USGA announces Erin Hills will host 5 more national championships in next 15 years, including both men's and women's U.S. Amateurs

Below are excerpts from an article that originally appeared in Wisconsin.Golf.

Wisconsin’s reputation as a hotbed for United States Golf Association championships continues to grow.

The USGA announced Tuesday that it will bring five of its national championships to Erin Hills over the next 15 years, in addition to the already-scheduled 2025 U.S. Women’s Open presented by Ally.

It’s an incredible commitment by the USGA, which in that same time frame will take four championships to Sand Valley Resort and three to Whistling Straits.

After the ’25 U.S. Women’s Open, scheduled for May 29-June 1, Erin Hills will play host to the 2027 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball; the 2030 U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball; the 2033 U.S. Women’s Amateur; the 2035 U.S. Amateur, and the 2039 U.S. Junior Amateur.

By the end of that run, Erin Hills will be the rare course that has played host to the USGA’s four signature events: the Open and Amateur championships for both men and women.

“We’ve gotten to know the folks at Erin Hills very well over the last several decades as we’ve worked together to craft this journey that began with the 2008 U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links and will now extend for at least another 15 years,” John Bodenhamer, USGA chief championships officer, wrote in an email to Wisconsin.Golf. “They understand championship golf, and they understand what it takes to be tremendous partners to the USGA.”

Erin Hills owner Andy Ziegler noted that since he bought the course from Bob Lang in October 2009, there has always been a future USGA championship on the schedule.

“I had a conversation with Mike Whan (CEO of the USGA) about a year ago,” Ziegler said. “I said to him, ‘You know, Mike, there’s been no time, during the period of time that I’ve owned Erin Hills, that we haven’t had a USGA championship — sometimes more than one — on the calendar. And after the Women’s Open, we don’t have anything on the calendar.’

“He said, ‘We certainly want to come back and do something. Let’s talk about what we could do next.’ Then John followed up and we talked through what we would like at Erin Hills and what they thought would work. It was just a very easy and collaborative process.”

The obvious missing piece is a second U.S. Open at Erin Hills. The course played host to the championship in 2017, but the USGA has since gone to a U.S. Open “rotation” of a handful of courses in East and West Coast markets, and the next available date is 2043.

Still, six national championships at Erin Hills and 13 total in Wisconsin over the next 15 years underscores the USGA’s trust and confidence in the state’s top facilities and event support from fans, volunteers and government agencies.

Click here to read the full article on Wisconsin.golf.

Previous
Previous

Miakka Golf Club: You won’t forget it

Next
Next

Class Chats - Curracloe Golf Course designers Fry Straka