SANFORD — The state’s top male amateur golfers will head to Sanford Country Club next week, where Maine Golf will be hosting the 107th Maine Amateur Championship on July 7-9, 2026. This year’s event marks the 2nd time that Sanford has hosted this annual championship, most recently in 2004 when Ricky Jones won his second Maine Amateur title.
For the first time in Maine Golf’s history, the final round of the Championship will be livestreamed on StreamState.TV, starting at 8 a.m on Thursday, July 9. You can view it for FREE by signing up at StreamState.TV, where they will provide more than 16 hours of live on-course action and leaderboard updates. StreamState will also livestream the final round of the Women’s Amateur Championship to be held at Val Halla GC from July 20-22.
Last year’s Maine Amateur Championship was at Waterville CC in Oakland, where Eli Spaulding of Brunswick GC shot consistent rounds of 69-69-68–206 (-4) to win by four strokes and go back-to-back as the Maine Amateur Champion, previously winning at the Purpoodock Club in Cape Elizabeth in 2024.
Spaulding is back in the field this year looking to defend his title and become only the fourth player in Maine history to win three Maine Amateur Championships in a row. He would join an elite group consisting of Dick Diversi, Mark Plummer, and Caleb Manuel. Keeping with tournament tradition, Spaulding will go out in the first group of the day at 7:30 a.m. in round one, playing alongside two other defending Maine Golf champions from last season, with Tom Caron (2025 Senior Amateur) and Mick Madden (2025 Junior) rounding out the pairing.
Eli Spaulding
This year saw 419 players attempting to qualify for a chance to compete in Maine Golf’s longest-running and most prestigious men’s amateur event. Competing at six qualifying sites in June across the state from Saco to Presque Isle, 80 of those players advanced to the championship proper via qualifying, joining 52 players who were already otherwise exempt. The final field of 132 players come from all corners of the state.
The tournament will begin on Tuesday, July 7, with the field going off tees #1 and #10 starting at 7:30 a.m. This year’s field of 132 players features four past winners of the Maine Amateur Championship. Those former champions are Spaulding (2024, 2025), John Hayes (2015), Andrew Slattery (2014), and Ricky Jones (2003, 2004, 2013).
The Maine Amateur Championship is a 54-hole individual stroke play competition. After the first two rounds, a cut will be made to the low 50 players (and ties). For the final round, in addition to the overall title, the field will compete for 40 exemptions in the 2027 Maine Amateur Championship.
Also new for just the third time in tournament history, the Maine Amateur champion will receive an automatic berth into the upcoming United States Amateur Championship. This recent change by the USGA now grants the winner of all men’s state Amateur Championships an entry into the most prestigious amateur tournament in the world. This year’s U.S. Amateur will be in Pennsylvania at Merion Golf Club and Philadelphia Country Club in August.
Additionally, the top 16 finishers (and ties) from the field will earn a berth in the 2026 Match Play Invitational, to be played at the Purpoodock Club on August 3-5.
Fun Facts:
- The field is comprised of 132 players representing 47 different golf clubs from across the state of Maine.
- Brunswick GC has the most players in the field with 12, followed by Val Halla GC (11), Waterville CC (9), Biddeford-Saco CC (8), and Portland CC and The Woodlands Club (6).
- 14 of Maine’s 16 counties have at least one player in the field.
- The youngest player in the field is Jacob Footer at age 14. The oldest player in the field is Guy Lansing at age 67.
- The average age for the field is 33.7 years old.
- There are two father/son duos in the field, with Don and Trevor Flanagan from Springbrook GC, and Scott and Sam Sirois from The Woodlands Club.
- There are two sets of brothers in the field; TJ Folsom (Augusta CC) and Wyatt Folsom (Boothbay Harbor CC), and Jake and Zack Luce (Val Halla GC).
- There are 29 players in the field with a Handicap Index® of 0.0 or better. The average Handicap Index for the field is 1.6, with a range from +4.3 to 7.1.
- There has not been a playoff to decide the tournament champion since 1998, when Eric Crouse defeated Mark Plummer in extra holes at Kebo Valley.
Field:
The field is made up of 132 players from the following 46 golf clubs, with the number of players from that club in parentheses: Abenakee (1), Atlantic Pines (1), Augusta (5), Bangor Municipal (3), Barnes Brook (2), Biddeford-Saco (8), Boothbay Harbor (3), Bridgton Highlands (1), Brunswick (12), Deep Brook (3), Dunegrass (2), Dutch Elm (1), Fairlawn (1), Falmouth (4), Fox Ridge (4), Goose River (1), Hidden Meadows (1), Jato Highlands (1), JW Parks (4), Kebo Valley (2), Lakewood (1), Links at Outlook (1), Mars Hill (1), Martindale (4), Nonesuch River (2), Northport (1), Norway (2), Penobscot Valley (1), Portland (6), Presque Isle (2), Prouts Neck (1), Purpoodock (4), Rockland (1), Rocky Knoll (1), Samoset (4), Sanford (3), Spring Meadows (1), Springbrook (2), St. Croix (2), Traditions (1), Val Halla (12), Waterville (9), Webhannet (2), Willowdale (2), The Woodlands (6), York (1).
Championship:
The tournament consists of 132 players competing in 54 holes of individual stroke play. The field will be cut to the low 50 players and ties after 36 holes. The course will play as a par 72 and will measure approximately 6,600 yards for the championship.
Schedule of Events:
Tuesday, July 7: 7:30 a.m. to 9:20 a.m. (morning wave); 12:00 p.m. to 1:50 p.m. (afternoon wave); play will begin on holes #1 and #10
Wednesday, July 8: 7:30 a.m. to 9:20 a.m. (morning wave); 12:00 p.m. to 1:50 p.m. (afternoon wave); play will begin on holes #1 and #10
Thursday, July 9: 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. (approx.); all play will begin on hole #10
In the event of a tie after 54 holes, the winner will be decided immediately by a hole-by-hole playoff.
Spectators:
Spectators, including the media, are welcome to come out and watch the championship.
We ask that you keep your distance from the players and watch the play from afar. No spectator carts will be allowed for the championship.
ONLINE: Tee Times | Scoring | Past Champions and Venues