AURORA, Ill. (Feb. 18, 2020) – Aurora Country Club in Aurora, Illinois, will host the 95th Women’s Western Junior in 2021, the Women’s Western Golf Association and Western Golf Association have announced.
The event is set for June 21-25, 2021, and marks the first time that Aurora Country Club has hosted a WWGA championship.
Introduced in 1920, the Women’s Western Junior is one of the oldest junior tournaments in the United States. The championship features a national field of top junior golfers and serves for many as a stepping stone to successful amateur and collegiate careers.
"Each year, the girls who compete in the Women’s Western Junior represent golf’s best and brightest rising talent,” said WWGA President Cece Durbin. “We’re grateful to Aurora Country Club for hosting this national event, and we’re looking forward to a successful 2021 championship.”
The Women’s Western Junior field will be comprised of 78 amateurs up to 18 years old with a handicap index of 14.4 or lower. Practice rounds are set for Monday, June 21. The competition will open with 36 holes of stroke play June 22-23 to establish 16 match play qualifiers. Match play is set for June 24-25.
“We’re pleased to have Aurora Country Club as the host for the 2021 Women’s Western Junior,” said Vince Pellegrino, WGA Senior Vice President of Tournaments. “We’re confident Aurora’s highly regarded course layout will prove to be a worthy challenge for the top-ranked junior golfers who will be competing.”
Founded in 1914, Aurora Country Club’s 6,800-yard layout was designed by Thomas Bendelow and William Boice Langford, both noted golf course architects who designed or remodeled many highly rated golf courses in the Midwest and across the United States. Bendelow’s work includes Medinah Country Club’s three courses, Olympia Fields County Club’s South Course in Chicago, and East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, home of the TOUR Championship.
Aurora’s rolling greens are consistently among the best manicured in the Midwest.
“We’re excited to be hosting the Women’s Western Junior, a national event with nearly a century of history,” said John Bryan, of Aurora County Club and a WGA Director. “We’re planning for a great week of competition as we support the future stars of women’s golf.”
Gabriella Gilrowski, of Westfield, Indiana, won the 2019 Women’s Western Junior at Woodland Country Club in Carmel, Indiana. Notable past champions include Cristie Kerr (1994), Grace Park (1993) and Nancy Lopez (1972-74).