USGA Cancels 2020 U.S. Girls’ Junior and U.S. Junior Amateur Championships

Entries for six remaining amateur championships delayed

(LIBERTY CORNER, N.J.) – The USGA announced that due to the continued uncertainty surrounding the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic, several additional changes have been made to the 2020 championship season schedule:

U.S. Girls’ Junior and U.S. Junior Amateur Championships
The 72nd U.S. Girls’ Junior, which was scheduled for July 13-18 on the Blue Course at the U.S. Air Force Academy’s Eisenhower Golf Club in Colorado Springs, Colo., and the 73rd U.S. Junior Amateur, which was scheduled to be played July 20-25 at Hazeltine National Golf Club and Chaska Town Course, both in Chaska, Minn., have been canceled and will not be rescheduled.

“Our primary focus when making determinations around championships continues to be the safety and well-being of everyone involved,” said John Bodenhamer, senior managing director of Championships for the USGA. “While we are incredibly disappointed to have to make the decision to cancel our two junior championships, we know it is the right one.”

Current and proposed federal, state and local guidelines regarding gatherings would make effectively conducting qualifying for both championships next to impossible for Allied Golf Associations, which were scheduled to hold 100 qualifiers in 41 states between late May and early July.

“Given that juniors in most parts of the country are not physically attending school at this time, we did not feel comfortable asking them to compete in qualifying events,” said Bodenhamer. “We considered postponement but knowing that school will restart in many places around the country in August, we did not believe it was a viable option.”

Remaining 2020 USGA Amateur Championships
In addition to the cancellation of the junior championships, the USGA has made the decision to delay opening entries for six additional amateur championships until the week of May 18: the U.S. Women’s Amateur (scheduled for Aug. 3-9 at Woodmont Country Club in Rockville, Md.); U.S. Amateur (Aug. 10-16 at Bandon (Ore.) Dunes Golf Resort); U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur (Aug. 28-Sept. 3 at Berkeley Hall Club in Bluffton, S.C.); U.S. Senior Amateur (Aug. 28-Sept. 3 at Country Club of Detroit in Grosse Pointe Farms, Mich.); U.S. Mid-Amateur (Sept. 12-17 at Kinloch Golf Club in Manakin-Sabot, Va., and Independence Golf Club in Midlothian, Va.); and U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur (Sept. 12-17 at The Lakewood Club in Point Clear, Ala.).

The USGA will continue to rely on CDC and WHO recommendations, as well as state and local government guidelines in locations where championships and qualifiers are to be conducted, in determining schedule considerations for the remaining six 2020 amateur championships.

In addition to the U.S. Girls’ Junior and U.S. Junior Amateur Championships, the USGA previously canceled four 2020 championships: the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball and U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball on March 17, and the U.S. Senior Open and U.S. Senior Women’s Open on April 6.

In early April, the USGA also announced the postponement of the 75th U.S. Women’s Open to Dec. 10-13 at Champions Golf Club in Houston, Texas, and the postponement of the 120th U.S. Open Championship to Sept. 17-20 at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, N.Y.

2021 U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball and U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championships
The USGA has also delayed opening entries for the 2021 U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball and the 2021 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championships until the week of July 6. The 2021 U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball Championship will be contested April 24-28 at Maridoe Golf Club in Carrollton, Texas. The 2021 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball will be played May 22-26 at Chambers Bay in University Place, Wash., and The Home Course in DuPont, Wash.