U.S. Amateur

U.S. Amateur

Jerry Pate with U.S. Amateur trophy, 1974
Tournament information
Location	San Francisco, California (2025)
Established	1895
Course	Olympic Club (2025)
Par	70 (2025)
Length	7,214 yd (6,596 m) (2025)
Organized by	USGA
Format	Stroke play and match play
Month played	August
Current champion
Mason Howell (2025)

The United States Amateur Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Amateur, is the leading annual golf tournament in the United States for amateur golfers. It is organized by the United States Golf Association and is currently held each August over a 7-day period.

In 1894, there were two tournaments called the "National Amateur Championship". One of them was played at Newport Country Club and was won by William G. Lawrence, and the other took place at Saint Andrew's Golf Club and was won by Laurence B. Stoddart. This state of affairs prompted Charles B. Macdonald of the Chicago Golf Club to call for the creation of a national governing body to authorize an official national championship, and the Amateur Golf Association of the United States, which was soon to be renamed the United States Golf Association, was formed on December 22 of that year. In 1895 it organized both the first U.S. Amateur Championship and the first U.S. Open, both of which were played at Newport Country Club.

There are no age or gender restrictions on entry, but players must have a handicap index of 0.4 or less. Originally, entry was restricted to members of USGA-affiliated private clubs (and, presumably, international players who were members of private clubs affiliated with their nations' golf governing bodies), a restriction that was not lifted until 1979.^[1] The tournament consists of two days of stroke play, with the leading 64 competitors then playing a knockout competition held at match play to decide the champion. All knockout matches are over 18 holes except for the final, which consists of 36 holes, separated into morning and afternoon 18-hole rounds. Nowadays it is usually won by players in their late teens or early twenties who are working towards a career as a tournament professional. Before World War II more top-level golfers chose to remain amateur, and the average age of U.S. Amateur champions was higher.

Many of the leading figures in the history of golf have been U.S. Amateur champions, including Bobby Jones five times, Jerome Travers four times, Jack Nicklaus twice and Tiger Woods three times (all consecutive; the only player to win three in a row). Woods' first win, as an 18-year-old in 1994, made him the youngest winner of the event, breaking the previous record of 19 years 5 months set by Robert Gardner in 1909. In 2008, New Zealander Danny Lee became the youngest ever winner, only to be eclipsed by 17-year-old An Byeong-hun the following year. Before the professional game became dominant, the event was regarded as one of the majors. This is no longer the case, but the champion still receives an automatic invitation to play in all of the majors except the PGA Championship. In addition, the runner-up also receives an invitation to play in the Masters and the U.S. Open. The golfers must maintain their amateur status at the time the events are held (unless they qualify for the tournaments by other means). The USGA added an exception starting with the 2019 U.S. Amateur Championship in that the tournament winner only may turn professional and keep his berth for the ensuing U.S. Open.

With the growth in professional golf through the latter half of the 20th century, the U.S. Amateur has become dominated by younger players destined to soon become professionals. In 1981 the USGA established a new championship called the U.S. Mid-Amateur for amateurs aged at least 25 years old in order to give players who had not joined the professional ranks, and those who had regained their amateur status, a chance to play against each other for a national title.

While most players at the U.S. Amateur advance through sectional qualifying, many players are exempt each year. Below are the exemptions:

1. Winners of the U.S. Amateur each of the last ten years.
2. Runner-up of the U.S. Amateur each of the last three years.
3. Semi-finalists of the U.S. Amateur each of the last two years.
4. Quarter-finalists of the U.S. Amateur the previous year.
5. Any amateur who qualified for the current year's U.S. Open.
6. Those amateurs returning 72 hole scores from the previous year's U.S. Open.
7. The amateur with the lowest score from the current year's U.S. Senior Open.
8. From the U.S. Mid-Amateur: winner each of the last two years and runner-up from the previous year.
9. From the U.S. Junior Amateur: winner each of the last two years and runner-up from the previous year.
10. From the U.S. Senior Amateur: winner each of the last two years and runner-up from the previous year.
11. Playing members of the two most recent Walker Cup teams.
12. Playing members of the two most recent U.S. Eisenhower Trophy teams.
13. Playing members of the current year's U.S. Men's Copa de las Américas team.
14. Winner of the current year's individual NCAA Division I Championship.
15. Winner of the British Amateur Championship each of the last five years.
16. Top hundred golfers in World Amateur Golf Ranking.
17. Winner of the current year Latin America Amateur Championship.^[2]

In all cases, the exemptions only apply if the player has not turned professional as of the tournament date.

Year	Winner	Score	Runner-up	Primary course	Stroke play co-host
2025	Mason Howell	7 & 6	Jackson Herrington	Olympic Club (Lake Course)	Olympic Club (Ocean Course)
2024	José Luis Ballester	2 up	Noah Kent	Hazeltine National Golf Club	Chaska Town Course
2023	Nick Dunlap	4 & 3	Neal Shipley	Cherry Hills Country Club	Colorado Golf Club
2022	Sam Bennett	1 up	Ben Carr	Ridgewood Country Club	Arcola Country Club
2021	James Piot	2 & 1	Austin Greaser	Oakmont Country Club	Longue Vue Club
2020	Tyler Strafaci	1 up	Ollie Osborne	Bandon Dunes Golf Resort (Bandon Dunes)	Bandon Dunes Golf Resort (Bandon Trails)
2019	Andy Ogletree	2 & 1	John Augenstein	Pinehurst Resort (No. 2)	Pinehurst Resort (No. 4)
2018	Viktor Hovland	6 & 5	Devon Bling	Pebble Beach Golf Links	Spyglass Hill Golf Course
2017	Doc Redman	37th hole	Doug Ghim	Riviera Country Club	Bel-Air Country Club
2016	Curtis Luck	6 & 4	Brad Dalke	Oakland Hills Country Club (South Course)	Oakland Hills Country Club (North Course)
2015	Bryson DeChambeau	7 & 6	Derek Bard	Olympia Fields Country Club (North Course)	Olympia Fields Country Club (South Course)
2014	Gunn Yang	2 & 1	Corey Conners	Atlanta Athletic Club (Highlands Course)	Atlanta Athletic Club (Riverside Course)
2013	Matt Fitzpatrick	4 & 3	Oliver Goss	The Country Club	Charles River Country Club
2012	Steven Fox	37th hole	Michael Weaver	Cherry Hills Country Club	CommonGround Golf Course
2011	Kelly Kraft	2 up	Patrick Cantlay	Erin Hills	Blue Mound Golf & Country Club
2010	Peter Uihlein	4 & 2	David Chung	Chambers Bay	The Home Course
2009	An Byeong-hun	7 & 5	Ben Martin	Southern Hills Country Club	Cedar Ridge Country Club
2008	Danny Lee	5 & 4	Drew Kittleson	Pinehurst Resort (No. 2)	Pinehurst Resort (No. 4)
2007	Colt Knost	2 & 1	Michael Thompson	Olympic Club (Lake Course)	Olympic Club (Ocean Course)
2006	Richie Ramsay	4 & 2	John Kelly	Hazeltine National Golf Club	Chaska Town Course
2005	Edoardo Molinari	4 & 3	Dillon Dougherty	Merion Golf Club	Philadelphia Country Club
2004	Ryan Moore	2 up	Luke List	Winged Foot Golf Club (West Course)	Winged Foot Golf Club (East Course)
2003	Nick Flanagan	37th hole	Casey Wittenberg	Oakmont Country Club	Pittsburgh Field Club
2002	Ricky Barnes	2 & 1	Hunter Mahan	Oakland Hills Country Club (South Course)	Oakland Hills Country Club (North Course)
2001	Bubba Dickerson	1 up	Robert Hamilton	East Lake Golf Club	Druid Hills Golf Club
2000	Jeff Quinney	39th hole	James Driscoll	Baltusrol Golf Club (Upper Course)	Baltusrol Golf Club (Lower Course)
1999	David Gossett	9 & 8	Kim Sung-yoon	Pebble Beach Golf Links	Spyglass Hill Golf Course
1998	Hank Kuehne	2 & 1	Tom McKnight	Oak Hill Country Club (East Course)	Oak Hill Country Club (West Course)
1997	Matt Kuchar	2 & 1	Joel Kribel	Cog Hill Golf & Country Club (No. 4)	Cog Hill Golf & Country Club (No. 2)
1996	Tiger Woods (3)	38th hole	Steve Scott	Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club (Witch Hollow Course)	Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club (Ghost Creek Course)
1995	Tiger Woods (2)	2 up	Buddy Marucci	Newport Country Club	Wanumetonomy Golf and Country Club
1994	Tiger Woods	2 up	Trip Kuehne	TPC at Sawgrass (Stadium Course)	TPC at Sawgrass (Valley Course)
1993	John Harris	5 & 3	Danny Ellis	Champions Golf Club (Cypress Creek Course)	Champions Golf Club (Jackrabbit Course)
1992	Justin Leonard	8 & 7	Tom Scherrer	Muirfield Village	The Country Club at Muirfield Village
1991	Mitch Voges	7 & 6	Manny Zerman	Honors Course	Cleveland Country Club
1990	Phil Mickelson	5 & 4	Manny Zerman	Cherry Hills Country Club	Meridian Golf Club
1989	Chris Patton	3 & 1	Danny Green	Merion Golf Club	Waynesborough Country Club
1988	Eric Meeks	7 & 6	Danny Yates	The Homestead (Cascades Course)	The Homestead (Lower Cascades Course)
1987	Billy Mayfair	4 & 3	Eric Rebmann	Jupiter Hills Club (Hills Course)	Jupiter Hills Club (Village Course)
1986	Buddy Alexander	5 & 3	Chris Kite	Shoal Creek Golf and Country Club	Country Club of Birmingham
1985	Sam Randolph	1 up	Peter Persons	Montclair Golf Club (fourth and second nines)	Montclair Golf Club (first and third nines)
1984	Scott Verplank	4 & 3	Sam Randolph	Oak Tree Golf Club	Oak Tree Country Club
1983	Jay Sigel (2)	8 & 7	Chris Perry	North Shore Country Club	Skokie Country Club
1982	Jay Sigel	8 & 7	David Tolley	The Country Club	Charles River Country Club
1981	Nathaniel Crosby	1 up	Brian Lindley	Olympic Club (Lake Course)	Olympic Club (Ocean Course)
1980	Hal Sutton	9 & 8	Bob Lewis	The Country Club of North Carolina	Pinehurst Resort (No. 2)
1979	Mark O'Meara	8 & 7	John Cook	Canterbury Golf Club	Shaker Heights Country Club
1978	John Cook	5 & 4	Scott Hoch	Plainfield Country Club	n/a
1977	John Fought	9 & 8	Doug Fischesser	Aronimink Golf Club
1976	Bill Sander	8 & 6	Cary Parker Moore Jr.	Bel-Air Country Club
1975	Fred Ridley	2 up	Keith Fergus	Country Club of Virginia
1974	Jerry Pate	2 & 1	John Grace	Ridgewood Country Club
1973	Craig Stadler	6 & 5	David Strawn	Inverness Club
1965–1972: Stroke play
1972	Vinny Giles	285	Mark Hayes, Ben Crenshaw	Charlotte Country Club	n/a
1971	Gary Cowan (2)	280	Eddie Pearce	Wilmington Country Club
1970	Lanny Wadkins	279	Tom Kite	Waverley Country Club
1969	Steve Melnyk	286	Vinny Giles	Oakmont Country Club
1968	Bruce Fleisher	284	Vinny Giles	Scioto Country Club
1967	Bob Dickson	285	Vinny Giles	Broadmoor Golf Club
1966	Gary Cowan	285	Deane Beman	Merion Golf Club
1965	Bob Murphy	291	Bob Dickson	Southern Hills Country Club
1895–1964: Match play
1964	William C. Campbell	1 up	Ed Tutwiler	Canterbury Golf Club	n/a
1963	Deane Beman (2)	2 & 1	R. H. Sikes	Wakonda Club
1962	Labron Harris Jr.	1 up	Downing Gray	Pinehurst Resort
1961	Jack Nicklaus (2)	8 & 6	Dudley Wysong	Pebble Beach Golf Links
1960	Deane Beman	6 & 4	Robert W. Gardner	St. Louis Country Club
1959	Jack Nicklaus	1 up	Charles Coe	Broadmoor Golf Club
1958	Charles Coe (2)	5 & 4	Tommy Aaron	Olympic Club
1957	Hillman Robbins	5 & 4	Bud Taylor	The Country Club
1956	Harvie Ward (2)	5 & 4	Chuck Kocsis	Knollwood Club
1955	Harvie Ward	9 & 8	Bill Hyndman	Country Club of Virginia
1954	Arnold Palmer	1 up	Robert Sweeny Jr.	Country Club of Detroit
1953	Gene Littler	1 up	Dale Morey	Oklahoma City Golf & Country Club
1952	Jack Westland	3 & 2	Al Mengert	Seattle Golf Club
1951	Billy Maxwell	4 & 3	Joe Gagliardi	Saucon Valley Country Club
1950	Sam Urzetta	39th hole	Frank Stranahan	Minneapolis Golf Club
1949	Charles Coe	11 & 10	Rufus King	Oak Hill Country Club
1948	Willie Turnesa (2)	2 & 1	Ray Billows	Memphis Country Club
1947	Skee Riegel	2 & 1	Johnny Dawson	Pebble Beach Golf Links
1946	Ted Bishop	37th hole	Smiley Quick	Baltusrol Golf Club
1942–1945: No championships due to World War II
1941	Bud Ward (2)	4 & 3	Pat Abbott	Omaha Field Club	n/a
1940	Dick Chapman	11 & 9	Duff McCullough	Winged Foot Golf Club
1939	Bud Ward	7 & 5	Ray Billows	North Shore Country Club
1938	Willie Turnesa	8 & 7	Pat Abbott	Oakmont Country Club
1937	Johnny Goodman	2 up	Ray Billows	Alderwood Country Club
1936	Johnny Fischer	37th hole	Jack McLean	Garden City Golf Club
1935	Lawson Little (2)	4 & 2	Walter Emery	The Country Club
1934	Lawson Little	8 & 7	David Goldman	The Country Club
1933	George Dunlap	6 & 5	Max Marston	Kenwood Country Club
1932	Ross Somerville	2 & 1	Johnny Goodman	Baltimore Country Club
1931	Francis Ouimet (2)	6 & 5	Jack Westland	Beverly Country Club
1930	Bobby Jones (5)	8 & 7	Eugene V. Homans	Merion Golf Club
1929	Jimmy Johnston	4 & 3	Oscar Willing	Pebble Beach Golf Links
1928	Bobby Jones (4)	10 & 9	Philip Perkins	Brae Burn Country Club
1927	Bobby Jones (3)	8 & 7	Chick Evans	Minikahda Club
1926	George Von Elm	2 & 1	Bobby Jones	Baltusrol Golf Club
1925	Bobby Jones (2)	8 & 7	Watts Gunn	Oakmont Country Club
1924	Bobby Jones	9 & 8	George Von Elm	Merion Golf Club
1923	Max Marston	38th hole	Jess Sweetser	Flossmoor Country Club
1922	Jess Sweetser	3 & 2	Chick Evans	The Country Club
1921	Jesse Guilford	7 & 6	Robert Gardner	St. Louis Country Club
1920	Chick Evans (2)	7 & 6	Francis Ouimet	Engineers Country Club
1919	Davidson Herron	5 & 4	Bobby Jones	Oakmont Country Club
1917–1918: No championships due to World War I
1916	Chick Evans	4 & 3	Robert Gardner	Merion Golf Club	n/a
1915	Robert Gardner (2)	5 & 4	John G. Anderson	Country Club of Detroit
1914	Francis Ouimet	6 & 5	Jerome Travers	Ekwanok Country Club
1913	Jerome Travers (4)	5 & 4	John G. Anderson	Garden City Golf Club
1912	Jerome Travers (3)	7 & 6	Chick Evans	Chicago Golf Club
1911	Harold Hilton	37th hole	Fred Herreshoff	The Apawamis Club
1910	William C. Fownes Jr.	4 & 3	Warren Wood	The Country Club
1909	Robert Gardner	4 & 3	Chandler Egan	Chicago Golf Club
1908	Jerome Travers (2)	8 & 7	Max H. Behr	Garden City Golf Club
1907	Jerome Travers	6 & 5	Archibald Graham	Euclid Club
1906	Eben Byers	2 up	George Lyon	Englewood Golf Club
1905	Chandler Egan (2)	6 & 5	Daniel Sawyer	Chicago Golf Club
1904	Chandler Egan	8 & 6	Fred Herreshoff	Baltusrol Golf Club
1903	Walter Travis (3)	5 & 4	Eben Byers	Nassau Country Club
1902	Louis N. James	4 & 2	Eben Byers	Glen View Club
1901	Walter Travis (2)	5 & 4	Walter Egan	Atlantic City Country Club
1900	Walter Travis	2 up	Findlay S. Douglas	Garden City Golf Club
1899	Herbert M. Harriman	3 & 2	Findlay S. Douglas	Onwentsia Club
1898	Findlay S. Douglas	5 & 3	Walter B. Smith	Morris County Golf Club
1897	H. J. Whigham (2)	8 & 6	W. Rossiter Betts	Chicago Golf Club
1896	H. J. Whigham	8 & 7	Joseph G. Thorp	Shinnecock Hills Golf Club
1895	Charles B. Macdonald	12 & 11	Charles Sands	Newport Country Club

Twelve players have won both the U.S. Amateur and U.S. Open Championships, through 2024:

• Jerome Travers: 1907, 1908, 1912, 1913 Amateurs; 1915 Open
• Francis Ouimet: 1914, 1931 Amateurs; 1913 Open
• Chick Evans:^ 1916, 1920 Amateurs; 1916 Open
• Bobby Jones:^ 1924, 1925, 1927, 1928, 1930 Amateurs; 1923, 1926, 1929, 1930 Opens
• Lawson Little: 1934, 1935 Amateurs; 1940 Open
• Johnny Goodman: 1937 Amateur; 1933 Open
• Gene Littler: 1953 Amateur; 1961 Open
• Arnold Palmer: 1954 Amateur; 1960 Open
• Jack Nicklaus: 1959, 1961 Amateurs; 1962, 1967, 1972, 1980 Opens
• Jerry Pate: 1974 Amateur; 1976 Open
• Tiger Woods: 1994, 1995, 1996 Amateurs; 2000, 2002, 2008 Opens
• Bryson DeChambeau: 2015 Amateur; 2020, 2024 Opens
• Matt Fitzpatrick: 2013 Amateur; 2022 Open

Thirteen players have won both the U.S. Amateur and British Amateurs, through 2024:

• Walter Travis: 1900, 1901, 1903 U.S.; 1904 British
• Harold Hilton:^ 1911 U.S.; 1900, 1901, 1911, 1913 British
• Jess Sweetser: 1922 U.S.; 1926 British
• Bobby Jones:^ 1924, 1925, 1927, 1928, 1930 U.S.; 1930 British
• Lawson Little:^ 1934, 1935 U.S.; 1934, 1935 British
• Willie Turnesa: 1938, 1948 U.S.; 1947 British
• Dick Chapman: 1940 U.S.; 1951 British
• Harvie Ward: 1955, 1956 U.S.; 1952 British
• Deane Beman: 1960, 1963 U.S.; 1959 British
• Bob Dickson:^ 1967 U.S.; 1967 British
• Steve Melnyk: 1969 U.S.; 1971 British
• Vinny Giles: 1972 U.S.; 1975 British
• Jay Sigel: 1982, 1983 U.S.; 1979 British

Two players have won both the U.S. Amateur and U.S. Junior Amateur through 2024:

• Tiger Woods: 1994, 1995, 1996 Amateurs; 1991, 1992, 1993 Junior Amateur
• Nick Dunlap: 2023 Amateur; 2021 Junior Amateur

Two players have won both the U.S. Amateur and U.S. Amateur Public Links in the same year:

• Ryan Moore: 2004
• Colt Knost: 2007

^ Won both in same year. Bobby Jones won the Grand Slam in 1930, winning the U.S. Amateur, U.S. Open, British Amateur, and British Open.

• Six
  • Merion Golf Club (1916, 1924, 1930, 1966, 1989, 2005)
  • The Country Club (1910, 1922, 1934, 1957, 1982, 2013)
  • Oakmont Country Club (1919, 1925, 1938, 1969, 2003, 2021)
• Five
  • Pebble Beach Golf Links (1929, 1947, 1961, 1999, 2018)
• Four
  • Chicago Golf Club (1897, 1905, 1909, 1912)
  • Garden City Golf Club (1900, 1908, 1913, 1936)
  • Baltusrol Golf Club (1904, 1926, 1946, 2000)
  • Olympic Club (1958, 1981, 2007, 2025)

Source^[3]

The U.S. Amateur results lead to exemptions into other tournaments. Except for the U.S. Open exemption for the winner, the exemption holds only if the golfer retains their amateur status. All the exemptions listed below pertain to only the winner of the U.S. Amateur, unless otherwise stated.

Here are the major exemptions:

• The next 10 years of the U.S. Amateur
• The next 3 years of the U.S. Amateur (runner-up)
• The next 2 years of the U.S. Amateur (semi-finalists)
• The following year's U.S. Amateur (quarter-finalists)
• The following year's U.S. Open (winner and runner-up) (winner is permitted to turn professional before the tournament)
• The following year's Masters Tournament (winner and runner-up)
• The following year's Open Championship^[4]
• The next 10 years of the Amateur Championship^[5]

Here are the other exemptions:

• The following year's Monroe Invitational (top 8 + top 20 stroke portion)^[6]
• The following year's Northeast Amateur (top 8)^[7]

• Official site - most of the information is in the archive sections