Mid-amateurs who transcend the over-25 circuit
If we learned anything this year, it’s that it takes a calculated, dedicated effort to compete at the highest echelon of amateur golf as a mid-amateur. This story line played out in 2019 for Stewart Hagestad as he chased – and secured – a spot on the U.S. Walker Cup team for the second time in his mid-amateur career.
Up next? Lauren Greenlief is attempting to do the same for the 2020 Curtis Cup. The 29-year-old dedicated her summer to making as many amateur starts as she could. That culminated with a semifinal run at the U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur, a tournament she won in 2015. Greenlief will also have a good shot at an Augusta National Women’s Amateur invitation – and would be an excellent choice for a special invitational if she doesn’t qualify by her ranking position.
Garrett Rank, Western Amateur champion, and Lukas Michel, U.S. Mid-Amateur champion, are two more mid-amateurs to keep track of in 2020. Michel will play the Masters and Rank is likely to show up, well, everywhere once the summer amateur season begins in earnest. In 2019, he played eight tournaments in the 10-week summer stretch leading up to the U.S. Amateur in August.