2015 US Senior Open pin flag Jeff Maggert Del Paso Country Club ryder pga usga

Description

The
U.S. Senior Open
is one of the five
major championships
in senior golf, introduced 41 years ago in
1980
.
[1]
It is administered by the
United States Golf Association
(USGA) and is recognized as a major championship by both the
PGA Tour Champions
and the
European Senior Tour
. The lower age limit was 55 in 1980, but it was lowered to 50 for the second edition in
1981
,
[2]
which is the standard limit for men's senior professional golf tournaments. By definition, the event is open to amateurs, but has been dominated by
professionals
; through 2019, all editions have been won by pros. Like other USGA championships, it has been played on many courses throughout the United States.
Allen Doyle
became the oldest U.S. Senior Open Champion in
2006
, winning two weeks before his 58th birthday.
[3]
The total purse was the highest of any senior tour event until the
Posco E&C Songdo Championship
in
South Korea
, a Champions Tour event in
2010
and
2011
with a
$
3 million purse, but had a lower winner's share (0,000). The U.S. Senior Open is again the highest purse on the
PGA Tour Champions
; in 2016 it was .75 million, and champion
Gene Sauers
earned 5,000. The purse in 2017 is anticipated to be million, yielding a winner's share of 0,000.
Like other senior majors, players must walk the course unless they receive a medical exemption to use a cart. Winners gain entry into the following year's
U.S. Open
.
The playoff format was modified for 2018, reduced from three to two aggregate holes, followed by
sudden death
.
[4]
The three-hole aggregate playoff was used in 2002 and 2014; the final 18-hole playoff at the U.S. Senior Open was in 1991, won by
Jack Nicklaus
2015
Jeff Maggert
United States
Del Paso Country Club
Sacramento, California
270 (−10)
2 strokes
Colin Montgomerie
3,750,000
675,000