Amateurs Win Hudson Cup For Only Third Time in 38 Years; Professionals Take Senior Hudson Cup
For the first time since 2011, and only the second time since 1978, the Amateurs have won the Hudson Cup over the PGA club professionals; while the senior PGA professionals prevailed against the Senior Amateurs in the Senior Hudson Cup.
The Amateurs defeated the PGA professionals 12.5 points to 7.5 points. The senior PGA professionals defeated the Senior Amateurs by a score of 14.5 to 5.5.
Each player competed in three matches, including a foursome match, a four-ball match, and a singles match.
For complete match-play results, click here for the Hudson Cup results, and here for the Senior Hudson Cup results.
The 68th edition of the Hudson Cup and 25th Senior Hudson Cup were held concurrently October 20-21 at Fircrest (Wash.) Golf Club. The illustrious event, played in a Ryder Cup-style format, pitted 10 of the best amateur players from Washington and Oregon against the top 10 Pacific Northwest Section PGA professionals, while the senior edition matched the top 10 Pacific Northwest Section PGA senior members against the top 10 senior amateurs from Washington and Oregon.
The Amateurs were captained by Bruce Richards, who was inducted into the Pacific Northwest Golf Hall of Fame in 2013. The PGA professionals were captained by Scott Williams. The Senior Amateurs were captained by Dr. Jack Lamey, who was president of the Pacific Northwest Golf Association in 2010-11, and created the PNGA Cup, which is an annual Ryder Cup-style competition between the region’s allied golf associations; while the senior PGA professionals were captained by Jim Pike, general manager and director of golf at Sahalee Country Club.
The Oregon Golf Association (OGA) and Washington State Golf Association (WSGA) work together to select a total of 10 amateurs and 10 senior amateurs to compete against the professionals. Of the 10 players in each category, five represented the OGA and five represented the WSGA. Amateur team members were selected based on season-long performance points earned through each respective Association.
For a complete roster of all this year’s competitors, click here.
The Pacific Northwest Section PGA also selected their professional team members based on performance points earned throughout the season.
In 1949, two PGA Professionals from Oregon, Larry Lamberger and Al Zimmerman, thought the Pacific Northwest Section PGA should pay tribute to Robert A. Hudson, Sr., a successful businessman from Portland. Hudson is renowned in the golf world as the savior of the Ryder Cup matches after resurrecting it just two years removed from World War II. Because of Hudson’s generosity, the Ryder Cup was restored in 1947 at Portland Golf Club after Hudson came forward and covered most of the expenses of conducting the competition, including the cost of transporting the British team to the United States.
The first Hudson Cup matches were held at Portland Golf Club in 1949. The format was patterned after the Ryder Cup, with 36-hole foursome matches the first day and 36-hole singles the second day. The professionals, led by Bud Ward, Stan Leonard and Chuck Congdon, posted a 12.5 to 2.5 victory. When Hudson learned of the matches, he immediately insisted on footing the bill, and continued to do so through 1972. Today, the Pacific Northwest Section PGA is assisted by funds contributed by the Washington State Golf Association, the Oregon Golf Association and the Pacific Northwest Golf Association.
The format was changed in 1966 when the foursome matches were shortened to 18-holes and four-ball competition was added for the first afternoon. Second-day singles, at 18 holes, complete the event, with a total of 20 points available. In 1992, the Senior Hudson Cup matches were added.
For more information on the history of the Hudson Cup, including past results, click here.