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PAR AND YARDAGE – The Kiawah Island Club’s Cassique will play at 6,964/6,907 yards and a par of 36-36—72. The River Course will play at 6,908 yards and a par of 36-35—71.

CASSIQUE HOLE BY HOLE –

THE RIVER COURSE HOLE BY HOLE–

ARCHITECTS – The Kiawah Island Club’s Cassique was designed by Tom Watson and opened in 2000. The River Course was designed by Tom Fazio and opened in 1995.

COURSE SETUP – There are two setups at Cassique – Pulpit and Nip Tuck. During stroke play, the Pulpit setup will be used with holes 4, 5 and 6 playing at 370, 148 and 525 yards, respectively. With the beginning of the second round of match play, the Nip Tuck setup will be used and holes 4, 5 and 6 will play at 360, 155 and 565 yards, respectively. The Pulpit and Nip Tuck setups may rotate during the quarterfinal, semifinal and final rounds.

The USGA Course Rating® and USGA Slope Rating® for the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship at The Kiawah Island Club’s Cassique are 75.2 and 146 for the Pulpit setup and 74.5 and 145 for the Nip Tuck setup. The USGA Course Rating® and USGA Slope Rating® for The River Course are 74.7 and 147. The grass heights in the various areas of the course for the championship should be as follows:

Cassique
Putting Greens – Prepared firm and fast to measure approximately 12 feet on the USGA Stimpmeter
Approaches collars around greens – .400 inches (30 inches in width, or one mower width, on collars)
Fairways, teeing grounds – .450 inches Intermediate Rough – 1 inch (6 feet in width)
Primary Rough – 2.5 to 3 inches Practice Tee – .450 inches

The River Course
Putting Greens – Prepared firm and fast to measure approximately 12 feet on the USGA Stimpmeter
Fairways, approaches, collars around greens – .350 inches (30 inches in width, or one mower width, on collars)
Teeing Grounds – .250 inches
Intermediate Rough – 1 inch (6 feet in width)
Primary Rough – 2.5 to 3 inches
Practice Tee – .450 inches

USGA AND SOUTH CAROLINA – The 2009 U.S. Mid-Amateur will be the 14th USGA championship conducted in the state of South Carolina. The last USGA championships in the state were the 2005 Men’s and Women’s State Team Championships, held concurrently at Berkeley Hall in Bluffton.

It is the first USGA championship for The Kiawah Island Club. The U.S. Mid-Amateur is making its second appearance in the state; the 1991 U.S. Mid-Amateur was held at Long Cove Club in Hilton Head Island.

CHAMPIONSHIP WEB SITE – Visit www.usmidam.org or www.usga.org for the latest news and scores during the championship.

ADMISSION – Admission is free. Tickets are not needed for this USGA championship, and spectators are encouraged to attend.

SCHEDULE OF PLAY

• Saturday (Oct. 3) — First round, stroke play (18 holes)
• Sunday (Oct. 4) — Second round, stroke play (18 holes)
• Monday (Oct. 5) — First round, match play (18 holes)
• Tuesday (Oct. 6) — Second round, match play (18 holes); Third round, match play (18 holes)
• Wednesday (Oct. 7) — Quarterfinals, match play (18 holes); Semifinals, match play (18 holes)
• Thursday (Oct. 8) — Final, match play (36 holes)

WHO CAN PLAY – The U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship is open to amateur golfers who will have reached their 25th birthday by Oct. 3, 2009, and who have a USGA Handicap Index not exceeding 3.4.

QUALIFYING – National qualifying was held at 68 sites, Aug. 24-Sept. 8.

ENTRIES – A total of 4,188 players entered the 2009 championship. The record of 5,271 entries was set in 1997.

EXEMPT PLAYERS – There are 18 players fully exempt from qualifying for the 2009 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship:

Jimmy Chestnut, Grand Blanc, Mich. – 2008 U.S. Mid-Amateur quarterfinalist
Austin Eaton III, North Sutton, N.H. – 2004 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion
Danny Green, Jackson, Tenn. – 1999 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion
Scott Hardy, Pleasant Hill, Calif. – 2007 U.S. Mid-Amateur semifinalist
Tim Jackson, Germantown, Tenn. – 2001 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion; low amateur at 2009 U.S. Senior Open
Sean Knapp, Oakmont, Pa. – 2008 U.S. Mid-Amateur semifinalist
Chris Lange, Bryn Mawr, Pa. – 2008 U.S. Mid-Amateur quarterfinalist
Kevin Marsh, Henderson, Nev. – 2007 U.S. Mid-Amateur semifinalist
George "Buddy" Marucci Jr., Villanova, Pa. – 2008 USGA Senior Amateur champion
Michael McCoy, West Des Moines, Iowa – 2008 U.S. Mid-Amateur semifinalist
Todd Mitchell, Bloomington, Ill. – 2008 U.S. Mid-Amateur runner-up
Nathan Smith, Pittsburgh, Pa. – 2003 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion, 2009 USA Walker Cup Team member
Michael Stamberger, Plainfield, N.J. – 2008 U.S. Mid-Amateur quarterfinalist
Dan Whitaker, Cle Elum, Wash. – 2007 U.S. Mid-Amateur semifinalist
Jeff Wilson, Fairfield, Calif. – 2008 U.S. Mid-Amateur quarterfinalist
Steve Wilson, Ocean Springs, Miss. – 2008 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion
Dave Womack, McDonough, Ga. – 2006 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion
George Zahringer, New York, N.Y. – 2002 U.S. Mid-Amateur champion

HISTORY – In 1981, the USGA inaugurated the U.S. Mid-Amateur. The Mid-Amateur, for amateur golfers of at least 25 years of age, provides a formal national championship for the post-college amateur, for whom the game is truly an avocation.

Played at the Bellerive Country Club in St. Louis, Mo., the first Mid-Amateur drew 1,638 entries. The field included three former Amateur champions: Gary Cowan (1966, 1971), Marvin Giles III (1972) and Fred Ridley (1975). Jim Holtgrieve, 33, of Des Peres, Mo., defeated fellow 1981 Walker Cup Team member Bob Lewis Jr., 37, of Warren, Ohio, in the final, 2 up.

2008 CHAMPION – Steve Wilson, 38, of Ocean Springs, Miss., defeated Todd Mitchell, 30, of Bloomington, Ill., 5 and 4, at Milwaukee Country Club in River Hills, Wis. Wilson will defend his title this year.

FOR THE WINNER – The champion receives:

• A gold medal and custody of the Robert T. Jones Jr. Memorial Trophy for the ensuing year
• An exemption from local qualifying at the next three U.S. Open Championships, if still an amateur
• An exemption from sectional qualifying at the next two U.S. Amateur Championships, if still an amateur
• A 10-year exemption for the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship, if otherwise eligible
• A likely invitation to compete in the next Masters Tournament, if still an amateur
• An exemption from sectional qualifying at the next two U.S. Amateur Public Links Championships, if otherwise eligible
• An exemption from sectional qualifying at the next two USGA Senior Amateur Championships, if otherwise eligible

THE TROPHY – The Robert T. Jones Jr. Memorial Mid-Amateur Trophy was presented in 1981 by Atlanta Athletic Club and the Georgia State Golf Association. The most famous of all amateurs, Jones won five U.S. Amateur and four U.S. Open titles.

FUTURE SITES – In 2010, the championship will be played at Atlantic Golf Club in Bridgehampton, N.Y., Sept. 25-30. The 2011 championship will be played Sept. 17-22 at Shadow Hawk Golf Club in Richmond, Texas. In 2012, Conway Farms Golf Club in Lake Forest, Ill., will host the championship, Sept. 8-13.

USGA MEDIA CONTACT – Pete Kowalski will be the USGA media representative on site. He can be reached at (908) 216-8435 or by e-mail at pkowalski@usga.org.