In addition to identifying the successful qualifiers, each qualifying site will identify two alternates (1st and 2nd alternate). Replacement of withdrawn players in the championship field is done using the following procedure:
- If a player who earned a place in the Championship through Qualifying (i.e. non-exempt player) withdraws, the 1st Alternate from that same Qualifying Site will be contacted by the USGA to replace the withdrawn player. If the 1st Alternate declines, the 2nd Alternate from the same location will be contacted. If both Alternates decline, the USGA will then go to the *reallotment list and repeat the process.
- If an exempt player withdraws, the 1st Alternate from the next site listed on the *reallotment list will be contacted by the USGA to replace the withdrawn player. If the 1st Alternate declines, the 2nd Alternate from the same location will be contacted. If both Alternates decline, the USGA will repeat the process using the next site on the *reallotment list.
Once an alternate accepts a place in the championship through the *reallotment list, that site is moved to the bottom of the list.
If an alternate accepts a place in the championship through replacement of a qualifying player from their site, that site’s position on the reallotment list does not change. If both alternates from a site have been exhausted (by either accepting or declining a spot), that site is removed from the reallotment list.
The above process applies to all USGA Championships except the U.S. Adaptive Open, which follows a different replacement process due to Impairment Categories.
*Reallotment List: The reallotment list defines the order of qualifying sites used in the processes described in the USGA Alternate Procedure. It is created based on the mathematical difficulty of qualifying (i.e. number of players attempting to qualify vs. the number of qualifying spots available) with some exceptions for the strength of the field.
A qualifying site is considered “exhausted” when both alternates have either accepted or declined their position in the championship field and thus there are no available alternates left at that site.