The 106th Minnesota State Amateur golf tournament kicks off Monday at the Mendakota Club in Mendota Heights and for Phil Schmidt it’s an opportunity to prove himself as one of the best in the state.

Schmidt, who owns the course record at Green Lea Golf Course, qualified for the state amateur tournament after shooting a 71 at The Legacy in Faribault.

He will participate in the tournament for the first time in two years and said he will enter the tournament with a humbled attitude.

“In the back of my mind I don’t have any plans to win it,” Schmidt said. “I’m going in there with a humbled attitude.”

Schmidt will make his ninth appearance in the tournament and has shown he can play among the best in the state. In 2000 Schmidt finished second to John Harris at Bearpath in a playoff. He also has a total of three top-10 finishes in his career in the state amateur.

The memory of the second place finish serves as motivation for Schmidt, who said it was one of his great golf moments.

Mendakota is a long course, nearly 7,000 yards and one Schmidt has never played before. He said he’ll approach the course conservatively the first round.

Schmidt will compete against 156 golfers on Monday and Tuesday before the cut is made to 60 for the championship round on Wednesday.

The field includes Jon Sauer, the 2008 MGA Amateur runner-up; Donald Constable, Troy Johnson and Gary Johnson the 2009 MGA Players, Mid-Players and Senior Players champions, respectively.

Adam Dooley, the 2007 and 2008 MGA Mid-Amateur champ will play in the tournament along with Larry Barnacle, the 2008 MGA Senior Players’ champ; Tom Jenkins, the 2007 MGA Players’ champ; and Robert Bell, the 2008 Junior Boys’ Player of the Year and Minnesota State Junior Boys’ champion.

“I just want to prove myself as one of the top guys in the state,” Schmidt said.

Schmidt teed off at 9:20 a.m. and live scoring will be available on mngolf.org.