By Greg Johnson-GAM.org
YPSILANTI – The second GAM Girls’ Championship will kick off the tournament season Saturday and Sunday, April 26-27, at Washtenaw Golf Club.
The tournament was started a year ago as part of a Golf Association of Michigan effort to offer a tournament for junior girls and boys on dates opposite their high school seasons.
The championship replaced the GAM Junior Kickoff tournament, which previously hosted the competition for boys and girls to start the tournament season. The GAM Boys’ Championship will also be played at Washtenaw on July 29-30.
The format for this weekend is 36-holes of stroke play over two days and champions will be crowned in 15-and-under and the overall categories.
Washtenaw opened in 1899 and has evolved over the years into a classic parkland style golf course featuring tree-lined fairways, strategically placed bunkers, and quick, undulating greens.
In January of 2020 KMD Investors took the reins of the historic golf club that is open to the public, and Michigan-based architect Raymond Hearn’s firm is performing master plan renovation and restoration projects.
Hearn’s research of the property found a rare 1930 aerial photograph he has used to bring back some of the classic golf course design features. Through his research Hearn also found at least nine holes of the design should be credited to William Herbert “Bert” Way, a golf professional and course designer from England.
The course has a rich tournament history, including hosting the 1927 Michigan Amateur Championship, and many major events for both the Golf Association of Michigan and the Michigan PGA. The 1955 Michigan Open at Washtenaw included Michigan Golf Hall of Fame members Walter Burkemo (the champion), Horton Smith, Chick Harbert, Chuck Kocsis and John Barnum.
Zach Szawara is the PGA head golf professional and Mark Pappas is the golf course superintendent.
The GAM Girls’ Championship has attracted the top junior girls in the state for the championship. The two defending champions, Alena Li and Saisha Patil, both of Okemos and both age group Players of the Year in 2024, are in the field. They will be competing against each other for the overall title this year.
