Paula Creamer gets special exemption into Women’s U.S. Open at Olympic Club!

An exciting release from the USGA!!

Paula Creamer, who won the 2010 U.S. Women’s Open Championship, has accepted a special exemption from the USGA into the 76th U.S. Women’s Open, which will be conducted June 3-6 at The Olympic Club in San Francisco, Calif.

Creamer, 34, captured the 2010 U.S. Women’s Open at Oakmont (Pa.) Country Club, defeating Na Yeon Choi and Suzann Pettersen by four strokes. Creamer, who grew up in Pleasanton, less than 50 miles from The Olympic Club, has five top-10 and 11 top-20 finishes in her 17 career U.S. Women’s Open starts. She is a two-time semifinalist in both the U.S. Girls’ Junior and U.S. Women’s Amateur and was a member of the victorious 2004 USA Curtis Cup Team. Creamer’s special exemption brings the total number to 12 U.S. Women’s Open champions in the field at Olympic.

“As a U.S. Open champion, I’m honored to accept this special exemption into the 2021 U.S. Women’s Open at The Olympic Club,” said Creamer. “Growing up in Northern California, one of my fondest golf memories is attending the 1998 U.S. Open at The Olympic Club with my father, which truly sparked my love for USGA championships and the complete test they present to the players. To this day, winning the U.S. Open is the proudest achievement of my career.”

A 10-time winner on the LPGA Tour and seven-time Solheim Cup competitor, Creamer’s 2010 U.S. Women’s Open win is remembered for her gritty comeback from torn ligaments in her left thumb that sidelined her for four months and limited her practice time during the championship. In only her fourth start after returning from surgery, Creamer conquered Oakmont Country Club, joining Patty Sheehan (1992) as a U.S. Women’s Open champion on the iconic Western Pennsylvania venue.

Two-time champion Karrie Webb, of Australia, was the most recent player to receive a special exemption into the championship, in both 2018 and 2019. Prior to that, exemptions were given to 1998 U.S. Women’s Open champion Se Ri Pak in 2016 at CordeValle in San Martin, Calif., and two-time champion Juli Inkster in 2013 at Sebonack Golf Club in Southampton, N.Y.

The 76th U.S. Women’s Open will be the 11th USGA championship played on the Lake Course at The Olympic Club, including five U.S. Opens (1955, 1966, 1987, 1998 and 2012). The club also hosted the 1958, 1981 and 2007 U.S. Amateurs, the 2004 U.S. Junior Amateur and the inaugural U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship in 2015. It will host the 2025 U.S. Amateur Championship.

The Lake Course was designed by course superintendent Sam Whiting and opened for play in 1924. Improvements and updates were made by Robert Trent Jones Sr. before the 1955 U.S. Open and by Bill Love ahead of the 2007 U.S. Amateur and 2012 U.S. Open. The Olympic Club is recognized as one of the first 100 golf clubs established in the United States.

Considered the world’s premier women’s golf championship, the U.S. Women’s Open is one of 14 national championships conducted annually by the USGA. The championship was founded in 1946 and its winners also include Babe Didrikson Zaharias, Betsy Rawls, Mickey Wright, Hollis Stacy, Amy Alcott, Meg Mallon, Annika Sorenstam, Cristie Kerr, Inbee Park and Michelle Wie West. In December 2020, A Lim Kim birdied the final three holes at Champions Golf Club in Houston, Texas, to capture the championship’s 75th edition, defeating Jin Young Ko and Amy Olson by one stroke.