U.S. Mid-Amateur Golf Championship
The U.S. Mid-Amateur, often called the Mid-Am for short, is the leading annual golf tournament in the United States for post-college amateur golfers, organized by the USGA.
It was first played in 1981 at Bellerive Country Club in Creve Coeur, Missouri, near St. Louis. The Mid-Am was the first new USGA championship in 19 years, since the U.S. Senior Women's Amateur was added in 1962.
Qualifications for the Mid-Am are similar to those for the U.S. Amateur, except for the following:
- Competitors must be at least 25 years old as of the opening day of the main tournament.
- Competitors must have a USGA handicap index of 3.4 or lower, as opposed to 2.4 or lower for the U.S. Amateur.
The U.S. Mid-Amateur does not have a gender restriction, but there has never been a female champion. The USGA's analogous event for women only is the U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur, first played in 1987.
The USGA specifically intended the Mid-Am as a championship for post-college golfers who were not pursuing golf as a career, as virtually all golfers who pursue a professional career decide to do so no later than their early twenties. This was most likely a response to the fact that less than half of all U.S. Amateur qualifiers are 25 or older, and most older golfers found themselves disadvantaged in competing against college golfers who typically play much more often.
Like the U.S. Amateur, the Mid-Am 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. The profile of Mid-Am champions, with respect to age, is somewhat similar to that of U.S. Amateur champions before World War II. In that era, more top-level golfers chose to remain amateur, and the average age of U.S. Amateur Champions was higher.
While the list of winners is considerably less illustrious than that of the U.S. Amateur, one notable winner was Jay Sigel, a three-time winner of this event and a two-time U.S. Amateur champion who went on to play the Champions Tour. The winner receives an automatic invitation to play in the Masters Tournament.
Winners
| Year | Venue | Winner | Country | Score | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Stonewall Links | Stewart Hagestad |  United States | 37 holes | Scott Harvey |
| 2015 | John's Island Club | Sammy Schmitz | United States | 3 & 2 | Marc Dull |
| 2014 | Saucon Valley Country Club | Scott Harvey | United States | 6 & 5 | Brad Nurski |
| 2013 | Country Club of Birmingham | Mike McCoy | United States | 8 & 6 | Bill Williamson |
| 2012 | Conway Farms Golf Club | Nathan Smith (4) | United States | 1 up |  Garrett Rank |
| 2011 | Shadow Hawk Golf Club | Randal Lewis | United States | 3 & 2 | Kenny Cook |
| 2010 | Atlantic Golf Club | Nathan Smith (3) | United States | 7 & 5 | Tim Hogarth |
| 2009 | The Kiawah Island Club | Nathan Smith (2) | United States | 7 & 6 | Tim Spitz |
| 2008 | Milwaukee Country Club | Steve Wilson |  South Africa | 5 & 4 | Todd Mitchell |
| 2007 | Bandon Dunes Golf Resort | Trip Kuehne | United States | 9 & 7 | Dan Whitaker |
| 2006 | Forest Highlands Golf Club | Dave Womack | United States | 1 up | Ryan Hybl |
| 2005 | The Honors Course | Kevin Marsh | United States | 10 & 9 | Carlton Forrester |
| 2004 | Sea Island Golf Club | Austin Eaton III | United States | 1 up | Josh Dennis |
| 2003 | Wilmington Country Club | Nathan Smith | United States | 9 holes* | Bryan Norton |
| 2002 | The Stanwich Club | George Zahringer | United States | 3 & 2 | Jerry Courville, Jr. |
| 2001 | San Joaquin Country Club | Tim Jackson (2) | United States | 1 up | George Zahringer |
| 2000 | The Homestead | Greg Puga | United States | 3 & 1 | Wayne Raath |
| 1999 | Old Warson Country Club | Danny Green | United States | 2 & 1 | Jerry Courville, Jr. |
| 1998 | NCR Country Club | John "Spider" Miller (2) | United States | 1 up | Chip Halcombe |
| 1997 | Dallas Athletic Club | Ken Bakst | United States | 1 up | Rick Stimmel |
| 1996 | Hartford Golf Club | John "Spider" Miller | United States | 3 & 2 | Randal Lewis |
| 1995 | Caves Valley Golf Club | Jerry Courville, Jr. | United States | 1 up | Warren Sye |
| 1994 | Hazeltine National Golf Club | Tim Jackson | United States | 1 up | Tommy Brennan |
| 1993 | Eugene Country Club | Jeff Thomas | United States | 1 up | Joey Ferrari |
| 1992 | Detroit Golf Club | Danny Yates | United States | 1 up | David Lind |
| 1991 | Long Cove Club | Jim Stuart (2) | United States | 1 up | Bert Atkinson |
| 1990 | Troon Golf & Country Club | Jim Stuart | United States | 1 up | Mark Sollenberger |
| 1989 | Crooked Stick Golf Club | James Taylor | United States | 4 & 3 | Bill Hadden |
| 1988 | Prairie Dunes Country Club | David Eger | United States | 2 & 1 | Scott Mayne |
| 1987 | Brook Hollow Golf Club | Jay Sigel (3) | United States | 20 holes | David Lind |
| 1986 | Annandale Golf Club | Bill Loeffler | United States | 4 & 3 | Charles Pinkard |
| 1985 | The Vintage Club | Jay Sigel (2) | United States | 3 & 2 | O. Gordon Brewer, Jr. |
| 1984 | Atlanta Athletic Club | Michael Podolak | United States | 5 & 4 | Bob Lewis, Jr. |
| 1983 | Cherry Hills Country Club | Jay Sigel | United States | 1 up | Randy Sonnier |
| 1982 | Knollwood Club | William Hoffer | United States | 3 & 2 | Jeffrey Ellis |
| 1981 | Bellerive Country Club | Jim Holtgrieve | United States | 2 up | Bob Lewis, Jr. |
* Match was conceded due to injury
Multiple winners
- 4 wins: Nathan Smith
- 3 wins: Jay Sigel
- 2 wins: Tim Jackson, John "Spider" Miller, Jim Stuart
External links
- Official site (most information is in the archive sections)