2012 US Open Qualifier: Emerald Valley Golf Club Hosts Northwest Tournament

The 2012 U.S. Open is drawing nearer ever day, and golfers from around the country take their dreams of playing in our national championship with them to their sectional qualifiers. The northwest is ripe with excellent golfers, and they will showcase their stuff at Emerald Valley Golf Club on June 4.

Sectional qualifying is a grueling 36-hole one-day tourney with only a handful of available spots at each locale. Qualifying players are determined by the field's numbers and strength of it's competitors.

The northwest rotates a qualifier between the states of Washington and Oregon each year, and Emerald Valley was the selection for 2012. The first regulation-length public facility to open in the greater Eugene area, Emerald Valley first opened as a nine hole track in 1967, running along the Coast Fork of the Willamette River. Bob E. Baldock laid out the original 18 holes, but the 170-acre course went through a re-design in 2002 by architect Dan Hixon. The course can be lengthen to a whopping 7,143 yards from the back tees.

For more on sectional qualifying, check out the USGA's site. For more on the U.S. Open and the game of golf in general, make sure to check out SB Nation's dedicated Golf hub.