USGA Announces 25 Additional Players Exempt for 2015 U.S. Open Championship
Far Hills, N.J. (PRWEB) May 26, 2015 -- The United States Golf Association today announced that 25 additional golfers, including three-time USGA champion Ryan Moore, have earned full exemptions into the 2015 U.S. Open Championship, to be played June 18-21 at Chambers Bay, in University Place, Wash. These exemptions bring the number of fully exempt players to 74.
All 25 exemptions were awarded to players who earned a place in the top 60 of the Official World Golf Ranking as of May 25. Moore, who won the 2004 U.S. Amateur Championship and the 2002 and 2004 U.S. Amateur Public Links titles and has four PGA Tour victories, is ranked No. 34. Moore, who grew up near Chambers Bay in Puyallup, Wash., has played in eight previous U.S. Opens. His best finish was a tie for 10th in 2009 at Bethpage State Park’s Black Course.
The other players who earned full exemptions through the current Official World Golf Ranking are: Byeong-Hun An, Paul Casey, George Coetzee, Jamie Donaldson, Victor Dubuisson, Matthew Every, Tommy Fleetwood, Stephen Gallacher, Branden Grace, Charley Hoffman, J.B. Holmes, Thongchai Jaidee, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Anirban Lahiri, Marc Leishman, Shane Lowry, Joost Luiten, Ben Martin, Francesco Molinari, Ian Poulter, Marc Warren, Lee Westwood, Bernd Wiesberger and Danny Willett.
An, who won the 2009 U.S. Amateur Championship, moved up 78 positions in the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) to No. 54 by winning the PGA European Tour’s BMW PGA Championship on May 24. Jimenez, who tied for second in the 2000 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach (Calif.) Golf Links, climbed 25 spots to No. 44 in the OWGR after tying for second at the BMW PGA Championship. Molinari tied for fifth at the European Tour event and advanced eight spots in the OWGR to No. 58. The number of fully exempt golfers may increase with the inclusion of the top 60 players from the OWGR as of Monday, June 15.
The first two sectional qualifiers for the 2015 U.S. Open were held May 25, in Japan, where five spots in the 156-player field were determined, and in Surrey, England, where 11 players qualified. Those 16 players are in addition to the 74 fully exempt players listed below.
Sectional qualifying in the United States, at 36 holes, will take place at 10 sites on Monday, June 8. The sites are: Big Canyon Country Club & Newport Beach Country Club, Newport Beach, Calif.; The Bear’s Club, Jupiter, Fla.; Hawks Ridge Golf Club, Ball Ground, Ga.; Woodmont Country Club (North Course), Rockville, Md.; Old Oaks Country Club & Century Country Club, Purchase, N.Y.; Brookside Golf & Country Club & Lakes Golf & Country Club, Columbus, Ohio; Springfield Country Club, Springfield, Ohio; Germantown Country Club & Ridgeway Country Club, Memphis, Tenn.; Northwood Club, Dallas, Texas; and Tumble Creek Club, Cle Elum, Wash.
The U.S. Open will be contested for the first time in the Pacific Northwest. Chambers Bay is hosting its second USGA championship, having hosted the 2010 U.S. Amateur.
A list of the 74 golfers fully exempt into the 2015 U.S. Open as of May 25 (not including the 16 international sectional qualifiers) is below. It can also be found at this link: http://www.usopen.com/en_US/news/qualifying/exemptions.html.
2015 U.S. Open Exemption List (as of May 25):
Byeong-Hun An - 9, 13
Keegan Bradley - 7, 11, 13
Angel Cabrera - 1
Paul Casey - 13
Darren Clarke - 6
George Coetzee - 13
Erik Compton - 11
Jason Day - 11, 12, 13
Jamie Donaldson - 13
Victor Dubuisson - 13
Jason Dufner - 7
Ernie Els - 6
Matthew Every - 13
Tommy Fleetwood - 13
Rickie Fowler - 8, 11, 12, 13
Jim Furyk - 12, 13
Stephen Gallacher - 13
Sergio Garcia - 12, 13
Lucas Glover - 1
Branden Grace - 13
Bill Haas - 12, 13
Russell Henley - 12, 13
Charley Hoffman - 13
Morgan Hoffmann - 12
J.B. Holmes - 13
Billy Horschel - 12, 13
Thongchai Jaidee - 13
Miguel Angel Jimenez - 13
Dustin Johnson - 11, 13
Zach Johnson - 12, 13
Martin Kaymer - 1, 7, 8, 11, 12, 13
Chris Kirk - 12, 13
Brooks Koepka - 11, 13
Matt Kuchar - 12, 13
Anirban Lahiri - 13
Marc Leishman - 13
Shane Lowry - 13
Joost Luiten - 13
Hunter Mahan - 12, 13
Ben Martin - 13
Hideki Matsuyama - 12, 13
Graeme McDowell - 1, 13
Rory McIlroy - 1, 6, 7, 12, 13
Phil Mickelson - 6, 13
Francesco Molinari - 13
Colin Montgomerie - 10
Ryan Moore - 13
Kevin Na - 12, 13
a-Bradley Neil - 3
Geoff Ogilvy - 1
Louis Oosthuizen - 6, 13
Ryan Palmer - 12, 13
Ian Poulter - 13
Patrick Reed - 12, 13
Justin Rose - 1, 12, 13
a-Oliver Schniederjans - 4
Charl Schwartzel - 5, 13
Adam Scott - 5, 11, 12, 13
John Senden - 12, 13
Webb Simpson - 1, 12, 13
Brandt Snedeker - 11, 13
Jordan Spieth - 5, 12, 13
Henrik Stenson - 11, 13
Brendon Todd - 12, 13
Cameron Tringale - 12
Jimmy Walker - 11, 12, 13
Marc Warren - 13
Bubba Watson - 5, 12, 13
Lee Westwood - 13
Bernd Wiesberger - 13
Danny Willett - 13
Gary Woodland - 12, 13
Tiger Woods - 1, 8
a-Gunn Yang - 2
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Key to Player Exemptions
1) Winners of the U.S. Open Championship the last 10 years (2005-14)
2) Winner and runner-up of the 2014 U.S. Amateur Championship (must be an amateur)
3) Winner of the 2014 British Amateur Championship (must be an amateur)
4) Winner of the 2014 Mark H. McCormack Medal (top-ranked in WAGR & must be an amateur)
5) Winners of the Masters Tournament the last five years (2011-15)
6) Winners of the British Open Championship the last five years (2010-14)
7) Winners of The PGA of America Championship the last five years (2010-14)
8) Winners of The Players Championship the last three years (2013-15)
9) Winner of the 2015 PGA European Tour BMW PGA Championship
10) Winner of the 2014 U.S. Senior Open Championship
11) From the 2014 U.S. Open Championship, the 10 lowest scorers and anyone tying for 10th place
12) Those players who qualified for the season-ending 2014 Tour Championship
13) Top 60 point leaders and ties from the World Ranking, as of May 25, 2015
14) Top 60 point leaders and ties from the World Ranking, as of June 15, 2015
15) Special exemptions selected by the USGA
About the USGA
The USGA conducts the U.S. Open, U.S. Women’s Open and U.S. Senior Open, as well as 10 national amateur championships, two state team championships and international matches, attracting players and fans from more than 160 countries. Together with The R&A, the USGA governs the game worldwide, jointly administering the Rules of Golf, Rules of Amateur Status, equipment standards and World Amateur Golf Rankings. The USGA’s reach is global with a working jurisdiction in the United States, its territories and Mexico, serving more than 25 million golfers and actively engaging 150 golf associations.
The USGA is one of the world’s foremost authorities on research, development and support of sustainable golf course management practices. It serves as a primary steward for the game’s history and invests in the development of the game through the delivery of its services and its ongoing “For the Good of the Game” grants program. Additionally, the USGA’s Course Rating and Handicap systems are used on six continents in more than 50 countries.
For more information about the USGA, visit http://www.usga.org.
Brian DePasquale, United States Golf Association, http://www.usga.org, +1 (908) 326-1884, [email protected]
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