MARIETTA, Ga. - The 2008 Georgia State Golf Association competitions schedule features includes 18 statewide tournaments and championships, 16 qualifying rounds for two state championships, four interstate matches and 17 qualifying rounds for USGA national championships.
Men's Events
The GSGA's longest-running event, the Georgia Amateur Championship, returns to Idle Hour Club in Macon for a record-tying seventh time.  Now in its 87th year, the Amateur takes place July 10-13.  The championship was first contested at Atlanta's Capital City Club in 1916 where it was won by 14-year-old Robert T. "Bobby" Jones, Jr.  It returns to Idle Hour for the first time since 1997, when Savannah's Tim O'Neal captured the title. Qualifying rounds for the 2008 Amateur Championship will be held at 10 sites across the state from June 2-23.
The 27th annual Georgia Mid-Amateur Championship pays its first visit to Cuscowilla on Lake Oconee in Eatonton.  The 2008 event is scheduled for May 16-18. Qualifying rounds for the Mid-Amateur will be held at six locations statewide from April 6-21.
Other men's championships on the schedule include the Four-Ball Championship (April 25-27) at The Brickyard at Riverside in Macon, Public Links Championship (September 13-14) at The Frog Golf Club at the Georgian in Villa Rica, Atlanta Amateur Match Play Championship (October 2-5) at Rivermont Golf and Country Club in Johns Creek and the Team Championship (November 1-2) at The Georgia Club in Statham.
Senior Events
A new event on the 2008 slate is the Georgia Super Senior Championship, which takes place April 16-17 at Cherokee Town Club in Atlanta.  Created for male amateur golfers age 65 and over, it will be a 36-hole stroke play competition for a field of 144.  The 72 entries with the lowest USGA Handicap Indexes will comprise the Championship Flight, with the remainder of the field flighted by handicap. The course will measure approximately 6,200-6,400 yards.
"We feel that this will be a very successful event, as this segment of the golfing population grows larger and larger each year," said Layne Williams, GSGA senior director of rules and competitions.
With the addition of the Super Senior Championship, the Stableford-format Senior Tournament, previously held in early May, will no longer be contested.
The schedule includes two other events for senior men. The Georgia Senior Championship (for ages 55 and above), takes place at The Landings Club in Savannah, August 27-29.  GSGA's final competition of the season, the Senior Four-Ball Championship, will be contested November 12-14 at The Golf Club at Sanctuary Cove in Waverly and The Hampton Club on St. Simons Island.
Women's Events
The GSGA's longest-running women's event, the Greater Atlanta Women's Amateur Championship, will be played for the 39th time, May 20-22, at Northwood Country Club in Lawrenceville.  It marks the first time Northwood has hosted a GSGA competition.
Three other women's championships return in 2008.  The Georgia Women's Match Play Championship takes place April 16-18 at its permanent host site of Sunset Hills Country Club in Carrollton. The GSGA Senior Women's Championship, scheduled for August 19-20, visits one of the newer Georgia State Park golf courses, Arrowhead Pointe at Richard B. Russell State Park in Elberton.  The Women's Team Championship will be held September 8-9 at Sea Palms Golf Resort on St. Simons Island. Another women's event is the Top 60 Women's Classic, which takes place June 25-26 at Achasta Golf Club in Dahlonega.
Junior Events
The 43rd annual Georgia Junior Championship, traditionally a showcase of the state's top junior golfers, returns to Augusta Country Club, June 16-18. The 29th annual Georgia Girls' Championship also runs June 16-18 and will be contested at Marietta Country Club in Kennesaw.
The Junior Sectional Challenge Match, scheduled for July 28-29 at Overlook Golf Links in LaGrange, is the culmination of a statewide summer series of one-day events for junior golfers of all skill levels.
Interstate Matches
Georgia will host two junior interstate matches in 2008.  The 33rd annual Georgia-South Carolina Junior Challenge Match will take place at Hawks Ridge Golf Club in Ball Ground, July 18-19.  The third annual Georgia-South Carolina Girls' Junior Challenge Match moves to Sea Island Golf Club's Retreat Course on St. Simons Island, also on July 18-19.
GSGA will field teams for two out-of-state competitions in 2008.  The 28th annual Georgia-Florida Women's Team Matches take place at La Gorce Country Club in Miami Beach, Fla., August 28-29. The host state has won each of the last six in this Nassau-scoring event. The biennial Southeastern Challenge Match resumes in 2008, and is scheduled for October 18-19 at Kiva Dunes in Gulf Shores, Ala. A team of amateurs, representing the GSGA, competes against teams from Alabama and Florida.  Georgia has won the last four competitions dating back to 2000.
GSGA accepts entries online through its web site, www.gsga.org. Entrants in all GSGA competitions must have a USGA Handicap Index issued by a GSGA Member Club.  Interested golfers who are not GSGA members may join online at www.gsga.org. Complete competitions details, including entry fees/requirements and opening/closing dates, as well as a complete USGA qualifying schedule, are also available on the GSGA web site.
Georgia State Golf Association 2008 Competitions Schedule
Four-Ball Tournament    March 28-30     River Pointe GC, Albany/Stonebridge G&CC, Albany
Super Senior Championship       April 16-17     Cherokee Town & CC, Atlanta
Women's Match Play Championship April 16-18     Sunset Hills CC, Carrollton
Four-Ball Championship  April 25-27     The Brickyard at Riverside, Macon
Mid-Amateur Championship        May 16-18       Cuscowilla on Lake Oconee, Eatonton
Mid-Amateur Qualifying Rounds:
April 6 The Landings Club, Savannah
April 7 Maple Ridge GC, Columbus
April 7 Southern Hills GC, Hawkinsville
April 14        Monroe G&CC
April 21        Eagle's Brooke CC, Locust Grove
April 21        The Manor G&CC, Alpharetta
Greater Atlanta Women's Amateur Championship    May 20-22       Northwood CC, Lawrenceville
Junior Championship     June 16-18      Augusta CC
Girls' Championship     June 16-18      Marietta CC, Kennesaw
Top 60 Women's Classic  June 25-26      Achasta GC, Dahlonega
Amateur Championship    July 10-13      Idle Hour Club, Macon
Amateur Qualifying Rounds:
June 2  Fields Ferry GC, Calhoun
June 3  CC of Columbus
June 9  Idle Hour Club, Macon
June 10 Orchard Hills GC, Newnan
June 11 The Club at Savannah Harbor
June 12 Glen Arven CC, Thomasville
June 16 Berkeley Hills CC, Duluth
June 18 Big Canoe GC
June 23 Goshen Plantation GC, Augusta
June 23 Jennings Mill CC, Bogart
GA-SC Junior Challenge Match    July 18-19      Hawks Ridge GC, Ball Ground
GA-SC Girls' Junior Challenge Match     July 18-19      Sea Island GC (Retreat), St. Simons Island
Junior Sectional Challenge Match        July 28-29      Overlook Golf Links, LaGrange
Senior Women's Championship     August 19-20    Arrowhead Pointe at Richard B. Russell State Park, Elberton
Senior Championship     August 27-29    The Landings Club, Savannah
GA-FL Women's Team Matches      August 28-29    La Gorce CC, Miami Beach, Fla.
Women's Team Championship       September 8-9   Sea Palms Golf Resort, St. Simons Island
Public Links Championship       September 13-14 The Frog GC at The Georgian, Villa Rica
Atlanta Amateur Match Play Championship October 2-5     Rivermont G&CC, Johns Creek
Southeastern Challenge Match    October 18-19   Kiva Dunes, Gulf Shores, Ala.
Team Championship       November 1-2    The Georgia Club, Statham
Senior Four-Ball Championship   November 12-14  The Hampton Club, St. Simons Island/The Golf Club at Sanctuary Cove, Waverly