First USGA qualifier of 2025 set for Wednesday
By Josh Rowntree, Director of Communications • April 21, 2025
INDIANA, PA — One of the more heartwarming moments of the 2024 golf season took place at Indiana Country Club in a qualifying round for the U.S. Senior Open Championship.
On Wednesday, Indiana will once again host a qualifying round for the competition, with seven spots into final qualifying — plus two alternate spots — up for grabs.
The Local Qualifying Round is set to have 38 players in the field, with the first ball scheduled to be hit at 9:30 a.m.
The first of a two-stage qualifying structure, participants look to earn their way into the 45th U.S. Senior Open, which will be contested at The Broadmoor Golf Club in Colorado Springs, CO from June 26-29.
Nationally, there have been 2,585 entries into the qualifying field this year, as the qualification process has changed.
Last June, the USGA made a modification that added another stage to qualifying — much like the U.S. Open or U.S Amateur Championships. This means that hopefuls must qualify through two separate rounds, Local and Final, to play in the U.S Senior Open.
Now, top qualifiers from the 32 Local Qualifying Sites will advance to one of the 12 Final Qualifying sites in May or June.
A year ago, David Smith said farewell to his home club by clinching a qualifying spot in what was a Final Qualifying round at the time.
Smith — a member of Indiana Country Club for over 30 years — went on to play in the 44th U.S. Senior Open at Newport Country Club.
Smith ended up missing the cut, shooting 15-over in the U.S Senior Open, but made a lifetime memory before moving to Charleston, South Carolina.
He will be in the field again this year in hopes to make it back to the national championship for a second straight year.
Smith will be joined by 2024 WPGA competition winners Arnold Cutrell and Paul Bangor, as well as 2024 Palmer Cup participant Scott Kemmler and many others in the competition.
For a live leaderboard, click here. (GGID: 25USSROPENQ)
For any media inquiries, please contact WPGA Director of Communications Josh Rowntree.
About the WPGA
Founded in 1899, the Western Pennsylvania Golf Association is the steward of amateur golf in the region. Started by five Member Clubs, the association now has nearly 200 Member Clubs and nearly 37,000 members. The WPGA conducts 14 individual competitions and 10 team events, and administers the WPGA Scholarship Fund and Western Pennsylvania Golf Hall of Fame.