USGA adds final qualifying site to South Carolina
FAR HILLS, N.J. (AP) — The USGA will have a final qualifying site in South Carolina to account for a new tournament that replaces the RBC Canadian Open.
The addition of Long Cove Club on Hilton Head Island brings the total number of final qualifying sites to 10 in the United States, along with a site in Japan and Canada. Final qualifying is June 7, with the exception of qualifiers in Texas and Japan, which will be May 24.
The deadline to enter was Wednesday, and the USGA said it accepted 9,069 entries. It was the ninth straight time at least 9,000 people entered the U.S. Open.
The U.S. Open is June 17-20 at Torrey Pines in San Diego.
The list of 49 players exempt from qualifying does not include Tiger Woods, who is recovering from legs injuries from a Feb. 23 car crash in Los Angeles. Woods won his third U.S. Open in 2008 the last time it was held at Torrey Pines.
The USGA typically schedules a couple of qualifiers around PGA Tour events. There will be two in Ohio on the Monday after Memorial. The new one in South Carolina will be on the Monday leading into the Palmetto Championship at Congaree. The Texas qualifier is the Monday leading into the Charles Schwab Challenge at Colonial in Fort Worth.
There was no qualifying last year because of travel restrictions from the COVID-19 pandemic. The USGA decided not to have an England qualifier this year because of the pandemic. Instead, 10 spots will be available through a points list of three tournaments.
Players still can avoid qualifying by being among the top 60 in the world ranking published May 24 and June 7, or if they win multiple times on the PGA Tour (with full FedEx Cup points allotment) from June 28, 2020, through the week before the U.S. Open.
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