The prestigious North and South series of six amateur tournaments gets under way with the first qualifying round for match play in the 106th North and South Amateur on Course No. 4. The rest of the tournament will be played on Course No. 2, concluding with a 36-hole final on Sunday.
The 104th North and South Women's Amateur follows a week later. The public is invited to attend all of the events, free of charge.
Sean Moore, a rising senior at Wake Forest, returns to defend his title against the 2004 and 2005 runner-up, Ryan Posey. Moore defeated Posey on the 37th hole last year. Posey played for the Oklahoma State team that won this year's NCAA championship.
Thirty states, Australia and Canada are represented in the field of 156 golfers that includes Webb Simpson of Raleigh, the No. 1 ranked men's amateur and a second-team All-American at Wake Forest this past season.
Also competing this week is Robert Riesen of Pinehurst, an All-ACC golf and academic selection as a freshman at UNC this past spring.
"I'm happy to see Ryan Posey come back," says Ehren Link, director of tournament operations at Pinehurst. "He loves this place as much as anybody I've ever met, as does Sean Moore. They're both big fans of this area, so I'm excited to see them come back to compete.
"It's always nice to have a hometown player (Riesen). Robert has an excellent chance to move through the field."
The ACC is well-represented with five of Riesen's teammates included in the field. Wake Forest, the third-place team in this year's NCAA championships, also has six members entered. Phillip Mollica of Clemson, recently qualified for the tournament by shooting what is believed to be a course record of 63 on No. 4.
Other notables already possessing a Putter Boy trophy are Aaron Eckstein of Salem, Va., last year's North and South Junior champion and University of Las Vegas golfer, Jared Texter, the 2002 North and South Junior titleholder.
Link, a golf professional, and a 2002 graduate of New Mexico State, hails from Sacramento, Calif. He took over the tournament leadership position at Pinehurst from Hank Thompson, who left last year to accept a position with the USGA. Thompson is a member of the staff that will manage the 2007 U.S. Open at Oakmont (Pa.).
Link is also excited about the fact that the North and South Women's Amateur field includes the No. 1 ranked player in Stacey Lewis of the University of Arkansas, in addition to two others ranked in the top 10.
Teenager Ya-Ni Tseng of Laguna Hills, Calif., is returning to defend the title she won last year by defeating Morgan Pressel.
The North and South Women's Amateur is a second tier event, the highest status possible behind the U.S. Women's Amateur.
As a testament to that standing, nine former champions are in the field of this week's U.S. Women's Open, including Tseng, Pressel (2004), Britney Lang (2003), May Wood (2002), Candy Hannemann (2000), Beth Bauer (1998, 1999), Kristen Samp (1996), Kellie Robbins (1991) and Brandie Burton (1990).
The men's tournament is currently a fourth tier event.
"We tend not to get close to the field of 156 that we get for the men," Link says of the women's tournament. "But year after year it's the stronger field from a playing ability standpoint. We are working toward making the men's tournament a second tier event."
