Fiddlesticks Country Club, in Fort Myers, Fla., has been chosen by the USGA as the host site for the 35th U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship. The championship is scheduled for Sept. 17-22, 2022, and will be played on the facility’s Long Mean Course.
“We’re thrilled to have the opportunity to take this championship to Fiddlesticks Country Club, which will be a fantastic host,” said Laura Nochta, USGA assistant director, Championships. “Players will enjoy the course’s challenging layout and scenic views, all while competing to earn a coveted USGA title and a place in the 2023 U.S. Women’s Open Championship.”
The 2022 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur will be the second USGA championship at Fiddlesticks Country Club. In 2010, the club hosted the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur, won by Mina Hardin. Designed by architect Ron Garl, the Long Mean Course opened in 1983 and recently underwent renovations to enhance bunker playability, add several teeing areas and incorporate bermudagrass.
“Our community is filled with pride as we welcome this esteemed championship to our club,” said Ryan Shaw, general manager and executive vice president. “We are confident that our course, staff and welcoming membership will live up to the incomparable reputation of the USGA and its players.”
The U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship is open to any female amateur golfer 25 and older with a Handicap Index® not exceeding 9.4. The 2022 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur will be the 26th USGA championship contested in Florida. Entries will open in spring 2022.
A total of 132 players advance to the national championship through a number of exemption categories, or through one of a number of qualifiers held throughout the country and in Mexico. The championship proper begins with 36 holes of stroke play, before the field is reduced to the low 64 scores for the championship’s match-play bracket, from which the champion is determined.
The most recent U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur was contested in 2019 at Forest Highlands Golf Club in Flagstaff, Ariz. Ina Kim-Schaad, 35, of New York, N.Y., the runner-up in the 2000 U.S. Girls’ Junior who returned to competitive golf in 2016 after an 11-year hiatus, defeated fellow New York City resident Talia Campbell, 3 and 2, in the 18-hole final on Sept. 19 .
The 2021 U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship will take place at Berkeley Hall Club (North Course) in Bluffton, S.C., from Sept. 25-30. Entries for this championship will open in spring 2021.
