The anticipation is real, but the new year excitement doesn’t have to wait much longer. Major championship season is near.
| GAP schedule |
Registration for the 40th GAP Middle-Amateur Championship opens today. The first Major of 2023 takes place May 22-23 at Old York Road Country Club in Ambler, Pa.
The following GAP Member Clubs will host qualifying events for the Championship proper:
| Venue | Date |
| Five Ponds Golf Club | Saturday, April 15 |
| Scotland Run Golf Club | Monday, April 17 |
| Coatesville Country Club | Tuesday, May 2 |
| Irem Country Club | Thursday, May 4 |
The Middle-Amateur is open to males 25 years of age or older. This year, there is one change of note. The GAP Championship Committee issued a reduction to the required Handicap Index from 7.0 or less to 5.0 or less.
The Middle-Amateur is a two-day, 36-hole stroke play event.
Old York Road previously hosted the Middle-Amateur, then an 18-hole stroke play event, in 1987. It changed to a 36-hole format in 2001.
A William Hyndman, III Player of the Year points event, the Middle-Amateur started in 1984, three years after the USGA created the U.S. Mid-Amateur as a formal championship for post-college amateurs. GAP followed suit with the USGA in creating a Middle-Amateur, but initially varied in its administration of the tournament in a couple of respects.
The most obvious difference was the age requirement. Prior to 2001, the GAP Middle-Amateur was only available to players 30 years of age or older.
The GAP Executive Committee reviewed and revised that age requirement in 2001 to match the USGA’s guidelines of 25 years of age or older for eligible players. It also, as previously mentioned, changed the format of the event to a two-day stroke play tournament with a cut to the low 70 players and ties after the first round.
GAP
Celebrating Amateur Golf since 1897, GAP, also known as the Golf Association of Philadelphia, is the oldest regional or state golf association in the United States. It serves as the principal ruling body of amateur golf in its region. The organization’s 340 Member Clubs and 100,000 individual members are spread across Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey and Maryland. The GAP’s mission is to promote, preserve and protect the game of golf.
