(Sand Creek Station, pictured above, was designed by Jeff Brauer, a rising star of a golf course architect from the great state of Texas.)
The 3rd U.S. Adaptive Open — a national championship that showcases the world’s best golfers with disabilities – begins tomorrow at Sand Creek Station in Newton, Kan., and will be contested until July 10.
The USGA received 278 entries for the 2024 U.S. Adaptive Open, and for the first time, 18-hole qualifiers were conducted by Allied Golf Associations (AGAs) at six sites across the country. The 96-player field includes competitors from 32 states and 11 countries. The championship’s youngest competitor is 15-year-old Ryder Barr of Celina, Texas, and Bruce Hooper, of San Antonio, Texas, is the championship’s oldest player at 78 years old. Of the 96 players in the field, 66 previously played in one or both of the past two iterations of the USGA’s newest championship. Thirty will be making their championship debut.
“We were inspired by the level of interest and support that we received from the golf community during the past two U.S. Adaptive Opens,” said John Bodenhamer, chief championships officer for the USGA. “We are thrilled to go to Sand Creek Station to celebrate and witness the passion of these athletes who have earned their opportunity to compete for a national championship.”
“It opened in 2006, but I had looked at the site years before. Between the city and Kemper and developers and everyone else involved we kept public golf affordable and now we are the prototype for building affordable public courses across the country,” said Jeff Brauer, the golf course architect who designed Sand Creek Station.
“It was a flat site, so its the one time in my career we decided to build template holes:Â there’s an Alps at 12, a Redan at 13, the Mae West hole at 15 [Author’s Note – that’s a “Maiden” feature in the lexicon- two large lumps on the green], and at 17 we tried to replicate the Road Hole.”
The low overall female scorer and low overall male scorer from each qualifying site earned a spot in the championship. The remaining qualifying spots were determined by Impairment Category and gender across all six qualifying sites using an adjusted Score Differential. In total, 64 players earned their place in the field through qualifying. Another 24 were fully exempt, and eight were added to the field as committee selections.
Ryanne Jackson, 26, of St. Petersburg, Fla., and Kipp Popert, 25, of England, both return to this year’s championship to defend their titles. Jackson, who was diagnosed with scapuloperoneal muscular dystrophy as a college freshman, held off defending champion Kim Moore to win the overall women’s division in 2023 at Pinehurst Resort & Country Club’s Course No. 6. Popert, who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at birth, posted a 54-hole total of 214 to win the overall men’s division by a stroke.
Max Togisala, 20, of South Odgen, Utah, was paralyzed in a ski accident in February 2022. While he was a golfer prior to his accident, he had to relearn the game from a seated position. Togisala shot a 2-under-par 70 in the second round of last year’s championship, which bettered by nine strokes the lowest round by a seated player in championship history. He won the seated player impairment category to earn his spot in this year’s U.S. Adaptive Open. 14 players earned their place in the field through winning their Impairment Category last year.
“Playing in last year’s U.S. Adaptive Open was an absolute thrill and I’m excited to be in this year’s field,” said Togisala. “I’m looking forward to making more memories with the most inspiring people in the world. My game is feeling sharp and I’m looking forward to competing again.”
The championship is open to both male and female professional and amateur golfers with a World Handicap Systemâ„¢ Handicap Index of 36.4 or less and an eligible impairment confirmed by a WR4GD Pass. The impairment categories are as follows:
- Upper Limb Impairment
- Intellectual Impairment
- Lower Limb Impairment
- Multiple Limb Amputee
- Neurological Impairment
- Seated Players
- Short Stature
- Vision Impairment
The championship will be contested over 54 holes of stroke play. Multiple sets of tees will be utilized. Carts are permitted for all players and caddies.
In other news, Chambers Bay, in University Place, Wash., has been selected by the USGA as the host site for the 2028 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship. This will be the seventh USGA championship awarded to the public golf course in its 17-year history. Chambers Bay is owned by Pierce County and managed by KemperSports. The dates of the event are May 20-24.
The club has previously hosted four USGA championships — the 2010 U.S. Amateur won by Peter Uihlein, the 2015 U.S. Open won by Jordan Spieth, the 2021 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball won by Florida teenagers Kiko Francisco Coelho and Leopoldo Herrera III and the 2022 U.S. Women’s Amateur won by Saki Baba. Chambers Bay will also host the 2027 U.S. Junior Amateur and the 2033 U.S. Amateur.
(Chambers Bay, pictured above, should host a second U.S. Open as soon as possible, in Your Author’s opinion.)
“There have been several memorable moments for us already in Chambers Bay’s short history, and the property remains a favorite for players and fans alike,” said Mark Hill, USGA managing director, championships. “We’re grateful for our continued partnership with Pierce County and look forward to bringing the Four-Ball back to such a special property.”
The Robert Trent Jones Jr. design, which opened in 2007, traverses a rugged landscape along Puget Sound. The 250-acre course, built on the site of a former sand-and-gravel mining operation, is the centerpiece of a 930-acre park owned by Pierce County.
The 2028 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball will be the 31st USGA championship held in the state of Washington. The Evergreen State most recently hosted the 2023 U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball at The Home Course in Dupont, which will also serve as the stroke play co-host during the Four-Ball in 2028 and will host the 2024 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur at Broadmoor Golf Club in Seattle later this summer.
“We are delighted to once again welcome the USGA back to Chambers Bay and Pierce County,” said Bruce Dammeier, Pierce County executive. “Our championship venue sits in a breath-taking setting that has earned a devoted following of golfers from around the world. We look forward to watching the best amateurs take it on.”
The U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship is open to teams (or sides) of amateurs, with each player’s Handicap Index® not exceeding 5.4. There are no age restrictions and partners are not required to be from the same club, state or country. The USGA accepted 2,638 entries (5,276 players) for the 2024 championship, the most entries since the championship began in 2015.
This year’s championship was held at the Philadelphia Cricket Club (Wissahickon Course) in Flourtown, Pa., from May 25-29 and won by Arizona residents Brian Blanchard, 31, and his 29-year-old partner Sam Engel. The 2025 championship will take place next May at Plainfield Country Club in Edison, N.J.
