Small can tie record for most Illinois Open victories
The field is set for the 62nd Illinois Open, which begins Monday at Hawthorn Woods — and 57 amateurs are among the 156 qualifiers.
Among the non-pros are Bloomington’s Kyle English, winner of this year’s Chicago District Amateur, and Aurora’s John Wright, who took the Illinois Public Links title. Also not to be missed is 67-year old John Seehausen, who was the medalist at the biggest of the seven statewide qualifying sessions. He posted a 3-under-par 69 at Inverness, his home course.
None of the qualifiers, which whittled the field from the 716 who filed entry applications, posted a better score than 3 under, although Aurora’s Josh Butterfield’s 67 was the low among the medalists. He posted that result at the par-70 Willow Crest layout at Oak Brook Hills Resort.
The pro contingent will be strong.
It’s headed by defending champion Eric Mierdierks of Wilmette, who plays on Arizona’s Gateway Tour, and Illinois coach Mike Small, who is bidding for a fifth Illinois Open title. If he succeeds, he will tie Gary Pinns for most wins in the premier tournament for Illinois residents.
Mierdierks will be paired in the first two rounds with another former champion, Aurora’s Curtis Malm, who won as an amateur in 2000. Small’s pairing includes Galesburg’s Adam Turner, who also won as an amateur a year before Malm. Turner was medalist in the qualifying session at Country Club of Peoria
Mierdierks tees off at 8 a.m. Monday and 1 p.m. Tuesday, while Small goes off in the threesome immediately behind him both days. The field will play 18 holes Monday and Tuesday, then will be cut to the low 50 and ties for Wednesday’s final round.
Big boost for the IWO
The 17th Phil Kosin Illinois Women’s Open follows the men’s version, scheduled for Aug. 3-5 at Mistwood in Romeoville. That event has outside financial sponsorship for the first time, leading to an expansion of the event.
BMO Harris Bank signed on as the lead sponsor, which led to the creation of the first pro-am in the history of the event. There’ll also be a champions’ dinner. Other sponsors are Greater Illinois Title Co., the Kosin family, Pierce & Associates and Mesirow Financial.
Kosin, who succumbed to cancer in 2009, will be further honored as will his father Joe, who passed away during the winter. Two $1,000 scholarships in their honor will be presented to IWO entrants.
The early entries include Chicago’s Nora Lucas, an Academic All-American at the University of Illinois. She’ll be the latest Illinois Women’s Amateur champion to attempt a sweep of the state’s two biggest titles for women. Lucas won the Amateur crown at Kishwaukee in DeKalb, but her best finish in three IWO appearances was a tie for 14th in 2008.
Match to remember
The match-play portion of the U.S. Junior Girls Championship begins today on Olympia Fields’ South course, and the national championship event can only hope to duplicate the dazzling final produced in last week’s 85th Women’s Western Junior at Flossmoor Country Club.
Flossmoor’s final went 20 holes before Ashley Armstrong, playing on her home course, concluded her junior career with a big victory. The loser in that match, Jordan Lippetz of Bradenton, Fla., stayed to play at Olympia Fields while Armstrong tried sectional qualifying for the U.S. Women’s Amateur before beginning her college career at Notre Dame.
A record 1,084 entered the U.S. Junior Girls, which is being held in Illinois for only the second time. The first was in 1951, when only 32 entered the championship at Onwentsia in Lake Forest.
One big difference between the Western and U.S. Junior Girls events: there will be a 36-hole final on Saturday at Olympia Fields. The Armstrong-Lippetz duel was scheduled as an 18-hole event.
Did you know?
Deerfield’s Bennett Lavin, who finished third in last year’s Illinois Open before his senior year in high school, will attend Northwestern in the fall. ... Jake Sandusky, who had been a teacher at Chicago Golf Club since 2000, is now on the staff at Golf Nation in Palatine. ... The last two of the 10 qualifiers for the Illinois Amateur will be held Thursday at Cinder Ridge in Wilmington and Monday at Highland Park Country Club. ... Two Chicago private clubs celebrating their 100th anniversaries this year will have a two-day Centennial Cup competition. They’ll play at Westmoreland in Wilmette on Friday and at Glen Oak in Glen Ellyn on Saturday. Each team will have 60 players, with shotgun starts at 1 p.m. Friday and 8:30 a.m. Saturday. ... The Weekly Challenge Tour goes to TPC at John Deere Run in Silvis on Saturday.