It’s not every day that golf’s grandest stages open their fairways to everyday competitors, but that’s exactly what happened in Washington state on October 18 and 19, 2025. The 60th Puget Sound Amateur, one of the region’s most storied tournaments, brought nearly 200 amateur golfers together for a two-day test that spanned local tradition and international prestige. At the heart of the event was Chambers Bay, a course forever etched in memory as the site of Jordan Spieth’s dramatic 2015 U.S. Open triumph. For the amateurs, teeing it up where a major was once decided was more than just a thrill – it was a chance to measure their games against history itself.
The Puget Sound Amateur’s format is as challenging as it is unique. Saturday’s opening round unfolded at Lake Spanaway Golf Course, a parkland gem framed by towering evergreens and celebrated for its classic shot values. Here, players faced a stern examination of placement and trajectory, with every drive and approach demanding thoughtful course management. If Lake Spanaway asked for discipline, Sunday’s finale at Chambers Bay required something else entirely: imagination, nerve, and a willingness to embrace the unpredictable. With its rumpled fairways, firm fescue greens, and ever-present coastal winds, Chambers Bay is a walking-only links that rewards creativity and punishes hesitation. No wonder it’s been called one of the most compelling tests in American golf.
“Walking the same fairways Jordan Spieth did in 2015 is something special,” admitted one participant, eyes wide with a blend of awe and nerves. “You feel that history—and that pressure—from the first tee shot.” It’s a sentiment that echoed across the field, as players from all backgrounds sought to channel their inner champion and leave a mark on the event’s 60th anniversary.
The tournament structure featured two distinct divisions: the Puget Sound Flight, reserved for low-handicap golfers vying for the gross title, and the Olympus Flight, where net scores allowed competitors of varying skill levels to test themselves against both the field and their own expectations. With a total prize pool of $10,000 on the line, the stakes were high, but the camaraderie and community spirit that define Pacific Northwest amateur golf were never far from the surface. It’s this blend of competitive fire and friendly rivalry that has helped the Puget Sound Amateur thrive for six decades.
What makes the Puget Sound Amateur so enduring? At its core, the event is a celebration of Washington golf’s DNA – a snapshot of the region’s passion for the game, its reverence for tradition, and its embrace of new challenges. From the community roots of Lake Spanaway to the championship pedigree of Chambers Bay, the tournament connects everyday players to the sport’s most iconic moments. And for those who have never experienced it, the message is clear: start planning now. Few opportunities in golf compare to teeing it up at Chambers Bay, where the echoes of major championship drama still linger in the wind.
Meanwhile, on the women’s professional circuit, another chapter in golf’s ongoing story unfolded. At a pre-tournament press conference ahead of the LPGA’s International Crown, 25-year-old Swedish star Maja Stark opened up about the emotional highs and lows that followed her breakthrough win at the 2025 U.S. Women’s Open. Her victory at Erin Hills, where she outlasted then-world No. 1 Nelly Korda, was supposed to be a dream come true. But as Stark revealed, the aftermath was more complicated than she’d ever imagined.
“Honestly, it was a little bit of a struggle afterwards because it’s something that I’d been looking forward to for so long, thinking about it for so long, and the U.S. Open is my favorite one,” Stark explained. “I had a lot of comfort afterwards, but it’s probably been too comfortable because I’ve thought you have your Tour card for five years, and I reached the goal that I wanted to reach, which is just win the U.S. Open. So it was a bit of a struggle for me, and I feel like it took a few months to really come back and gain the motivation back that I felt before in my career. So yeah, it was really hard this summer, actually.”
Stark’s candor resonated with fellow LPGA star Lydia Ko, a Hall of Famer and three-time major champion who knows a thing or two about the emotional rollercoaster of elite golf. Ko, sitting beside Stark, recalled her own struggles after winning gold at the 2016 Rio Olympics. “It was the first time that golf was going to be back in over 100 years, and I wanted to make sure that I was there on the team for New Zealand,” Ko said. She added, “I do believe that we’re not the only two players that have probably felt that, and I give credit to Maja because it’s really hard to—it’s easy to talk about the good things, but it’s very difficult to talk about especially mental stuff that goes on behind the scenes.”
The numbers tell part of Stark’s story: after her major win, she missed four cuts in eight starts, with just one top-10 finish – a tie for fifth at the Kroger Queen City Championship in September. But the real battle was internal. “I’ve been talking to my sports psychologist a lot,” Stark shared. “I think it was just time, really. It feels like you kind of come down from—well, my high wasn’t very high, but you come down from people wanting to talk about it all the time, and you have to just keep thinking back to this week, and it feels like I wasn’t living in that week anymore. I had to move on and I was like, okay, but now we’re doing this, we set up some new goals for the rest of the season, and I just got that mental help that I needed.”
Ko, who has rebounded from her own post-victory challenges to win more majors and capture a second Olympic gold in 2024, expressed admiration for Stark’s honesty and resilience. “I’m jealous that she has won a U.S. Women's Open,” Ko quipped, before offering encouragement: “I’m sure there’s going to be a lot of majors and everything and a lot of highs in Maja’s future and hopefully mine. It’s hard as much as it’s good. I think sometimes you only see the bright side of the rainbow.”
As Stark sets her sights on new goals for the remainder of the 2025 season, her journey serves as a reminder that even the brightest triumphs can cast long shadows. Whether you’re an amateur chasing glory at Chambers Bay or a major champion finding your footing after a career-defining win, golf’s true test is as much mental as it is physical. For players and fans alike, that’s what makes every round, every shot, and every story worth following.
With the Puget Sound Amateur’s legacy secure and Maja Stark’s resolve renewed, the game’s future in Washington and beyond looks as compelling as ever. Those inspired by the action can look ahead to their own moments in the sun—whether on the fairways of Chambers Bay or under the bright lights of the LPGA Tour.
