Amateur Legend Jay Sigel Dies Aged 81

Amateur legend Jay Sigel has passed away from pancreatic cancer at the age of 81, the USGA has announced.

The Pennsylvanian dominated the amateur game in the 1970s and 1980s. Among his achievements were consecutive US Amateur titles in 1982 and 1983, while he also won the US Mid-Amateur Championship in 1983, 1985 and 1987. Sigel also claimed The Amateur title in 1979.

Sigel was also Masters low amateur three times, while he also achieved low amateur honors once in both the US Open and The Open.

Sigel made a huge impact representing his country, too, playing in a record nine US Walker Cup teams between 1977 and 1993, while he was player-captain in the 1983 and 1985 editions, both of which resulted in US victories. He also played in the Eisenhower Trophy seven times.

It wasn’t just as an amateur where Sigel excelled. He turned professional at the age of 50 in 1993 and began playing on the Senior Tour (now the PGA Tour Champions) where he won eight times.

The USGA’s president-elect and chair of the Championship Committee Kevin Hammer paid tribute to Sigel, saying: “He was a dear friend and somebody that we will remember forever, and take a lot of inspiration from. Best amateur since Bobby Jones hands down.”

Four-time US Mid-Amateur winner Nathan Smith, who will captain the 2025 US Walker Cup team, said: “Incredible player. Incredible friend. Incredible mentor. He was special. I was hoping he was going to make it to Cypress [Point this September] because he played [the Walker Cup] there in 1981. He was just an icon in amateur golf.”

The news of Sigel's passing comes less than a month after the death of two-time Amateur Championship Peter McEvoy.