USGA Story

VERO BEACH, Fla. – Saint John's University graduate Sammy Schmitz '03 won the U.S. Mid-Amateur and earned a spot in the 2016 Masters Tournament on Thursday, Oct. 8, at John's Island Club in Vero Beach, Fla.

The highest-seeded player remaining, Schmitz (No. 8) tallied a 3-and-2 victory over No. 39 Marc Dull in a 36-hole final match held on the par-72, 6,855-yard West Course at John's Island Club. He recorded a hole-in-one on the par-4, 290-yard 33rd hole (No. 15) and clinched the tournament win with a par on the 34th (No. 16). 

The U.S. Mid-Amateur, which is limited to players 25 and older, started with two days of stroke play for 264 golfers Oct. 3-4 before cutting to a 64-man match-play tournament. Schmitz tied for seventh with a 36-hole total of even-par 143 in the stroke-play portion of the championship. He then won his first-round match Monday, Oct. 5; his second- and third-round matches Tuesday, Oct. 6; and his quarterfinal and semifinal matches Oct. 7. 

The tournament is one of 13 national championships conducted annually by the United States Golf Association (USGA), 10 of which are strictly for amateurs. Schmitz reached match play in his previous two Mid-Amateurs in 2011 and 2012.
 

A four-time All-American and a four-time All-MIAC honoree for SJU, Schmitz claimed medalist honors at the 2002 MIAC Championship and also finished second at the conference tournament twice. He was a two-time MIAC Player of the Year and graduated with SJU's best career scoring average at 74.4 in 91 rounds, including 23 rounds at par or better. Schmitz was a member of three MIAC championship teams and SJU's first four national-tournament teams.

His worst individual finish at the NCAA Division III Championship was a tie for 15th as a freshman in 2000 and improved each season, ending with an eighth-place finish as a senior as SJU took third nationally in 2003.

"I think every little kid that ever picked up a club dreamed to play in the Masters someday," SJU golf coach Bob Alpers '82 said. "We are so proud of Sammy. Congratulations from your friends and family at Saint John's."

Schmitz lives in Farmington, Minnesota, and is a regional director of sales and marketing for Healthcare Services Group, Inc.

Schmitz is now exempt into the 2016 U.S. Amateur and 2016 U.S. Open sectional qualifying.

The 2016 Masters is scheduled for April 7-10 at the Augusta National Golf Club in Augusta, Ga.