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AMATEURS – There are 23 amateurs in the 156-player field. There are 20 or more amateurs competing for the fifth consecutive U.S. Senior Open. Jeff Wilson, the low amateur in last year’s U.S. Senior Open and the reigning U.S. Senior Amateur champion, is among this group.

Wilson, who turned 56 on June 14, tied for 31st in the 2018 U.S. Senior Open, held at The Broadmoor (East Course), in Colorado Springs, Colo. He became the second player to earn low amateur in both the U.S. Open and U.S. Senior Open in his career, joining Marvin “Vinny” Giles III. Wilson was 59th in the 2000 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach (Calif.) Golf Links. Wilson, a general sales manager for an automobile dealership, has competed in 32 USGA championships, including 10 U.S. Amateurs.

Knapp, 57, is playing in his fourth U.S. Senior Open and 48th USGA championship. He won the 2017 U.S. Senior Amateur, held at The Minikahda Club, in Minneapolis, Minn., and was the runner-up to Jeff Wilson in last year’s U.S. Senior Amateur. He tied for 60th in the 2012 Senior Open, which was played at Indianwood Golf and Country Club, in Lake Orion, Mich.

Michael McCoy, 56, is playing in his seventh U.S. Senior Open. He was the low amateur in 2014 and 2015. McCoy, who has competed in 58 USGA championships, won the 2013 U.S. Mid-Amateur at the Country Club of Birmingham (Ala.) and became the second-oldest winner of the championship at age 50. He was a member of the 2015 USA Walker Cup Team.

Tim Hogarth, 53, won the 1996 U.S. Amateur Public Links Championship and was the runner-up to Nathan Smith in the 2010 U.S. Mid-Amateur. He is playing in his third U.S. Senior Open and 32nd USGA championship.

Note: There were 24 amateurs in last year’s U.S. Senior Open at The Broadmoor’s East Course. Jeff Wilson (T-31), Mike Finster (T-44) and Robby Funk (60th) were the three amateurs to make the 36-hole cut. William C. (Bill) Campbell (1980) and Tim Jackson (2009) are the only amateurs to hold the lead at a U.S. Senior Open through 36 holes. 

SECTIONAL QUALIFIERS – Steve Jones, the 1996 U.S. Open champion at Oakland Hills, and Todd Hamilton, the winner of the 2004 Open Championship at Royal Troon, are among the 81 U.S. Senior Open sectional qualifiers.

Jones, who shot 67 to earn medalist honors in the Phoenix, Ariz., sectional qualifier, defeated Tom Lehman and Davis Love III by one stroke to win the U.S. Open. Jones, who won eight times on the PGA Tour, is playing in his sixth U.S. Senior Open. Hamilton made four pars in a four-hole aggregate playoff with Ernie Els to claim the 2004 Open. Hamilton, who is competing in his third U.S. Senior Open, was the medalist with a 68 in the McKinney, Texas, sectional qualifier.

Tim Petrovic was the top finisher among sectional qualifiers in last year’s U.S. Senior Open, He tied for second with Miguel Angel Jimenez and Jerry Kelly behind champion David Toms at The Broadmoor’s East Course. In the previous two Senior Opens, Glen Day tied for sixth in 2017 at Salem Country Club and tied for 18th with Jeff Gallagher in 2016 at Scioto Country Club.

Note: In 2002, Don Pooley was the last player to win the U.S. Senior Open as a sectional qualifier.

QUALIFYING HISTORY           

Jeff Brehaut, who is a teaching professional after competing on both the PGA Tour and Nationwide (now Web.com) Tour, carded the lowest round (65) in sectional qualifying on June 5 at Soule Park Golf Club, in Ojai, Calif. In 2018, Kent Jones matched the lowest round in U.S. Senior Open sectional qualifying history with a bogey-free 63 in the Santa Fe, N.M., sectional qualifier. He had one eagle and seven birdies at Las Campanas (Sunset Course). Leonard Thompson fired a 63 at Florence (S.C.) Country Club in 2006 and Jimmy Blanks shot the same score at Grenelefe Golf & Tennis Resort, in Haines City, Fla., in 1996.

USGA CHAMPIONSHIPS AT THE WARREN COURSE AT NOTRE DAME           

This will be the first U.S. Senior Open and second USGA championship to be conducted at The Warren Course at Notre Dame.

In 2010, Emily Tubert, 18, of Burbank, Calif., defeated Lisa McCloskey, 18, of Houston, Texas, 3 and 2, to win the U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links Championship.                                

OTHER CHAMPIONSHIPS AT THE WARREN COURSE AT NOTRE DAME

NCAA Division I Men’s Regional Championship (2005, 2010)

NCAA Division I Women’s Regional Championship (2011, 2015)                       

USGA CHAMPIONSHIPS IN INDIANA

This will be the 22nd USGA championship played in Indiana and the second U.S. Senior Open contested in the state. In 2009 at Crooked Stick in Carmel, Fred Funk set a 72-hole U.S. Senior Open record for most strokes under par at 20 under and tied the largest victory margin with his six-stroke victory over Joey Sindelar.

2019 U.S. SENIOR OPEN NOTES

• The Warren Course is the first college-affiliated course to host the U.S. Senior Open Championship
• The 40th U.S. Senior Open is the 22nd USGA championship to be conducted in the state of Indiana
• The Warren Course is hosting its second USGA championship and first since 2010
• David Toms will attempt to become the fourth player to win consecutive U.S. Senior Opens
• Toms was the first player since Jeff Maggert (2015) to win the U.S. Senior Open in his second attempt
• Toms matched the fourth-best comeback by a winner, rallying from six strokes back over the final 36 hole

PAST SENIOR OPEN CHAMPIONS – Since the U.S. Senior Open began in 1980, three players have successfully defended their championship: Miller Barber (1984-’85), Gary Player (1987-’88) and Allen Doyle (2005-’06). In 2018, David Toms became the second player to win the championship after missing the cut the previous year.

WHAT THE CHAMPION RECEIVES

Among the benefits bestowed upon the 2019 U.S. Senior Open champion are:

• A gold medal and custody of the Francis D. Ouimet Memorial Trophy for the ensuing year
• An exemption from sectional qualifying for the 2020 U.S. Open Championship
• An exemption from sectional qualifying for the next 10 U.S. Senior Open Championships

SENIOR MAJOR CHAMPIONS – Miguel Angel Jimenez, a two-time U.S. Senior Open runner-up, has won two of the last seven senior major championships. Bernhard Langer, the 2010 U.S. Senior Open champion, captured five of 10 senior majors contested during the 2016 and 2017 seasons. He has won 10 senior major professional titles. Langer became the all-time leader in that category with his 2017 Senior PGA Championship victory. Jack Nicklaus is second with eight and Hale Irwin is third with seven.

CAREER SENIOR MAJOR LEADERS – Bernhard Langer, who has won all five senior major professional titles, is the career leader in that category with 10. Jack Nicklaus, a two-time U.S. Senior Open champion, is second with eight senior major professional titles. Hale Irwin, who won the U.S. Senior Open in 1998 and 2000, is third with seven senior majors.

HISTORY – This is the 40th U.S. Senior Open Championship. The first U.S. Senior Open, played in 1980, was conducted for golfers 55 and older. The next year, the USGA lowered the minimum age to 50.

Miller Barber captured the first of his three U.S. Senior Open titles in 1982 – he also won in 1984 and 1985. The U.S. Senior Open has five two-time winners: Gary Player (1987, 1988), Jack Nicklaus (1991, 1993), Hale Irwin (1998, 2000), Allen Doyle (2005, 2006) and Kenny Perry (2013, 2017). Doyle became the championship’s oldest winner in 2006 at the age of 57 years, 11 months, 14 days.

The youngest champion is Dale Douglass, who won in 1986 at the age of 50 years, 3 months, 24 days.

SENIOR OPEN BIRTHDAYS – Six players in the U.S. Senior Open field will be celebrating a birthday during championship week. Colin Montgomerie, who won the 2014 U.S. Senior Open, is among the group. He turned 56 on June 23. Loren Roberts, the runner-up in the 2005 U.S. Senior Open, had a birthday on June 24. Montgomerie and Roberts were involved in a playoff with eventual champion Ernie Els to decide the 1994 U.S. Open at Oakmont (Pa.) Country Club.

OLDEST & YOUNGEST – Tom Watson is the oldest player in this year’s U.S. Senior Open field. Watson, the 1982 U.S. Open champion and a three-time U.S. Senior Open runner-up, is 69 years old. Tom Kite, the 1992 U.S. Open winner, is also 69, but three months younger than Watson. Chris Smith, a professional from Peru, Ind., and Todd Burgan, an amateur from Knoxville, Tenn., are the youngest in the field. Each player turned 50 on April 15.

FIELD FOR THE AGES – Eight players in the 2019 U.S. Senior Open field have celebrated their 50th birthday since January. Retief Goosen, the 2001 and 2004 U.S. Open champion, and Michael Campbell, who won the U.S. Open in 2005 at Pinehurst No. 2, were born in February. Paul Lawrie, the 1999 Open champion at Carnoustie, and Shaun Micheel, who won the 2003 PGA Championship, were born four days apart in January.

There are 28 players in the field who are 60 or older. Olin Browne (2011), Brad Bryant (2007), Roger Chapman (2012), Fred Funk (2009) and Bernhard Langer (2010) are U.S. Senior Open champions.

The average age of the 156-player field is 55.47.

INTERNATIONAL GROUP – There are 19 countries represented in the 2019 U.S. Senior Open. The USA has 128 players in the field, while England and Scotland each have three players.

Countries with players in the field: United States (128), England (3), Scotland (3), France (2), Japan (2), South Africa (2), Spain (2), Sweden (2), Wales (2), Australia (1), Canada (1), Columbia (1), Fiji (1), Germany (1), Republic of Korea (1), Mexico (1), New Zealand (1), Northern Ireland (1) and Thailand (1).

FIRST TIME IN U.S. SENIOR OPEN – There are 49 players in the 2019 championship field who are playing in their first U.S. Senior Open. Darren Clarke, who turned 50 last August, won the 2011 Open Championship, conducted by The R&A, by three strokes over Dustin Johnson and Phil Mickelson at Royal St. George’s. He has claimed 14 PGA European Tour victories and won titles on six different tours. Clarke, who competed in 15 U.S. Opens, was a member of five European Ryder Cup teams and served as the 2016 European Ryder Cup captain.

List of First-Time U.S. Senior Open Competitors (49): Don Berry, a-Robin Bradbury, Mark Brown, Todd Burgan, Michael Campbell, Darren Clarke, Chris DiMarco, Ken Duke, Richard Dukelow, Jim Estes, Richard Gilkey, Retief Goosen, a-Jay Gregory, Carey Hodsden, Chris Hunsucker, Steve Jurgensen, a-Kevin King, Cliff Kresge, Paul Lawrie, Thomas Levet, a-Mark Mance, Michael Meehan, Gregory Meyer, Shaun Micheel, a-Mark Morgan, a-Ray Morton, Gary Nicklaus, Paul Norris, Gary Orr, Scott Paris, Alan Phillips, Phillip Price, Fran Quinn, Bob Rannow, Jean-Francois Remesy, Jesus Rivas, Roger Rowland, a-Tucker Sampson, a-Todd Schaap, Monte Scheinblum, a-Robert Sheats, Chris Smith, a-Tony Soerries, Paul Streeter, Steve Stricker, Toru Suzuki, Scott Taylor, Dennis Wells, Don Wright.

LOCAL KNOWLEDGE I – Tony Soerries, 50, of Montgomery, Texas, grew up in nearby Granger, Ind. and attended Clay High School. Soerries, who won two Indiana Opens (1996, 1997), shared medalist honors with a 70 in the Spring, Texas, sectional qualifier. Soerries, a sales manager for a flooring service company, qualified for the 2002 U.S. Open at Bethpage State Park (Black Course). He was a two-time All-Southeastern Conference selection at the University of Florida in the early 1990s. His college coach, Buddy Alexander, has played in two U.S. Senior Opens.

LOCAL KNOWLEDGE II – Chris Smith, 50, of Peru, Ind., was born in Indianapolis and attended Rochester Community High School. Smith, who was the medalist (69) in the Muncie, Ind., sectional qualifier, was inducted into the Indiana Golf Hall of Fame in 2013. He won an Indiana state high school championship, two state junior titles and the 1990 Indiana State Amateur. Smith, who has competed in five U.S. Opens and was the Big Ten Conference champion while playing at Ohio State University, won the PGA Tour’s Buick Classic in 2002 and five Nike Tour (now Web.com) events. Smith will strike the first ball of the championship from the first tee on Thursday at 7:30 a.m. EDT.

ON THE AIR – Steve Flesch just completed his Fox Network on-course announcing duties at the U.S. Open, held at Pebble Beach (Calif.) Golf Links, and will now play in his third U.S. Senior Open. Flesch, 52, won the PGA Tour Champions’ Mitsubishi Electric Classic last year. Flesch captured four PGA Tour events, including the 2004 Colonial, and was also victorious on the Nike and Asian tours. He competed in 10 U.S. Opens, with his best finish a tie for seventh in 2004. Thomas Levet also worked as an on-course reporter for France’s Canal Plus at the U.S. Open. Levet, who is playing in his first U.S. Senior Open, won six PGA European Tour events and competed in six U.S. Opens. In 2002, he tied for second in the Open Champions at Muirfield, losing to eventual champion Ernie Els in a four-way playoff.

OUTDOOR TV STAR – Jay Gregory, 53, of Lineville, Iowa, has been the host of the Outdoor Channel’s The Wild Outdoors for more than 25 years. The program features bowhunting, from caribou to sandhill crane to whitetail deer. Gregory, who is playing in his first U.S. Senior Open, took his first job as a golf professional in Chillicothe, Ohio in 1990, but regained his amateur status a decade later. Gregory also plays in a 1980’s rock tribute band.

LONG DRIVE – Monte Scheinblum, 52, of Tustin, Calif., won the National U.S. Long Drive Championship and World Long Drive Championship in 1992. He turned to golf after injuring his pitching elbow as a freshman in high school. His father, Richie, played for seven Major League Baseball teams, including the Kansas City Royals when he was chosen to the 1972 American League All-Star Team. Monte competed on the Nike Tour (now Web.com) in the 1990s and played in one PGA Tour event.

RUN TO FIRST SENIOR – Gary Nicklaus, 50, of Jupiter, Fla., is the youngest son of four-time U.S. Open and two-time U.S. Senior Open champion Jack Nicklaus. Gary, who has competed in 10 USGA championships, including the 1997 and 2001 U.S. Opens, advanced through the Jupiter, Fla., sectional qualifier. He earned the second of two spots following a 3-for-1 playoff. Gary, who is playing in his first Senior Open, birdied the 17th and par-5 18th to reach the playoff with Lance Ten Broeck and Don Bell.

BIRDIE BARRAGE – Jesus Rivas, of Colombia, and Paul Trittler, of Cave Creek, Ariz., made a pair of birdies on the first playoff hole to share medalist honors and advance in a 4-for-2 playoff in the Naples, Fla., sectional qualifier. Rivas sank a 15-foot putt on the par-4 first at Wilderness Country Club and Trittler followed with a 12-footer. Trittler, who spent five years on the PGA Tour, is the director of instruction at the Peter Kostis Golf Academy, in Scottsdale, Ariz. Rivas, who is competing in his first U.S. Senior Open, struck the first tee shot in PGA Tour Latinoamerica history in Mexico on Sept. 5, 2012.

FIRST CLUB – Prayad Marksaeng, 53, of Thailand, competes primarily on the Asian and Japan tours. He has 47 professional victories, including 13 wins on the Japan Senior Tour. Marksaeng, who is competing in his third U.S. Senior Open, learned to play golf in Hua Hin as he had to walk through a golf course daily to get to school. His first club was made with bamboo and a piece of scrap metal.

STARTING LATE – Paul Streeter, 52, of England, came to golf later than most. He did not take up the game until age 16 and turned professional at age 31. Streeter, who signed as a semi-pro soccer player with Lincoln City FC before choosing golf, advanced to the Staysure Tour through 2018 Qualifying School. He has won twice on tour – Travis Perkins Masters on Sept .2 and Costa Blanca Benidorm Senior Masters on Dec. 1, defeating Miguel Angel Jimenez in a playoff. Streeter earned an exemption into the U.S. Senior Open as a top 10 money leader from the final 2018 Staysure Tour Order of Merit.

ALL IN THE FAMILY – Jeff Gallagher, who is playing in his fourth U.S. Senior Open, is the brother of Jim Gallagher Jr., who owns five PGA Tour wins, and Jackie Gallagher-Smith, who won once on the LPGA Tour. Jeff, who is a teaching professional at the Legacy Golf Course, in Henderson, Nev., recorded two wins on the Nationwide Tour (now Web.com). Gallagher, 54, earned medalist honors in the Woodburn, Ore., sectional qualifier. It marked the third consecutive year he has been a medalist in qualifying.

TEACHING BROTHER-IN-LAW – Jerry Kelly, who tied for second in last year’s U.S. Senior Open, and his brother-in-law, Jim Schuman, are each playing in their third U.S. Senior Open. Kelly posted his fourth PGA Tour Champions victory by winning the American Family Insurance Championship last week. Schuman, who is also Kelly’s swing coach, is the director of instruction at Blue Mound Golf and Country Club, in Wauwatosa, Wis., and teaches in Arizona in the winter. Schuman, who was inducted into the Wisconsin Golf Hall of Fame, was the University of Wisconsin’s head coach from 2003-11.

TWO TOURS – Steve Stricker, 52, of Madison, Wis., is splitting time between the PGA Tour and PGA Tour Champions in 2018-19. He won the Regions Tradition, the first senior major of the season, on May 13 and has played in in seven PGA Tour events. Stricker, who has 12 PGA Tour victories, attempted to qualify for this year’s U.S. Open where he has made 20 appearances and has 13 top-25 finishes. He advanced to the U.S. Open through sectional qualifying in 2017 and 2018 and tied for 16th and 20th, respectively. Stricker, who has posted three top-10 finishes on PGA Tour Champions this season, was an All-American at the University of Illinois before starting his professional career in 1990.

TRADITIONAL GROUPING – Defending U.S. Senior Open champion David Toms, 2018 Senior Open Championship winner Miguel Angel Jimenez and 2018 U.S. Senior Amateur champion Jeff Wilson are grouped together for the first two rounds. The threesome starts from the first tee on Thursday at 8:36 a.m. EDT. Toms won last year’s U.S. Senior Open, held at The Broadmoor (East Course). Jimenez captured the Senior Open Championship at St. Andrews. Wilson defeated Sean Knapp, 2 and 1, in last year’s U.S. Senior Amateur final.

TWO OF THE LAST IN – Tommy Tolles, of Cliffs Communities, N.C., and Chris Hunsucker, of San Antonio, Texas, were added to the 2019 U.S. Senior Open field on June 23. Tolles, a 52-year-old professional, replaced 2004 U.S. Senior Open champion Peter Jacobsen when he withdrew due to a back injury. Tolles, who has played in five U.S. Opens, is competing in his second U.S. Senior Open. Chris Hunsucker was added to the U.S. Senior Open field because the USGA had held one spot for the winner of last week’s PGA Tour Champions event, in the instance he was not exempt. But fully exempt player Jerry Kelly won the American Family Insurance Championship. Hunsucker, a 54-year-old professional from San Antonio, Texas, is playing in his first U.S. Senior Open. He is a teaching professional at Mac Wylie Golf Center, in Boerne, Texas.

IN MEMORIAM – Bruce Lietzke, who won the 2003 U.S. Senior Open Championship at Inverness Club, in Toledo, Ohio, passed away at age 67 on July 28, 2018. Lietzke captured seven PGA Tour Champions events. Gene Littler, the 1961 U.S. Open champion and 1953 U.S. Amateur winner, died on Feb. 15. Littler played in six U.S. Senior Opens and tied for second in 1982. He won 29 times on the PGA Tour and recorded eight PGA Tour Champions victories. Littler received the Bob Jones Award, the highest honor given by the USGA, in 1973 and was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1990.