Top 10 U.S. Amateur Champions From California

For the first time in eight years, the U.S. Amateur Championship is returning to California as The Olympic Club, in San Francisco, will take center stage. The 125th edition is going to be contested on the club’s famed Lake Course, with the Ocean Course serving as the stroke-play co-host.

In 2017 at The Riviera Country Club, in Pacific Palisades, Doc Redman put together a remarkable rally to defeat Doug Ghim in 37 holes. How the next chapter in California U.S. Amateur history plays out, nobody knows, but America’s oldest championship – it preceded  the U.S. Open by one day – has managed to produce a number of great champions from the Golden State.

Of course, the leader of the pack is a familiar name, but there are plenty of others who you might not realize grew up in a state that will have hosted 93 USGA championships by year’s end, two less than front-runner Pennsylvania.

Here are our top 10 U.S. Amateur champions from California, with a few honorable mentions thrown in for good measure:

Tiger Woods (1994-96)

It’s likely nobody will ever produce the historic achievement by the Cypress native. Woods not only claimed three consecutive U.S. Junior Amateur titles from 1991-93 (he was a semifinalist in 1990), but then captured an unprecedented three straight U.S. Amateur titles, something Bob Jones, Jack Nicklaus, Francis Ouimet and the recently deceased Jay Sigel never accomplished.

All of Woods’ U.S. Amateur titles were dramatic comebacks. He trailed Trip Kuehne by six holes in 1994 at TPC Sawgrass before he posted a 2-up win, punctuated by a birdie from the fringe on the iconic par-3 17th hole that included his now-patented fist pump.

Buddy Marucci, a decorated mid-amateur, also took him the distance at Newport (R.I.) Country Club in 1995, only to see Woods work his magic in a 2-up win. Then against Steve Scott in front of an estimated 15,000 spectators at Pumpkin Ridge G.C., in suburban Portland, Ore., in 1996, Woods needed 38 holes to defeat the University of Florida All-American, rallying from a 5-down deficit. The next week, Woods made his “Hello World” statement in Milwaukee as he made his professional debut.

Woods has since won three U.S. Opens, giving him nine USGA titles to match Jones for the most all-time.

Phil Mickelson (1990)

Born and raised in San Diego, the left-handed Mickelson captured the 1990 U.S. Amateur at Cherry Hills Country Club, defeating his ex-University High teammate and college rival Manny Zerman in the 36-hole final. It would be Mickelson’s only USGA title. He is a six-time U.S. Open runner-up, most notably in 2006 at Winged Foot when a disastrous double-bogey 6 left him one stroke behind champion Geoff Ogilvy. Mickelson has, however, claimed six major titles, including the 2021 PGA Championship at the remarkable age of 50, making him the oldest-ever major champion. Mickelson ended his long major-less drought when he edged Ernie Els by a stroke in the 2004 Masters. The 45-time PGA Tour winner was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2012.

Gene Littler (1953)

Another San Diego-area standout, Littler rose to prominence in the early 1950s, winning both the U.S. Amateur at Oklahoma City Golf & Country Club and the California Amateur in 1953 while also representing the USA on that year’s Walker Cup Team. A year later, he won the 1954 San Diego Open as an amateur, a look into what became a Hall-of-Fame career (inducted in 1990). Littler joined a select group of players to have captured both the U.S. Amateur and U.S. Open when he triumphed at Oakland Hills in 1961. It was his lone major title in a career that saw him win 54 times worldwide, including 29 on the PGA Tour.

Bryson DeChambeau (2015)

While the long-hitting DeChambeau now makes his home in the Dallas Metroplex, he grew up just outside of Fresno in Clovis. His U.S. Amateur triumph came at Olympia Fields (Ill.) Country Club in the Chicago suburbs against Derek Bard, the same year DeChambeau won the NCAA individual title for Southern Methodist University. He would also represent the USA in that year’s Walker Cup Match at Royal Lytham & St. Annes before embarking on a successful professional career that includes a pair of U.S. Open victories in 2020 (Winged Foot) and 2024 (Pinehurst). DeChambeau is in the select company of Tiger Woods and Jack Nicklaus as players who have won a U.S. Amateur, U.S. Open and NCAA title.

Mark O’Meara (1979)

Arguably the greatest player in Long Beach State history, O’Meara became a Southern California legend when he defeated defending champion and fellow Golden Stater John Cook, 8 and 7, in the 36-hole final at Canterbury Country Club, in Cleveland, Ohio. O’Meara first took up the game at 13 in Mission Viejo in the heart of Orange Country. He became an All-American at Long Beach State before embarking on a highly successful professional career that included a pair of major titles in 1998: The Masters Tournament and The Open Championship at Royal Birkdale. He amassed 34 worldwide victories, 16 of which came on the PGA Tour. He was best known for dominating the AT&T National Pro-Am at Pebble Beach, winning five times. Inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2015, he competed on five Ryder Cup Teams.

Craig Stadler (1973)

The former University of Southern California All-American won the 1973 U.S. Amateur at Inverness Club in the first year the USGA brought back the match play format after an eight-year hiatus. From 1965-72, the championship was conducted at 72 holes of stroke play. Stadler defeated David Strawn, 6 and 5, in the 36-hole final, but it was his two victories leading into the final that may have been more impressive. He eliminated Walker Cup stalwart and past British Amateur champion Dick Siderowf in the quarters and defending champion Marvin “Vinny” Giles in the semis. Stadler turned professional three years later and registered 13 PGA Tour victories, including the 1982 Masters. With his bushy mustache, “The Walrus,” as he was aptly nicknamed, became a huge fan favorite.

W. Lawson Little (1934-35)

While Little wasn’t born in California, he spent a good deal of his childhood in the San Francisco Bay Area. His father was a U.S. Army colonel stationed at the Presidio. In 1934-35, Little produced something that has not been accomplished since, winning the U.S. and British Amateur titles in consecutive seasons. Bob Dickson, Bob Jones and Harold Hilton are the only golfers to have won both titles in a single season. Little’s 14-and-13 triumph over James Wallace at Prestwick in the 1934 British final remains a record for dominance. Interesting enough, both of Little’s U.S. Amateur victories came at The Country Club, the 1934 win in Brookline, Mass., and the subsequent year at The Country Club in Cleveland, Ohio. Little turned professional in 1936 and won the 1940 U.S. Open for his lone major title. He also once carried as many as 26 clubs in his bag, prompting the USGA to establish a maximum allowance of 14 clubs. Little also won the 1935 Sullivan Award for excellence in amateur athletics.

John Cook (1978)

The son of PGA Tour official Jim Cook, he grew up in the Palos Verdes area and later captured the 1978 U.S. Amateur during his All-American days at The Ohio State University. He defeated future PGA Tour winner Scott Hoch in the championship match at Plainfield Country Club, which conducted this year’s U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship. Cook also led the Buckeyes to the 1979 NCAA title. He won the 1975 California Amateur and twice claimed the prestigious Sunnehanna Amateur. He led the USA to victory in the 1978 World Amateur Team Championship. He turned professional in 1979, registering 28 worldwide victories, 11 of which came on the PGA Tour. He later added 10 PGA Tour Champions titles and now is a prominent voice on Golf Channel. His best U.S. Open finish was a tie for fourth in 1981 at Merion Golf Club.

Nathaniel Crosby (1981)

If the last name sounds familiar, it should. Nathaniel is the youngest child of known crooner and golf addict Bing Crosby. He was born and raised in Hillsborough, not far from The Olympic Club, where Nathaniel claimed his biggest title, defeating 24-year-old engineer Brian Lindley in 37 holes on the Lake Course. Crosby, a member of the victorious 1983 USA Walker Cup Team, attended the University of Miami but never gained much traction in the professional ranks. He later regained his amateur status and captained a pair of USA Walker Cup Teams to victory in 2019 at Royal Liverpool and 2021 at Seminole Golf Club. The North Palm Beach, Fla., resident was inducted into the University of Miami Hall of Fame in 2005.

Ricky Barnes (2002)

At famed Oakland Hills Country Club, the Stockton, Calif., native became a trivia question. The University of Arizona standout’s victory over 1999 U.S. Junior Amateur champion Hunter Mahan made him the USGA’s 500th unique champion. Earlier this year, the USGA crowned its 749th and 750th champs at the U.S. Women’s Amateur Four-Ball. From 2000-2003, Barnes was one of the best amateurs in the country, having qualified for three U.S. Opens. He also contended for the title as a professional in 2009 at Bethpage State Park, tying for second behind winner Lucas Glover.

Honorable Mention

Eric Meeks (1988): The former University of Arizona standout defeated Danny Yates at the Omni Homestead Resort’s Cascades Course. Meeks’ twin brother, Aaron, also was a standout golfer for Arizona. Meeks also competed at Arizona with future PGA Tour winner Robert Gamez.

Mitch Voges (1991): Voges, of Simi Valley, relegated Zerman to a runner-up finish in a U.S. Amateur for the second year in a row, this time at The Honors Course. A year earlier, Zerman lost to ex-high school teammate Phil Mickelson. Voges, then 41, is one of a handful of mid-amateurs to have claimed the title in the last 50 years, a list that includes the late Jay Sigel, Buddy Alexander and John Harris.

Sam Randolph (1985): A former University of Southern California All-American, Randolph won his title at Montclair Golf Club in New Jersey a year after losing to Scott Verplank in the final. The Santa Barbara native won 13 times for the Trojans and was the low amateur in the 1985 Masters. He also won the Haskins Award, given annually to the nation’s top collegiate golfer. His father, Sam Sr., was the head professional at La Cumbre Country Club, a highly regarded private facility in Santa Barbara.

David Shefter is a senior staff writer at the USGA. Email him at dshefter@usga.org.