Team USA wins first Eisenhower Trophy at World Amateur Team Championship since 2014

The U.S. has ended a nine-year drought.

The United States notched its 16th Eisenhower Trophy win, and its first since 2014, on Saturday in the 33rd World Amateur Team Championship at Abu Dhabi Golf Club.

Team USA’s 72-hole hole score of 36-under 540 was 11 shots better than the second-place teams of Australia and Norway. The 11-stroke victory was the largest margin since Australia’s 19-stroke triumph in 2016.

“I just feel so happy for these guys,” U.S. Captain Mark Newell said. “This is a great championship filled with lots of good players and they really earned their victory with great play all four rounds and especially today.”

David Ford, the world’s No. 5 ranked amateur, shot an 8-under 64, while 2023 U.S. Amateur champion Nick Dunlap carded a 4-under 68 en route to victory.

Ford was 6 under through his first six holes, carding four straight birdies and then holing out for eagle from 140 yards on the par-4 sixth. His 64 is the second-lowest individual final-round score in World Amateur Team Championship history.

“It feels sweet,” Ford said. “We know each other really well. We all got to share in winning the Walker Cup, so to represent our country well again here means the world.”

The U.S. avenged its third-place performance at Le Golf National in France last year.

“I played last year and obviously we didn’t finish the way we wanted to,” said Gordon Sargent, the world’s second-ranked amateur. “That kind of stung standing there on the podium looking up at the guys who won, so it was nice to come here and get the job done. That flight home would not have been very fun if we had come in second.”

Meanwhile, the 30th Women’s World Amateur Team Championship for the Espirito Santo Trophy will begin Wednesday at Abu Dhabi Golf Club. And the 2025 World Amateur Team Championship for the Eisenhower Trophy will be contested at Tenah Merah Country Club in Singapore.