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TheUnited States Golf Association (USGA) today announced John’s Island Club, in Vero Beach, Fla., as the host site for the 2015 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship. This will be the first USGA championship held at John’s Island Club. The dates of the championship are Oct. 1-8.
“The USGA is pleased to bring the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship to the state of Florida for the first time,” said Thomas J. O’Toole Jr., USGA vice president and Championship Committee chairman. “Mid-amateur golfers are central to the USGA’s mission as evidenced by the recent announcement of the inclusion of at least two mid-amateur players on this year’s USA Walker Cup Team. In 2015, John’s Island Club will serve as an outstanding host for this national amateur championship.”
John’s Island Club, located 90 miles southeast of Orlando in Indian River County, will host the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship on its West and North Courses. The West Course, designed by Tom Fazio, opened for play in 1989. It will be the site for both stroke-play qualifying and match play. The North Course, a Pete Dye design which opened in 1973, will be the companion stroke-play course for the championship.
“Hosting the first USGA championship on Florida’s Treasure Coast is a great honor for both John’s Island Club and the City of Vero Beach,” said Ted Berghorst, the club’s president. “Set in the dunes, John’s Island’s West Course represents golf design at its finest as no successive holes play in the same direction. The members of John’s Island and the entire Vero Beach community look forward to a great championship.”
This will be the 19th USGA championship held in Florida, and the first since 2010, when Lake Nona Golf and Country Club, in Orlando, hosted the USGA Senior Amateur and Fiddlesticks Country Club, in Fort Myers, hosted the USGA Senior Women’s Amateur.
Nathan Smith became the first four-time U.S. Mid-Amateur champion when he won at Conway Farms Golf Club, in Lake Forest, Ill., last year. He surpassed Jay Sigel, who captured three Mid-Amateur titles in the 1980s.
The U.S. Mid-Amateur was first played in 1981. The championship is open to male amateurs age 25 and older with a USGA Handicap Index® not exceeding 3.4. In 2013, the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship will be played at the Country Club of Birmingham in Birmingham, Ala., from Oct. 1-8. The 2014 championship will be played Sept. 6-11 at Saucon Valley Country Club in Bethlehem, Pa.
About the USGA
The USGA conducts the U.S. Open, U.S. Women’s Open and U.S. Senior Open, as well as 10 national amateur championships, two state team championships and international matches. Together with The R&A, the USGA governs the game worldwide, jointly administering the Rules of Golf, Rules of Amateur Status, Equipment Standards and World Amateur Golf Rankings. The USGA’s working jurisdiction comprises the United States, its territories and Mexico.
The USGA is a global leader in the development and support of sustainable golf course management practices. It serves as a primary steward for the game’s history and funds an ongoing “For the Good of the Game” charitable giving program. Additionally, the USGA’s Course Rating and Handicap systems are used on six continents in more than 50 countries.
For more information about the USGA, visit www.usga.org.
