Jan. 25, 2005
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The University of Notre Dame’s Warren Golf Course will host one of two qualifying tournaments for the 2005 Western Amateur, Western Golf Association Tournament Director John Kaczkowski has announced.
The qualifying event will be held Monday, July 25, with the second qualifier to be held at long-time qualifying site Lake Michigan Hills Golf Club in Benton Harbor, Michigan. Approximately 50 players in the final field of 156 will qualify for the 103rd Western Amateur at one of the two qualifying sites. Warren replaces Hampshire Country Club (Dowagiac, Mich.), which had hosted an annual qualifier since 1974.
“Warren Golf Course is a wonderful facility, and we’re proud to be affiliated with such a prestigious university as Notre Dame,” Kaczkowski said. “We expect that the reputation and quality of the course definitely will help us promote the Western Amateur to our national field.”
John Foster, Warren’s general manager and head professional, added that hosting a event with the history and tradition of the Western Amateur fits well with the university’s mission of serving golf with a first-class venue.
“After meeting with representatives of the Western Golf Association, we agreed that holding the qualifier at Warren was mutually beneficial,” said Foster. “This is further proof that the University of Notre Dame is committed to becoming one of the premier collegiate golf facilities in the country.”
Warren Golf Course at Notre Dame, designed by Ben Crenshaw and Bill Coore, opened in the spring of 2000 and has hosted four BIG EAST Men’s Golf Championships, two BIG EAST Women’s Golf Championships and two men’s U.S. Amateur Qualifiers. In May, Warren also will be the site of the NCAA Central Regional Men’s Golf Championship.
“Geographically, the location of Warren Golf Course works very well for the Western Amateur,” Kaczkowski noted. “It opens up the South Bend market, and should draw competitors from Chicago. It’s easy to get to and will provide a solid test of golf for our qualifying field. We’re looking forward to the first of many qualifying events at Warren, and appreciate the opportunity being extended to us by John Foster, his staff and officials at Notre Dame.”
Foster said he was prompted to pursue hosting the qualifier at the suggestion of Warren Superintendent Matt Cielen, who had worked closely with the Western Golf Association during his three years as assistant superintendent at Point O’ Woods Golf and Country Club in Benton Harbor. Point O’ Woods has served as the host club for the Western Amateur since 1971.
“Also, Bob Lee, a Notre Dame graduate and WGA director, was instrumental in arranging a meeting to discuss the possibility,” Foster explained. Final details were approved in December 2004.
Warren Golf Course has undergone two major alterations over the short five years it has been open. The first, completed in the fall of 2003, entailed building eight new tees that added 270 yards to the course, resulting in championship yardage of 7,011.
“Although the true challenge of the golf course lies in the small, traditional, heavily-bunkered green complexes, we felt the additional yardage was necessary to allow us to host major amateur championship events,” Foster said.
The second alteration is now underway, with the renovation of the course’s 86 bunkers. All of the original sand is being removed, new drainage systems and fabric liners are being installed and a new, more angular and coarse grade of sand is being used to fill the bunkers.
“The last piece of the puzzle is being put in place for us to attract top-level national amateur events,” said Foster.
The 103rd Western Amateur will be played July 25-31 at Point O’ Woods. First held in 1899, the championship traditionally features an international field of top-ranked amateur golfers in a medal and match play format. The champion will earn an exemption into the 2006 Cialis Western Open. The 2004 champion is Ryan Moore, Puyallup, Wash. The 2004 Western Amateur field included competitors from more than 30 states and five foreign countries. Past champions include Jack Nicklaus, Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Ben Crenshaw, Curtis Strange, Hal Sutton, Lanny Wadkins and Justin Leonard.
Applications for the Western Amateur may be downloaded from the Western Amateur web site, www.thewesternamateur.com. Applications also may be obtained by contacting the Western Golf Association at (847) 724-4600 or by writing to: John Kaczkowski, Tournament Director, Western Golf Association, 1 Briar Road, Golf, IL 60029.
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