2006 USGA Championship Previews


February 22, 2006

Compiled and written by David Shefter, USGA

Championships appear in the order they will be conducted.

Open
Winged Foot Golf Club (West Course), N.Y.
June 15-18
Yardage: 7,266 yards
Par: 35-35 - 70
Defending Champion:
Opened: 1923
Designer:

USGA Championships: No club in the state of has hosted more USGA events than Winged Foot -- this will be the 11th. The club has been the site of four previous U.S. Opens and two U.S. Amateurs. It also has had two U.S. Women's Opens and one U.S. Senior Open. It is the only club to have hosted all three Opens, the U.S. Amateur and . The course will play 11 yards longer than it did for the 2004 U.S. Amateur.

Behind The Name: The club derived its name from a sculpture that stands in the lobby of the New York Athletic Club on Central Park South in . A winged foot symbol similar to the club's is imbedded in the floor. Many early members came from the NYAC. Over the years, it was perceived that Winged Foot and NYAC had a distinct connection, which is not the case.

Why It's Right: The course consistently ranks among the best in the country as well as one of the most challenging.

No Pushover: When the U.S. Open was held here in 1974, the championship was dubbed "The Massacre at Winged Foot" by noted sportswriter/author because of the brutally tough conditions. Winner Hale Irwin finished at 7-over 287.

Thrilling Duel: In the 1929 U.S. Open, nearly blew a six-stroke lead on the back nine, but he holed a difficult 12-foot par putt at the 72nd hole and then defeated in a 36-hole playoff by 23 strokes. It was written that that championship was the impetus for Jones' Grand Slam in 1930.

Pro Pedigree: , winner of the U.S. Open and Masters in 1941, was the head pro from 1939-45, while two-time U.S. Open runner-up served in that capacity for 15 years. Claude Harmon, the 1948 Masters champion, was the head pro from 1945-78, and some of his staff included 16-time Tour winner Souchak (1953), and 2003 Bobby Jones Award winner Jackie Burke Jr. (1949-50). Burke won the Masters and Championship titles in 1956. Another former staffer was 1965 winner (1954-56). Winged Foot member went on to win the 1957 U.S. Open following his tutoring under Wood and Harmon. And long-time member won a U.S. Open (1927), British Open (1931) and (1930).

Legend Of : A familiar golf term was likely borne from this early member of Winged Foot. Mulligan, who became president of 's famous Biltmore Hotel, was known to be a slow starter; his drives off the first tee often went astray. He then would turn to his friends and plead for "another chance." His colleagues often obliged and through the years, a Mulligan has been synonymous with a 'do-over.' adopted this word into his vocabulary, thus popularizing the term into golfing vernacular.

Tillie's Best: called the 10th hole on the West Course the finest par 3 he ever constructed. Noted author selected the hole for his book: "The Best Eighteen Holes in ." He quoted as saying it's "a 3-iron into someone's bedroom," referring to the home of a member behind the green. also included the hole in his choice of "The Most Challenging 18 Holes," for a 1992 television special on ABC.

Quote/End Quote: "Winged Foot is to golf what is to tennis - what Yankee Stadium is to baseball. Winged Foot is a state of mind." - , 1965 winner.

Fast fact: Winged Foot's first junior member, , won the 1940 U.S. Amateur.

U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links
Walking Stick Golf Course

June 20-25
Yardage: 6,263 yards
Par: 36-36 - 72
Defending Champion:
Opened: 1991
Designer:

Calling: This is only the second time for to host the WAPL. The first WAPL played in was in 1990 at Hyland Hills Golf Course in , a suburb.

Previous Championships: Walking Stick has never hosted a USGA championship, but it has been the site for U.S. Open qualifying as well as the Colorado Amateur Stroke Play Championship and the National Insurance Youth Classic (Big I).

What's In A Name: The course is named after a native plant that grows on the property. Walking Sticks grow to 4 or 5 feet and have twisty, prickly branches. The plant is also used in the course's logo.

Vision Quest: One of Walking Stick's landmarks is a statue of a cowboy named "Visions," which can be seen upon entering the facility. Sculpted by local artist , the piece shows the cowboy pointing toward the city of . It represents the hopes, dreams and visions that some of the old-timers had when Pueblo was founded.

Women's Open
Country Club

June 29-July 2
Yardage: 6,567/6,616 yards
Par: 36-35 - 71
Defending Champion: Birdie Kim
Opened: 1894
Designer: (re-designed by and )

Designer Notes: Davis, the club's first golf professional, designed the first nine holes. Ross was hired in 1915 to expand the course from nine to 18 holes. Eight years later, Tillinghast was brought in to re-design the layout. Tillinghast had already designed Winged Foot, Baltusrol and San Francisco Golf Club.

Previous Championships: Country Club hosted the inaugural U.S. Open and U.S. Amateur in 1895, then waited 100 years before holding the 1995 U.S. Amateur. It is only one of two courses in to have conducted a USGA championship. Rhode Island Country Club in has had four USGA events.

Founding Member: Country Club is one of the five founding clubs of the USGA, joining , Chicago Golf Club, Shinnecock Hills Golf Club and The Country Club. The USGA's first president, , helped found the club in 1894. The U.S. Amateur trophy is named in his honor.

Founding Members: Besides Havemayer, other prominent individuals involved with founding the club include and three Vanderbilts - Cornelius, Frederick and William.

First Championships: was chosen as the host site for the inaugural U.S. Amateur and U.S. Open championships. One humorous footnote to the first Amateur was participant , who reportedly used a billiard cue as a putter. The strategy didn't pan out too well as he was eliminated in the first round of match play. went on to win the title, and the USGA acted quickly by eliminating the use of this "pool cue" implement.

Stretching It Out: The USGA plans to use different sets of tees at a pair of par-3 holes, which can add 49 yards to the course layout. The fifth hole will be played at either 161 or 180 yards, while the 13th can be played at 181 or 211 yards.

Genesis Of A Course: Newport C.C. was built on a site that featured few houses or trees at the time. Many decades of Colonial land clearing, followed by firewood cutting during the British military occupation of 1776-78, left the area virtually devoid of trees. It is believed that the ridges on the current 10th fairway possibly represent a former encampment site where the later French occupying forces kept watch against a possible British attack from the sea.

Early Beginnings: The club's first professional was Scottish-born . was one of the first professionals to emigrate to the and he later designed the 18-hole course at Rocky Farm. The first clubhouse actually was the adjacent Bateman Hotel, which was leased for $5,000. One of the first big events at the club was a match between Davis and Shinnecock Hills pro . The club donated the purse for the nine-hole match, which was won by Dunn, 45-46. The initiation fee at the time was $100, with annual dues set at $30. By August of 1893, the club had 70 members.

War Years: World War II was a particularly painful time for the club. Membership dropped to an alarming low of 56 and gasoline restrictions forced shutting down the clubhouse. The course was even open to the public after Labor Day to help bring in additional monies. When the war ended, the club became financially strong again through a $25,000, 70-year mortgage.

The 13½ Hole: Many clubs have a 19th hole where individuals gather for a post-round libation. Since golfers at Newport C.C. had to pass the clubhouse on their way from the 13th hole to the 14th tee, it was not uncommon for many players to not just pass by this wonderful structure, but stop in at the bar for a drink. Thus the birthplace of the 13½ hole.

Senior Open
Prairie Dunes Country Club

July 6-9
Yardage: 6,646 yards
Par: 35-35 - 70
Defending Champion:
Opened: 1937
Designer:

Previous Championships: This will be the eighth USGA championship for Prairie Dunes - and sixth different event - the first Senior Open. In 2002, the club hosted the U.S. Women's Open, won by Juli Inkster.

Short But Tough: At 6,646 yards, Prairie Dunes will be the shortest U.S. Senior Open course since the 1987 championship held at Brooklawn Country Club in Fairfield, Conn. (6,599 yards). But Prairie Dunes' true defense lies in the weather conditions, specifically wind, over brute length. When it blows, the course can play several hundred yards longer than what's listed on the card. The seventh hole, which played as a par 5 for the ladies at the 2002 Women's Open, will be a 430-yard, par-4 hole for the Senior Open.

Why It's Right: Despite its rural location - some 40 miles from - the course ranks among the nation's most esteemed layouts.

Blast From the Past: When won at Prairie Dunes, she joined and as the only players to win two different USGA championships on the same course. She won the 1980 Women's Amateur at Prairie Dunes, the first of her three consecutive Women's Amateur titles. Nicklaus won the U.S. Amateur (1961) and U.S. Open (1972) at Pebble Beach, while Semple Thompson took the U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur (1990) and USGA Senior Women's Amateur (2001) at her home club, legheny Country Club in Sewickley, Pa. The Champions Tour's would have a chance to match that feat should he win the Senior Open, as he won the 1988 U.S. Mid-Amateur at Prairie Dunes.

Scottish Feel In The Midwest: Because of its 'links' nature -- the native fescue grasses and the mounding created by sandy dunes - the course has a bit of the look and feel of those found across the pond in Ireland and Scotland. once called Prairie Dunes the " of the West." Nicklaus won the 1958 Trans-Mississippi Amateur title at Prairie Dunes.

High Accolades: In 1965, Sports Illustrated selected the par-4 eighth hole as one of its Best 18 Holes in .

Home-Cooking: The characteristics of the course must have made the 1986 Great Britain & Ireland Curtis Cup team feel like they never left home. For the , it was the first defeat by the 'home' team on its soil in the history of the Curtis, Walker and Ryder Cup.

Fact Or Fiction: It was reported that when course designer first arrived at the proposed course site, he wanted some time to survey the land. The story suggests that he trampled over the area for weeks on an artificial leg, carrying nothing but a bag of apples and a jug of water. That story has been told so many times now that club members and staff believe it to be fact.

Amateur Public Links
Golf Club (Olympic Course)

July 10-15
Yardage: 7,061 yards
Par: 36-36 - 72
Defending Champion:
Opened: 1971
Designer:

Welcome Back: This is will be the fourth Amateur Public Links played in the state of , but the first since 1984 when in hosted the event.

Previous Championships: has not hosted any previous USGA competitions. The course has been the host site for U.S. Open local qualifying, the State Amateur and the 's annual Husky Invitational.

Designer Notes: designed BanBury Golf Club in Eagle, , site of the 2005 U.S. Girls' Junior. Harbottle also is the son of 1950 U.S. Girls' Junior and 1955 U.S. Women's Amateur champion Pat Lesser Harbottle.

Going For The Gold: The Olympic Course is one of two 18-hole layouts at a facility that receives approximately 105,000 rounds a year. While 's Cascade Course opened in 1971, the Olympic Course is only 10 years old. Harbottle routed the course through wooded and rolling terrain that offers picturesque views of the neighboring Olympic Mountain range.

Birth Of A Championship Course: Back in 1992, director of golf approached City of officials about adding another 18 holes to the existing complex. Told there wasn't enough demand to merit such a project, exander had his staff take note each time they took a call for a tee time when the Cascade Course was booked up. By the end of the year, the number wound up being approximately 64,000 rounds. With these statistics in hand, exander again approached city officials, but this time he received encouragement from the bureaucrats. Newly elected mayor thought it was a notable endeavor and by 1996, the Olympic Course was completed. By the way, Horton's husband, Frank, is the co-chairman for the 2006 .

The Ideal Site: When Harbottle first walked the property for the proposed second course, he immediately saw a great deal of potential for a championship course. "You've got a great opportunity," Harbottle told exander. "There's no restrictions with lots or houses [and] you've got an incredible piece of ground. We can build something really, really good for not really that much more money."

Girls' Junior
Country Club

July 17-22
Yardage: 6,396 yards
Par: 36-36 - 72
Defending Champion: In-Kyung Kim (ineligible to defend)
Opened: 1969
Designer: Ellis Maples (revisions done by in 1988)

Coming Back To : though 21 USGA championships have been waged in the , including the 2005 U.S. Open at Pinehurst, this is only the second time the state has hosted a U.S. Girls' Junior, the first one coming in 1989 at Pine Needles.

Previous Championships: Country Club has not previously hosted a USGA championship, but it was the site of the 2001 North Carolina Women's Amateur and the 2005 Atlantic Coast Conference Women's Championship.

Qualifying Story: In the days when the Tour's Kemper Open was played at 's Quail Hollow Country Club, the Monday qualifiers were contested at Carmel C.C. Future stars Lanny Wadkins and competed in these qualifiers during their fledgling professional days. For those who failed to qualify for the main event, held the Mini Kemper, with prize money totaling $15,000.

Club Blueprint: The club was founded in 1947, but the first nine holes were not completed until 1950. Located south of downtown Charlotte, the club now features two 18-hole layouts on 364 acres of land. The South Course, which is where the championship proper will be played, was designed and completed by Ellis Maples in 1969.

Hugo's Fury: In September of 1989, Hurricane Hugo made his presence felt at and the area, bringing winds in excess of 100 mph. More than 1,000 trees were uprooted, including the rows of Bradford Pears that lined the entrance to the club. Only 15 days after the storm, the South Course was reopened, while the North Course didn't permanently open until Nov. 4. Hugo's legacy did make members and staff more environmentally conscious, and over the next few years, assistant greens manager Hank Kerfoot, along with several members, began working with the Audubon Society on a plan to protect the environment. They adopted new procedures for pesticides and purchased new tanks to store gasoline above ground.

Junior
Rancho Golf Club
Rancho
July 17-22
Yardage: 6936/6923 yards
Par: 36-36 --72
Defending Champion:
Opened: 1929
Designer:

Previous USGA Championships: This will be the first USGA championship for the San Diego-area club. This is the second time this decade the Junior Amateur has visited . The Olympic Club in hosted the 2004 event.

California And The Junior: Californians have won 22 of the 58 Junior Amateurs - the most of any state - and can boast the four youngest champions of the competition (Tiger Woods, Mike Brannan, Henry Liaw and Sihwan Kim), all of whom were 15 when they won the title. Woods is the only multiple winner of the championship, having won three consecutive titles from 1991-93.

Clam Bake Beginnings: Rancho was the original home of the Bing Crosby National Pro-Am, which began in 1937 and is still played today, although under a different name (AT&T) and site ( ). The competition pairs a celebrity/businessman with a professional for a 72-hole Tour event. It received the nickname of "Crosby Clambake" for its party-like atmosphere.

Train Of Command: The land where the club currently resides once served the , and Santa Fe Railroad Company as it produced eucalyptus seedlings for the manufacturing of railroad ties. But a severe drought in 1912, followed by the worst freeze in 40 years killed approximately 70 percent of the trees.  The railroad company eventually abandoned the project and started using new chemicals to protect the ties from decay. Today, the property still holds Eucalyptus trees and any fallen or trimmed branches are ground up and used on the 44 miles of horseback trails which ring the course and the community.

Course Background: Rancho Santa Fe Golf Club was formed in 1927 from 219.1 acres donated by the Santa Fe Land Improvement Company. designed the original course, which opened in 1927.

Course Improvement: Four years ago, the club completed a $3.4 million renovation project, which included the construction of a two-acre, short-game practice area.

In Good Company: , a two-time major winner and the 1990 U.S. Amateur champion, owns a home in Rancho Santa Fe and is a club member. , the 2005 Western Amateur champion and a quarterfinalist at the 2005 U.S. Junior, and former Southern California Golf Association Amateur champion also are Rancho Santa Fe members.

Community Chest: In order to join, prospective members of the club must reside within the community of Rancho Santa Fe. Not all residents are members, but those who live outside the city limits cannot join.

Bandon Dunes Golf Resort (Pacific Dunes)

July 29-30
Yardage: 6,217/6,221 yards
Par: 36-35 - 71
Defending Champion:
Opened: 2001
Designer:

Previous Championships: This is will be the first USGA competition held at the resort, but Bandon Dunes has been the host site for the Pacific Coast Amateur and Oregon Amateur.

Rave Reviews: Despite its relative infancy, the two links-style courses at Bandon Dunes Resort (Pacific Dunes and Bandon Dunes) both are rated among the best 100 in the by virtually all of the golf publications.

Auld Country Feel: Few courses in the have the look and feel of those classic links venues found in and . The and team should feel at home among the gorse, dunes, heather and terrain found here along the southwest coast.

Use Your Feet: Golf carts are not permitted at either Pacific Dunes or Bandon Dunes. Golfers must either carry their own bag or hire a caddie. Resort owner , who made his fortune in the recycled greeting card business, wanted it that way as to make the experience of playing these courses similar to what golfers find in or .

Course Overview: Pacific Dunes is just under 200 yards shorter than its sister course and decidedly different in character. Doak's greens are smaller and have more undulations and more of an emphasis was placed on creative short-game play. High bluffs and massive blow-out dunes are more profound. Some compare the views, vistas and playing conditions to that of Ballybunion in .

Quote: "Every architect dreams of building among the sand dunes, in the same terrain where golf was conceived in the . For me and my associates, Pacific Dunes is that dream come true." - , architect of Pacific Dunes.

U.S. Women's Amateur
Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club (Witch Hollow Course)

Aug. 7-13
Yardage: 6,380/6,418 yards
Par: 36-35 - 71
Defending Champion: (turned pro)
Opened: 1992
Designer:

Pumpkin Patch: The USGA will call on Pumpkin Ridge for a sixth time in the last 13 years. The Witch Hollow Course has already played host to two U.S. Women's Opens, a U.S. Amateur and the combination of the U.S. Junior and U.S. Girls' Junior when the two were held simultaneously in 2000 (the public Ghost Creek Course also played a role in those championships). No club can boast of holding that many USGA championships during that short of time frame.

: Only eight other states have hosted more USGA events than . The Women's Amateur will be the 27th for the state.

Environmentally Friendly: Pumpkin Ridge has been fully certified as an Audubon Cooperative Sanctuary System since January 1996. The course features acres of ecologically important wetlands and the routing takes players through dense strands of fir, maple, oak and ash.

Dramatic Finishes: The last two major women's championship held at Pumpkin Ridge have provided plenty of drama. At the 1997 U.S. Women's Open, held off sentimental favorite , who was seeking her first Open title. Six years later, former USA Curtis Cupper Hilary Lunke holed a birdie putt on the final hole of an 18-hole playoff to defeat another former USA Curtis Cupper Angela Stanford, and to win the Women's Open. In 1996, Tiger Woods needed 38 holes to defeat to win his third consecutive U.S. Amateur title. Woods turned pro immediately after the championship.

Future Greatness: Nobody knew it at the time, but when 17-year-old of , lost in the 2000 U.S. Junior Amateur final at Pumpkin Ridge (Ghost Creek Course), it was only a harbinger of good things to come in USGA competitions. Two years later, won the U.S. Amateur Public Links title, then in 2004 he won both the and U.S. Amateur, capping one of the greatest seasons ever for an amateur player.

Amateur
Hazeltine National Golf Club

Aug. 21-27
Yardage: 7,427/7,455 yards
Par: 36-36 - 72
Second Stroke Play Course: Course
Yardage: 6,843 yards
Par: 36-35 - 71
Defending Champion:
Opened: 1962
Designer:

Previous Championships: Seven USGA championships, including the 1970 and '91 U.S. Opens, have been waged at Hazeltine National. The course was also the site of the 2002 Championship, won by . Hazeltine becomes one of three courses to host the U.S. Open, U.S. Women's Senior Open and U.S. Amateur.

What's In A Name: Club founders originally called the facility the Executive Golf Club of Minnesota, but due to a tepid response from members, it was renamed Hazeltine National Golf Club in honor of the lake that it was constructed around.

Early Beginnings: Hazeltine was founded by former USGA president , who saw an opportunity to build a championship-caliber facility in rural Chaska, a suburb of . Another early member of Hazeltine was Reed Mackenzie, a lawyer who would serve as USGA president from 2002-03.

Not A Pleasant Start: When the U.S. Open came to Hazeltine in 1970 not everyone lauded the course. said all the course lacked was "80 acres of corn and a few cows." Since then, revisions have been made to the layout and today Hazeltine is considered one of the top 100 courses in . Even Hill approved of the changes upon his return to the course for the 1991 Open.

Memorable Moment: The late won his first of two U.S. Opens at Hazeltine in 1991, defeating 1987 champion in an 18-hole playoff.

Not So Memorable Moment: During that same U.S. Open, six spectators huddled beneath a willow tree near the 11th hole were struck by lightning. One of the individuals, , suffered cardiac arrest and never regained consciousness. A similar incident occurred two months later at the Championship. Since those two tragedies, the governing bodies of golf, including the USGA, have taken greater steps to give early warnings about dangerous weather, even if it means suspending play with only a remote chance of lightning in the area.

Evolution Of A Golf Hole: At the 1970 U.S. Open, the 16th hole was a par 3, but after revisions were made to the course, it turned into one of the great medium-length par-4 holes in golf. Prior to the 1991 Open, a defined stream was created out of a drainage ditch on the left side. It was determined that the hazard on the 70th hole of a major championship should be a definite penalty, not one of chance. said "finding the land where the tees now sit was like finding manna from heaven. This is the signature hole of Hazeltine National Golf Club - just a beautiful hole."

Longtime club professional said of 16 prior to the 2002 Championship: "This will be the most-watched hole of the championship. Possible disaster lurks on each shot. The tee shot must carry 220 yards of to reach the fairway, which is flanked both right and left by water. Since few players will use a driver, they will leave approximately 150 yards to a peninsula green. How a player handles this hole could determine the championship."

, who won the 2002 Championship, holed a long birdie putt here that virtually clinched the title.

Mid-Amateur
Forest Highlands Golf Club (Canyon Course)
Sept. 9-14
Yardage: 6,941/6,928 yards
Par: 35-36 - 71
Second Stroke Play Course: Meadow Course at Forest Highlands
Yardage: 7,339 yards
Par: 36-36 - 72
Defending Champion:
Opened: 1988
Designers: Morrish

Previous Championships: The club was the host site for the 1996 U.S. Junior, won by . McMenamy defeated future Tour player in the championship match. This will be the 13th USGA championship played in the . Forest Highlands was also the site of the 1993 and 2004 Arizona Men's State Amateur, and the 1991 and 2001 Pacific Coast Amateur.

Lets Play Two: Both courses at Forest Highlands will be used for the championship. The older Canyon Course, designed by Weiskopf and Morrish, will serve as the main course (stroke play and match play), while the newer Meadow Course, opened in 1999 and designed solely by Weiskopf, will serve as the second stroke-play venue.

Trust Us, We're In : When people see pictures of golf courses, they get plenty of views of cacti and desert juxtaposed on lush green turf. Forest Highlands features a different kind of environment. The course is nestled among plenty of tall Ponderosa Pines and it provides views of the of northern . It even snows occasionally, something rarely ever witnesses.

Oxygen Please: At 7,000 feet, Forest Highlands is about a mile and a half above sea level.

Unique Layout: The Canyon Course, which will be used for both portions of the championship, has six par-3s and five par-5s. The par-3 12th hole will use two different tees. For stroke play, it will play 227 yards, but it will be just 214 yards for match play.

Amateur
Golf Club

Sept. 16-21
Yardage: 6,769 yards
Par: 36-36 - 72
Defending Champion:
Opened: 1998
Designer:

Previous Championships: This will be the first USGA event held at . The club did serve as the host for the 2002 Indiana State Amateur, won by 2002 U.S. Amateur Public Links runner-up . also was a qualifying site for the 1999 U.S. Amateur, 2000 U.S. Open (local), 2001 U.S. Mid-Amateur and 2005 USGA Senior Amateur.

Course Notes: was built around an existing surface coal mine, so as a result water-filled mining pits serve as hazards on 15 of the 18 holes.

Designer Notes: When club owner and course architect first walked the property, the latter saw 100 great golf holes and enough property to construct two or three courses. Friedman, however, only wanted one world-class result, and Fazio trimmed 33 possible holes down to the best 18. so built into the design of the course was a 12-acre practice facility replete with six target greens, practice bunkers, putting greens and a specially designed short-game area.

l In The Family: founder 's daughter-in-law, , designed the logo that is now used by the club. His daughter and son-in-law, Sheri and , both architects, designed the 22,500-square-foot clubhouse. Another general manager.

Gold Mine: Before it became a golf course, the land on which sits was used for mining coal. Coal was scraped from long deep trenches and the excess dirt was piled alongside in serpentine spoil mounds. Those mounds were incorporated into Fazio's design. Fazio found just enough room to route fairways between the finger lakes and parallel spoil piles to create a gem that is now ranked among the top 100 courses in by several publications.

High-Tech Links: The entire agronomical operation at is controlled by computers. A sensor in the ground measures soil temperature and a heat pump kicks in to blow warm air under the greens when the air temperature drops below 40 degrees. If the greens get too hot, the system cools them down and when Mother Nature drops rain, vacuum pumps suck out all the moisture down to the roots.

In-House Accomodations: For out-of-town members and their guests who wish not to use hotels in the area, some members constructed two cottages that can be rented out. Each cottage contains four luxurious master suites with private baths, a full kitchen/dining area and a spacious living room with a fireplace. A screen-in patio provides a view of the 18th hole. Even meal service can be arranged.

Architect's Take: " is unlike any golf course we have ever done, an absolutely unique experience for us. A classic links course is not supposed to have lakes or trees and, of course, is next to the sea. But to me, this course resembles a modified links because of its irregular shapes and the way it folds across the ridges and "dunes." - Fazio.

Women's Amateur
Golf Club
,
Oct. 7-12
Yardage: 5,832 yards
Par: 36-35 - 71
Defending Champion:
Opened: 1929
Designers: ( nine); (Marshside nine); (redesigned and Marshside nines in 1999)

Golf House South: welcomes its eighth USGA championship and sixth since 1980. This will be the sixth time the Senior Women's Amateur has been waged here, the most for any venue hosting this championship.

High Praise: A year after the Seaside Nine first opened, dubbed it as "one of the best nine holes I've ever seen." 's original design received a makeover in 1999 when reworked the and Marshside nines to create the Seaside Course.

From With Love: is the home of Tour star and 1997 Champion Davis Love .

International Matters: was selected to host the 2004 G-8 Conference, which brought together the leaders from eight of the most powerful countries in the world.

Digging Out: More than one million cubic yards of dirt was dredged from the tidal marshes for construction of the original nine-hole course.

Adding Bite To Its Bark: When Fazio renovated the course five years ago, he left much of the routing intact, while altering the feel and atmosphere. He put more swerve back into the course by shaping everything from the bunkers to tees to the newly enlarged greens, to the re-contoured fairways, and to the dunes and their vegetation. The immediate difference was the removal of the many trees that previously made the Marshside nine feel more low country than shoreline. Those nine holes are now much more wind-swept with six of the holes lacing along and through the vast tidal marshes.

Haven For Wildlife: The courses at Sea Island provide not only great challenges for the golfers, but also a home for many different species, including rabbit, raccoon, deer, alligators, snakes, squirrel, blue herons, Canadian geese, woodpeckers, turtles, osprey, armadillos, fish and several different species of birds.

U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur
Old Waverly Golf Club
, Miss.
Oct. 21-26
Yardage: 6,147 yards
Par: 36-36 -72
Defending Champion:
Opened: 1988
Designers: and

Previous USGA championships: This will be the second USGA championship for Old Waverly, following the 1999 U.S. Women's Open won by Juli Inkster.

Going Low: Due to the wet weather that preceded the championship, the top players in women's golf attacked Old Waverly with fervor, resulting in 135 sub-par rounds, the most ever for a U.S. Women's Open. 's 72-hole total of 272 tied 's 1996 mark for the lowest winning score in Women's Open history. And the cut of 144 (even par) was the lowest in championship history.

What's In A Name: The course took its name from the , which was a plantation home built by in 1852. During the Civil War and following Reconstruction, many homeless families used the mansion as a place to stay. Many believe the spirits remain, but area residents will explain that it doesn't scare them or the golfers who play the course.

Course Dynamics: Old Waverly was created from 400 acres of rolling land that once was a pasture for cows. Today, it also is a sanctuary for various wildlife, including deer, fox, duck and geese.

And The USGA: This is just the third USGA event to be played in the , following the 1986 U.S. Mid-Amateur at Annandale Country Club in and the 1999 Women's Open.