The Rise of Mid-Ams
Amateur golfers over 25 making their mark on elite competitions.
About 20,000 men and women play golf at the collegiate level in any given year, but the dream of playing on one of the professional tours becomes a reality for only a select few. For those who transition onto the amateur golf circuit, competition can be tough—facing a never-ending stream of fresh-out-of-college players who are young, fit and at the top of their game.
In 1981, the United States Golf Association (USGA) created the U.S. Mid-Amateur as a national championship for post-college amateur golfers who had turned 25, followed in 1987 by the addition of a U.S. Women’s Mid-Amateur. To qualify, men need to have a USGA handicap index of 2.4 or lower and women 9.4 or lower.
“The idea was that there should be a championship for people who worked for a living and had families because they were competing in the big amateur events against college kids who didn’t have those real-life responsibilities,” says Danny Yates. Yates was Captain of Team USA in the 2001 Walker Cup at Ocean Forest, and played in 21 of the first 22 U.S. Mid-Ams, winning in 1992, all while balancing the demands of his insurance business. “On top of that, the winner got to play in the Masters and the chance to make a Walker Cup team.” Starting in 2018, the men’s champion also earned an invitation to the U.S. Open. On the women’s side, the champion wins an invitation to the U.S. Women’s Open.
MULTIPLE ROUTES TO A COMMON DESTINATION
The mid-am circuit includes players who did a stint professionally before regaining amateur status as well as others who may not have played in college. Ket Vanderpool played professionally on the Symetra Tour for two years before shifting into her career as a collegiate golf coach at Kennesaw State, her alma mater. In 2020 she joined the staff at Georgia State University, where she was named Head Coach in August 2023. In addition to her coaching responsibilities, she has continued to compete at the mid-am level, including four U.S. Women’s Mid-Ams, reaching the match-play Round of 16 in 2019 and Round of 32 in 2024.
Emilia Migliaccio during the 2021 Curtis Cup.
As is the case for many players in the mid-am range, time is the biggest commodity. “Even though I’m on the golf course six days a week, it doesn’t necessarily mean that I get to play or practice,” Vanderpool says. “When I’m observing our team, I’ll be thinking about the mental game side of it, the body language, or how I would react during a certain situation. When I do have two hours to practice, I have to focus on what I want to do the most. My players can tell you that I always bring my putter with me during each trip, even if it’s just 10 minutes before I go to bed taking practice swings to keep my rhythm and putting path.”
Stewart Hagestad, who has become one of the most decorated amateur golfers in the game since his college days at the University of Southern California, describes it as having been a pretty easy decision to stay amateur. “I wasn’t good enough to turn pro, but I love to play and compete,” he says. He captured U.S. Mid-Amateur titles in 2016, 2021 and 2023, and played on four victorious Walker Cup teams. Hagestad balances his golf schedule with a career as an Execution Advisory Analyst for BDT & MSD Partners in West Palm Beach, Florida. “I’ve been really lucky that what I like to do outside of work, family and friends aligned really well, and my firm has been incredibly supportive. As I got older, I became more and more comfortable with the idea of not turning professional.”
In 2017 Hagestad was the first U.S. Mid-Amateur champion qualifier to make the cut at the Masters, capturing low amateur honors that year. His third trip to Augusta, in 2024, perfectly illustrates the challenge for many mid-am players. “I was literally in the office until the Thursday before the Masters,” he says. “I think a lot of people just assume that all you do is play golf Monday through Friday, but that’s not the reality for me.”
For Courtney Stiles, the path into the amateur golf world involved multiple twists and turns. After graduating from North Carolina State University, she spent two years on the Duramed Futures Tour. “I learned a lot about myself,” she says. “While the game of golf has been a central part of my life, and I’m obviously very grateful for that, traveling and grinding it out was taking away from the pure enjoyment of the game.”
After injuring her hand at the last Duramed Futures Tour tournament of the season, Stiles didn’t touch a club for eight weeks—but as fate would have it, that led to a job with the PGA Tour working in digital media. She successfully filed to regain her amateur status but didn’t really get a chance to use it. She stopped playing golf when she was six months pregnant with her daughter in 2008 and didn’t play 18 holes again until 2017. “When I started playing again, I was able to look at golf from a whole different perspective,” she says. “It was so high-stakes as a college athlete, and now I just have a different perspective on how the game can be a healthy part of my life.” Now in her tenth year as the Executive Director of First Tee – Sandhills in Pinehurst, North Carolina, Stiles played in her seventh U.S. Women’s Mid-Am in 2024.
In 2025, golf fans will see a familiar face on the women’s mid-am circuit: Emilia Migliaccio, an On-Course Reporter/Analyst for NBC Sports, Golf Channel and PGA Tour Live. A Pan American Games gold medalist, and member of two victorious Curtis Cups, now at 25, she’s adding mid-am competition into her tournament rotation.
Until the spring of her senior year at Wake Forest, Migliaccio had aspired to turn pro. “I played in three US Opens, the Chevron Championship and a couple of Epson Tour events as an amateur,” she says. “As much as I loved competing, professional golf required even more dedication.”
Being on the road for 32 weeks in 2024 put a premium on efficiency. “People say you should focus on your weaknesses but I disagree,” Migliaccio says. “Ball-striking is my strength. If I have 30 minutes, I’m going to hit balls because that’s what keeps me scoring well.”
“I’ve been overwhelmed at how friendly the mid-am scene is, and I’m excited about the elite courses that women mid-ams are getting to play now,” she says. “I’m committed to playing in the women’s mid-am until I’m not playing competitive golf regularly anymore. I want to win that tournament, ideally more than once.”
GROWING THE AMATEUR GAME
In addition to hosting the U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship in 2004, Sea Island has a long history of supporting amateur golf in a variety of forms. “While we host the PGA Tour’s RSM Classic every year, we’re very close with the USGA and Georgia State Golf Association (GSGA) as well. In 2024, we hosted the Georgia Adaptive Open, a championship for golfers who have disabilities, along with four other GSGA events. We really believe in the amateur,” says Brannen Veal, Director of Golf at Sea Island. “The beauty of Sea Island is that we have the facilities and in-house experience to put on a great event for players across the spectrum.”
FINE-TUNED PERFORMANCE
With competitiveness on the rise on the mid-am circuit, golfers are seeking a way to gain an edge. For Jake Meskin, who finished as first alternate for the 2024 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship and works in commercial real estate in New York, that means fine-tuning his game every few weeks at the Sea Island Golf Performance Center. “I have to be really efficient preparing for these events,” he says. “From working on my swing, short game and fitness to club fitting, it’s special to have so many of the brightest minds in golf all under one roof.”
“Mid-ams have that competitive drive and desire, and they want to make sure that there’s no stone left unturned,” says Craig Allan, Director of the Sea Island Golf Performance Center. Even without a paycheck on the line every week, today’s generation of mid-ams is taking the process as seriously as they possibly can without being on tour.
The Seaside Course at Sea Island Golf Club, host of the 2004 U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship.
Ocean Forest Golf Club hosted the 2001 Walker Cup, the century-plus-old international match between the world’s best amateur golfers which reserves one or two spots for mid-ams. On an ongoing basis since 2001, the Jones Cup Invitational at Ocean Forest has spotlighted top talents in the amateur game, with invitations for the U.S. Mid-Am champion and runner-up.
Sea Island Golf Club has hosted six USGA U.S. Senior Women’s Amateurs and recently launched its own tournament, the Sea Island Women’s Amateur, which will celebrate its fifth year in May of 2025. The event kicks off the year’s Women’s Elite Amateur Golf Series, featuring 78 of the nation’s top junior, amateur and mid-amateur golfers for 54 holes of stroke play on Seaside Golf Course. Beyond the golf and related social events, the tournament incorporates numerous touches to give it an LPGA feel, from caddy bibs and live scoring to special tee markers and scented ice-cold towels after the round.
“The Elite Series is a pathway for women to continue their game, and especially giving those over 25 opportunities to play and showcase their skills—that was one of the reasons for us to create our event,” says Johann Emanuel, Head Golf Professional at Sea Island Golf Club.
UNDER THE RADAR…FOR NOW
Decades after the launch of the mid-am category, the principle—providing a venue for amateurs juggling golf, career and family—remains the same, but the competition continues to get stiffer. “I think the rise of the mid-am is great for amateur golf, giving players over 25 the chance to get into the Masters, U.S. Open and other tournaments,” Yates says. “On a personal level, I also remember running into people I hadn’t seen since college. Expanding into this category has also helped the USGA, by getting more people involved and keeping them in the game. It’s a big win for everybody.”
“In my view, the mid-ams are still somewhat flying under the radar,” says John Wade, Director of Golf at Ocean Forest. “Golf is on an upward trend in general and so are the number of mid-ams that you see making it into elite golf events.”