U.S. AMATEUR PUBLIC LINKS FACT SHEET

July 11-16
Shaker Run Golf Club, Lebanon, Ohio

COURSE SET-UP:

• Teeing ground – Height of grass – approximately ½ inch
• Fairways and approaches – Height of grass – approximately ½ inch
• Putting green collars – Height of grass – one mower width at approximately ½ inch
• Putting greens – Height of grass – 5/32 inch with a speed of 10-11 feet on USGA Stimpmeter
• Intermediate rough – Height of grass – 1½ inches
• Primary rough – Height of grass – 3 inches

The course is hilly and fairways are tight and lined with trees. Some of the greens feature multiple tiers.

ARCHITECT – Arthur Hills, a native of Toledo, Ohio, designed Shaker Run Golf Club, which was opened in 1979. The course originally was a private club owned by Armco Steel for its employees. But in 1993 Shaker Run became a daily-fee public facility when Armco sold it. The facility is now managed by Premier Golf Management.

LET'S PLAY 27 – Shaker Run is actually a 27-hole facility, but only the Woodlands and Lakeside nines will be used for the APL. This will be the first USGA championship hosted by the course.

OHIO AND THE APL: Although Shaker Run is hosting its first APL, this is the sixth time the championship is being waged in Ohio. The inaugural APL in 1922 was held at Toledo's Ottawa Park Course.

WIE DID IT: Michelle Wie, 15, of Honolulu, Hawaii became the first female to ever qualify for "adult" USGA championship that has been primarily for men. Wie posted a 36-hole total of 145 at Cedarbrook Golf Course outside of Pittsburgh on June 14 to earn one of two spots from that sectional qualifier. Wie won the 2003 Women's Amateur Public Links Championship at age 13 to become the youngest champion of an "adult" USGA championship. One other female, Carmen Bandea of Duluth, Ga., tried to qualify but failed to advance at a sectional site in the Atlanta area.

GROUPINGS AND STARTING TIMES – Pairings and starting times will be distributed to the media the week of July 5. They will also be posted on the USGA Internet site at www.usga.org.

WWW.USGA.ORG/CHAMPIONSHIPS - Log on to the USGA Internet site (www.usga.org/championships) for the latest U.S. Amateur Public Links information during the championship.

DEFENDING CHAMPION – Ryan Moore, a 21-year-old from Puyallup, Wash., defeated Dayton Rose, 21, of Midwest City, Okla., 6 and 5, in the 36-hole final at Rush Creek Golf Club in Maple Grove, Minn. It was Moore's second APL title, with his first coming in 2002. He later would go on to win the 2004 U.S. Amateur at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, N.Y., becoming the first player in history to win the APL and Amateur titles in the same season.

Moore, a senior at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, also won the NCAA Division I individual title and the Western Amateur to complete an amazing 2004 amateur season.

"I don't know where to start," said Moore. "To have won it once is great. The second time, that's just amazing. Just to be part of any USGA championship is a lot of fun, let alone to win. That just makes it more special."

Rose, who lost in the 2003 championship match to Brandt Snedeker, became the first player to reach consecutive APL finals since Michael Combs in 1990-91.

"He's got the best game in the world, as far as I'm concerned," said Rose of Moore. "He's got everything covered. He hits the ball straight, he hits the ball long. His iron shots are precise. It seemed like every time he had it 10-12 feet on the green, it was automatic."

Moore won't be defending his title in 2005 as he turned pro one day after competing in the U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2.

THE FIELD – A total of 4,956 contestants entered the 2005 championship. The record of 6,300 was set in 1998.

EXEMPT PLAYERS: A total of 12 players are fully exempt from qualifying for the 2005 U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship. They are:

• Will Claxton, Swainsboro, Ga.: Quarterfinalist at 2004 APL
• Matt Every, Daytona Beach, Fla.: 2005 U.S. Open qualifier
• Dirk Fennie, Greensboro, N.C.: Quarterfinalist at 2004 APL
• Evan Frederick, Destin, Fla.: Semifinalist at 2004 APL
• Danny Green, Jackson, Tenn.: Member 2001 USA Walker Cup team
• Sunghoon Kang, Sogwipo, Korea: Semifinalist at 2004 APL
• Sihwan Kim, Fullerton, Calif.: Champion 2004 U.S. Junior Amateur
• Luke List, Ringgold, Ga.: Runner-up at 2004 U.S. Amateur; semifinalist at 2003 APL
• William Moore, Pacific Grove, Calif.: Quarterfinalist at 2004 APL
• Clay Ogden, West Point, Utah: Quarterfinalist at 2004 APL
• Jeff Overton, Evansville, Ind.: Semifinalist at 2004 U.S. Amateur
• Dayton Rose, Midwest City, Okla.: Runner-up at 2003 and '04 APL

SCHEDULE OF PLAY –

Monday and Tuesday, July 11-12 – Qualifying, 36 holes, stroke play (field reduced to the lowest 64 players, who advance to match play)

Wednesday, July 13 – First round, 18 holes, match play

Thursday, July 14 – Second and third round, 18 holes, match play

Friday, July 15 – Quarterfinals and semifinals, 18 holes, match play.

Saturday, July 16 – Final, 36 holes, match play. Awards ceremony following play.

ADMISSION – Admission is free. Tickets are not needed for this USGA championship, and spectators are encouraged to attend.

FOR THE WINNER – The champion receives:

• A gold medal and custody of the James D. Standish Jr. Cup for one year.
• A 10-year exemption from sectional qualifying for the U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship.
• An exemption from local qualifying for the next three U.S. Open Championships.
• An exemption from sectional qualifying for the 2005 U.S. Amateur.
• An exemption from sectional qualifying for the 2005 U.S. Mid-Amateur, if otherwise eligible.
• An invitation to compete in the next Masters Tournament, if still an amateur.

THE TROPHY - The Championship trophy was presented in 1922 by James D. Standish Jr., the central figure in organizing this championship. Standish served a 13-year term on the USGA Executive Committee, including two years as president (1950-51). At the same time, the USGA presented the Warren G. Harding team trophy, awarded to the team with the best 36-hole total during stroke-play qualifying. Teams can comprise two or three players with the lowest 36-hole score from each day counting towards the team total.

WHO CAN PLAY – The championship is open to amateur golfers who, since Jan. 1, 2005, have been bona fide public course players and have not held privileges at any course that does not expend playing privileges to the general public, or privileges of any private club maintaining its own course and have 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 the applicant is a student, or (2) a federal armed service of which the applicant is a member, or (3) an industry by which the applicant is employed. Entries close on May 25.

QUALIFYING – Sectional qualifying was held at 72 sites from June 8-26.

NOTABLE QUALIFIERS: Getting into the field via sectional qualifying were several notable players, including a pair of first-team NCAA Division I All-Americans as selected by the Golf Coaches Association of America. They are Ryan Blaum of Durham, N.C. (Duke) and Anthony Kim of Norman, Okla. (Oklahoma). Second-team All-American Chan Song of Atlanta, Ga., (Georgia Tech), whose twin sisters Aree (1999 U.S. Girls' Junior winner) and Naree compete on the LPGA Tour, made the field along with honorable-mention All-Americans Martin Ureta of Chile (North Carolina) and James Vargas of Miami, Fla. (Florida).

Ed McGlasson of Orange, Calif., a 21-year-old who will be a senior this fall at the University of Colorado, fired a 15-under total of 129 to qualify at Los Serranos in Chino Hills, Calif. The round included a course-record 62 on Los Serranos' North Course. It was the lowest qualifying score from any of the sectional sites.

Thailand-born Chanin Puntawong of Bradenton, Fla., was a semifinalist at the 2001 U.S. Junior Amateur.

TEAM CHAMPIONSHIP – The 2004 APL Team Championship was won by the team from San Antonio at 12 under par (276). Forty-four teams competed.

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 inaugural event drew 140 entrants, with less than half wearing golf shoes. Today, the APL attracts as many as 6,000 entries. While a majority of the field is comprised of high school and college students, the event still attracts bus drivers, bartenders, firemen, waiters, riveters, engineers and college professors.

The competition also has been a springboard to professional success for playes such as 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.

Billy Mayfair and reigning champion Ryan Moore are the only players to have captured the U.S. Amateur and APL titles, the latter doing it in the same year.

Carl Kauffmann of Pittsburgh, Pa., is the only player to have won the APL three times, doing so in consecutive years from 1927-29. Seven others have won it twice, including Moore.

PAST CHAMPIONS – Former APL winners who have gone on to professional careers include Jodie Mudd, Billy Mayfair, David Berganio Jr., Tim Clark, Trevor Immelman, Hunter Haas, D.J. Trahan and Brandt Snedeker. Former APL runners-up include Chris Riley and Ben "Bubba" Dickerson, the 2001 U.S. Amateur champion.

YOUTH AND OHIO: The Bob Kramer Youth Golf Academy in Middletown, Ohio, recently became a chapter of The First Tee and could see its participation increase from 45 youths to 150 per year. The program, which received a $5,000 grant from the USGA Foundation in 2004, draws most of its participants from the local Boys and Girls Club. It also was recently granted a Kids On Course matching grant from the USGA and National Golf Course Owner's Association in which kids from the junior golf program receive $1 golf course access at Weatherwax Golf Course. The opportunity is provided on a space-available basis to juniors who are considered course-ready by program director Ron Richardson. To get more information on The Bob Kramer Youth Golf Academy contact Richardson at (513) 425-0804.

FUTURE APL SITES: In 2006, the APL will be held at Gold Mountain Golf Club in Bremerton, Wash., and in 2007 the championship will be played at Cantigny Golf Club in Wheaton, Ill.

USGA CHAMPIONSHIP STAFF – The USGA's director of the championship in advance of the championship is Bill McCarthy who can be reached at Golf House at (908) 234-2300, ext. 1349. USGA Executive Committee member Craig Ammerman is the chairman of the championship.

MEDIA CENTER – David Shefter is the USGA Media Contact on site. Prior to the championship he can be reached at (908) 234-2300 x1315 or by cell phone (908) 763-2715. The Media Center is open to accredited media representatives only.