Stevens Point Country Club hosts dozen of golfers qualifying for U.S. Senior Open

STEVENS POINT, Wis. (WSAW) - Qualifying for the U.S. Senior Open was in full swing Friday at the Stevens Point Country Club for an event that stands out in their history.

“We’ve had a couple of WSGA events, but probably nothing on this national kind of scale,” said Head Golf Professional Andrew Kurgler, Stevens Point County Club. “We’ve had State Opens in the past and the last one was in 2000, but nothing quite of this caliber.”

For the Wisconsin State Golf Association, the Country Club was a no-brainer.

“They redid their golf course in, I think, 2016. And with the championship being right down the road here at Sentry World, we figured what a great opportunity to showcase what they did here,” said Geoff Pirkl, director of Rules and Competition for the WSGA.

Despite its convenience and course condition, the country club remains grateful to have been selected.

“It’s a huge honor to be asked to host something like this,” Kurgler said. “Especially on the national level and we have an international field coming to play today. Just a huge honor.”

No matter their result, the Country Club and WSGA hope today’s qualifier leaves players with a lasting impression of Stevens Point.

“Just hoping to remember Stevens Point Country Club and that was an awesome golf course and a great spot for qualifier. Hopefully, we have a local player that makes it through, that would be pretty awesome to see,” added Kurgler.

“Wisconsin’s really booming right now in golf and this is a course that doesn’t necessarily see it get that recognition that the other big ones do,” says Pirkl. “But this is a way to provide that.”

Of the 78 golfers at the qualifier Friday, 43 were from Wisconsin. There were also international golfers from England, Australia, Germany, and Paraguay. Only two were selected to qualify for the U.S. Senior Open, while another two will be selected as alternatives.

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