Thousands of U.S. Open hopefuls will head to their respective qualifiers with Shinnecock Hills in their sights, but few will get that far.
The USGA announced on Thursday that it received 9,049 entries for the 118th U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills in Southampton, N.Y., which is June 14-17. Here’s a quick breakdown of the numbers you need to know.
1.4 — Highest handicap index a player can have to enter qualifying (they can also enter if they have professional status).
7 — Numbers of consecutive years with 9,000 or more entries. This year’s total is also the eighth-highest ever.
115 — Applications the USGA received in the final hour the window was open.
23 — Seconds 32-year-old Drew Caudill had to spare when submitting his entry before the final deadline. He was the last man in.
112 — Local qualifying sites. The first round of qualifying is 18 holes played at 111 U.S. sites and one in Canada. These will be played between April 30 and May 17.
12 — Sectional qualifying sites. For those who make it past local qualifying, the final hurdle is through 12 36-hole sectionals. Ten are in the U.S., one is in Japan and another in England. They’ll be held between May 21 and June 4. (The number of qualifiers who get through each sectional hasn’t been determined yet.)
54 — Number of players who are currently exempt into the 2018 U.S. Open (as of today).
