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see also: U.S. Junior Amateur, a USGA Championship, Saucon Valley Country Club - Grace Course

Registration is now open for two of the biggest championships in junior golf
Registration is now open for two of the biggest championships in junior golf: the 2026 U.S. Junior Amateur and 2026 U.S. Girls’ Junior.
The USGA officially opened entries at 9 a.m. ET on March 11, giving elite junior players their first chance to begin the road toward two of the most prestigious titles in amateur golf.
The 2026 U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship will be contested July 13-18 at Old Chatham Golf Club in Durham, North Carolina, while the 2026 U.S. Junior Amateur Championship will follow July 20-25 at Saucon Valley Country Club in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
Both championships feature a two-round stroke-play qualifier followed by match play, a format that has long made these events some of the most demanding and rewarding tests in junior golf.
For junior golfers with national aspirations, entry opening day is the first real marker that championship season is on the horizon.
The 77th U.S. Girls’ Junior Championship returns with a field of 156 competitors and will be played at Old Chatham Golf Club, a Rees Jones design that opened in 2001. The course is expected to play at 6,491 yards and par 72, though those numbers remain subject to change.
Eligibility is open to female amateur players who have not reached their 19th birthday by July 18, 2026, and who hold a Handicap Index® of 5.4 or lower.
The championship returns to North Carolina for the fourth time, following previous editions at Pine Needles in 1989, Carmel Country Club in 2006, and The Country Club of North Carolina in 2010. Old Chatham has also hosted notable championships including the 2019 U.S. Senior Amateur.
The reigning champion is Aphrodite Deng, who made history in 2025 by becoming the first Canadian ever to win the U.S. Girls’ Junior. Deng defeated Singapore’s Xingtong Chen, 2 and 1, in the final at Atlanta Athletic Club. Her win capped a remarkable season that also included victories at the Junior Invitational at Sage Valley and the Mizuho Americas Open.
Deng headlines a strong list of exempt players that also includes 2024 runner-up Asterisk Talley, 2025 runner-up Xingtong Chen, semifinalist Grace Carter, and several of the top age-eligible players in the Women’s World Amateur Golf Ranking.
The champion will again receive a gold medal, custody of the Glenna Collett Vare Trophy for one year, exemptions into future U.S. Girls’ Juniors while age eligible, a spot in the 2027 U.S. Women’s Open at Inverness Club, exemptions into the 2026 and 2027 U.S. Women’s Amateur Championships, and an invitation to the 2027 Augusta National Women’s Amateur.
One week later, the 78th U.S. Junior Amateur Championship will take place at Saucon Valley Country Club, with the Old Course serving as the primary championship venue and the Grace Course serving as the stroke-play co-host.
The championship field will include 264 players, and eligibility is open to male amateurs who have not reached their 19th birthday by July 25, 2026, and whose Handicap Index® does not exceed 2.4.
Saucon Valley is one of the great championship venues in American golf and has a deep USGA history. Among the major events previously contested there are the 1951 U.S. Amateur, the 1983 U.S. Junior Amateur, the 2009 U.S. Women’s Open, the 2014 U.S. Mid-Amateur, and the 2022 U.S. Senior Open.
The defending champion is Hamilton Coleman of Augusta, Georgia, who defeated Minh Nguyen of Vietnam, 2 and 1, in the 36-hole final at Trinity Forest Golf Club in 2025. Coleman’s title run included surviving a 25-hole opening-round marathon before riding that momentum all the way to the trophy. He’ll return in 2026 trying to become just the second player ever to successfully defend the title.
Coleman leads a notable exempt list that also features Miles Russell, Tyler Watts, Qiyou Wu, and many of the top age-eligible players in the World Amateur Golf Ranking.
The U.S. Junior Amateur champion will earn a gold medal, custody of the U.S. Junior Amateur Trophy for one year, exemptions from qualifying into future U.S. Junior Amateurs, a spot in the 2027 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach Golf Links as long as he remains an amateur, and exemptions into the 2026 and 2027 U.S. Amateur Championships.
Qualifying for both championships begins in late May and runs into early July, with sites spread across the United States as well as Canada and Mexico.
For the U.S. Girls’ Junior, qualifying runs from May 20 through July 1. Sites include Katy, Texas; Scarsdale, New York; Beach Park, Illinois; Stanford, California; Paradise Valley, Arizona; Salisbury, North Carolina; and Aurora, Colorado. International qualifying will also be held in Canada and Mexico.
For the U.S. Junior Amateur, qualifying runs from May 26 through July 1. Boys’ qualifying sites include Port Orchard, Washington; Scarsdale, New York; Beach Park, Illinois; Birmingham, Alabama; Stanford, California; Bethlehem, Pennsylvania; Columbus, Ohio; Peoria, Arizona; Boynton Beach, Florida; Athens, Georgia; and Beatrice, Nebraska, along with additional sites in Canada and Mexico.
The broad qualifying footprint gives players from all regions a chance to earn their spot, while also underscoring the scale and prestige of both championships.
Both championships will follow the same familiar format: two rounds of stroke play to determine the field for match play, with the low 64 players advancing. If necessary, a playoff will be used to trim the field to exactly 64.
At the Girls’ Junior, match play begins on Wednesday, July 15, with the 36-hole championship match scheduled for Saturday, July 18.
At the Junior Amateur, match play begins on Wednesday, July 22, with the 36-hole final set for Saturday, July 25.
That combination of medal play pressure and match play survival is what makes these championships such a launching pad. The list of past champions on both sides is packed with future stars.
The U.S. Girls’ Junior has crowned names such as Mickey Wright, Hollis Stacy, Nancy Lopez, Inbee Park, Lexi Thompson, Ariya Jutanugarn, Minjee Lee, Rose Zhang, Kiara Romero, and Rianne Malixi.
The U.S. Junior Amateur’s champion list includes Johnny Miller, David Duval, Tiger Woods, Jordan Spieth, Scottie Scheffler, Will Zalatoris, Min Woo Lee, and Nick Dunlap.
For many junior golfers, today is more than an administrative deadline. It is the starting point for one of the most important goals of the season.
The chance to tee it up in a USGA junior championship has long represented a milestone in elite amateur golf. For a few players, it becomes something even bigger: a breakthrough moment on the path to college golf, international competition, and eventually the professional game.
With entries now open, that journey toward Durham and Bethlehem officially begins.
Don’t miss your chance to compete in one of junior golf’s biggest championships. Review the details and register today.
The road to Saucon Valley starts here. Explore the championship page and secure your spot in the field.
While it is not the oldest competition, the U.S. Junior Amateur is considered the premier junior competition, having been around since 1948. The event is open to male golfers who have not reached their 19th birthday prior to the close of competition ...
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