Twenty-seven years after Vijay Singh hoisted the Wanamaker Trophy after winning the PGA Championship there, Sahalee Country Club in Sammamish, Wash., remains a championship-caliber golf venue.
That’s evidenced through the Sahalee Players Championship, a collegiate event hosted by the University of Washington men’s team. This year, the two-day, 54-hole championship will run on Sept. 6-7.
The tournament’s current college form took shape following the Covid-19 pandemic; it had previously been an elite amateur championship held from 1992-2019.
In addition to the hometown UW Huskies, teams from Arizona, Arizona State, Florida, North Carolina, Northwestern, Oregon, Pepperdine, San Diego State, Texas and UCLA are set to compete in this year’s running, alongside six players of the U.S. National Junior Team.
The event’s venue and accumulated prestige is not lost on those involved. Beyond the 1998 PGA Championship, Sahalee hosted the 2010 U.S. Senior Open, as well as the 2016 and 2024 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. As such, the Sammamish grounds hold palpable pedigree.
“Sahalee’s reputation and its quality are known throughout the U.S.,” said Washington Head Coach Alan Murray. “We’re really trying to replicate championship conditions in terms of setup for the golf course, how it’s run and the quality of the teams, and so far we’ve been able to achieve that.”
Murray himself was integral to the tournament becoming collegiate, having used his status as a coach to garner interest from his competitive connections.
“I said [to previous Chairman Kevin White], ‘Look, I’ve just got to get 12 great coaches,’” Murray recalled devising, as an alternative to individual player outreach. “‘Once I get those guys to want to come, they’re going to bring their great teams along.’”
In the championship’s years as an amateur event, it crowned champions such as Sahith Theegala, Joe Highsmith and Nick Taylor, all of whom have since won PGA Tour events. Its previous fields have also included Scottie Scheffler, Xander Schauffele, Bryson DeChambeau and other prominent players of the modern era.
Murray’s excitement also stems from how the tournament is freely open to the public, with the rope-free fairways providing close access to golf’s potential breakout stars.
“You’re able to get pretty close to the guys and see them compete,” he said. “If you’re looking for something fun to do the weekend of September 6-7, the Sahalee Players Championship is an amazing opportunity to see some high-level golf.”
In the tournament’s 2024 running, Aiden Krafft took the title, playing for Oregon. He finished one stroke above the Arizona State tandem of Luis Ballester and Preston Summerhays, both of whom currently play professionally (Ballester won the 2024 U.S. Amateur). Summerhays won the inaugural college event in 2023, in a playoff over Illinois’ (and Bellevue product) Max Herendeen.
“Seattle is one of the best-kept golfing secrets in the U.S.,” Murray continued, adding how other local courses have been accommodating championship hosts. “It’s great that we have the best amateurs in world golf come to the Seattle area to compete each year.”