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U.S. Senior Open Golf Tournament

By Brent Kelley, About.com

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Allen Doyle

Allen Doyle won the U.S. Senior Open in 2005 and 2006.

Jeff Gross / Getty Images

About the U.S. Senior Open:

The U.S. Senior Open, conducted by the United States Golf Association (USGA), has been played annually since 1980. Local and sectional qualifiers are played for this national championship, just as for the U.S. Open and U.S. Women's Open. The format is four rounds of stroke play, with a cut after two rounds.

2009 Tournament
Fred Funk had a chance to win the 2008 tournament, but closed with a 75. This time, he ran away for a 6-stroke victory. And he was 10 strokes better in the final round than the year before, shooting 65 this time.

2008 Recap
Eduardo Romero shot 73 in the final round, but his closest competitor, Fred Funk, shot 75. So Romero wound up with a 4-stroke win at 6-under 274, with rounds of 67-69-65-73.

Official Web site

U.S. Senior Open Scoring Records:

  • Low round: 62 - Loren Roberts, third round, 2006
  • Low total: 267 - Hale Irwin (66-71-65-65), 2000

U.S. Senior Open Golf Courses:

Recent Sites
  • 2009 - Crooked Stick Golf Club, Carmel, Ind.
  • 2008 - Broadmoor Golf Club, Colorado Springs, Colo.
  • 2007 - Whistling Straits Country Club, Straits Course, Kohler, Wisc.
  • 2006 - Prairie Dunes Country Club, Hutchinson Kan.
  • 2005 - NCR Country Club, South Course, Kettering, Ohio
Full list of U.S. Senior Open golf courses

Future Sites

  • 2010 - Sahalee Country Club, Sammamish, Wash.
  • 2011 - Inverness Club, Toledo, Ohio
  • 2012 - Indianwood Golf & Country Club, Lake Orion, Mich.
  • 2013 - Omaha Country Club, Omaha, Neb.

U.S. Senior Open Trivia and Notes:

  • The first U.S. Senior Open was for golfers ages 55 and up, but in 1981 the minimum age was lowered to 50.

  • Roberto de Vicenzo won the first U.S. Senior Open, with amateur William C. Campbell runner-up.

  • Miller Barber is the only three-time winner of this event, taking the title in 1982, 1984 and 1985.

  • Three golfers have won the title in back-to-back years: Barber (1984-85), Gary Player (1987-88), and Allen Doyle (2005-06).

  • Don Pooley is the only U.S. Senior Open champion to win after playing his way into the tournament through qualifying. Pooley won in 2002.

  • In case of playoff, a 3- or 4-hole aggregate playoff is used. But before that switch was made, there were four 18-hole playoffs: in 1981, Arnold Palmer defeated Bob Stone and Billy Casper; in 1983 Casper defeated Rod Funseth in 19 holes; in 1988 Gary Player defeated Bob Charles; and in 1991 Jack Nicklaus defeated Chi Chi Rodriguez.

    • U.S. Senior Open - Past Champions:

    2009 - Fred Funk
    2008 - Eduardo Romero
    2007 - Brad Bryant
    2006 - Allen Doyle
    2005 - Allen Doyle
    2004 - Peter Jacobsen
    2003 - Bruce Lietzke
    Full List of U.S. Senior Open Winners

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