Latin American Milestones in USGA History

1929: Al Espinosa, who was of Mexican-American heritage, finishes runner-up to nine-time USGA champion Bob Jones in a 36-hole playoff for the U.S. Open at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, N.Y. Espinosa won nine times on the PGA Tour and was a member of three USA Ryder Cup Teams.

1932: Jose Jurado of Argentina becomes the first golfer from Latin America to finish in the top 10 in the U.S. Open. After leading the field in Round 2, he finishes T-6 at Fresh Meadow C.C. in Flushing, N.Y.

1952: The USGA inaugurates The Americas Cup Matches, a biennial competition among amateur golfers representing Mexico, Canada and the United States, with the intention of fostering friendship and stimulating golf’s growth in these neighboring nations. The matches were discontinued after 1967.

1955: At Wichita (Kan.) C.C., Fay Crocker of Uruguay becomes the first foreign-born U.S. Women’s Open champion and the first Latin American USGA champion.

1966: Mexico becomes the first Latin American country to host the World Amateur Team Championships. They are contested at Club de Golf Mexico City, with Australia winning the men’s event and the USA the women’s.

1968: In his third U.S. Open appearance, Lee Trevino, who is of Mexican-American descent, defeats Jack Nicklaus by four strokes to win at Oak Hill C.C. in Rochester, N.Y. Trevino would go on to win six major championships.

1970: Argentina’s Roberto de Vicenzo receives the Bob Jones Award, the USGA’s highest honor recognizing distinguished sportsmanship in golf. Chi Chi Rodriguez of Puerto Rico (1989) and Lorena Ochoa of Mexico (2011) would follow.

1974: 17-year-old Nancy Lopez, who was born to Mexican-American parents, wins her second U.S. Girls’ Junior title. The following year, the New Mexico native would finish runner-up in the U.S. Women’s Open at Atlantic City C.C. in Northfield, N.J., as an amateur. Lopez went on to win 48 LPGA Tour events, including a record five in a row, and received the Bob Jones Award in 1998.

1980: Roberto De Vicenzo wins the inaugural U.S. Senior Open at Winged Foot G.C. in Mamaroneck, N.Y.

2001: Nicole Perrot wins the U.S. Girls’ Junior at Indian Hills C.C. in Mission Hills, Kan., becoming the first USGA champion from Chile.

2004: Julieta Granada wins the U.S. Girls’ Junior at Mira Vista G.C. in Fort Worth, Texas, becoming the first USGA champion from Paraguay.

2007: Angel Cabrera of Argentina holds off Tiger Woods and Jim Furyk to win the U.S. Open at Oakmont (Pa.) C.C.

2007: Maria José Uribe wins the U.S. Women’s Amateur at Crooked Stick G.C. in Carmel, Ind., becoming the first USGA champion from Colombia.

2010: Mina Hardin wins the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur at Fiddlesticks C.C. in Fort Myers, Fla., becoming the first Mexican-born USGA champion.

2011: The USGA announces that the winner of the Mexican Amateur and the Mexican Women’s Amateur championships will earn entry into the U.S. Amateur and the U.S. Women’s Amateur, respectively. The Mexican Amateur champion also earns an exemption into final qualifying for the U.S. Open.

2011: The Rules of Golf and Decisions on the Rules of Golf become available in Spanish through a collaborative effort between the USGA Rules and Competitions staff and the Comité Nacional de Reglas of the Federación Mexicana de Golf.

2013: Delia Nava, past president of the Mexican Women’s Golf Association, is elected to the USGA Women’s Committee.

2014: The USGA, The R&A and the Masters Tournament announce the formation of the Latin America Amateur Championship (LAAC), an amateur golf event aimed at stimulating growth and inspiring interest in the game throughout South America, Central America, Mexico and the Caribbean. 

2015: Matias Dominguez, of Chile, captures the inaugural Latin America Amateur Championship at Pilar Golf in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

2019: The USGA and the PGA of America begin offering USGA/PGA Rules of Golf Workshops in Spanish. The USGA also releases a Spanish version of the Rules of Golf app.

2019: The family of Bertha Navarro, the first Mexican woman to win the Ladies Division of the Mexican Amateur National Championship in 1948, donates her trophies and golf equipment to the USGA Golf Museum and Library.

2021: Alexa Saldana, of Mexico, joins with fellow 17-year-old Savannah Barber to win the U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball, at Maridoe Golf Club, in Carrollton, Texas. One month later, Kiko Francisco Coelho becomes the first golfer from Portugal to win a USGA title when he joins with Venezuelan Leopoldo Herrera III, of Doral, Fla., to capture the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball at Chambers Bay in University Place, Wash.