U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur Championship Set to Start

The 2006 U.S. Women's Mid-Amateur will tee off October 21-26 at Old Waverly Golf Club in West Point, Miss. The course, co-designed by Robert Cup and Jerry Pate and opened in 1988, will play to a par 72 and stretch 6,151 yards, where it earns a 75.7 course rating and a 130 slope.

The U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship began in 1987 and became the 13th national golf championship conducted by the United States Golf Association. It was originated to provide a national competitive arena for women amateur golfers age 25 and older. The event is open to female amateur golfers who will have reached their 25th birthday by October 21 and have a USGA Handicap Index not exceeding 9.4.

The USGA and the membership of Old Waverly Golf Club encourage and invite the general public to attend the 2006 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship free of charge. All ages are welcome. This is the third USGA championship conducted in Mississippi. Annandale G.C., in Madison, hosted the 1986 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship, and Old Waverly hosted the 1999 U.S. Women’s Open.

A field of 132 women will compete for the U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur trophy, a sterling Revere bowl presented in 1987 by Mrs. Henri Prunaret, chairman of the USGA Women’s Committee from 1959 through 1963. The champion retains custody of the trophy for the ensuing year.

The 2006 championship begins with 18 holes of stroke play qualifying on Oct. 21 (Saturday). The second round of stroke play qualifying will be conducted on Oct. 22, after which the field will be cut to the low 64 players who will enter match play. The first round of match play will be conducted on Oct. 23. The second and third rounds of match play will be on Oct. 24. The quarterfinal and semifinal rounds of match play will be conducted on Oct. 25, and the final match, scheduled for 18 holes, will be on Oct. 26. A prize presentation ceremony will be held immediately following completion of the final match.

2005 Championship in Review

Mary Ann Lapointe, 45, of Canada, outlasted medalist Kerry Postillion, 42, of Burr Ridge, Ill., 1 up at Shadow Hawk Golf Club in Richmond, Texas, to win the 2005 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur title. In doing so, Lapointe, the 1986 reinstated amateur, became the first foreign-born champion of the Women’s Mid-Amateur and the sixth Canadian to win a USGA championship. In the semifinals, Postillion defeated Virginia Derby Grimes, 41, 2 and 1, while Lapointe outlasted Robin Burke, 43, 1 up. Lapointe will not be back to defend her title in 2006 as she was selected to compete for Canada at the Women’s World Amateur Team Championship in South Africa Oct. 18-21. Postillion did not file an entry for the 2006 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur.

Exempt Players

A total of 12 players are fully exempt for the 2006 Women’s Mid-Amateur. A list of those competitors and their exemption categories:

• Robin Burke, Houston, Texas (2005 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur quarterfinalist)
• Laura Coble, Augusta, Ga. (2005 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur quarterfinalist)
• Annette Gaiotti, Salt Lake City, Utah (2005 USGA Senior Women’s Amateur semifinalist)
• Virginia Grimes, Meridian, Miss. (1998 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur champion; 2006 USA Curtis Cup member; 2004 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur runner-up; 2005 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur semifinalist; 2005 U.S. Women’s Amateur round of 32).
• Mina Hardin, Fort Worth, Texas (2001 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur runner-up)
• Diane Lang, Weston, Fla. (2005 USGA Senior Women’s Amateur champion).
• Cecilia Mourgue D’Algue, France (2005 USGA Senior Women’s Amateur semifinalist)
• Shannon Ogg, Seattle, Wash. (2003 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur runner-up)
• Ellen Port, St. Louis, Mo. (1996 and 2000 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur champion)
• Thuhashini Selvaratnam, Sri Lanka (2005 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur quarterfinalist; 2004 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur semifinalist)
• Carol Semple Thompson, Sewickley, Pa. (2005 USGA Senior Women’s Amateur runner-up; 1997 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur champion)
• Corey Weworski, Carlsbad, Calif. (2004 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur champion)

Dennis Walters Show

Dennis Walters will perform two shows with his dog, Benji, at the Women’s Mid-Amateur on October 20. The show is projected to have 500 attendees from various junior golf programs in the region. Walters, a paraplegic, is a trick-shot artist who does a number of shows throughout the USGA championship season.

Upcoming Sites

The Desert Forest Golf Club in Carefree, Ariz., will be the site of the 2007 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur.

For tournament updates, visit www.usga.org.