The Western Junior is the oldest national

junior golf Junior golf refers to the game of golf being played by boys and girls who have not finished secondary school or reached the age of 19, whichever comes first. More specifically, any person falling under the above definition who has played at least o ...

tournament in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. It was founded in 1914 and is organized by the

Western Golf Association Founded in 1899, the Western Golf Association (WGA) is one of the United States' oldest golf organizations. Its headquarters are located in Glenview, Illinois. The WGA sponsors six golf tournaments: the Western Junior; the Western Amateur; the Wo ...

. It is played at a different course each year, primarily in the

midwest The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...

. From 1914 to 1998, it was played with

stroke play Stroke play, also known as medal play, is a scoring system in the sport of golf in which the total number of strokes is counted over one or more rounds of 18 holes. In stroke play, the winner is the player who has taken the fewest strokes over the ...

qualifying followed by a

match play Match play is a scoring system for golf in which a player, or team, earns a point for each hole in which they have bested their opponents; as opposed to stroke play, in which the total number of strokes is counted over one or more rounds of 18 h ...

championship. Since 1999, it has been a 72-hole stroke play tournament. The championship was first played in 1914 at

Chicago Golf Club Chicago Golf Club is a private golf club in the central United States, located in Wheaton, Illinois, a suburb west of Chicago. The oldest 18-hole course in North America, it was one of the five founding clubs of the United States Golf Association ...

Wheaton, Illinois Wheaton is a suburban city in Milton and Winfield Townships and is the county seat of DuPage County, Illinois. It is located approximately west of Chicago. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 52,894, which was estimated ...

and was won by Charles Grimes. The Western Junior draws the top junior players from more than 40 states and internationally each year. The field is limited to 156 entrants. Exemptions into the

Western Amateur The Western Amateur is a leading annual golf tournament in the United States for male amateur golfers. It is organized by the Western Golf Association. The Western Amateur features an international field of top-ranked amateur golfers. It was first ...

are awarded to the top three finishers and ties. The tournament has been a testing ground for stars of the future, such as current

PGA Tour The PGA Tour (stylized in all capital letters as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in the United States and North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also k ...

stars

Tiger Woods Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods (born December 30, 1975) is an American professional golfer. He is tied for first in PGA Tour wins, ranks second in men's major championships, and holds numerous golf records. * * * Woods is widely regarded as ...

Phil Mickelson Philip Alfred Mickelson (born June 16, 1970), nicknamed Lefty, is an American professional golfer who plays for LIV Golf. He has won 45 events on the PGA Tour, including six Men's major golf championships, major championships: three Masters To ...

Hunter Mahan Hunter Myles Mahan (born May 17, 1982) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour. He is a winner of two World Golf Championship events, the 2010 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational and the 2012 WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship. ...

and Rickie Fowler, and veterans Fred Couples,

Craig Stadler Craig Robert Stadler (born June 2, 1953) is an American professional golfer who has won numerous tournaments at both the PGA Tour and Champions Tour level, including one major championship, the 1982 Masters Tournament. Early life Stadler was bo ...

and

Corey Pavin Corey Allen Pavin (born November 16, 1959) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour and currently on the PGA Tour Champions. He spent over 150 weeks in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Ranking between 1986 and 1997 ...

Winners

*2021 Caleb Surratt *2020 ''No tournament'' *2019 Piercen Hunt *2018

Jeff Doty Jeff is a masculine name, often a short form (hypocorism) of the English given name Jefferson or Jeffrey, which comes from a medieval variant of Geoffrey. Music * DJ Jazzy Jeff, American DJ/turntablist record producer Jeffrey Allen Townes * ...

*2017 William Mouw *2016

Sean Maruyama Sean, also spelled Seán or Séan in Irish English, is a male given name of Irish origin. It comes from the Irish versions of the Biblical Hebrew name ''Yohanan'' (), Seán (anglicized as ''Shaun/Shawn/ Shon'') and Séan (Ulster variant; angliciz ...

*2015

Yu Chun-an Yu Chun-an (, born 11 August 1998), also known as Kevin Yu, is a professional golfer from Taiwan. Amateur career Yu has represented his country at multiple international competitions. He took the gold medal at the 2013 Asian Youth Games and won ...

*2014 K. K. Limbhasut *2013

Collin Morikawa Collin Morikawa (born February 6, 1997) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour and European Tour. He began his PGA Tour career with 22 consecutive made cuts, second only to Tiger Woods' 25-cut streak. Morikawa has five PGA ...

*2012

Adam Wood Adam Kenneth Compton Wood (born 13 March 1955) is a retired British diplomat, and was the Lieutenant Governor of the Isle of Man from 2011 to 2016. Life and career Wood was educated at the Royal Grammar School, High Wycombe and graduated from ...

*2011

Connor Black Connor may refer to the following: People * Connor (given name), list of people with this name * Connor (surname) * Harriet Connor Brown (1872-1962), American writer and women's rights activist Places and jurisdictions * Connor, County Antri ...

*2010

Patrick Rodgers Patrick Rodgers (born June 30, 1992) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour. Early life Rodgers was born in Avon, Indiana. Then he played golf at Avon High School for 4 years. He played college golf at Stanford Universi ...

*2009

Zack Fischer Zack or Zach may refer to: People * Zach (surname), various people * Zack (surname), various people * Zack (personal name), lists of people and fictional characters named Zack, Zach, Zac, Zak or Zakk * Záh (gens) or Zách, a ''gens'' (clan) in th ...

*2008

Cory Whitsett As a given name, Cory is used by both males and females. It is a variation of the name Cora, which has Greek origins and is the maiden name of the goddess Persephone. The name also can have origins from the Gaelic word ''coire'', which means "in ...

*2007

Cody Gribble William Cody Gribble (born September 20, 1990) is an American professional golfer who currently plays on the PGA Tour and the Korn Ferry Tour. Early years Gribble was born in Dallas, Texas. He played college golf at the University of Texas and w ...

*2006 Jhared Hack *2005 Rickie Fowler *2004

Jamie Lovemark Jamie Lovemark (born January 23, 1988) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour. Amateur career Lovemark was born in Rancho Santa Fe, California and attended Torrey Pines High School. He won the 2005 Western Amateur and ther ...

*2003

Brady Schnell Brady may refer to: People * Brady (surname) * Brady (given name) * Brady (nickname) * Brady Boone, a ring name of American professional wrestler Dean Peters (1958–1998) Places in the United States * Brady, Montana, a census-designated ...

*2002 Brett Lange *2001 Jonathan Moore *2000

Buck Williams Charles Linwood "Buck" Williams (born March 8, 1960) is an American former professional basketball player and former assistant coach for the Portland Trail Blazers. He was well known for his rebounding ability and trademark goggles. Williams, ...

*1999

*1998 David Wagenseller *1997 Nick Cassini *1996 Andy Rapp *1995

James Driscoll James Driscoll (born October 9, 1977) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour. Amateur career Driscoll was born in Boston, Massachusetts, the youngest of seven children. He grew up in Brookline, Massachusetts, outside ...

*1994

Brad Elder Bradley Ryan Elder (born March 17, 1975) is an American professional golfer who has played on the Nationwide Tour and the PGA Tour. Elder was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He got his start in golf from his father. Elder attended the University of Te ...

*1993 Michael Jones *1992 John Curley *1991

Trip Kuehne Ernest W. "Trip" Kuehne III (born June 20, 1972) is an American amateur golfer. He is most remembered for his defeat at the hands of Tiger Woods in the 1994 U.S. Amateur,

*1990

Kelly Mitchum Kelly may refer to: Art and entertainment * Kelly (Kelly Price album) * Kelly (Andrea Faustini album) * Kelly (musical), ''Kelly'' (musical), a 1965 musical by Mark Charlap * Kelly (song), "Kelly" (song), a 2018 single by Kelly Rowland * Kell ...

*1989 Craig Darling *1988 Chris Smith *1987

Jim Furyk James Michael Furyk (born May 12, 1970) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour and the PGA Tour Champions. In 2010, he was the FedEx Cup champion and PGA Tour Player of the Year. He has won one major championship, the 200 ...

*1986 Jon Worrell *1985

Don Edwards William Donlon Edwards (January 6, 1915 – October 1, 2015) was an American politician of the Democratic Party and a member of the United States House of Representatives from California for 32 years in the late 20th century. Early life Edwar ...

*1984 Steve LaMontagne *1983 Brad Meek *1982

Jim Benepe James L. Benepe III (born October 24, 1963) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour and the Nationwide Tour. Biography Benepe was born, raised and lived most of his life in Sheridan, Wyoming. He attended Northwestern U ...

*1981 Gregg VonThaden *1980 Eugene Elliott *1979

Willie Wood William Vernell Wood Sr. (December 23, 1936February 3, 2020) was an American professional football player and coach. He played as a safety with the Green Bay Packers in the National Football League (NFL). Wood was an eight-time Pro Bowler an ...

*1978

Bobby Clampett Robert Daniel Clampett Jr. (born April 22, 1960) is an American television golf analyst, golf course architect, writer, and professional golfer, who played on the PGA Tour from 1980 to 1995. Clampett began playing on the Champions Tour in April ...

*1977 Gary Wilks *1976

Gary Hallberg Gary George Hallberg (born May 31, 1958) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour, Nationwide Tour, and Champions Tour. Amateur career Hallberg was born in Berwyn, Illinois. He attended Wake Forest University in Wins ...

*1975 Britt Harrison *1974 Edwin Fisher, Jr. *1973 Tommy Jones *1972

Dennis Sullivan Dennis Parnell Sullivan (born February 12, 1941) is an American mathematician known for his work in algebraic topology, geometric topology, and dynamical systems. He holds the Albert Einstein Chair at the City University of New York Graduate Ce ...

*1971 Richard Brooke *1970 Jeff Reaume *1969 Jim Simons *1968 Don Hawken *1967 Mike Goodart *1966 Ross Elder *1965 John Richart *1964 Jim Wiechers *1963 George Boutell *1962 George Shortridge *1961 Phil Marston *1960 Labron Harris Jr. *1959

Steve Spray John Stephen Spray (December 16, 1940 – May 15, 2020) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1960s and 1970s. Spray was born in Des Moines, Iowa and reared in Indianola, Iowa. His first big win as an amateur came ...

*1958 Jack Rule, Jr. *1957 Don Essig III *1956 Dick Foote *1955 Gerald McFerren *1954 Herbert Klontz *1953 Henry Loeb *1952

Don Nichols Don Nichols (November 23, 1924 – August 21, 2017) was the founder and former principal of the Shadow Racing Cars, Shadow Can-Am, CanAm and Formula One racing team. Biography Nichols, a U.S. Army combat veteran of World War II and Korea who t ...

*1951 Hillman Robbins *1950 Dean Lind *1949 Dean Lind *1948 Gene Coulter *1947

Tom Veech Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name) Characters * Tom Anderson, a character in '' Beavis and Butt-Head'' * Tom Beck, a character ...

*1946 Mac Hunter *1943–45 ''No tournament'' *1942 William Witzleb *1941

Ben Downing Ben Downing may refer to: * Ben Downing (writer) (born 1967), American author *Benjamin Downing Benjamin Brackett Downing (born September 11, 1981) is an American politician and Democratic former member of the Massachusetts State Senate. He re ...

*1940

*1939 Sam Kocsis *1938 Charles Betcher *1937

John Holmstrom John Holmstrom (born 1954) is an American underground cartoonist and writer. He is best known for illustrating the covers of the Ramones albums '' Rocket to Russia'' and '' Road to Ruin'', as well as his characters Bosko and Joe (published in S ...

*1936 Sid Richardson *1935

Fred Haas Frederick Theodore Haas Jr. (January 3, 1916 – January 26, 2004) was an American professional golfer. Amateur career Haas was born in Portland, Arkansas. After graduating from Dermott High School, he graduated from Louisiana State University ...

*1934

*1933 Frank Bredall *1932

John Banks John Banks or Bankes may refer to: Politics and law *Sir John Banks, 1st Baronet (1627–1699), English merchant and Member of Parliament * John Banks (American politician) (1793–1864), U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania *John Gray Banks (188 ...

*1931 Bob Cochran *1930 C. K. Collins *1929

Fred Lyon Fred Lyon (September 27, 1924 – August 22, 2022) was an American photographer. He was known for shots of foggy San Francisco, and photos of San Francisco life from the 1940s to the 1960s. Lyon worked in different roles within photography, inclu ...

*1928 Dick Mullin *1927 Albert Hakes *1926 Sam Alpert *1925 Emerson Carey, Jr. *1924 Eldridge Robinson *1923

Ira Couch Ira Couch (November 11, 1806—February 28, 1857) was an American businessman known for his real estate holdings in Chicago, as well as for establishing and running the city's Tremont House hotel. Couch posthumously obtained two further claims t ...

*1922 Kenneth Hisert *1921 Burton Mudge, Jr. *1920 Harold Martin *1919 Howard Sassman *1918 ''No tournament'' *1917 Frederick Wright *1916 John Simpson *1915 DeWitt Balch *1914 Charles Grimes Source Western Junior Champions
/ref>

References

External links

*{{official, http://www.westernjunior.com/
Western Golf Association
Junior golf tournaments Amateur golf tournaments in the United States Recurring sporting events established in 1914