 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| 1998 John "Spider" Miller John "Spider" Miller, 48, of Bloomington, Ind., won three consecutive holes on the front nine versus Chip Holcombe, 37, of Casselberry, Fla., and held on to win, 1 up, at NCR Country Club for his second U.S. Mid-Amateur title in three years. A beer distributor and 1996 winner of the age 25-and-older championship, Miller won holes six through eight to go 2 up. His birdie on the eighth was his third of the match. While Miller never trailed after the seventh hole, he never got further ahead than 2 up. In fact, Holcombe squared the match with wins on the next two holes. Miller remained 2 up through 16 before Holcombe won the 17th hole. The two halved the last hole with pars to close the match and become the championship's oldest winner. "I played sloppy today, but I just hung in there. I had been playing well all week," said Miller, who was six under par for his six winning matches. "I always thought maybe I'll have one more chance to play at the Masters. I played poorly there the first time, and I'll be thrilled to have a chance to go back." Holcombe narrowly missed a few key putts down the stretch, but was not too disappointed. "I'm probably not as disappointed now as I will be later tonight or tomorrow," said Holcombe, a retail golf store manager who had quit the game for six years until 1995. "This was very dreamy situation," said Holcombe, who survived a 13-way playoff at 147 for one of the final five spots after 36 holes of stroke play. "It's almost surreal, and I'm very appreciative of everything that has happened." In his semifinal match, Miller won holes 8, 12 and 16 to close out Wolstenholme. He saved par with up and downs from greenside bunkers on the last three holes and held Woltenholme without a win hole after the seventh hole. In the other semifinal, Holcombe, won the 15th hole that proved to be the difference in beating Paul Simson, 48, of Raleigh, N.C., 1 up. The U.S. Mid-Amateur is one of 13 national championships conducted by the United States Golf Association, 10 of which are strictly for amateurs. |
| Championship Facts |
PAR AND YARDAGE – The Bandon Dunes course is set to play at 6,966 yards and par 36-36—72. The Bandon Trails course, which will be utilized as the second course for the stroke play portion of the Championship (two rounds), is set up at 6,857 yards with a par of 36-35—71. ARCHITECTS OF THE COURSES – Bandon Dunes was the first of the three golf courses designed at the resort. The course was designed by Scotsman David McLay Kidd and it was opened in 1999. The Bandon Trails course was the last of the three to open for play. The Trails course was designed by the team of Bill Coore and Ben Crenshaw. It was opened in 2005. MID-AM ON THE WEB – For scores, groupings, and the latest U.S. Mid-Amateur information, log on to the USGA Internet site at www.usga.org/championships/. Real-time scoring will be available via the championship web site at www.usmidam.org. WHO CAN PLAY – Amateur golfers who will have reached their 25th birthday on or before Sept. 29, and who have a USGA Handicap Index® not exceeding 3.4, are eligible. ENTRIES – The USGA accepted 4,426 entries for the 2007 championship. The record of 5,271 entries was set in 1997. QUALIFYING – Sectional qualifying for the U.S. Mid-Amateur was conducted from Aug. 27-Sept. 7 at 67 sites. THE FIELD – The starting field will consist of 264 golfers. Each golfer will play a single round on each of the two golf courses before the field is trimmed to the low 64 scorers, who will advance to match play on the Bandon Dunes course. |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
U.S. Mid-Amateur and United States Golf Association are registered service marks of the United States Golf Association (USGA) Copyright © 2007. United States Golf Association. All Rights Reserved. Use of this Web site signifies your agreement to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy |