2002 U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship

Moore Wins 2002 U.S. Amateur Public Links
Washington, Mich. – Ryan Moore roared to a 10 and 9 victory over Lee Williamson in the final of the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship Saturday.
APL Attracts Wide Range Of Golfers
Washington, Mich. – The occupations and lifestyles of the competitors at the 2002 U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship may vary, but their love for competitive golf remains consistent.

2002 U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship
Fact Sheet
July 15-20
The Orchards Golf Club, Washington, Mich.
Par and Yardage – The Orchards Golf Club will be set at 7,001 yards and par is 36-36—72.

Architect – Designed by Robert Trent Jones Jr. and opened in 1993, the Orchards Golf Club is one of more than 700 public access courses in the state of Michigan.

APL on the Web – For scores, pairings and the latest U.S. Amateur Public Links information, visit the USGA Web Site at www.usga.org. Near real-time scoring will be available at the championship Web Site at www.usapl.org.

USGA Toll-Free Interview Hotline – An interview with the 2002 champion will be available after the final. Call toll-free (888-321-USGA). The interview is broadcast-quality and runs about three minutes in length.

Who Can Play? – The U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship is open to amateur golfers who, since Jan. 1, 2002, have been bona fide public course players and have not held privileges of any course that does not extend playing privileges to the general public, or privileges of any private club maintaining its own course and hold a USGA Handicap Index not exceeding 8.4. A bona fide public course player may hold incidental privileges of a course not open to the public when such privileges are provided by (1) an educational institution at which he is a student, or (2) a federal armed service of which he is member, or (3) an industry by which he is employed.

How Many Players? – The starting field consists of 156 players.

What’s the Schedule of Play? – Monday, July 15: First round, stroke play (18 holes. Tuesday, July 16: Second round, stroke play (18 holes). After 36 holes, the field will be cut to the low 64 scorers, who will advance to match play. Wednesday, July 17: First round, match play (18 holes). Thursday, July 18: Second round, match play (18 holes), Third round, match play (18 holes). Friday, July 19: Quarterfinals, match play (18 holes), Semifinals, match play (18 holes). Saturday, July 20: Final, match play (36 holes).

Who’s Exempt? – U .S. Amateur Public Links champions of the last 10 years (1992-2001), 2001 U.S. Amateur Public Links runner-up. All current male USGA champions and runners-up, if otherwise eligible. Qualifiers for the 2002 U.S. Open, if otherwise eligible. USA Team Members of the 2001 Walker Cup and 2000 World Amateur Team. Special exemptions selected by the USGA.

Entries – The USGA accepted 5,350 entries for the U.S. Amateur Public Links in 2002. The record for entries was set in 1998 with 6,300.

What Does the Champion Receive? – A gold medal and custody of the James D. Standish Jr. Cup for the ensuing year. The runner-up receives a silver medal; the other semifinalists receive bronze medals. The qualifying medalist also receives a bronze medal.

* An exemption from local qualifying at the next U.S. Open Championship, if still an amateur.

* An exemption from sectional qualifying at the next 10 U.S. Amateur Public Links Championships, if otherwise eligible.

* An exemption from sectional qualifying at the next U.S. Amateur Championship.

* An exemption from sectional qualifying at the next U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship, if otherwise eligible.

* An invitation to compete in the next Masters Tournament, if still an amateur.

Free For All – The U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship is free and open to the public. There will be no charge for parking.

History – The U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship has been an unqualified success since its inception in 1922, giving exposure to many public-course players who otherwise might not have an opportunity to compete in a national championship.

The championship’s prime mover was James D. Standish Jr., of Detroit, who convinced his colleagues on the 1922 USGA Executive Committee that the time was right for such a grass-roots competition. Standish pointed to the public-course golfer, whose ranks were swelling following World War I, and to the growing number of municipal and daily-fee courses in America.

The first championship was conducted at the Ottawa Park Course in Toledo, Ohio. The USGA had no way of knowing how many players to expect, but a satisfying 140 entries were received. Less than half that number wore golf shoes. The first champion was Eddie Held of St. Louis, who joined a private club soon after his victory and thus became ineligible to defend his title in 1923.

In 1923, the first team championship was conducted at the same time as the individual competition. East Potomac Park in Washington, D.C., was selected as the site, causing a great deal of excitement in the nation’s capital. President Warren G. Harding, a golf enthusiast, donated the team trophy. Harding wanted to enter the championship himself, but time didn’t permit, and besides, he was a member of at least one private club, which would preclude his entry.

That those earliest championships drew upward of 18 teams representing cities from coast to coast, was a tribute to the spread of public-course golf in America. From the initial entry of 140 players, today’s annual entry has surged to a massive 6,000 competitors or more.

The championship has also been a springboard for the likes of U.S. Open champions Ed Furgol, Tommy Bolt, and Ken Venturi; British Open champion Tony Lema; PGA champions Dave Marr and Bobby Nichols; and Masters winner George Archer. In 1959, it produced the first African-American winner of a USGA championship in William A. Wright, who later became a teacher.

Past Champions – Past champions include noted teaching professional Lester Bolstad (1926), South Florida golf administrator Frank Strafaci (1935), Walker Cup player Smiley Quick (1946), PGA Tour winner Dan Sikes Jr. (1958), Walker Cup player Richard H. Sikes (1961, 1962), PGA Tour winner Jodie Mudd (1980, 1981), and PGA Tour winner Billy Mayfair (1986).

What Happened Last Year? – Chez Reavie, 19, of Mesa, Ariz., playing in his first USGA championship, outlasted U.S. Walker Cup player Danny Green, 44, Jackson, Tenn., to win the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship, in 38 grueling holes.

Reavie defeated Green at the 7,005-yard, par 71 Pecan Valley Golf Club in San Antonio, Texas, when he made a par to Green’s bogey. With the victory, Reavie won the national championship and an invitation to the 2002 Masters.

"When I won I thought, 'Wow, it’s over. I did it.' My caddie hugged me and I thought, 'Wow, I’m going to Augusta,'" said Reavie.

The experience of the veteran Green, who won the 1999 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship, gave him a strategic edge over Reavie, but hot weather worked against him. Temperatures hovered in the upper 90s.

"On the 22nd and 23rd holes I hit a wall," admitted Green. "I didn’t have any strength in my arms and legs."

On the 37th hole, Green had a chance to win the championship when he hit his approach shot to within 3½ feet of the hole. Reavie made a par, sinking a 4-footer on his second putt. Then Green missed his best opportunity.

"I would have made that putt 99 out of 100 times," said Green.

At the 38th hole, Green drove into the rough, hit his second shot into a bunker and made a bogey. Reavie hit his second shot on the green to within 12 feet of the hole, then got down in two putts to win the hole, the match and the championship.

The Team Championship – Each qualifying section that has at least two players eligible for the individual championship may be represented by one team in the team championship. The team championship consists of 36 holes stroke play, 18 holes on Monday, July 15, and 18 holes on Tuesday, July 16. In each 18-hole round, the total of the two scores by players of each team constitutes the team score for that round. The champion is the team with the lowest such total score for 36 holes. Any tie will be settled by a hole-by-hole playoff. The winning team receives custody of the Hon. Warren G. Harding Cup for the ensuing year, and members of the team receive silver medals.

Michigan and the USGA – This will be the 27^th championship conducted by the United States Golf Association in Michigan. Past championships in the state include six U.S. Opens, three Women’s Opens, two Amateurs, four Women’s Amateurs and two Senior Opens.

This is the third U.S. Amateur Public Links championship in Michigan. The other two were both held at Rackham Golf Club in Detroit in 1940 and 1961.

Future U.S. APL sites – The U.S. Amateur Public Links will be played at Blue Heron Pines G.C. in Cologne, N.J., from July 14-20, 2003; at Rush Creek G.C. in Maple Grove, Minn., from July 12-17, 2004; and at Shaker Run G.C. in Lebanon Ohio, from July 11-16, 2005.

Media Staff – The USGA’s media liaison during the championship is David Normoyle. Prior to the championship he can be reached at (908) 234-2300. The media room telephone number during the championship, from July 13-20, is (586) 786-9383, and the fax number is (586) 786-9414.