University of South Dakota sophomore golfer Tom Vining has earned a spot in the 2016 United States Amateur Championship which will take place Aug. 15-21 at Oakland Hills Country Club in Bloomfield Hills, Mich.
It is the second consecutive year Vining has qualified for the event.
Vining earned his way into the 312-man event by winning a local qualifier at Bakker Crossing Golf Course in Sioux Falls back in July. He shot 5-under in the 36-hole event and won by four strokes.
The 2016 championship will be the second U.S. Amateur to be hosted by Oakland Hills. The 2002 U.S. Amateur, won by Ricky Barnes over Hunter Mahan, was the most recent USGA championship at the historic layout designed by Donald Ross.
The top 64 competitors in the 36-hole stroke play portion of the tournament will advance to match play format on Aug. 17-21. Vining shot 6-over at last year’s championship hosted by Olympia Fields Country Club in Illinois, missing the cut by three strokes.
A native of Sioux Falls, attended Lincoln High School where he won back-to-back class ‘AA’ state championships in 2012 and 2013. He attended University of Minnesota during the 2015-16 academic year before transferring to USD. He competed in nine tournaments for the Gophers and had a scoring average of 76.3 per round.
