2024 US Senior Open: Best Moments From Newport Country Club Ranked

The PGA Tour Champions have proved that ‘Age is nothing but a number’ by organizing professional events for senior golfers. And this week, the veterans are competing for one of the biggest honors: the US Senior Open. This week, from June 27 to 30, 156 seniors will head to Rhode Island’s Newport Country Club and battle it out for $4 million.

Just like the US Seniors Open, the greens of Newport have witnessed some iconic moments, owing to their hosting of some big events like the U.S. Open, the U.S. Amateur, and the U.S. Women’s Open.

Newport Country Club saw both Annika Sorenstam and Tiger Woods dominate

The club was founded in 1893, and it boasts having hosted the first-ever US Open in 1895. And over the past decade, it’s seen many big names take to its course, and perhaps just as many big moments play out on its greens. And the top 3 such moments are as below: (Fun fact: all of these iconic incidents are from the US Open (men’s and women’s).)

3. 16-year-old Michelle Wie West narrowly missed out on the 2006 US Women’s Open win

Last year, Michelle Wie West bid farewell to the golf world as her 10-year exemption from the 2014 US Women’s Open came to an end. That was her only major win in a career span of twenty-three years. However, there is one more story revolving around her from an earlier US Women’s Open that golf enthusiasts can never forget.

Back in 2006, at just 16 years old, West finished at T3, slightly missing out on the playoff by just two strokes. Wie was in the headlines not just for being an amateur in the top-3 of the leaderboard but also because she was the only woman ever to come so close to winning the US Women’s Open title by advancing through the first of the two qualifier rounds (the local qualifier in Kahuku, Hawaii) with an even-par 72. The LPGA legend even earned the medalist honor for her play that year.

2. Annika Sorenstam’s playoff victory at the 2006 U.S. Women’s Open

Notably, the next best moment of the Newport Greens is also from the 2006 US Women’s Open. On Sunday, Annika Sorenstram tied Pat Hurst with an even-par 284 and headed to a playoff. In the playoff, the match started tilting towards Sorenstam from the very first hole, as on the par-5 hole, she putted a six-foot birdie while Hurst settled for a bogey. The Swedish pro further widened her victory gap with another birdie on the third hole. Soon, the 18-hole playoff round ended with Sorenstam emerging victorious by four strokes, calming her third US Women’s Open title and her 10th and final major win.

1. 19-year-old Tiger Woods’s successful U.S. Amateur title defense

Well, before Woods turned pro and conquered the golf world, he also did wonders as an amateur. It was 1995, the last year for Tiger Woods as an amateur. For the 100th US Amateur Open, the USGA returned to its roots at Newport Greens. It is quite ironic to say ‘Greens’ because that year, due to one of Newport’s most severe droughts, Newport Country Club was quite dry and brown. Although Woods had by then visited some of the greatest American courses, it was his first time to Newport.

Buddy Marucci, a 43-year-old, was the only man standing between 19-year-old Woods and the preservation of his US Amateur trophy. After the first 18 holes of the final day round, Woods was trailing by 1. But the legend was far from ready to throw in the towel. Mid-day, he decided to practice and do mind-relaxing exercises instead of taking a rest, and then headed out for the second half. And before the final hole, Woods had a one-stroke lead.

The 15-time major winner drove the ball over a fairway bunker that left him 140 yards away from the hole. Marucci’s ball found the greens in two, leaving him with a 23-foot birdie putt that could force extra holes. Minutes later, Woods made an uphill shot, leaving his ball just 18 inches from the hole. A few seconds later, he holed it in for a birdie, snatching a back-to-back US Amateur Open win and etching his name into history books, joining Bobby Jones and seven other golfers in winning the championship twice in a row.