The 72nd edition of the Hudson Cup will be held October 22-23 at Meadow Springs Country Club in Richland, Wash. The illustrious event, played in a format similar to the Ryder Cup, will see 10 of the best amateur players from Washington and Oregon compete against the top 10 Pacific Northwest Section PGA professionals. Being held concurrently at Meadow Springs will be the 29th Senior Hudson Cup, matching up the top 10 Pacific Northwest Section PGA senior members against the top 10 senior amateurs from Washington and Oregon.
The Oregon Golf Association (OGA) and Washington Golf (WA Golf) 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 will represent the OGA and five will represent WA Golf. Amateur team members are selected based on season-long performance points earned through each respective Association.
Visit the Hudson Cup and Senior Hudson Cup webpage for complete information and to follow along with live scoring.
The Pacific Northwest Section PGA also selects their professional team members based on performance points earned throughout the season.
Each player will compete in three matches, including a foursome match, a four-ball match, and a singles match. At the completion of the matches, awards are presented to the outstanding player on each team as decided by votes of the opposite team. The awards honor Chuck Congdon, Larry Lamberger, Bob McKendrick and Bill Eggers, four great players with outstanding Hudson Cup records and a strong tie to the event’s rich history.
Professional team captains are appointed by the president of the Pacific Northwest Section PGA, and amateur team captains are appointed by the OGA and WA Golf.
This year, the Amateurs in the Hudson Cup will be captained by Tyler Daniels, the head superintendent at Wine Valley Golf Club in Walla Walla, Wash.; and the PGA Professionals will be captained by Jason Aichele, PGA director of instruction at Meadow Springs Country Club. In the Senior Hudson Cup, the senior Amateurs will be captained by Larry Gilhuly, retired USGA Green Section, Western Region; while the senior PGA Professionals will be captained by Doug Newman, PGA Life Member and recently-retired Central Washington Chapter PGA Tournament Director.
History of the Hudson Cup
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 Washington Golf, 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.
About Washington Golf
Founded in 1922, WA Golf is a 501c4 non-profit amateur golf association governed by men and women volunteers. Serving over 71,000 individual members at more than 650 member golf clubs and 270 golf courses throughout the state of Washington and Northern Idaho, WA Golf works to continually expand the game of golf to people of all backgrounds. WA Golf also serves as a statewide representative of the United States Golf Association and works closely with a number of allied associations within the golf industry for the betterment of the game.
