Inside the Field: 70th U.S. Senior Amateur

WHO’S HERE – Among the 156 golfers in the 2025 U.S. Senior Amateur field, there are:

Oldest Competitors: Pat O’Donnell (71), Dave Ryan (71), David Anthony (70), James Pearson (70)

Youngest Competitors: Derrick Scenna (55), Ron Mangold (55), Chris Congdon (55), Brendan Hester (55), Jacobo Cestino (55), Steve Wilson (55), Steve Albright (55), Shaw Pritchett (55), Tony Wise (55), David Johnson (55), Paul Neeman (55), Juan Angel (55), Dave Segot (55), Trae Cassell (55), Jason Pridmore (55), Scott Osler (55), Jack O’Keefe (55), Michael Anderson (55), Rick Stewart (55), Kirk Macumber (55)

Average Age of Field: 59.9

Field breakdown by age:
Age 55-59: 81
Age 60-64: 53
Age 65-69: 18
Age 70-72: 4

U.S. States Represented – There are 39 states represented in the 2025 U.S. Senior Amateur: California (16), Texas (14), Florida (13), Pennsylvania (10), Georgia (9), North Carolina (7), Arizona (6), Illinois (5), Virginia (5), Iowa (4), Massachusetts (4), Michigan (4), New York (4), Ohio (4), Tennessee (4), Alabama (3), Arkansas (3), South Carolina (3), Colorado (2), Connecticut (2), Kentucky (2), Minnesota (2), Nevada (2), New Jersey (2), Oklahoma (2), Utah (2), Washington (2), Hawaii (1), Idaho (1), Indiana (1), Louisiana (1), Maryland (1), Mississippi (1), Missouri (1), Montana (1), Nebraska (1), Oregon (1), Rhode Island (1), Wisconsin (1)

International – There are seven countries represented in the 2025 U.S. Senior Amateur: United States (148), Canada (2), England (2), Columbia (1), Ireland (1), New Zealand (1), Spain (1).

USGA Champions (14): Louis Brown (2024 U.S. Senior Amateur), Nathaniel Crosby (1981 U.S. Amateur), Gene Elliott (2021 U.S. Senior Amateur), Doug Hanzel (2013 U.S. Senior Amateur), Tim Hogarth (1996 U.S. Amateur Public Links), Sean Knapp (2017 U.S. Senior Amateur), Jack Larkin Sr. (1979 U.S. Junior Amateur), Michael McCoy (2013 U.S. Mid-Amateur), Bob Royak (2019 U.S. Senior Amateur), Dave Ryan (2016 U.S. Senior Amateur), Rusty Strawn (2022 U.S. Senior Amateur), Todd White (2015 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball, 2023 U.S. Senior Amateur), Jeff Wilson (2018 U.S. Senior Amateur) and Steve Wilson (2008 U.S. Mid-Amateur).

USGA Runners-up (12): Thomas Brennan (1994 U.S. Mid-Amateur), Sherrill Britt (2015 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball), Greg Earnhardt (2015 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball), Jody Fanagan (2023 U.S. Senior Amateur), Doug Hanzel (2022 U.S. Senior Amateur), Tim Hogarth (2010 U.S. Mid-Amateur), Sean Knapp (2018 U.S. Senior Amateur), Roger Newsom (2019 U.S. Senior Amateur), Pat O’Donnell (2013 U.S. Senior Amateur), Matt Sughrue (2016 U.S. Senior Amateur), Rick Stimmell (1997 U.S. Mid-Amateur) and Daniel Sullivan (2024 U.S. Senior Amateur)

Walker Cup USA Team Members (4): Nathaniel Crosby (1983), Michael McCoy (2015), Mike Sposa (1991), Todd White (2013)

GB&I Walker Cup Team Members (1): Jody Fanagan (1995)

Walker Cup USA Captains (2): Nathaniel Crosby (2019, 2021), Michael McCoy (2023)

Most U.S. Senior Amateur Appearances (2025 included): Doug Hanzel (13), Dave Ryan (13), Randy Haag (10), Bob Royak (9), Matt Sughrue (9)

Players from Texas (14): Jerry Achilles (Georgetown), Neal Barfield (Dallas), John Brellenthin (Dallas), Russ Childers (Rockwall), Cameron Greenwood (Houston), Mike Houlihan (San Antonio), Thomas Immenschuh (San Antonio), Kirk Johnson (The Woodlands), Mike Lohner (Southlake), Stephen Marland (Houston), Terrence Miskell (New Braunfels), Douglas Northcutt (Georgetown), John Pierce (San Antonio) and Andrew Whitacre (The Woodlands)

Played in 2024 U.S. Senior Amateur (44): Jerry Achilles, Jon Brown, Louis Brown, Dave Bunker, Nathaniel Crosby, Doug Clapp, Nathaniel Crosby, Gene Elliott, Jody Fanagan, Chris Fieger, Mike Finster, Randy Haag, Jack Hall, Doug Hanzel, Mike Henry, Bryan Hoops, Michael Hughett, Joe Jaspers, Sean Knapp, John Kemp, Mark Knecht, Jack Larkin Sr., Steven Mann, Miles McConnell, Michael McCoy, Rj Nakashian, Robert Nelson, Roger Newsom, Brent Paterson, Greg Sanders, Joe Sawaia, Keith Salamon, Matt Sughrue, Daniel Sullivan, Rusty Strawn, Rick Stimmel, Robert F. Gerwin II, Ed Wyatt, Andrew Whitacre, Todd White, Jeff Wilson

Played in 2025 U.S. Senior Open (8): Dave Bunker, Doug Clapp, Joe Jaspers, Bradley Kay, Terrence Miskell, Mark Strickland, Daniel Sullivan, Todd White

Played in 2025 U.S. Amateur (3): Greg Sanders, Daniel Sullivan, Todd White

Played in 2025 U.S. Amateur Four-Ball (3): Jack Larkin Sr., Michael Smith, Todd White

Played in 2024 U.S. Mid-Amateur (4): Michael McCoy, Rick Stimmel, Daniel Sullivan, Todd White

PLAYER NOTES:

Steve Albright, 55, of Ocala, Fla., currently serves as the vice president of the Florida State Golf Association and will be taking over as president of the organization when his current term is up. Albright has decades of competitive golf experience at the state level and is making his USGA championship debut after advancing through qualifying. His son, Gray, plays on the PGA TOUR Americas.

Trae Cassell, 55, of Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., is making his U.S. Senior Amateur debut after earning his way into the field by firing a 4-under 68 during qualifying. Out of college, Cassell had a short professional career before he turned to working as a club pro at prestigious clubs. He then switched to a career in real estate, giving up the game entirely as he balanced his time with work and family. After taking more than a decade away from competitive golf, he rediscovered his passion for the game, winning the 2024 California Senior Amateur Championship and adding five more top five finishes in senior events.

Nathaniel Crosby, 63, of Palm Beach, Fla., was the captain of the victorious 2021 and 2023 USA Walker Cup Teams. He won the 1981 U.S. Amateur at The Olympic Club, the same course that hosted this year’s U.S. Amateur. One year after his victory, he was the low-amateur at the 1982 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links. His strong play resulted in him being selected to the victorious 1982 USA World Amateur and 1983 USA Walker Cup teams. Crosby is the son of late American singer and entertainer Bing Crosby.

Gene Elliott, 63, of Norwalk, Iowa, won his first USGA championship at the 2021 U.S. Senior Amateur at the Country Club of Detroit, becoming one of three players ever to capture the U.S. Senior Amateur, R&A Senior Amateur (2021) and Canadian Men’s Senior Amateur (2017, 2019). Elliott, a survivor of open-heart surgery in 2000, was inducted to the Iowa Hall of Fame after curating a resume that includes 36 state victories and eight Player of the Year selections. He has competed on five USGA State Teams and played in 37 USGA championships, falling in the Round of 32 during last year’s U.S. Senior Amateur.

Jody Fanagan, 60, of Ireland, is coming off a tie for second at the R&A’s Senior Amateur Championship in July. During his USGA championship debut at the 2023 U.S. Senior Amateur, Fanagan became the first international player in championship history to make the final round, where he fell to Todd White, 4 and 3. The Ireland native was a member of the victorious 1995 GB&I Walker Cup team, winning all three of his matches and taking down Tiger Woods and the USA team, 14-10. During his 2024 campaign, Fanagan made the Round of 64 at the U.S. Senior Amateur, made the cut at the R&A Senior Amateur and competed in the U.S. Senior Open.

Roger Haggerty, 62, of Stamford, Conn., is a multi-sport Division I athlete, earning scholarships for hockey, baseball and football at Providence College. After spending his first year on the hockey team, Haggerty switched his focus to baseball, earning the Big East Player of Year award in 1986. He then signed with Boston Red Sox, playing five years in the minor leagues. After hanging up his cleats, he returned to the ice as a coach. His son, Ryan, spent six years in the NHL playing for the New York Rangers, Chicago Blackhawks, Pittsburgh Penguins and Florida Panthers.

Tony Hejna, 57, of Juno Beach, Fla., quit competitive junior golf at age 17 to focus on hockey, playing four years at Division I Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. During his collegiate career, he racked up 61 goals and 62 assists in 120 games, before getting drafted by the NHL’s St. Louis Blues in the third round. Hejna was forced to retire during his first season as a pro after having his second back surgery at the age of 23. After rehabbing from injury, the former Blue rediscovered his love for competitive golf and will be competing in his 10th USGA championship.

Bruce Henning, 60, of Brookfield, Wis., advanced through qualifying just six years removed from his battle with leukemia. After doctors discovered a high white blood cell count during a routine physical, Henning quickly started treatment. After finishing chemotherapy, doctors recommended Henning to have a bone marrow transplant. After striking out on finding a donor, Henning’s last resort was to turn to his son, Kyle, as the donor. With only a 50/50 chance of his body accepting the donation, the transplant was successful. Henning slowly returned to competitive golf, getting stronger each year, before breaking through during qualifying with his 3-under 69, punching his ticket to the U.S. Senior Amateur.

Mike Houlihan, 56, of San Antonio, Texas, is making his USGA championship debut after advancing through qualifying by shooting 1-over par at host site Oak Hills Country Club. A lifelong San Antonio native, Houlihan played college basketball at Texas Lutheran University and graduated in 1992. Staying in the game, he coached high school basketball at his alma mater, Clark High School, from 1998-2002 before spending another 11 years (2002-2013) as the head coach at O’Conner High School. Houlihan began working towards competitive golf in 2017, and credits switching his membership to Oak Hills Country Club for getting his game to the next level.

Mike Ignasiak, 59, of Saline, Mich., played college baseball at the University of Michigan before being drafted in the eighth round of the 1988 MLB Draft by the Milwaukee Brewers. Ignasiak pitched for nine seasons with the club, including four seasons in the majors. The former Brewer played his way into the U.S. Senior Amateur by earning medalist honors after firing 3-under 69 during the qualifying round.

Thomas Immenschuh, 63, of San Antonio, Texas, a U.S. Air Force veteran, earned his way into the field by shooting 2-under 70 during the qualifying round. Immenschuh is interwoven with the San Antonio golf community, serving on the committee for First Tee of San Antonio during its infancy, and sitting on the Board of Directors at Oak Hills Country Club, where he is an active member. He holds several state championships, including three San Antonio Open titles (2013, 2016, 2018). His wife, Charlotte, owned and operated Alamo Heights’ Kumon Math and Reading Center for 21 years before transitioning to her role as chairman of the board for Catholic Charities.

Bill Jeremiah, 56, of Glen Mills, Pa., is making his USGA championship debut after shooting 4-over 74 during the qualifying round. In 2006, Jeramiah went in for an MRI on his back after sustaining an injury on the golf course. The results revealed a herniated disk and a tumor on his kidney. The tumor was surgically removed and was confirmed to be cancerous. Because of the early intervention, Jeremiah was able to make a full recovery and has remained cancer free.

John Kennedy, 56, of England, is coming off his decisive win at the 2025 R&A Senior Amateur, finishing seven strokes better than the next competitor. Kennedy shot a combined 8-under during the second and third rounds, pacing U.S. Senior Amateur champions Jody Fanagan and Todd White. His win at Walton Health came just weeks after his triumph at the Scottish Senior Men’s Open Championship, winning by two strokes.

Sean Knapp, 63, of Oakmont, Pa., won the 2017 U.S. Senior Amateur, following up his victory with a runner-up finish the following year. During his youth, Knapp served as a caddie at Oakmont Country Club, the host site of the 2025 U.S. Open. The Pennsylvanian has competed on six USGA State Teams and played in 49 USGA championships, including four U.S. Senior Opens, and a loss to Tiger Woods in the Round of 16 of the 1995 U.S. Amateur. He is a 14-time Western Pennsylvania Player of the Year, the winningest golfer in the history of Western Pennsylvania and was inducted into the Western Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame in 2019.

Bryan Koslosky, 57, of Severna Park, Md., is making his USGA championship debut after sharing medalist honors during the qualifying round by carding a 4-over 74. Koslosky, a 10-year U.S. Coast Guard veteran, earned his way into the field just one year after having double bypass open heart surgery. Doctors used a Cryo Nerve Block – a cutting-edge surgical technique – to reduce post-operative sternum pain and allow for a quicker recovery without the use of narcotics. Koslosky made a full recovery and will be teeing it up at Oak Hills.

Jack Larkin Sr., 63, of Atlanta, Ga., is coming off his recent victory at the Georgia Senior Championship, marking the fourth time in the last five years Larkin has won this event. The Atlanta native made the Round of 64 during the last two U.S. Senior Amateurs and made an appearance in the Round of 32 during the 2022 edition. Larkin also played in the U.S. Amateur in five straight decades from the 1970s-2010s.

Oscar Mestre, 65, of Berwyn, Pa., was born in Cuba and lived in Caracas, Venezuela, before moving to Philadelphia. Mestre was the first Cuban American elected as the president of the Golf Assocation of Philadelphia, where he served from 2021-23. On the golf course, he is a two-time GAP Senior Player of the Year (2019, 2021) and has competed in four USGA championships. He made the Round of 64 during his last U.S. Senior Amateur appearance in 2022.

Pat O’Donnell, 71, of Happy Valley, Ore., is the oldest player in the field who played his way into the field by shooting even par during his qualifying round at Brasada Ranch in Powell Butte, Ore. O’Donnell was inducted into the Pacific Northwest Hall of Fame in 2022 after accumulating a resume that features six Oregon Senior Amateur championships, 11 Oregon Senior Men’s Stroke Play titles and four selections as the Oregon Golf Association Men’s Player of the Year. The Oregon native last played in the U.S. Senior Amateur in 2023, 10 years after his runner-up finish when he fell to Doug Hanzel, 3 and 2.

Jack O’Keefe, 55, of Little Rock, Ark., is competing in his first U.S. Senior Amateur, after regaining amateur status in 2023. O’Keefe spent 10 years on the professional circuit, earning his PGA Tour Card in 1997 and competing in the 1996 U.S. Open at Oakland Hills Country Club in Michigan. During his first stint as an amateur, O’Keefe was a four-time all-american at the University of Arkansas and competed in seven USGA amateur championships. The former Razorback served as the head coach of men’s golf at August University from 2013-2022.

Bob Royak, 63, of Alpharetta, Ga., won the 2019 U.S. Senior Amateur at Old Chatham Golf Club, in Durham, N.C. He holds a 20-7 match play record over his eight U.S. Senior Amateurs played, reaching the semifinals in 2022 and 2023 and advancing to the Round of 16 in 2024. Royak, a six-time Georgia Senior Player of the Year, finished second at this year’s Georgia Senior Championship and was the runner-up at the 2025 Georgia Match Play Championship. He won the 2023 North & South Senior Men’s Championship and followed up his title with a tie for third in the 2024 edition. Royak will be competing in his 27th USGA championship. He and wife, Diane, are involved with a Russian orphan program to help children find families.

Rusty Strawn, 62, of Eatonton, Ga., was the 2022 U.S. Senior Amateur champion after defeating fellow Georgian Doug Hanzel, 3 and 2, at The Kittansett Club in Marion, Mass. In that same year, Strawn was victorious at the Canadian Men’s Senior Amateur, the Trans-Mississippi Senior and finished as the runner-up in the North & South Men’s Senior. He also holds a fourth-place finish at the 2023 R&A Senior Amateur. Strawn serves as the chief executive officer of Strawn & Co. Insurance.

Matt Sughrue, 65, of Arlington, Va., worked in the insurance business for 25 years before selling his company in 2013. Towards the end of his insurance career, he went back to graduate school, earning a master’s degree and pivoting to a career as a psychotherapist. Sughrue spent time as a family therapist for a homeless shelter in Manassas, Va., before opening his own private practice helping elite athletes with the mental side of their sport. He now applies the lessons passed along to his patients to his own game as he looks to avenge his semifinal finish in the 2024 U.S. Senior Amateur.

Todd White, 57, of Spartanburg, S.C., is the only two-time USGA champion in the field with victories at the inaugural U.S. Amateur Four-Ball in 2015 and the 2023 U.S. Senior Amateur. White also won the 2024 R&A Senior Amateur Championship, posting a final-round 69 to win by one stroke. Upon defending his title in the 2025 edition, he finished alongside three other competitors for a share of second place. White, a member of the winning 2013 USA Walker Cup Team, is competing in his 41st USGA championship after his recent appearances at the 2025 U.S. Senior Open and 2025 U.S. Amateur. He spends his time off the course as a history teacher and golf coach at Spartanburg High School.  

Kip Yaughn, 56, of Concord, Calif., was a starting pitcher for Arizona State’s baseball team, before getting drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 13th round of the 1990 MLB Draft. He spent three seasons with Orioles’ affiliate minor league teams before another two seasons with the Miami Marlins organization. Yaughn is making his USGA championship debut after shooting even par during the qualifying round.