Barton Hills CC to be the location for the 2026 U.S. Senior Women’s Open

Ann Arbor’s Patton Hill Country Club will be the location for the 2026 U.S. Senior Women’s Open

Liberty Point, NJ (April 2, 2025) – The American Golf Association (USGA) today announced that the Barton Hills Country Club in Ann Arbor, Michigan will host the 8th U.S. Senior Women’s Open Championship from August 20-23, 2026.

“USGA is happy to return to Barton Hills Country Club, which we know will challenge the best professional and amateur players in the world as they compete for the most coveted championships of senior women’s golf courses,” said Dennis Baggett, managing director of the USGA Open Championship. “The club has a history of hosting national, regional and state competitions with its comprehensive and renovated facilities. These surrounding factors will be on the host site.”

Designed by World Golf Hall of Fame member Donald Ross, the Barton Hills Country Club opened in 1922. The member-owned club was founded by Detroit Edison President Alex Dow and is located 40 miles west of Detroit and 5 miles west of the University of Michigan campus. After several revisions, the course incorporates the rolling terrain of the area and restores its original architectural roots, and added lengths in 2012 by Ron Pritchard.

“Welcome the most accomplished golfers of this game to our historic course, both a privilege and a lasting commitment to excellence from the club,” said Mark Kllinger, general manager and chief operating officer of the club. “This championship is a celebration of the skill, perseverance and indelible spirit of the game. We are honored to move forward with USGA and provide a world-class stage and will make history again.”

The club had previously been hosted in the 1998 American Women’s Amateur Competition when Grace Park defeated 7- and 6-year-old Jenny Chuasiriporn in the 36-hole final. Park went on to win six LPGA titles, including one major title, and he took a three-leading lead after the morning round. Chuasiriporn was runner-up at the U.S. Women’s Open a month ago, losing to Se Ri Pak in the 20-hole playoffs.

In 2008, Barton Hills became the home of American women’s middle athletes. Joan Higgins beat Lynn Simmons with 1 win to become the oldest champion. Higgins will later be the third player to win the women’s midsize athlete and American senior women’s amateur in 2014. She joined the group’s Carol Semple Thompson and Ellen Port.

The Patton Hill Country Club is also active in Michigan’s amateur championship history. The club hosts three state female amateurs (1968, 1995, 2006) and five Michigan Male Amateurs Associations (1996, 2011, 2016, 2017, 2024).

By the 2024 season, Michigan has participated in 34 USGA Championships, including 3 US Women’s Open and 4 US Women’s Amateurs.

The U.S. Senior Women’s Open is open to professional golfers and no more than 7.4 amateurs with Obstacle Index®, at least 50 years old at the start of the championship game. The 120 players field competed in two rounds of strokes, and thereafter, in the last 36 holes, the field reduced scorers and tie by 50 points. The 2025 champion will be held from August 21 to 24 at the San Diego Country Club in Chua Vista, California.

Senior Women’s Open champions include Laura Davies (2018), Helen Alfredsson (2019), Annika Sorenstam (2021), Jill McGill (2022), Trish Johnson (2023), and Leta Lindley (2024). Lindley beat the final round 64 to eliminate the five-stroke deficit and scored a record 275 (9 points) in the championship game at Fox Church Golf Club in Pittsburgh last year.

Future of American senior women’s open attractions

2025 – San Diego Country Club in Chula Vista, CA.

2026 – Barton Hills Country Club, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

2027 – Tacoma National and Golf Club in Lakewood, Washington.

2030 – Spyglass Hill Golf Course, Pebble Beach, California.

2031 – Plainfield Country Club, Edison, NY

2032 – Prairie Dunes Country Club in Hutchinson, Kansas.

About USGA
USGA is a mission-based golf organization that aims to unify the golf community through disability and grassroots programs; to demonstrate the best talents of the competition through the U.S. Open, the U.S. Women’s Open is presented by Ally and 13 other national champions and our museums; to provide impartial global governance through R&A through performance, equipment and amateur status rules; and to promote issues important to the future of golf, with a focus on promoting sustainability, accessibility and inclusion. As nonprofit associations, our work and teams are driven to act for the benefit of the game. For more information, visit usga.org.

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