That’s certainly been the case with the 2012 U.S. Amateur that was hosted by Cherry Hills Country Club, with CommonGround Golf Course serving as the companion course for the stroke-play portion of the championship.

We’ve noted before how several competitors in that 312-man field have moved to the forefront in the world of golf, but the last few months have particularly reinforced the point.

And the PGA Tour’s SBS Tournament of Champions that concluded on Sunday in Maui really drove home the fact that Colorado spectators attending the U.S. Amateur 4 1/2 years ago were watching the budding of something special.

The top three finishers at the Tournament of Champions — winner Justin Thomas, runner-up Hideki Matsuyama and third-place Jordan Spieth — all competed at Cherry Hills and CommonGround in the 2012 U.S. Amateur. (Thomas is pictured above at Cherry Hills in 2012.)

But the Tournament of Champions is just the latest example of 2012 U.S. Am players thriving at the highest level of golf. In fact, four of the top eight players on this season’s PGA Tour money list competed in Colorado in August 2012: Matsuyama (No. 1 on the list), Thomas (No. 2), Cody Gribble (No. 7) and Daniel Berger (No. 8).

Some recent PGA Tour highlights from 2012 U.S. Am players:

— In his five official and unofficial starts on the PGA Tour during the current wraparound season, Matsuyama has finished no worse than sixth place. He’s won twice (HSBC Champions and the Hero World Challenge) and been runner-up twice.

— In five official and unofficial PGA Tour events this season, Thomas has notched two victories (CIMB Classic and SBS Tournament of Champions), a fifth and an eighth. And on Thursday at the Sony Open in Hawaii, he carded a cool first-round 59.

— Spieth won the Australian Open in late November, marking his third win worldwide in 2016.

— Gribble won the Sanderson Farms Championship in late October, marking one of two top-10s so far this season.

— Berger has posted a second in the HSBC Champions and a ninth in the Franklin Templeton Shootout in recent months.

— Former NCAA individual champion Thomas Pieters has recorded two top-15 finishes in two tournaments on the PGA Tour this season.

— Bryson DeChambeau, winner of the 2015 U.S. Am, posted two top-6 showings on the PGA Tour in 2016.

— Also recording top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour in 2016 were Zac Blair (third in the Sony Open), Oliver Schniederjans (sixth in RSM Classic) and Cheng-Tsung Pan (also sixth in RSM Classic).

Career-wise in official PGA Tour events, Spieth owns eight wins, Thomas and Matsuyama three apiece, and Gribble and Berger one each.

And, mind you, all of the aforementioned players are still in their young to mid-20s. Spieth, Thomas, Berger, DeChambeau and Schniederjans are 23; Matsuyama and Pieters 24; Pan 25; and Gribble and Blair 26.

All told, five of the top 50 players in the world rankings — and three of the top dozen — competed in the 2012 U.S. Am: Spieth (fifth), Matsuyama (sixth), Thomas (12th), Berger (32nd) and Pieters (48th). Also currently in the top 200 in the world are DeChambeau (123rd), Patrick Rodgers (148th), Gribble (181st), Schniederjans (187th) and Pan (200th).

In case you’re wondering, here’s how some of these notable players fared at the 2012 U.S. Amateur:

— Spieth: The winner of two U.S. Junior Amateurs and the low amateur at the 2012 U.S. Open lost in the round of 64 in match play, 1 up to Pieters.

— Matsuyama: Japanese standout shot 73-72 and missed a playoff to advance to match play by two strokes.

— Thomas: Advanced to the match play semifinals, where he lost to eventual national runner-up Michael Weaver, 3 and 2.

— Gribble: Shot 75-69 and missed a playoff to advance to match play by one stroke.

— Berger: Shot 75-69 and missed a playoff to advance by match play by one stroke.

— Pieters: A round after defeating Spieth, lost 4 and 3 in the round of 32 to Canadian Albin Choi.

— DeChambeau: Three years before winning the U.S. Amateur, he lost in 19 holes in the match play round of 64 to Andrew Presley.

— Blair: The 2011 Colorado Open low amateur lost 2 and 1 in the match play round of 64 to Weaver, the eventual runner-up.

— Schniederjans: Lost 2 and 1 in the match play round of 64 to Adam Schenk.

— Pan: Lost in the quarterfinals 4 and 3 to Brandon Hagy, another current PGA Tour player.
 

Jordan Spieth couldn’t have been more accommodating when he paid a visit to Cherry Hills Country Club in July of 2012.

He traveled to Denver to promote the 2012 U.S. Amateur, attending a press conference at the host club. Afterward, when I asked him to come out behind the 18th green for some photos and a little additional chit-chat, he quickly obliged.

There was just one stipulation. When I asked him to hold the Havemeyer Trophy, which is awarded to the U.S. Amateur champion, he said he wouldn’t touch it. He didn’t explain, so I was left to assume that he was superstitious about holding a trophy which he hadn’t yet won.

In any case, Spieth still gladly posed next to the trophy, which was placed on the ground behind the historic 18th green at Cherry Hills, not far from where Arnold Palmer’s visor landed after a victory toss following the 1960 U.S. Open.

While Spieth didn’t ever end up getting his hands on the Havemeyer Trophy, he’s certainly been handed plenty of other hardware recently. Just in his last 3 1/2 months, he’s won three times, including earlier this month in a three-hole playoff at the PGA Tour’s Valspar Championship.

But Spieth certainly wasn’t the only competitor from that 2012 U.S. Amateur — hosted by Cherry Hills, with CommonGround serving as the companion course for the stroke-play portion of the event — who has hit it big in the years since.

The noteworthy part is how quickly some of these players have made the big-time. For instance, with his Valspar victory this month, Spieth became just the fourth player since 1940 to win twice on the PGA Tour before his 22nd birthday, joining Tiger Woods, Sergio Garcia and Robert Gamez.

“I look back at the last couple of years and sometimes it’s hard to believe all this has happened,” Spieth said this week. “It certainly happened faster than I could have imagined, but I’m taking everything in stride and continuing to work hard. I have a lot of goals that I want to achieve and so far, I feel like I’m headed in the right direction.”

Three players in the 312-man field for the 2012 U.S. Amateur are currently in the top 100 in the World Golf Rankings: Spieth (sixth), Hideki Matsuyama (16th) and Justin Thomas (84th). (Spieth and Thomas are pictured together above at CommonGround in 2012.) Other 2012 U.S. Am competitors who have made some noise on the PGA Tour this season are Zac Blair (57th on the Tour money list) and Carlos Ortiz (68th). Still other current PGA Tour players who competed at Cherry Hills three years ago are Max Homa and Patrick Rodgers.

That U.S. Am field also featured the current No. 1-ranked amateur in the world (Oliver Schniederjans) and the No. 1-ranked college player (Cheng-Tsung Pan of Washington).

Here’s a rundown on some of the aforementioned players, noting what they’ve accomplished, and how they fared at that 2012 U.S. Amateur:

— Spieth. He already had an outstanding record before coming to Cherry Hills, having won two U.S. Junior Amateurs (2009 and ’11), leading Texas to an NCAA title as a freshman, and being the low amateur at the 2012 U.S. Open. But though he was arguably the favorite at Cherry Hills — and tied for seventh place in stroke play with rounds of 69-69 — Spieth (left) lost 1 up in the round of 64 of match play to 2012 NCAA champion Thomas Pieters.

After turning pro in the middle of his sophomore season at Texas, Spieth has won twice on the PGA Tour and also prevailed in the Australian Open and the Hero World Challenge, in addition to finishing second in the 2014 Masters. March 29 Update: In his last 10 events around the world, he has posted eight top-7 finishes.

— Matsuyama. Amazingly, given his golf resume, Matsuyama faltered badly at the 2012 U.S. Amateur. Considered one of the pre-tournament favorites, he shot 73-72–145 to finish 82nd in stroke play and didn’t even make the 64-man match play bracket.

But the 23-year-old from Japan has been formidable on the PGA Tour, winning the 2014 Memorial, along with the Dunlop Phoenix title in November. Overall, Matsuyama has collected six top-10s in his last 13 events worldwide.

— Thomas. Unlike many of the other players mentioned here, the former University of Alabama standout made a deep run in the 2012 U.S. Amateur. With rounds of 65-74–139, he placed 13th in stroke play, then advanced to the match play semifinals, where he lost to Michael Weaver. The 21-year-old Thomas, who hits it a long way despite weighing just 145 pounds, has made an impact in his first full season on the PGA Tour. In his last 10 events, he’s posted four top-10 finishes.

— Blair. The 24-year-old has competed more in Colorado than others on our list as his dad is two-time Colorado Open champion Jim Blair. Zac Blair himself scored low-amateur honors in the 2011 Colorado Open. In his rookie season on the PGA Tour, Blair has notched three top-12 finishes and has won $638,048. At the 2012 U.S. Amateur, Blair placed fifth in stroke play (65-71–136) then lost in the round of 64 to Weaver, who advanced to the finals.

— Ortiz. The 23-year-old native of Mexico has notched five top-21 finishes on the PGA Tour this season. (March 29 Update: That number went up to six at the Valero Texas Open.) At Cherry Hills in 2012, Ortiz placed 39th in stroke play (75-67–142), then lost in the round of 64 of match play to Adam Stephenson.

— Schniederjans. The 21-year-old senior at Georgia Tech initially ascended to the No. 1 spot in the World Amateur Golf Rankings last June. At Cherry Hills, Schniederjans finished 25th in stroke play (74-67–141), then lost to Adam Schenk in a round-of-64 match.

— Pan. The 23-year-old senior at Washington is ranked No. 1 among college golfers by both Golfstat and Golfweek. He’s won three times in seven college tournaments this season. In the 2012 U.S. Am, he placed second in stroke play (69-65–134) and advanced to the quarterfinals of match play, where he lost to Brandon Hagy.

— Beau Hossler. Hossler, now 20, came to Cherry Hills as one of the biggest sensations as he had briefly held the lead during the second round of the 2012 U.S. Open. But Hossler faltered at the U.S. Amateur that year, missing a playoff for the final match-play berths by one stroke (72-72–144). Hossler, now a sophomore at Texas, has finished first, second and second in his last three college tournaments. He’s now No. 3 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings.
 

Cherry Hills Country Club will host arguably the top event in amateur golf Aug. 13-19, with CommonGround Golf Course serving as the second site for the stroke-play portion of the event Aug. 13-14.

Anyone who attended the 1990 Amateur at Cherry Hills — or covered it, in the case of yours truly — can tell you the tournament proved to be quite a memorable start to a five-year run of historic USGA championships held in Colorado.

In the 1993 U.S. Senior Open at Cherry Hills, Jack Nicklaus would win the last of his eight USGA titles. Nicklaus’ first USGA championship also came in Colorado, at the Broadmoor in the 1959 U.S. Amateur.

Then in the 1995 U.S. Women’s Open at the Broadmoor, Annika Sorenstam would post the first of her 72 LPGA Tour victories.

As for the 1990 Amateur, the event remains the answer to a trivia question: At what tournament did World Golf Hall of Famer — and five-time U.S. Open runner-up — Phil Mickelson win his only USGA championship?

The U.S. Am 22 years ago produced many an unforgettable moment. Here were some of the highlights and notable tidbits from that week:

— A severe hail storm six weeks before the championship made it a challenge to get Cherry Hills ready for the tournament. The golf-ball-size hail left an estimated 750,000 to 1 million scars on Cherry Hills’ greens, some as large as 3 1/2 inches, and the course was closed for five days. A concerted effort by members and staff had the greens in good shape by the time the Amateur started on Aug. 21.

— While Mickelson (pictured in a USGA photo at Cherry Hills) comes across as a confident player to this day, he was borderline cocky as a 20-year-old competing at the U.S. Amateur. To be sure, he was a standout, having won NCAA titles as both a freshman and sophomore at Arizona State. He was also low amateur in the 1990 U.S. Open.

Two-time U.S. Amateur champion Jay Sigel went so far as to call Mickelson “the best (amateur) I’ve seen.”

But, at the time, modesty wasn’t the strong suit of Mickelson, who consistently sported a preppy look back then.

After being medalist in the stroke-play portion of the Amateur, Mickelson said, “If I play the way I’ve been playing, I don’t think I’ll get beat.”

Also: “I’m playing as good as I’ve ever played. Every facet of my game is 100 percent right now. Whoever I play, I’d be intimidated (if I were them). So why shouldn’t they be?”

— In an example of his self-confidence, in his round-of-32 match, Mickelson had a 2-foot putt for birdie on No. 1, while his opponent, Jeff Thomas, had a 25-footer for par. Mickelson conceded Thomas’ putt.

“He didn’t give me a putt all day,” Mickelson later said of Thomas. “I just didn’t want him to go and (take the time) to line up the putt.”

As Mickelson recently told USGA.org in recalling the event, “I’ll never forget the look that he gave me (after Mickelson conceded the long putt). It was just funny.”

— In stroke play, Mickelson broke the course record at Meridian Golf Club — and the existing U.S. Amateur record — by carding an 8-under-par 64, despite missing two 5-foot putts in the process. That gave him a 135 total for two rounds, good for medalist honors by two strokes. He gained that honor despite making a quadruple-bogey 7 on the 15th hole at Cherry Hills, where he four-putted.

— Ten Coloradans competed in the 1990 U.S. Amateur: current PGA Tour player Shane Bertsch, Brett Dean, Rick DeWitt, Shawn McGechie, Tom McGraw, Guy Mertz, Robert Odom, Scott Petersen, Bill Werley and Charlie Whalen. None made match play, though DeWitt was in a playoff for the final match-play spots. Also failing to advance in that playoff was David Duval, who now lives in Colorado and is a member at Cherry Hills.

— In the first day of stroke play, Meridian yielded three holes-in-one.

— One player definitely stood out among the 312 competitors, though not necessarily for his golf. David Nissenbaum, a former state high school champion in Massachusetts, competed at Cherry Hills and Meridian with hair down to his shoulder blades and a foot-long beard. Nissenbaum also played in the 1967 U.S. Amateur — at the Broadmoor — but in the interim he served three years in federal prison for his role in allegedly smuggling 21 tons of marijuana. And, for good measure, he was a priest of the Ethiopian Zion Coptic Church, which uses marijuana in a sacramental role.

— Defending champ Chris Patton, all 310 pounds of him, lost 8 and 6 in the first round of match play when opponent Chris Zambri made hole-in-one with a 5-iron at the 204-yard 12th hole. After the ace, despite having already been eliminated, Patton couldn’t resist intentionally hitting his tee shot into the water. He turned pro immediately after the match.

— In three of his first four matches, Mickelson was taken the distance — to the 18th hole — including in the quarterfinals by Bob May, who went on to lose a playoff at the 2000 PGA Championship. Mickelson’s most remarkable comeback came in the round of 16. He was 1 down on the 16th hole, and for his second shot he had a huge cottonwood a few feet in front of him and directly between his ball and the hole.

Mickelson aimed at a creek 40 yards left of flagstick, hit a huge hook and put his ball 12 feet from the hole. He made his birdie putt and opponent Mike Swingle missed his 15 footer, evening the match.

“I had to snipe it 60 yards; I can’t believe I pulled it off,” Mickelson said. “… It was by far one of the better shot under pressure I’ve hit. If I don’t make it, it’s in the creek, then it’s over.”

Mickelson went on to win the 17th hole with a birdie and won the match 1 up despite being 4 over par for the round.

“About an hour ago, I had lost, I was done, heading home,” he said shortly after prevailing.

— From the “world is a small place” department, in the 36-hole final Mickelson faced Manny Zerman, a fellow member of the graduating class of 1988 from University of San Diego High School. They were golf teammates at the school as seniors.

In the final, Mickelson made 10 birdies and played 32 holes in 4 under par in defeating Zerman 5 and 4. Mickelson had won the biggest tournament of his life to that point.

“This is the one that matters most,” he said earlier in the week. “I could finish last in every other tournament and win this one and be happy. This is the ultimate amateur tournament.”

— Mickelson became the first left-hander to win the U.S. Amateur. And the victory made him the first player since Nicklaus in 1961 to win NCAA title and U.S. Amateur in the same year.

Capturing the U.S. Amateur title earned Mickelson a 1991 Masters pairing with Nick Faldo, who would finish his career with six major championships.

Noting at the time that he had never met Faldo, Mickelson deadpanned, “Good player, I hear.”

— Mickelson wasn’t a big fan of playing it safe when a challenge presented itself, so it’s not surprising that he regularly tried to drive the green on the par-4 first hole at Cherry Hills, as Arnold Palmer did successfully in the final round of the 1960 U.S. Open en route to rallying to victory.

But the strategy didn’t work out so well for Mickelson, who was 1 over par in seven times playing the hole during match play.

However, as Mickelson noted regarding another decision he made earlier in the week, “I’m just not one to lay it up — flat out.”
 

——————————————

Other U.S. Amateur-Related Stories on COgolf.org:

— Star Power for U.S. Amateur. Spieth, Hossler, Gary Nicklaus headline field for Colorado-based tourney

— Yang Joins Sister as USGA Qualifier. DU golfer advances to U.S. Amateur along with Axlund, Chapman

— National Berths, With a Cherry on Top. Schovee, Spray, Hallberg qualify for Colorado-based U.S. Amateur

— Kids and Pros Alike Have a Blast. U.S. Amateur Alumni Day at CommonGround draws a few hundred fans

— CGA, CWGA Gear Up for U.S. Amateur. With CommonGround as Companion Course, associations expand role

— CommonGround Impresses USGA Executive Director. Five tees were added for U.S. Amateur

——————————————-

U.S. Amateur: All the Essentials

What: The 112th U.S. Amateur, the oldest USGA championship.

When: Aug. 13-19. For Aug. 13-14 tee times, CLICK HERE.

Where: Cherry Hills Country Club in Cherry Hills Village (7,409 yards, par-71), and CommonGround Golf Course in Aurora (7,378 yards, par-70). Cherry Hills will be hosting its ninth USGA championship (3 U.S. Opens, 1 U.S. Women’s Open, 2 U.S. Amateurs, 1 U.S. Senior Open, 1 USGA Senior Amateur, 1 U.S. Mid-Amateur).

Format: 36 holes of stroke play Aug. 13 and 14, with each golfer playing 18 holes each at Cherry Hills at CommonGround. The top 64 players will advance to match play, which will be held exclusively at Cherry Hills. The first round of matches is Aug. 15, the second and third rounds are Aug. 16, the quarterfinals Aug. 17, the semifinals Aug. 18 and the 36-hole final is Aug. 19.

Starting Field: 312 players. (6,403 golfers originally sent in entries.)

Top Name Players Expected in Field: Jordan Spieth (2-time U.S. Junior Amateur champion, low amateur in 2012 U.S. Open), Beau Hossler (17-year-old led U.S. Open during second round), Gary Nicklaus (son of the legendary Jack Nicklaus), college player of the year Justin Thomas, 2011 Masters low amateur Hideki Matsuyama, 2012 NCAA Div. I champion Thomas Pieters.

Players in Field with Strong Colorado Ties: Ryan Axlund of Denver, Jeff Chapman of Denver, Parker Edens of Greeley, Eric Hallberg of Castle Rock, Bryan Kruse of Wesminster, Michael Schoolcraft of Englewood, Matt Schovee of Englewood, former Colorado Springs resident Justin Spray, DU golfer Andy Yang.

Winner Receives Exemptions In: 2013 Masters, U.S. Open and British Open, along with the next 10 U.S. Amateurs, providing he remains an amateur.

Tickets: Available at King Soopers stores and at TicketsWest.com. A daily ticket is $17.50. A weekly pass is $85. Kids 17 and under are admitted free when accompanied by a ticketed adult.

Television: Aug. 15 2-4 p.m., Golf Channel; Aug. 16 4:30-6:30 p.m., Golf Channel; Aug. 17 6:30-8:30 p.m., Golf Channel; Aug. 18 2-4 p.m., NBC; Aug. 19 2-4 p.m., NBC.
 

But little did they realize then how large those roles would end up being. Ironically, what made all the difference was a golf course that wasn’t even open when the U.S. Amateur site was originally announced.

The addition of CommonGround Golf Course — which is owned and operated by the CGA and CWGA — as the second course for the stroke-play portion of the event was a game-changer for the associations.

“Just providing CommonGround as the Companion Course is significant,” said Mark Passey, the USGA’s Highlands Ranch-based regional affairs director for the nine-state Central Region. “That’s atypical of what a state and regional golf association does.”

Indeed, in the 23 years Passey has worked the U.S. Amateur, he said only one other course owned by a state/regional golf association has hosted the stroke-play or match-play rounds of the championship. The Home Course in DuPont, Wash., owned and operated by the Washington State Golf Association and the Pacific Northwest Golf Association, was the second stroke-play course for the 2010 U.S. Amateur.

As the Companion Course, CommonGround will join Cherry Hills in hosting the stroke-play rounds Aug. 13-14 before the match-play portion of the championship is played Aug. 15-19 exclusively at Cherry Hills.

“When you have a U.S. Amateur, you have to shut down (the course) and devote it purely to the championship and put other things in the background,” Passey noted. “And there are course preparation costs too. I know Cherry Hills is helping make that happen (financially), but it’s a big contribution. We’re aware of it and value it.”

While it will be the first USGA championship for three-year-old CommonGround, it will be the ninth for Cherry Hills and the 31st overall for Colorado.

“We always have a role to play that’s pretty significant, whether it be scoring, officiating, doing junior clinics …,” CGA executive director Ed Mate said. “But this year we’re really a partner — not just a host association but operating a host course. We’ve been invited to every committee meeting and Cherry Hills has really made us feel like a full partner. Being a host course definitely makes it more special.”

Many, if not all, of the 312 U.S. Amateur contestants will play practice rounds at CommonGround and Cherry Hills over the weekend preceding the championship. Then all golfers will complete one championship stroke-play round each at CommonGround and Cherry Hills. The top 64 players after 36 holes will advance to match play at Cherry Hills.

“It’s pretty exciting,” CWGA executive director Robin Jervey said. “I’m looking forward to walking the fairways for a national championship at a course I know so well (CommonGround). It’ll be exciting to see how they play out there.”

Being one of two stroke-play courses for the U.S. Amateur is certainly a nice feather in the cap of CommonGround, the Tom Doak-designed public course that opened in Aurora in May 2009. But the involvement of the CGA and CWGA in the U.S. Amateur certainly goes well beyond that.

Mate, Jervey and CGA director of rules and competitions Pete Lis will serve as rules officials for the championship. CGA director of communications Aaron Kellough will handle the calligraphy on the scoreboard at CommonGround — the same role Passey will play at Cherry Hills, as he always does at the U.S. Amateur’s host course. CGA director of operations Briena Goldsmith will play a major part in volunteer coordination and scheduling, and other CGA and CWGA staffers and interns will assist in scoring, marshaling and CommonGround’s volunteer check-in.

Association personnel, along with volunteers, will be responsible for marshaling the ninth and 10th holes at Cherry Hills throughout championship week.

Additionally, some volunteer stalwarts for both associations likewise will play key roles at Cherry Hills and CommonGround. And it’s hoped that current and past CGA and CWGA presidents will serve as starters during the practice rounds at CommonGround.

But that’s just tournament week. There’s a load of work to do in preparation for the U.S. Amateur, and the CGA and CWGA join the many tournament organizers at Cherry Hills, along with the staffs at both courses, in making sure things run seamlessly for the week-plus that so much attention is focused on the championship.

Goldsmith is the CGA staff point person in working with championship director Kathy Walker regarding volunteers, of which the championship will need close to 1,000. Specifically, Goldsmith is responsible for recruiting all the volunteers at CommonGround — 180 marshals and 10 transportation volunteers — and for the two holes the CGA and CWGA is overseeing at Cherry Hills. (Some volunteers are still needed. CLICK HERE to view the main volunteer page of the 2012 U.S. Amateur.  CLICK HERE to be taken directly to the CommonGround volunteer registration page.)

In addition, CommonGround director of golf Dave Troyer and CGA board member — and former Cherry Hills head professional — Clayton Cole are also playing key liaison roles from the CGA/CWGA’s perspective.

All of this fits in with the close relationship the CGA and CWGA have with the USGA, which conducts the U.S. Amateur. The state associations run many USGA qualifiers, are sanctioned caretakers of USGA course rating and handicap systems, serve as a clearing house for the USGA Rules of Golf, and share the USGA’s emphasis on outreach and developmental programs, particularly at the junior level.

And with all of the outreach programs and initiatives at CommonGround, the USGA has provided generous grants in recent years, including $175,000 for the CommonGround Kids Course and $10,000 for the Solich Caddie & Leadership Academy at CommonGround. The national association also funds Boatwright Internships which benefit the CGA and CWGA.

“The heart and mission of the USGA is delivered by the CGA and CWGA,” Passey said. “It’s an important relationship. Their mission statements are about the same as ours. We share best practices with them and want them to be as good as they can be. We treasure groups like the CGA and CWGA.”

Noted Mate: “We are the unofficial franchise of the USGA. We’re the delivery mechanism for a lot of the programs the USGA offers. It’s a great partnership and it works both ways. We need the USGA credibility behind us.”

Passey, by the way, will be working his 23rd consecutive U.S. Amateur. (In addition to handling the scoreboard at Cherry Hills, he’ll manage player registration in the days leading up to the tournament.) And this year’s championship will make for bookends of sorts for him. Passey’s first U.S. Amateur was also held at Cherry Hills, in 1990 when Phil Mickelson claimed the title. 

For just the fourth time ever, the U.S. Amateur will be held in the Centennial State, and Colorado has a strong record for producing memorable champions, notably Jack Nicklaus (1959) and Phil Mickelson (1990).

Cherry Hills Country Club, the primary course for next year’s tournament (Aug. 13-19), has a long and storied history of USGA championships, having been home to eight of them, including the 1990 U.S. Amateur.

On the other end of the spectrum as far as hosting USGA events goes is CommonGround Golf Course, which will serve as the second course for the Aug. 13 and 14 stroke-play portion of the tournament. The 312 contestants will play one round each at Cherry Hills and CommonGround, with the top 64 players after 36 holes advancing to match play.

CommonGround, a public course which opened in 2009, is owned and operated by the CGA and CWGA and will be making its USGA championship debut.

While Cherry Hills certainly will be the main showcase for the 2012 U.S. Amateur — the historic course will host all of the match-play portion of the event — the USGA still takes very seriously any venue which plays a significant role in its championships. And it didn’t take long for the powers that be to decide CommonGround rose to the association’s high standards.

Asked what his impression of CommonGround was when he first saw the course, new USGA executive director Mike Davis told COgolf.org, “The impression could not have been better. It’s such a neat story how it’s been built and the very reasonable greens fees there. I think it will be a great partner. I believe it will be an easier test of golf than Cherry Hills — it’s easier to hit fairways (at CommonGround) — but architecturally, it’s outstanding.”

Course designer Tom Doak hit the right notes with his work at CommonGround, but there will be some tweaks to make it stand up to the top amateur golfers in the world.

After lengthy discussions involving the USGA, architect Eric Iverson (part of Doak’s Renaissance Golf Design team) and the CommonGround staff, it was decided to add five tees to the original layout. They’ll be placed at the par-5 third and 18th holes, and the par-4 fourth, fifth and 16th holes.

“Basically what we’re trying to accomplish with the new tees is to preserve the length of the right holes,” said Ed Mate, executive director of the CGA. “We don’t want to make the short holes less short and we want to make sure the long holes stay long.”

CommonGround generally plays to a par-71, but it will be switched to a par-70 for the U.S. Amateur. The 11th hole, now a short par-5, will be made into a par-4, with the tees being moved up. The back portion of the 11th tee will be used to lengthen the par-4 ninth hole.

Moving up the tees on No. 11 “will make it a good short par-4 instead of a really short par-5,” Mate said. “It’ll also bring the lake (to the left of the fairway and near the green) into play.”

Mate fully realizes that given the quality of players who will be competing next year, there will certainly be some low scores shot at CommonGround.

“If the weather is conducive, someone should shoot something (in the low 60s),” Mate said. “That means we’ve done our job if the greens are good and the setup is fair. I would expect someone to shoot 62 because par-5s at this altitude aren’t par-5s, so when you do the math it’s really a par-68, so a 62 — 6 under par — is not phenomenal.”

Davis has set up many courses for USGA championships, but whether CommonGround yields some low scores or not, he’s a big fan of the course.

“When I left (CommonGround after his first visit), I said to Ed, ‘I hope people around Denver realize just how good this course is,'” Davis said. “We’re delighted. In fact, I hope after this one that maybe we can get one of our (U.S.) Public Links Championships played at CommonGround. It would be dynamite to be able to play there.”

Cherry Hills, meanwhile, has already undergone some changes in anticipation of hosting events such as the 2012 U.S. Amateur and the PGA Tour’s BMW Championship in 2014. In late 2008 and early 2009, the course underwent a $7.6 million restoration that added a little more than 300 yards to the maximum length of the layout, which can now reach to 7,462 yards. The project also restored some of the original design elements of the William Flynn layout. Doak and his Renaissance Golf Design team handled those changes.