Defending Champions Return as PING USDGA Championship Tees Off Monday at PGA Golf Club

The eighth PING USDGA Championship Presented by PGA of America has a history of repeat champions.

That’s good news for Chad Pfeifer and Eli Villanueva, who will return to PGA Golf Club to defend their titles when the 54-hole championship starts Monday on the Ryder Course.

Pfeifer of Nampa, Idaho, won the men’s overall championship last year for the third consecutive year and fourth in the last five. He shot 2-under 69 to overtake 36-hole leader Mike Browne of England and win by two shots at 1-over 214.

Villanueva stole the show, however, with an eye-catching 8-under 63 in the final round to win the Senior Division for the second time in the last three years. He missed shooting his age by five shots.

“I still can’t believe what I shot,” said Villanueva, a Fayetteville, N.C. resident who injured his left elbow in a paratrooping accident 30 years ago. “I’ve shot under par before, but never anything like that. Everything was working for me that day.

“I’m looking forward to being back on that course, but you never know what’s going to happen in golf. I’m going to stick to my game plan and hope it works out.”

Last year’s Women’s champion, Ryanne Jackson, won’t try to win for the third consecutive time because of a scheduling conflict. But there’s a great chance her former boss, Kim Moore, will be the one holding the trophy on Wednesday afternoon.

Moore is regarded as one of the top disabled women golfers in the world. She has won the U.S. Disabled Open – the USGA’s equivalent of the USDGA Championship – two of the four years it has been held.

Moore has been unable to play in the USDGA Championship because it conflicted with her duties as head coach of Western Michigan’s girls team (Jackson was her assistant). But the 45-year-old Moore now teaches in Fort Wayne, Ind.

“I’ve heard about the USDGA Championship from a lot of people – the adaptive golf community is like a family – but I couldn’t play in it because it was during the season,” said Moore, who was born without a right foot and a slight case of spina bifida.

“I’ve never played the Ryder Course, but I’ve heard it’s a great course. This is my first tournament of the year – I haven’t even played an 18-hole round – so there might be some rust.”

Jason Faircloth, the U.S. Disabled Golf Association’s founder, said the 90-player field is the best since the championship started in 2018.

“We have 54 players with a handicap of less than 6 and this is our largest ladies’ field with 15 players,” said Faircloth, who has Cerebral Palsy and was the first American to play in the Disabled British Open in 2011.

This is the fourth consecutive year PGA Golf Club will host the USDGA Championship. The PGA of America is the presenting sponsor.

“The PGA of America is proud to support the USDGA Championship and the inspiring athletes who compete,” said PGA of America Secretary Eric Eshleman, PGA. “This event highlights the power of golf to bring people together and demonstrates our shared commitment to this game we all love. We look forward to another outstanding championship at PGA Golf Club.”

“We are honored to renew our partnership with the PGA of America and bring the USDGA Championship back to PGA Golf Club,” said John Bell, Tournament Director. “Their continued support helps us provide a world-class adaptive golf experience and affirms our shared commitment to making golf inclusive and competitive for all.”

Golfers must have a handicap index of 36.4 or lower and a WR4GD pass to play in the USDGA Championship. They will compete in impairment categories for legs, arms, trunk control, short stature, intellectual disabilities and neurological.

For more information, please visit usdgagolf.org.