Previous Winners- Jr Singlehanded
Spurred by the growing number of sailors in singlehanded boats, led US SAILING to the addition in 1974 of a national Singlehanded championship and the donation of a trophy in honor D. Verner Smythe, a long‑time chairman of the Sears Cup Committee (the tradition‑rich Triplehanded youth championship. The first junior singlehanded championship was sailed in Sunfish in conjunction with the triplehanded.
The U.S. Singlehanded Championship is of similar vintage as the Junior Doublehanded ( Bemis). Both are ladder‑style events where teams must earn the right to continue competing. The events start with a local sail‑off, and continue through Area eliminations before the national finals. Similar to the Doublehanded, the field was later expanded to include two teams per Area with the exception of Areas H and L, each of whom send one team.
Two‑time winners have been Louis Verloop of the Coconut Grove Sailing Club, FL, Kevin Hall representing Pacific Corinthian and Ventura Yacht Clubs, CA, and Steven Hochart from the San Diego Yacht Club. Scott Young won the Smythe in 1976, a year after he was winning crew in the inaugural Junior Doublehanded championship.
An active member of the Pequot Yacht Club at Southport, Conn., Smythe also served as Chairman for the Coordinating Committee of the NAYRU championships.
In 2004, a Sportsmanship award was given in the name of Faye Bennet, herself a past chair.
2011 Wet Pants Sailing Association- Nick Valente
2010 San Diego Yacht Club- Nevin Snow
2009 Mission Bay Yacht Club- Kevin Laube
2008 Sarnia Yacht Club- E.J. O'Mara
2007 Lake Geneva Yacht Club - Clifford Porter
2006 Newport Harbor Yacht Club - Charlie Buckingham
2005 American Yacht Club - Cameron Cullman
2004 Riverton Yacht Club - Patrick Curran
2003 Brant Beach Yacht Club - Kyle Kovacs
2002 Rochester, NY Mike Wilde
2001 Toms River Yacht Club - Clay Johnson
2000 San Diego YC - Andrew Campbell
1999 Honolulu, HI - Andrew Lewis
1998 Carpinteria, CA - John Diskant
1997 Mission Bay YC - Steven Hochart
1996 Mission Bay YC - Steven Hochart
1995 Seattle YC, WA - Dalton Bergan
1994 San Diego YC - Jon Baker
1993 Lakewood YC - Bruce Mahoney
1992 Coral Reef YC - Evan Zinn
1991 Corpus Christi YC - Elizabeth Kratzig
1990 Coronado YC - David Houser
1989 Lakewood YC - Marc Schneider
1988 Tiverton YC - Stephen Majkut
1987 Coconut Grove SC - Peter Dreyfuss
1986 Ventura YC - Kevin Hall
1985 Pacific Corinthian YC - Kevin Hall
1984 U.S. Optimist Dinghy Assn. - Rob Vanderkreeke
1983 Winnetonka YC - Scott Kyle
1982 Alamitos Bay YC - Mike Sentovitch
1981 Coconut Grove SC - Louis Verloop
1980 San Diego YC - Brian Ledbetter
1979 Coconut Grove SC - Louis Verloop
1978 St. Petersburg YC - Richard Merriman
1977 Stockton YC - Paul Yost
1976 White Rock BC - Scott Young
1975 Ocean Gate YC - Shawn Kempton
1974 Huron-Portage YC - Richard Lyons