Christian Cavaliere, Mark Costanza headline list of locals

The USGA is back in the neighborhood.

Sleepy Hollow Country Club is hosting the 42nd U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship, which begins Saturday. The event is open to any amateur golfer who has reached the age of 25 and whose Handicap Index does not exceed 3.4. College players typically dominate the U.S. Amateur now, so in theory, the Mid-Am is the USGA’s working man’s championship.

A record 6,060 entries were received for this year’s championship. Qualifying took place at 68 sites with 264 players advancing to the championship.

Fenway Golf Club will serve as the co-host for two days of stroke play.

The USGA is no stranger to the New York City suburbs. Winged Foot hosted the U.S. Open in 2020, Westchester Country Club hosted the U.S. Women’s Amateur in 2021 and Ridgewood hosted the U.S. Amateur in 2022.

Here’s what you need to know about the tournament:

By the numbers: See where Sleepy Hollow and Fenway land in Golfweek’s state-by-state private course rankings.

42nd U.S. Mid-Amateur info

Host club: Sleepy Hollow Country Club in Scarborough

Stroke play co-host: Fenway Golf Club in Scarsdale

Last year: Matthew McLean, a 29-year-old optometrist from Belfast, Northern Ireland, became the second international player to win the Mid-Am when he defeated countryman Hugh Foley 3 and 1 at Erin Hills in Wisconsin.

U.S. Mid-Amateur schedule

Saturday: First round of stroke play

Sunday: Second round of stroke play

Monday: Round of 64, match play

Tuesday: Round of 32 and Round of 16

Wednesday: Quarterfinals and semifinals

Thursday: Championship match, 36 holes

No ticket necessary: Spectators are welcome and there is no admission fee for this USGA championship. Parking is available at the courses on a first-come, first-served basis.

Gems of the Golden Age

Sleepy Hollow was designed by Charles Blair Macdonald along with Seth Raynor and opened for play in 1913. A.W. Tillinghast expanded the facility to 27 holes in the late 1920s and Gil Hanse and George Bahto recently restored the course, bringing many of the Macdonald elements back into play. The course will be set up at 6,840 yards and will play to a par of 35-36-71. Slope Rating 140. Course Rating 74.6.

Fenway, like many of its well-known neighboring clubs, was designed by Tillinghast in 1924. Gil Hanse recently restored the greens and bunker complexes and reestablished the designer’s original sightlines. The course will be set up at 6,657 yards and play to a par of 35-35-70. Slope Rating 138. Course Rating 73.6.

42nd U.S. Mid-Amateur: Here are the tee times for Rounds 1 and 2 of stroke play

Names to know

Anthony Alex, 28, Fort Lee, N.J. — He’s an operations development manager for a customer service and logistics company who played at Florida State and competed professionally on PGA Tour Latinoamerica prior to being reinstated as an amateur. His older sister, Marina, has two LPGA Tour wins. Lee got in as an alternate.

Christian Cavaliere, 25, Katonah — He’s among the youngest players in the field and will be making his U.S. Mid-Amateur debut. The former Somers High School and Boston College standout also qualified for the U.S. Open and the U.S. Amateur this year. Cavaliere operates Tremont Sporting Company, which manufacturers leather golf accessories. He is a three-time winner of the Westchester Amateur and was the runner-up at last year’s Westchester Open at Sleepy Hollow.

Michael Cochrane, 53, Scarsdale — He’s competing in his first USGA championship after surviving a hometown playoff in qualifying at Sunningdale Country Club. Cochrane is the director of platform tennis, pickleball and tennis at Saucon Valley Country Club in Pennsylvania. The former All-Ivy League placekicker at Cornell worked for a season at Sleepy Hollow as the head platform tennis professional.

Mark Costanza, 34, Morristown, N.J. — He’ ‘s been close in this championship before, falling in the 2021 U.S. Mid-Am final to Stewart Hagestad. The investment banker lasted into the Round of 16 a year ago. Costanza played collegiately at St. John’s and SMU. He is a two-time Metropolitan Golf Association Player of the Year and won the New Jersey State Open in 2020.

Stewart Hagestad, 32, Newport Beach, Calif. — He’s played in 28 USGA championships and is coming in off a Walker Cup victory at St. Andrew’s. The 2016 Metropolitan Golf Association Player of the Year had a pair of U.S. Mid-Amateur wins (2016, 2021). Hagestad also reached the semifinals in 2018 and 2019 and owns a 22-4 match-play record in the championship. He was the low amateur in the 2017 Masters and has represented the U.S. in four Walker Cup wins.

Matthew McClean, 30, Northern Ireland — He’s the defending champion. The win last year at Erin Hills got McClean into the Masters and the U.S. Open. He was also the runner-up in the Irish Men’s Amateur Open a year ago. The self-employed optometrist advanced to match play in the U.S. Amateur this year and made the semifinals of the Western Amateur.

Andrew Paysse, 28, Temple, Texas — He’s a former player at Texas A&M who advanced to the U.S. Mid-Amateur quarterfinals a year ago. The account executive for the family insurance company also played in the U.S. Amateur this year. He is the brother-in-law of 2022 Masters champion Scottie Scheffler.

Nathan Smith, 45, Pittsburgh, Pa. — He’s a four-time U.S. Mid-Am winner (2003, 2009, 2010, 2012) and will captain the U.S. in the 2025 Walker Cup. Smith works in property and casualty insurance. He’s got 34 match-play wins in this championship and has played on three Walker Cup teams. Smith has played in 51 USGA championships and has won a pair of Pennsylvania State Amateurs.

Brad Tilley, 40, Easton, Conn. — He’s a Westchester native who played on mini-tours for eight years after earning first-team All-ACC honors at Virginia. Tilley is also a longtime member at Sleepy Hollow. He currently runs a food and beverage import business. Tilley made the quarterfinals of the 2017 U.S. Mid-Amateur and has had success on both host venues, winning the Met Amateur at Fenway and the Westchester Open at Sleepy Hollow.

They said it

“I’ve had this tournament marked on my calendar since I turned 25 a few months ago,” Cavaliere said. “I knew this was one I really, really wanted to play in since I live 10 minutes up the road. I try to get out to the course most days after work to hit a few balls, but for some reason, playing less has helped me to play better, which is hilarious. I spent all of college and one year post college playing every day and grinding as hard as I could, and I feel like my game now is in a better spot than it was then. It’s a funny thing about golf, sometimes letting go a little bit is the best thing you can do.”

“This is my 28th or 29th year with the USGA,” said Bill McCarthy, who is the U.S. Mid-Amateur championship director. “I think, without a doubt, this is the best combination of courses we’ve ever had for a championship, bar none. I’m talking about Riviera-Bel Air. I’m talking about Ridgewood-Arcola. We’re better. There’s just no question from a golf architecture and playability standpoint.”

Mike Dougherty covers golf for The Journal News and lohud.com.

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This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship 2023 at Sleepy Hollow C.C. preview