South American Amateur

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For many years, the South American Golf Federation’s calendar featured only team championships. At the initiative of the Federation’s Executive Secretary, however, the need arose to establish an individual championship to recognize and reward the best amateur golfer in South America.
The South American Individual Amateur Golf Championship was inaugurated in Guayaquil in 2006 under the Match Play format. After four successful editions, the event was expanded to welcome amateur players from other regions and the format was changed to 72-hole Stroke Play. The calendar stipulates that the venue should rotate among all South American countries and, preferably, be held during the first quarter of the year.
Participation is open to amateur golfers representing the member entities of the South American Golf Federation, as well as players from invited countries, provided they meet the requirements of the official call for entries and comply with the Amateur Status rules established by the R&A.
Past Champions
Year | Men's Champion | Women's Champion | Club | Country |
2006 | Sebastian Saavedra (ARG) | Paola Moreno (COL) | Guayaquil CC | Ecuador |
2007 | Esteban Martinez (ARG) | Martina Gavier (ARG) | Lima GC | Peru |
2008 | Cristian Espinoza (CHI) | Maria Yacaman (COL) | Club P&E San Cristóbal | Chile |
2009 | Tomas Cocha (ARG) | Paz Echeverria (CHI) | Sao Fernando GC | Brasil |
2010 | Tomas Cocha (ARG) | Juliana Murcia (COL) | CC de Bucaramanga | Colombia |
2011 | Franco Romero (ARG) | Manuela Carbajo Re (ARG) | CC de Bucaramanga | Colombia |
2012 | Jorge Fernandez Valdez (ARG) | Delfina Acosta (ARG) | CC Farallones | Colombia |
2013 | Callum Shinkwin (ENG) | Brooke Henderson (CAN) | C El Rincón de Cajica | Colombia |
2014 | Paul Howard (ENG) | Lucia Gutierrez (PER) | CC de Barranquilla | Colombia |
2015 | Scott Harvey (USA) | Sofia Garcia (PAR) | Lima GC | Peru |
2016 | Juan Alvarez (URU) | Sofia Garcia (PAR) | Lima GC | Peru |
2017 | Paul Chaplet (CRC) | Isabella Fierro (MEX) | Martindale GC | Argentina |
2018 | Chris Crosologo (CAN) | Milagros Chaves (PAR) | Martindale GC | Argentina |
2019 | Chris Crosologo (CAN) | Maria F Escauriza (PAR) | CG Los Leones | Chile |
2020 | Benjamin Saiz-Wenz (CHI) | Maria J Bohorquez (COL) | CG Sport Frances | Chile |
2022 | Mateo Fernandez de Oliveira (ARG) | Daniela Ballesteros (PER) | Quito T&GC | Ecuador |
2023 | Liam Nolan (IRE) | Caley McGinty (ENG) | Quito T&GC | Ecuador |
2024 | Felipe Garces (ECU) | Maria J Marin (COL) | CC de Bogota | Colombia |
2025 | Benjamin Fernandez (PAR) | Maria J Marin (COL) | CG Sport Frances | Chile |
Harrison Cup
In memory of the late Charles Harrison, member of the General Committee and Chairman of the Development Committee of The R&A, the competition is contested between representatives belonging to the Home Golf Unions (England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales) and a selection of South American golfers, in a tournament under the aggregate score format.
The name Charles Harrison is linked to the important development of golf in our region. Harrison, who died unexpectedly at the age of 73 in 2022, made South America his own, constantly supporting the growth of golf in our part of the world. Charles was and always will be a friend of South America, maintaining that close bond with us until his departure, that passion for seeing South America at the top.
As a leader, Charles always radiated energy and warmth in equal measure. For this reason, and for all his contributions to our growth, the South American Golf Federation wanted to pay tribute to him by naming this team competition after him.
Selection Criteria for Team South America
The positions of the best players from the countries that occupy the top five places in the previous Copa Los Andes in the WAGR, as well as two players not exempt from this condition and a “pick” chosen by the South American Federation, will determine the composition of the South American team, which will face the delegation from The R&A.
Competition Format
There are a total of eight players in both the women’s and men’s teams, with four scores counting towards the overall total per day in both cases. At the end of the competition, the team with the lowest number of strokes will be declared the winner. In the event of a tie, only the scores from the last day will be taken into account. If the tie persists, the scores from the penultimate day will be taken into account, and so on until the winning team is determined. If it is not possible to determine a winner under this system, the scores of the best female and best male players from each team will be used, following the same sequence until the winning team is determined.