USGA champions Trip Kuehne and Paul Simson have been named the captains for the 2026 East West Matches at Maridoe Golf Club in Carrollton, Texas, November 6-8.
Kuehne (pronounced KEEN-knee) 53, of Westlake, Texas, who will captain the West squad, won the 2007 U.S. Mid-Amateur and advanced to the championship match of the 1994 U.S. Amateur against Tiger Woods.
Simson, 74, of Raleigh, N.C., who will captain the East squad, won the 2010 and 2012 U.S. Senior Amateur and was the co-captain of the East in the inaugural Matches in 2020.
“Trip and Paul know exactly what these Matches mean to the players and amateur golf,” said founder and lead organizer Scott Harvey, a U.S. Mid-Amateur and U.S. Four-Ball champion. “We are fortunate to have them leading our teams in 2026. Both of them have won on the national level, and they appreciate the caliber of players who are the core of this competitive and collegial event.”
Kuehne, the founder and senior managing partner of Double Eagle Capital, earned All-America honors at Oklahoma State in 1994, 1995 and 1996. A member of the Texas Golf Hall of Fame, Kuehne was on the 1995, 2003 and 2007 USA Walker Cup teams as well as the 2006 USA team at the World Amateur Team Championships as well as the winning Texas team in the 1997 USGA State Team Championships.
“It’s going to be awesome,” said Kuehne, who played for the victorious West team in 2024. “I’ve known Paul since I played college golf. What an amazing competitor, what a great champion. There will be lots of red wine flowing between Paul and I and good banter as well. To be able to share captaincy with a guy like Paul, who has meant so much to golf and the Carolinas, it’s going to be incredible. Hopefully, we can have a great match that comes down to one of the last singles matches.”
Kuehne returned to competitive golf in 2023 at the U.S. Senior Open, his first USGA event since his U.S. Mid-Am win in 2007. He is believed to be the only player who has logged starts in the U.S. Open, U.S. Senior Open, U.S. Amateur, U.S. Mid-Amateur, U.S. Junior Amateur, Walker Cup, World Amateur Team Championship, and the now-defunct U.S. Amateur Public Links and State Team Championships. His brother Hank (1998 U.S. Amateur) and sister Kelli (1994 U.S. Girls’ Junior and 1995 and 1996 U.S. Women’s Amateur) are also USGA champions making them the only family with three championship holding members.
Simson, with 48 championships and 16 Player of the Year awards over three age categories, is the most successful player in the history of the Carolinas Golf Association.
“It’s the best domestic competition we have in the states,” said Simson, who has played in two of the three past competitions and is known for his signature straw hat/bucket when he’s on course. “There’s no real national events that pit the players against each other in a match-play situation. It’s a friendly competition at a great venue. We have a wonderful benefactor in Albert Huddleston. I believe that this event will continue to gain in prestige and interest It has all the earmarks of great camaraderie and great competition. Years ago, Trip and I competed a lot together, hung out a lot together. He’s a great guy. He’s a great talent and I look forward to renewing our friendship.”
Simson, a three-time champion at The Senior Amateur, was low amateur at The Senior Open in 2009 (both conducted by The R&A). He won back-to-back North and South Amateur Championships in 1995-96.
In 2010, he claimed three international Senior Amateur titles (The Senior Amateur, Canadian and U.S.). Simson’s USGA record includes appearances in seven different events — the U.S. Junior Amateur, U.S. Amateur, U.S. Mid-Amateur (three-time co-medalist), USGA State Team Championship; U.S. Open, U.S. Senior Open, and U.S. Senior Amateur (medalist or co-medalist four times).
The dates of the 2026 competition are Nov. 3-6. The teams will be announced after the U.S. Senior Amateur and U.S. Mid- Amateur Championships in August and September, respectively.
“My fellow organizer Kevin Marsh and I and the captains know that we wouldn’t have a first-class event that people aspire to without the grace, hospitality and support of Mr. Albert Huddleston, a dynamo in amateur golf,” Harvey said. “The Matches continue to grow in the eyes of competitive players because of the outstanding experience that is provided at Maridoe Golf Club.”
Nine members of each team are decided based on a points system, with the other nine chosen by the tournament committee.
Each team consists of 18 players: six seniors, at least 10 mid-amateurs and up to two amateurs who have not yet reached the age of 25. In the three days of competitions, there are eight 18-hole four-ball matches on Day 1, eight 18-hole foursomes matches in the morning of Day 2 and eight 18-hole foursomes in the afternoon of Day 3 with 18 18-hole singles matches on Day 3.
The East West Matches, started in 2020 and played every two years, is a three-day amateur golf competition that features a Ryder Cup-style team format for American mid-amateur and senior competitors.
The Mississippi River is the dividing line between East and West teams, each of which is made up of 18 players: six seniors, at least 10 mid-amateurs, and up to two amateurs who have not yet reached the age of 25.
Maridoe Golf Club in Carrollton, Texas has hosted since the inaugural competition in 2020.
Feature Photo: Maridoe Country Club (USGA)
