The United States Golf Association (USGA) has announced Scioto Country Club in Columbus, Ohio, as the host venue for the 2016 US Senior Open Championship, which will take place from August 11-14.
This will be the fourth USGA event held at Scioto Country Club, which will celebrate its centenary in 2016 as the first 18-hole course in central Ohio.
“The USGA is delighted to return to Scioto Country Club, especially on the occasion of the club’s centennial,” said USGA Executive Director Mike Davis.
“Scioto Country Club’s rich history is associated with two of the USGA’s greatest champions in Bob Jones and Jack Nicklaus. Central Ohio, and particularly the state capital of Columbus, will be an enthusiastic setting for conducting a successful US Senior Open in 2016.”
Scioto Country Club is one of four courses in the United States to have hosted five different Major Championships, including the 1926 US Open Championship, one of nine USGA events captured by Robert T. Jones Jnr; The 1931 Ryder Cup; the 1950 US PGA Championship; the 1968 US Amateur Championship, when Bruce Fleisher was a winner one month short of his 20th birthday; and the 1986 US Senior Open, won by Dale Douglass in his first year of eligibility.
In addition, Scioto Country Club is where Jack Nicklaus, an eight-time USGA champion – including two US Senior Opens – honed his game with legendary teaching professional Jack Grout.
“Scioto Country Club has always been a very special place to me,” said Nicklaus, who won 18 Major Championships, including four US Opens. “It is where my father first introduced me to the game of golf at age 10; where I met my first instructor, long-time friend and mentor Jack Grout; and where my career really was nurtured.
“Scioto is steeped in championship golf history, and it is something that I was indoctrinated with in my childhood. I grew up with Bob Jones as my idol, largely in part due to the wonderful stories and memories attached to his US Open victory at Scioto in 1926.
“It is personally gratifying to see another Major Championship being added to Scioto’s legacy, and as a past US Senior Open champion, I’m thrilled the USGA is bringing such a significant championship to the passionate fans of Columbus and central Ohio.”
Scioto Country Club was designed by renowned Scottish-born architect Donald Ross, and opened for play in 1916. The course was renovated by Dick Wilson in the early 1960s, and recently re-designed under the guidance of architect Michael Hurdzan and Nicklaus, who is serving as Honorary Chairman for the 2016 US Senior Open.
Scioto Country Club reopened in 2008 while preserving the original Ross routing and design, and was awarded Renovation of the Year by Golf Inc. magazine. In addition to the golf course, Scioto Country Club has acclaimed facilities and programs for aquatics, tennis and platform tennis.
“Scioto Country Club is honoured to build on its rich tournament tradition by hosting the 2016 United States Senior Open Championship,” said Scioto Country Club president Jeffrey M. Wilkins. “We are excited that the sixth Major tournament Scioto will host will take place during the year of the club’s centenary celebration. We are looking forward to working with the USGA and providing an unparalleled experience that participants and fans will cherish and that the Club, the City of Upper Arlington and Columbus will treasure as a part of golf history in our community.”
The US Senior Open Championship, which was won last year by American Olin Brown, who succeeded Bernhard Langer as champion, is open to any professional and amateur golfer who is 50 years of age with a USGA Handicap Index® not exceeding 3.4.
In 2012, the US Senior Open Championship will be played at Indianwood Golf & Country Club, in Lake Orion, Michigan, from July 12-15. The 2013 championship will be played from July 11-14 at Omaha (Nebraska) Country Club; the 2014 championship will be played July 10-13 at Oak Tree National Club in Edmond, Oklahoma; and the 2015 championship is scheduled for June 25-28 at Del Paso Country Club in Sacramento, California.
The USGA will conduct the 2016 championship in association with HNS Sports Group, a full service event management company headquartered in Dublin, Ohio.
