U.S. Women’s Open sectional qualifying is set to commence at Rainier Golf & Country Club in West Seattle on Tuesday, May 20, as 55 players will look to earn one of the two available spots at this qualifier to advance to the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open, which is being held June 19-22 at Pinehurst Resort & Country Club’s No. 2 course in the Village of Pinehurst, N.C.

The Washington State Golf Association (WSGA) is the local representative of the United States Golf Association (USGA) and conducts this qualifier for the U.S. Women’s Open Championship.

Among the names to watch for at Rainier G&CC are Karinn Dickinson of Mukilteo, Wash., the former University of Washington women’s golf team standout who won the 2012 Washington State Women’s Amateur, held that year at Rainier G&CC; Gabrielle Barker of Caldwell, Idaho, who represented Idaho in the 2013 USGA Women’s State Team Championship; Mallory Kent of Tukwila, Wash., the reigning Washington State Women’s Amateur champion; Kendall Gray of Federal Way, Wash., the reigning Pacific Northwest Junior Girls’ Amateur champion; Kimberly Kim of Hilo, HI, who twice was runner-up in the U.S. Women’s Amateur Public Links (2006, 2009); and Christine Wong of Richmond, B.C., the former standout at San Diego State who now plays on the Symetra Tour.

This sectional qualifier is being contested over 36 holes. For pairings, tee times and to follow along with live scoring, please visit www.thewsga.org.
The USGA accepted 1,702 entries for the 2014 U.S. Women’s Open Championship from 46 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, and 52 foreign countries.

The U.S. Women’s Open will be held at Pinehurst No. 2 the week after the U.S. Open. To be eligible, a female amateur player must have a Handicap Index not exceeding 2.4, or be a professional. Sectional qualifying will be held at 24 sites throughout the U.S. and China, Japan, England and Korea from May 5-30.

The U.S. Women’s Open is one of 13 national championships conducted annually by the USGA, 10 of which are strictly for amateurs.

For more information about the 14 amateur championships conducted by the WSGA each year, visit www.thewsga.org.

The WSGA is a 501(c)4 non-profit, amateur golf association governed by men and women volunteer, amateur golfers. The 25-person WSGA Board of Directors employs a full-time staff of 13 individuals. WSGA members pay an annual membership fee through their golf club to belong to the Association. The WSGA also serves as the statewide representative of the United States Golf Association (USGA) and works closely with a number of allied associations within the golf industry for the betterment of the game. Serving over 70,000 members, 600 member golf clubs and 270 golf courses throughout Washington and Northern Idaho, the WSGA works to continually expand the game of golf to people of all backgrounds.