88TH Illinois State Women's Amateur Championship
June 15-17, 2021
Pine Meadow Golf Club, Mundelein, IL
Pine Meadow Golf Club is an outstanding championship-quality venue that has been chosen as host for numerous USGA, CDGA, PGA , Illinois PGA and Web.Com qualifiers and championships. We were honored to have Pine Meadow host this championship in 2017 and were treated to extremely qualified staff in addition to a fine golf course and a world-class learning center.
Pine Meadow is also the home of the "Monday Ladies League" which draws competitive players from both private and public courses from all over the Chicago area. The 52-player league has an average handicap of 14 with the First Flight being comprised of players with handicaps of 10 or less. League players are drawn to the quality of the course coupled with a staff that recognizes the importance of women in the game of golf.
The Championship will be played from a combination of tees to achieve a total course distance of about 6,000 yards at par 72 and will include several enticing risk-reward options that will test players' match play decisions.
Wow! What a Field!
The Illinois Women's Golf Association has been conducting the Illinois State Women's Amateur Championship for 87 years to determine the best woman amateur golfer in the state.
In the beginning, the focus was one of introducing women to the game of golf and in providing a venue where women could discover the joy of competitive golf. As time went on, the focus slowly shifted to conducting a Championship that would draw the best players in the state to vie for the title of State Champion while also providing opportunities for the less accomplished players in the field to experience match play competition against others of similar capabilities. Recently, however, with the explosion of talent in women's golf, the focus has had to be narrowed to concentrating on crowning the best player in the state.
Each year the field gets stronger, but no one expected the caliber of the field that is set to vie for the State Championship next week. There are 28 players in the field with who are scratch or better! For those who are not familiar with the term, these are players that average equal to or better than par!
The 2019 defending champion Sarah Arnold of St. Charles is returning to defend her title. Major college golf programs are being represented like Duke, Wake Forest, and the University of Alabama. Many of the players have just returned from participating in the Big 10 and NCAA championships, and that doesn't include the huge talent that the Junior golfers are bringing to the Championship! Wow! What a Field!
On Tuesday morning, 48 players will play 18 holes to determine the 32-player match play bracket and the chance to be crowned Illinois State Women’s Amateur Champion.
The first round of matches will take place on Tuesday afternoon and there will be morning and afternoon matches on Wednesday with the Semi-Final and Final matches being contested on Thursday. Spectators are welcome, so come and see some great golf!
A huge THANK YOU to the Jemsek Family for giving us Pine Meadow for the second time in 5 years! It's an outstanding facility with a wonderful staff that understands and supports women's golf. Just ask all the low handicappers that play in their Monday Women's League!
To all the players next week. Win or lose, elated or humbled, the game of golf teaches us about ourselves. Embrace the experience and learn from it for both your golf game and your life.
The IWGA Board
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