U.S. Open's return to L.A. draws record number of entrants; local qualifier set at Plantation
Everyone wants to go to L.A. — or so it seems.
The United States Golf Association has reported a record 10,187 entries into the 123rd U.S. Open, which will be June 15-18 at the Los Angeles Country Club's North Course. The Open is being played for the first time at the historic course that was designed by Geoge C. Thomas in 1921. A renovation was completed in 2011 by Gil Hanse and Thomas biographer Geoff Shackelford, which restored the course to the original Thomas design.
The U.S. Open will be in L.A. for the first time since 1948, when Ben Hogan won the first of his four U.S. Opens the Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades.
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The number of entrants surpasses 10,127 in 2014 when the Open was played at Pinehurst for the third time. It's the 11th year in a row in which 9,000 or more entries have been accepted.
Local 18-hole qualifying will be held from April 17 to May 22, with qualifiers at the Plantation at Ponte Vedra on May 9 and Hammock Dunes in Palm Coast on May 12. Depending on the size of the fields, the top qualifiers will advance to one of 13 36-hole sectional qualifiers for a spot in the final U.S. Open field of 156 players.
The USGA received entries from all 50 states.
To be eligible, a player must have a Handicap Index not exceeding 1.4 or be a professional.
NFJG begins summer series
The North Florida Junior Golf Tour will begin its Summer Tournament Series May 14 with the Kingsland Classic, at the Laurel Island Links Golf Club in Kingsland, Ga.
The series will feature six two-day tournaments and six one-day events, including the Dr. Gordan Ira Classic at Hyde Park, the Jacksonville Beach Junior Open, the Greater Jacksonville Junior Championship at Eagle Harbor and the North Florida Junior Amateur at the King & Bear.
The NFJG Tour Championship will be at Marsh Landing and Glen Kernan and the Tournament of Champions at the Ponte Vedra Inn and Club.
For information and tournament dates, visit nfjg.org.
NFJG teams picked
The North Florida Junior Golf Tour has picked its teams to compete in the Florida Coast Cup April 29-30 at the Miami Lakes Golf Club.
The Cup, which will be played for the fourth time, matches junior golf organizations on the Atlantic Coast of Florida. The NFJG Tour has a 2-1 lead.
The teams: Boys 16-18 — Cameron Abitabilo, Carter Abitabilo, Barton Abstein, Brock Buhnerkemper, Matthew French, Alexander Lymus, Chase McBride, Ryan Nicholson. Boys 13-15 — Jaspreet Kondal, Jake Mason, Mathis Toal, Brock Wilson. Girls 14-18 — Shanya Arasu, Alexandra Drum, Kalia Polete, Addy Vogt. Girls 13-under — Sophia Burnette, Lily Chiang, Chloe McGrath, Amelia Santiago. Boys 10-12 — Jack Cole, Jay Huntley, Keelan Jackson, Hudson Stutzman.
Entries open for Four-Ball
Registration is now open for the Jacksonville Area Golf Association's inaugural St. Johns County Four-Ball May 6-7 at the St. Johns Golf Club.
The tournament is open to men and women, with no age restrictions. All contestants must have a USGA Handicap Index and there cannot be more than 10 shots difference between partners. Partners can register with a larger handicap difference but the higher handicap player will be adjusted to not more than 10 shots greater than the lower handicap player.
Visit jaxareagolf.org for information or to register.
Long-time JAGA director passes
Billy Walker, JAGA's treasurer for the past five years, passed away last week at the age of 78.
Walker represented Oak Bridge and Cimarrone as a JAGA director. He was a native of Montreal, who moved to Florida in 1990 and was first a member of Magnolia Point.
Services will be at 2 p.m. on Sunday at the Church of Eleven22, San Pablo campus: 14286 Beach Blvd.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: U.S. Open's return to Los Angeles draws record number of entrants
