The Board of Directors of the Society of Hickory Golfers is excited to announce that the 2019 U.S. Hickory Open has been awarded to the Belvedere Club and the Belvedere Golf Club in Charlevoix, Mich. The dates are June 20-22, 2019.
Belvedere has hosted an annual hickory event every year since 2006. The golf course was established in 1925, designed by renowned golf course architect William Watson. It has been recognized as one of the best golf courses in the Midwest and hosted The Great Lakes Open in 1929 and 1930. It has also hosted 40 Michigan Amateur Championships and was awarded the Championship again in 2025, Belvedere’s centennial year. In 2016, the original hand-drawn architectural plans by William Watson were discovered and the club has spent the past two years restoring the golf course to its original design of 1925.
“This will be an exciting event for everyone,” said Bill “Ernie” Ernst, a Wisconsin hickory player and SoHG board member who worked with the Belvedere Club members on their application. “We looked at several venues, but the Belvedere Club has a long history of mounting a fantastic tournament that meets all our requirements.”
The 2019 USHO will be placed on the same weekend that the Belvedere Hickory Open normally would be played. In effect, it will take the place, in 2019, of the Belvedere Hickory Open.
Despite its location in northern lower Michigan, organizers and board members felt that the beautiful Charlevoix area of Michigan, the gracious hospitality of the Belvedere Club members, and the outstanding golf course more than compensate for the few extra miles traveled; not to mention the club’s 11 years of experience in hosting one of the country’s premier hickory events.
The Society currently is planning for the 2018 U.S. Hickory Open in September 2018 in Greensboro, N.C. at Sedgefield Country Club. Details are on the U.S. Hickory Open page of this website. These pages are being updated as information is available.