It’s hard to believe it’s been eight years since the USGA last visited Oakland Hills Country Club, an iconic venue known for staging major championships. But even after the 76th U.S. Junior Amateur Championship concludes on Saturday, the wait certainly won’t be this long again. The 2024 Junior Amateur is the first of eight USGA championships to be contested at Oakland Hills over the next 27 years.
This will be, however, be the first time the kids get a turn at the historic site, which boasts two courses (North and South), each of which will be featured during the stroke-play portion of the competition on Monday and Tuesday. The better-known South Course, recently restored by Gil Hanse, will stage all matches starting Wednesday. Both were originally designed by Donald Ross.
Previously, Oakland Hills has hosted 11 USGA championships, including six U.S. Opens, two U.S. Senior Opens, two U.S. Amateurs and the 1929 U.S. Women’s Amateur.
This week, 264 of the finest male golfers under the age of 19 are hoping to hoist the U.S. Junior Amateur Trophy, joining legendary names such as Johnny Miller, Tiger Woods, David Duval, Jordan Spieth and Scottie Scheffler, all of whom have gone on to win major championships.
Peacock will have live coverage of Friday’s semifinals and the afternoon 18 of Saturday’s 36-hole championship match, with both replaying on Golf Channel later that night. Here are 3 Things to Know:
Return to The Monster
Oakland Hills’ South Course once prompted Ben Hogan to say after winning the 1951 U.S. Open, “If I had to play this course for a living every week, I'd get into another business. I'm glad I brought this course -- this monster -- to its knees."
The tough test is perfect pairing for the USGA’s championship philosophy, which stresses the need to get every club in the bag dirty, even the one between the ears.
“The greens will be quick, the fairways will be tight and the rough is going to be thick,” said Rob Doone, U.S. Junior Amateur championship director. “This is a U.S. Open golf course, and it’s going to be a U.S. Open test for these junior golfers.”
Tour Experience
The current state of boys' junior golf is incredibly strong. Heading into this week’s Junior Amateur, the field boasts not one, but two players who have not just competed in professional events, but have also made the cut. Blades Brown, 16, of Nashville, Tenn., a member of the USGA’s inaugural U.S. National Junior Team, made headlines in May when he received a sponsor’s exemption into the PGA Tour’s Myrtle Beach Classic, and went on to shoot rounds of 72-67-66-69 to finish T-26. His National Junior Team teammate Miles Russell, 15, of Jacksonville, Fla., has a similar distinction, becoming the youngest player in Korn Ferry Tour history to make the cut back in April, also notching a Top-25 finish. Add in four others from the field who currently sit among the Top 100 of the World Amateur Golf Ranking®/WAGR ®, and it’s a good bet these kids are ready to take on the monster.
Local Flavor
The 264-player field will showcase two players from Michigan: Connor Fox, of Lake Orion and Ieuan Jones, of Ann Arbor. Fox made it into his first USGA championship by winning the Michigan Junior Amateur earlier this month, part of a new exemption given by the USGA to junior amateur champions from Allied Golf Associations. Fox, who is committed to play at Michigan State University beginning in the fall of 2025, is a rising senior at Lake Orion High School. Jones qualified the old-fashioned way, firing a 4-under 68 to earn medalist honors in the Omaha, Neb., qualifier on May 30 at Champions Run Golf Club. Jones won the 2022 Michigan Division 1 individual state championship as a sophomore by six strokes.
Julia Pine is the USGA’s director of championship communications and content. Email her at jpine@usga.org.
