U.S. Senior Open
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Tournament information | |
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Established | 1980 |
Organized by | USGA |
Tour(s) | PGA Tour Champions European Senior Tour |
Format | Stroke play |
Prize fund | US$4,000,000 |
Month played | June/July |
Tournament record score | |
Aggregate | 261Steve Stricker(2019) |
To par | −20Fred Funk(2009) |
Current champion | |
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TheU.S. Senior Openis one of the fivemajor championshipsin senior golf, introduced 44 years ago in1980.[1]It is administered by theUnited States Golf Association(USGA) and is recognized as a major championship by both thePGA Tour Championsand theEuropean Senior Tour.The lower age limit was 55 in 1980, but it was lowered to 50 for the second edition in1981,[2]which is the standard limit for men's senior professional golf tournaments. By definition, the event is open to amateurs, but has been dominated byprofessionals;through 2022, all editions have been won by pros. Like other USGA championships, it has been played on many courses throughout the United States.
Bernhard Langerbecame the oldest U.S. Senior Open Champion in2023,winning at the age of 65 years 10 months.[3]
The total purse was the highest of any senior tour event until thePosco E&C Songdo ChampionshipinSouth Korea,a Champions Tour event in2010and2011with a$3 million purse, but had a lower winner's share ($450,000). The U.S. Senior Open is again the highest purse on thePGA Tour Champions;in 2016 it was $3.75 million, and championGene Sauersearned $675,000. The purse in 2017 is anticipated to be $4 million, yielding a winner's share of $720,000.
Like other senior majors, players must walk the course unless they receive a medical exemption to use a cart. Winners gain entry into the following year'sU.S. Open.
The playoff format was modified for 2018, reduced from three to two aggregate holes, followed bysudden death.[4]The three-hole aggregate playoff was used in 2002 and 2014; the final 18-hole playoff at the U.S. Senior Open was in 1991, won byJack Nicklaus.[5]
Eligibility[edit]
The following players are exempt from qualifying for theU.S. Senior Open,provided they are 50 years old as of the opening day of the tournament. Amateur categories require that the player is still an amateur on the opening day of the tournament, except for the one-time exemption for former champions of the U.S. Amateur or The Amateur Championship.[6]
- Any past winner of the U.S. Senior Open
- Winners of any of themajor championshipsin the last 10 years
- Winners of any of theU.S. Amateurin the last 10 years and runner-up in previous year
- Winners of theSenior PGA Championshipin the last 10 years
- Winner of theSenior Open Championshipin the last five years
- Top 15 finishers from the previous year's U.S. Senior Open
- Any amateur completing 72 holes in last U.S. Open
- Low amateur in last U.S. Senior Open
- Winner and runner-up of theU.S. Senior Amateurin the previous year
- Members of theWalker CupandEisenhower Trophyteams for the last two competitions
- Members of bothRyder CupandPresidents Cupteams for the last five competitions
- Top 30 from the previous year'sPGA Tour Championsmoney list, top 20 from current list
- Top 50 leaders from the PGA Tour Champions career money list
- Winners of PGA Tour Champions events in the previous three years
- Top six from previous year'sEuropean Senior Tourmoney list
- Top two from previous year'sJapan Seniors Tourmoney list
- Winners ofPGA Tourevents in the previous five years
- Winners of the U.S. Open in first ten years of age eligibility
- One-time exemption for any winner of a major championship, U.S. Amateur, orBritish Amateur.
- Winners of amateur championships who have since turned professional are able to use this exemption.
Special exemptions are given occasionally, and like other USGA events, many qualify through the local and sectional ranks.
Winners[edit]
Multiple winners[edit]
Seven men have multiple victories in the U.S. Senior Open:
3 wins
- Miller Barber(1982, 1984, 1985)
2 wins
- Gary Player(1987, 1988)
- Jack Nicklaus(1991, 1993)
- Hale Irwin(1998, 2000)
- Allen Doyle(2005, 2006)
- Kenny Perry(2013, 2017)
- Bernhard Langer(2010, 2023)
Successful defenders of the title were Barber (1985), Player (1988), and Doyle (2006).
Winners of both U.S. Open and U.S. Senior Open[edit]
The following men have won both theU.S. Openand theU.S. Senior Open,the majors run by the USGA:
Player | U.S. Open | U.S. Senior Open |
---|---|---|
Arnold Palmer | 1960 | 1981 |
Billy Casper | 1959,1966 | 1983 |
Gary Player | 1965 | 1987, 1988 |
Orville Moody | 1969 | 1989 |
Lee Trevino | 1968,1971 | 1990 |
Jack Nicklaus | 1962,1967,1972,1980 | 1991, 1993 |
Hale Irwin | 1974,1979,1990 | 1998, 2000 |
Jim Furyk | 2003 | 2021 |
Palmer (1954) and Nicklaus (1959, 1961) also won theU.S. Amateur,previously considered a major.
Future sites[edit]
Year | Edition | Venue | Location | Dates |
---|---|---|---|---|
2025 | 45th | Broadmoor Golf Club | Colorado Springs, Colorado | June 26–29 |
2026 | 46th | Scioto Country Club | Columbus, Ohio | TBD |
2027 | 47th | Oak Tree National | Edmond, Oklahoma | |
2028 | 48th | Crooked Stick Golf Club | Carmel, Indiana | |
2029 | 49th | Prairie Dunes Country Club | Hutchinson, Kansas | |
2030 | 50th | Spyglass Hill Golf Course | Pebble Beach, California | |
2032 | 52nd | Saucon Valley Country Club(Old Course) | Bethlehem, Pennsylvania | |
2038 | 58th | Plainfield Country Club | Edison, New Jersey | |
2042 | 62nd | Saucon Valley Country Club (Old Course) | Bethlehem, Pennsylvania |
Source:[9]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^"De Vicenzo cops Senior Open".Wilmington Morning Star.North Carolina. Associated Press. June 30, 1980. p. 7B.
- ^"Seniors tee it up in the US Senior Open".Nashua Telegraph.New Hampshire. Associated Press. July 8, 1981. p. 24.
- ^"65-year-old Bernhard Langer wins the US Senior Open to break the Champions' victory record".Washington Post.Associated Press. July 2, 2023.RetrievedJuly 2,2023.
- ^"U.S. Open abandons 18 holes for 2-hole playoff".ESPN.Associated Press. February 26, 2018.RetrievedJune 7,2018.
- ^"Nicklaus' 65 beats Rodriguez".Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.Associated Press. July 30, 1991. p. 23.
- ^"2014 U.S. Senior Open Entry Form"(PDF).USGA. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on August 8, 2014.RetrievedJuly 8,2014.
- ^Barrett, Scott (April 6, 2020)."U.S. Senior Open at Newport County Club canceled".The Newport Daily News.RetrievedApril 6,2020.
- ^Altstadter, Jeff (April 6, 2020)."2020 U.S. Senior Open, U.S. Senior Women's Open Canceled".USGA.
- ^DePasquale, Brian (September 26, 2023)."Scioto, Oak Tree, Crooked Stick to Host Future U.S. Senior Opens".USGA.RetrievedSeptember 28,2023.
External links[edit]
- U.S. Senior Openat USGA site (most of the information is in the archive section)
- Coverage on the PGA Tour Champions's official site