Around the Green

Texas Mid-Amateur Set for Oct. 2-4

Oak Hills Country Club in San Antonio will host the 37th playing of the Texas Mid-Amateur from Oct. 2-4.

This will be the first Texas Mid-Amateur and eighth TGA championship contested at Oak Hills Country Club. Most recently, in 2016 the club hosted the 107th Texas Amateur, won by Frederick Wedel. Oak Hills was also the site of the 2015 Texas Senior Amateur and 2013 Texas Mid-Amateur Match Play, both won by Mike Booker.

“We are extremely excited to have the opportunity to return to Oak Hills Country Club,” said John Cochran IV, TGA Director of Competitions. “The club has a long history of supporting amateur golf and we are confident the newly renovated course will rigorously test every facet of a player’s game and identify a worthy champion.”

Founded in 1922, Oak Hills Country Club was designed by A.W. Tillinghast, one of the giants in the “Golden Age” of golf course architecture in America. Tillinghast’s strategic design philosophy has stood the test of time and is clearly evident throughout Oak Hills. Tree-lined fairways, bunker-protected greens and contoured putting surfaces are elegantly combined to demand the most from a golfer’s shot-making and course management skills.

Over the years numerous upgrades have been made at Oak Hills, and in 2017, Tripp Davis completed an extensive $6.5 million restoration that has improved playing conditions, fortified the course’s original design elements and revitalized its natural beauty.

The Texas Mid-Amateur is open to male amateurs with a World Handicap System Index of 8.4 or less, have reached the age of 25 by the tournament start date and are current Texas residents.

The starting field will include 132 players, who earned entry into the championship through an exemption category or 18-hole sectional qualifying at one of 13 sites across the state from July 22 – Sept. 21.

Format for the championship is 54 holes individual stoke play. All contestants will play 18 holes Oct. 2-3. After 36 holes the field will be cut to the low 54 players and ties heading into the final round. In addition to the overall champion, an award will be given to the Low Mid-Master (40-plus years of age).

At the 2019 championship hosted by Maridoe Golf Club in Carrollton, Christopher Wheeler of Addison posted a 54-hole score of 2-under-par 214 for a convincing five-shot victory over runner-up Colby Harwell of San Antonio, who was pursuing his third straight title. Marcus Jones of Argyle earned Low Mid-Master recognition with a 5-over 221 total.

Both Wheeler and Harwell are set to compete at Oak Hills and will be joined by three other Texas Mid-Amateur past champions. They are Josh Irving of Dallas (2016) Clay Hodge of Bryan (2013) and Rob Couture of Dallas (2008).

Among the other notable players in this year’s starting field include reigning Texas Mid-Amateur Match Play champion Aaron Hickman of Tyler, 2019 Texas Senior Amateur champion Gary Durbin of Houston and John Pierce of San Antonio and Broc Haymon of League City, the 2019 Senior and South Regional Players of the Year, respectively.

Live scoring updates and daily recaps, as well as tee-times and pairings, will be available once the action gets underway from Oak Hills.