS
This will be the 60th USGA championship played in Massachusetts and the fourth U.S. Senior Amateur contested in the state. In June, the Bay State hosted the 122nd U.S. Open Championship at The Country Club in Brookline, won by Matt Fitzpatrick.
Recent USGA Championships in Massachusetts (Since 2000)
2022 U.S. Open, The Country Club, Brookline (Matt Fitzpatrick)2021 U.S. Mid-Amateur, Sankaty Head Golf Club, Siasconset (Stewart Hagestad)2017 U.S. Senior Open, Salem Country Club, Peabody (Kenny Perry)2016 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur, Wellesley Country Club (Ellen Port)2013 U.S. Amateur, The Country Club, Brookline (Matt Fitzpatrick)2010 Curtis Cup Match, Essex County Club, Manchester-by-the Sea (USA)2009 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links, Red Tail Golf Club, Devens (Jennifer Song)2005 U.S. Junior Amateur, Longmeadow Country Club (Kevin Tway)2004 U.S. Women’s Open, The Orchards Golf Club, South Hadley (Meg Mallon)2003 USGA Men’s State Team, Charles River Country Club, Newton Centre (Tennessee)2003 USGA Women’s State Team, Wellesley Country Club (Ohio)2001 U.S. Senior Open, Salem Country Club, Peabody (Bruce Fleisher)
U.S. SENIOR AMATEURS IN MASSACHUSETTS
1960: Oyster Harbors Club, Osterville (Michael Cestone)
1977: Salem Country Club, Peabody (Dale Morey)
1996: Taconic Golf Club, Williamstown (O. Gordon Brewer)
OTHER CHAMPIONSHIPS AT THE KITTANSETT CLUB
1958 Massachusetts Amateur (William G. Harding)
1978 Massachusetts Amateur (Dave Brilliant)
1990 Massachusetts Amateur (Ray Wright)
1999 Massachusetts Amateur (Jim Salinetti)
2008 Massachusetts Amateur (John Hadges)
2020 Massachusetts Amateur (Matthew Organisak)
FUTURE U.S. SENIOR AMATEURS
Aug. 26-31, 2023: Martis Camp Club, Truckee, Calif.Aug. 24-29, 2024: The Honors Course, Ooltewah, Tenn.Aug. 23-28, 2025: Biltmore Forest Country Club, Asheville, Tenn.
