Lara Tennant Seeking 4th U.S. Senior Women's Amateur Championship

HOT SPRINGS, Va. - Lara Tennant, 57, of Portland, Oregon, became the first player since Carol Semple Thompson (four from 1999-2002) to win three consecutive U.S. Senior Women's Amateur titles when she defeated seven-time USGA champion Ellen Port, 2 and 1, in the 2021 championship match at The Lakewood Club, in Point Clear, Ala.

She will be seeking her fourth U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur Championship, which will be hosted at the The Omni Homestead Resort, in Hot Springs, Virginia September 13-18. In 2021, Tennant was the stroke play medalist and champion, something only Thompson accomplished once in 2002.

“It’s a great honor to be a USGA champion. All 3 championships are very special to me,” Tennant said. “When I begin a tournament, my goal is to play my very best. I try not to think about it in terms of winning or losing. I have been playing well this summer and am proud of my finish in the senior open. I want to keep up that momentum.”

Tennant, a former University of Arizona golfer, won her ninth straight Oregon Senior Women’s Amateur Championship in June. She also captured the 2020 and 2024 California Senior Women’s Amateur, and the 2019 R&A Women’s Senior Amateur Championship.

Tennant made the first hole-in-one in U.S. Senior Women’s Open history in the inaugural championship at Chicago Golf Club in 2018 on the 163-yard, seventh hole. Tennant won 20 consecutive matches in the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur over a four-year stretch before falling in the Round of 16 in 2023.

Tennant earned medalist honors at the 2023 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur at Troon Country Club and, more recently, was the low amateur at last month’s U.S. Senior Women’s Open at San Diego Country Club when she tied for 18th place.

She is a member at Waverley Country Club in Portland, which hosted the U.S. Senior Women’s Open in 2023.

There are seven former U.S. Women’s Amateur Champions playing in the 132 player field, including Tennant, who was a 2022 inductee into the Pacific Northwest Golf Association Hall of Fame.

Ellen Port, whom Tennant beat in 2021 for the title, has won the Championship in 2012, 2013, and 2016 and is one of the former champions playing in the event.

The Portland Golf Club will host the 2026 U.S. Women’s Senior Amateur.

“What’s exciting is Portland Golf Club is hosting the U.S. Senior Women's Am in Portland in 2026,” Tennant said. “I love that golf course, and I know pretty well, so I look forward to that; it’s a wonderful venue for the tournament.”

Anita Rosemeyer, 62, of Roseburg, Oregon, is also playing in the national championship this week. Rosemeyer qualified at Brasada Ranch in Powell Butte, Oregon, firing an 82 tie for second place, however, she lost in the playoff and was the first alternate. But she finds herself still playing in the event this week.

“I used to be a member of Roseburg Country Club. I am now a member of Pine Ridge Golf Club formerly known as Springfield Country Club,” Rosemeyer said. “This is very special event for me because it has been six years since my last time playing in this tournament. Also, I am getting older, have a new hip, and so, I don’t hit the ball as far as I did. However, I will dedicate my time to the gym this winter so I can try to play in next tournament which be held at Portland Golf Club.”

Rosemeyer played in the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur in 2017 at Waverley CC and in 2019 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

The Championship features two days of stroke play (36 holes), before turning to match play where the top 64 players battle it out, to crown a champion. The event was only stroke play from 1962-1996, before changing to the match play format in 1997, which mirrors all of the other USGA amateur competitions.

Carolyn Cudone won five consecutive titles from 1968-72, and Carol Semple Thompson won four straight from 1999-2002. Dorothy Porter and Anne Sander also each won four championships, with Marlene Streit, Diane Lang, Ellen Port, and Lara Tennant each capturing three titles.

Tennant tees off at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday while Rosemeyer tees of at 6:20 a.m.

Follow live scoring here: 2025 U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur: Scoring