The 42nd U.S. Mid-Amateur gets started Saturday at Sleepy Hollow Country Club, and among the players vying for the title in Scarborough, New York:
Four-time U.S. Mid-Amateur champion Nathan Smith.
Two-time winner and four-time Walker Cupper Stewart Hagestad.
Winning U.S. Walker Cup captain Mike McCoy, the oldest player in the field at age 60.
Oh, and Ben Hogan.
No, no, that Hogan, the nine-time major winner, died in 1997. This Hogan is a 42-year-old retired police officer from Wellington, Ohio, who played professional golf prior to his 12-year career in law enforcement in San Diego before retiring, moving back to his native Ohio and getting his amateur status back a few years ago.
This will be Hogan’s first USGA championship start.
“I am just going to try and enjoy the moment,” Hogan, who deals with post traumatic stress disorder from his time as a police officer, told USGA writer David Shefter, who wrote a profile on Hogan earlier this week. “I will try not to put too much pressure on myself. I’m using this as motivation to get back to a few more USGA championships.”
Hogan qualified in dramatic fashion during his Aug. 3 qualifier at Kirtland Country Club in Willoughby, Ohio, making a late double bogey to fall into a 3-for-1 playoff, where he grabbed the last spot by holing out a 9-iron from 150 yards for eagle at the first playoff hole.
Like the Hall of Fame Hogan, this Hogan also leans on his ball-striking and prays he makes putts.
But unlike the golf legend, this Hogan could capture a U.S. Mid-Amateur title.
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