ARIZONA GOLF insider
ENGINEERED FOR DISTANCE. At first glance, there’s a lot to like about the new G440 irons, mainly the premium, players-style design. But that’s just the beginning of what sets them apart. The thinner, more flexible face –backed by the next generation of PurFlex technology –combines with a lower CG to deliver faster ball speeds and the forgiveness you need to hit shots that fly farther and stop closer to the hole. All designed to make you look even better.
PREMIUM PERFORMANCE THINNER, SHALLOWER FACE
More flexible badge expands and contracts to support thinner face, adding distance while enhancing feel and sound.
Face-height reduction helps lower the CG and thin the face for more flexing to increase ball speed and ensure forgiveness.
RESPECT THE FANS | RESPECT THE PLAYERS | RESPECT THE GAME
Golf is a game that is steeped in tradition. Many of those traditions, like wearing a collared shirt to play and removing your hat and shaking hands at the end of your round, are part of the fabric of the game. Other traditions are created along the way by those of us who play the game.
Eighteen years ago, while on a camping trip in the California beach town of Carpinteria, I put together a game of golf for a handful of friends and family that would turn into a nearly two-decade-long annual event with its own rules, handicap system and perpetual winners’ jacket affectionately called Old Blue. Played at a par-3 course (that includes one par-4 hole) just
up the road in Santa Barbara, participants of all skill levels and ages have played in what is now dubbed the Dale & Doris Eppler Memorial Carpinteria Golf Classic of Goleta. The event includes a closest-to-the-hole contest, blind-draw teams competing for a cash prize and the overall net winner presented with Old Blue by the prior year’s champion. The awards ceremony generally takes place either on the beach or in the campground with the entire camping group circled around to hear about all the escapades on the course. If there was one glaring problem with the DDEMCGCoG, it was that I had never won the event. That is until this past June, when my time finally came and I outdueled the competition, the course and myself, and became part of the history and tradition of the
event that I started nearly 20 years ago. Slipping into Old Blue is, to date, the proudest moment of my golf career.
In this issue of Arizona Golf Insider, we celebrate Kachinas being presented to the winners of AZ GOLF major championships. This practice, started 40 years ago, is now a valued tradition of our Association. Here’s to honoring the traditions of the game and creating your own along the way.
Jason Knybel jason@azgolf.org
ARIZONA GOLF INSIDER
5555 E Karsten Way, Suite 3, Phoenix, AZ 85008
(602) 944-3035 | azgolf.org
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
OFFICERS
John Souza, President
Tim Hulscher, Vice President
Jackie Bertsch, Vice President
Vera Ciancola, Treasurer
Greg Mast, General Counsel
COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Abe Candelaria III
Harry Cavanagh Jr.
Victor Ferreira
Tameka Fox Hartman
Jay Pennypacker
Joe Shershenovich, PGA
Rod Tomita
AZ GOLF STAFF
Catherine Carmignani, Executive Director
STAKEHOLDER
RELATIONS
Alex Tsakiris, Assistant Executive Director/Head of Stakeholder Relations
Mike Mason, Director, Handicapping & Course Rating
Peg Tanner, Volunteer Manager
FINANCE
& ADMINISTRATION
Daniel Shoup, Head of Finance & Administration
Vivian Kelley, Accounting Administrator
Robyn Noll, Director, Technology
Susan Woods, Senior Manager, Accounting
Chloe Wood, Office Coordinator
MEMBERSHIP
Anj Brown, Head of Membership
Sharon Goldstone, Customer Relations Manager
Eric Hickenlooper, Membership Services Manager
Meagan Garber, Senior Manager, Community Relations & Development
Kathy Laux, Club Services Coordinator
MARKETING
& COMMUNICATIONS
Jason Knybel, Head of Marketing and Communications
Corey Cavanaugh, Marketing Manager
Tom Skulski, Content & Communications Manager
CHAMPIONSHIPS
Logan Rasmussen, Head of Championships
Amy Fruhwirth, Championships Manager
Austin Pelias, Championships Manager
Everett Priddy, Championships Manager
Kylie Shoemake, Assistant Director of Competitions
USGA P.J. BOATWRIGHT INTERNS
Grace Garner
Hannah Tippy
At AZ GOLF, we exist to connect golfers with the greatest game on this green earth. As the governing body of Arizona golf, we continuously strive to elevate the sport and unlock access for all levels of players — embracing beginners’ road to refinement while celebrating competition amongst champions.
ARIZONA GOLF INSIDER
(ISSN 2765-9054) is published four times per year by AZ GOLF. It is supported by member dues, utilizing $5 per member per year. No part of this magazine may be reproduced for use as an advertising, publicity or endorsement item without written approval from AZ GOLF.
Arizona Golf Insider is offered on a subscription basis for $12.95 annually. Individual copies may be obtained by forwarding $5 to the address above.
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to AZ GOLF, 5555 E Karsten Way, Suite 3, Phoenix, AZ 85008
Produced for AZ GOLF by
FCP President
George Fuller
george808fuller@gmail.com
Managing Editor
Tom Mackin
Designer
Randi Karabin | Karabin Creative
Contributors
Brian Oar
Joelle Creamer
Cameron Morfit
Joe Passov
Judd Spicer
Halfway House
SIMPLE PLEASURES
As the temperatures drop and the desert begins to show off its best golf weather, it feels like the perfect time to slow down and remember what makes this game so special.
Golf has a way of drawing us in with its challenge. We all want to play well — there’s nothing like seeing a good round come together — but in the pursuit of getting better, it’s easy to get caught up in the details. The swing thoughts, the next shot, the little things we try to perfect. When we slow down just a little, though, there’s so much more happening around us — the quiet moments before
that first tee shot, the laughter and conversations that flow between holes and the wildlife moving through these beautiful spaces we’re lucky enough to be in.
There’s something special about this time of year in Arizona — the cool breeze, the early-morning light breaking across the fairway, the way the desert landscape frames every course with its own personality. The beauty of these courses is on full display, each one shaped by countless hands and hearts who care deeply about the game.
So this season, I encourage you to take it all in. Enjoy the cooler mornings, the vibrant desert scenery and the company of those who
share your love for the game. It’s in these moments — the conversations, the quiet, the connection — that golf shows its real value.
For me, that’s why I play: for the camaraderie, the enjoyment and the simple pleasure of being out on the course, surrounded by good people in a beautiful place.
Here’s to a great season ahead. Play well, laugh often and don’t forget to slow down and take it all in.
See you out there,
Catherine Carmignani
Sue Wooster captures fifth Arizona Senior Women’s Amateur Championship
For the fifth time in seven years, Sue Wooster earned the title of Arizona Senior Women’s Amateur Champion. The three-round stroke play championship was contested at Oro Valley Country Club, where Wooster and Shelly Haywood tied at +9 before Wooster won with a par on the first playoff hole. The following week she finished runner-up in the U.S. Senior Women’s Amateur at The Omni Homestead Resort in Virginia.
Lyman Gallup named 2025 Volunteer of the Year
AZ GOLF volunteer and rules official Lyman Gallup was named the 2025 Volunteer of the Year during Volunteer Appreciation Day in September at Papago Golf Club. Gallup has been a rules official since 1989, moving to Arizona and volunteering with the Arizona Women’s Golf Association in 2013. He continued working with AZ GOLF through the unification of Associations a handful of years later. Gallup received a Kachina trophy as a thank you for his munificence.
AZ GOLF at U.S. Mid-Amateur
This year, Troon Country Club served as the championship venue of the 44th U.S. Mid-Amateur Championship, with Troon North Golf Club as the stroke play co-host facility. The tournament proved once again why Arizona is a prime location for USGA championship events. AZ GOLF was thankful for the opportunity to send staff from its Rules & Competitions and Marketing & Communications teams to assist the USGA throughout the tournament. This was another major milestone moment for golf in Arizona and will be followed up with the U.S. Amateur Four-Ball at Desert Mountain Club in May 2026.
Arizona’s golf industry recognized at ATLAS Gala
The Arizona Lodging & Tourism Association hosted its 4th annual ATLAS Gala in October, recognizing Arizona’s golf industry as the 2025 Sports Honoree of the Year. The Gala supports entities which promote hospitality and tourism, helping boost the state’s economy, workforce and communities. Representatives from the Arizona Alliance for Golf were in attendance to accept the award.
Ed Gowan honored with 2025 IAGA Distinguished Service Award
Former AZ GOLF Executive Director Ed Gowan received the 2025 IAGA Distinguished Service Award from the International Association of Golf Administrators at its annual meeting in early November near Austin, Texas. The award is designated for individuals who act as great leaders, innovators and mentors toward the game of golf and the golf community. Gowan served as executive director at AZ GOLF for 36 years, helping integrate the USGA’s Handicap system into the state.
Arizona Golf Hall of Fame Inducts Class of 2025
The Arizona Golf Hall of Fame Committee immortalized Bill Grove, Gregg Tryhus and Don Pooley into Arizona golf history as its 2025 Induction Class. The trio were celebrated at a dinner and induction ceremony on Oct. 21 at the Arizona Biltmore Golf Club. The Hall of Fame Committee consists of representatives from the Arizona Alliance for Golf.
IAGA selects Daniel Shoup for Emerging Leader Award
AZ GOLF Head of Finance & Administration Daniel Shoup was honored by the International Association of Golf Administrators with a unanimous selection for the Emerging Leader Award. The award recognizes those who lead the charge toward growth and improvement for a program within their association. Shoup has helped elevate AZ GOLF’s administrative and HR functions and has been integral in the complex and highly visible transition to Golf House — the new home of AZ GOLF and several other of golf’s allied associations in the state.
MAYAN PALACE
PUERTO PEÑASCO, MX
A Salute to Tom Weiskopf
BY JOE PASSOV
Late this past summer, Tom Weiskopf was back in the news. When Scottie Scheffler captured the BMW Championship in August, it marked the first time anyone had finished in the top eight for 13 consecutive PGA Tour events since Weiskopf did it in 1973. Sometimes folks forget how truly great a golfer Weiskopf was.
With the 2025 U.S. Mid-Amateur played at Troon Country Club and Troon North Golf Club this past September, and the WM Phoenix Open returning to TPC Scottsdale in February, at least we’re reminded of his skill as an architect. His effect on me? Unforgettable.
I was nine years old when I first encountered Tom Weiskopf. He signed my autograph book on Pro-Am day of the 1971 Cleveland Open at Beechmont Country Club in Ohio. His signature mimicked his golf swing: It was elegant and finished with a flourish.
Although Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Lee Trevino were in the field, Weiskopf was the hometown favorite, having grown up in a Cleveland suburb, just like I did. That common bond helped forge a relationship between us when I became a golf writer two decades later.
Weiskopf’s affection for Arizona began with his first visit in January 1965. He joined friends at the three-year-old Desert Forest Golf Club, dined at Pinnacle Peak Steakhouse and was immediately smitten with the mountains
The author with Tom Weiskopf in 1987 at Troon CC.
“As a designer, Weiskopf didn’t push the envelope. Invariably, his courses were fun, playable, strategy-laced and attractive.”
—JOE PASSOV
and the saguaros. He eventually competed in multiple Phoenix and Tucson Opens and the die was cast. In 1973, he bought a vacation home at White Mountain Country Club in Pinetop, and by the late 1970s he had moved his family from Ohio to Paradise Valley.
The Mercedes he drove bore the Arizona vanity license plate, TROON, a nod to the legendary Scottish venue where he snagged his only major, the 1973 Open Championship. Remarkably, the Troon name would take on an even greater meaning for Weiskopf within a decade.
Turmoil and triumphs went hand-in-glove with Weiskopf’s playing career. By 1984, he was struggling personally and professionally. “I wasn’t happy,” he told me in 2014. “I had a design opportunity with Troon CC in Scottsdale. I looked at it as a sabbatical. I always thought I was going to come back and play. I fell in love with course design. It’s art on the ground. I became infatuated.”
Indirectly, Weiskopf’s “sabbatical” helped kickstart my own career. I played Troon CC in 1986 and penned a long note to Golf Digest stating the case as to why it deserved to be “Best New Private Course” that year. Not only did Troon CC win the award, but Golf Digest invited me to serve as a Top 100 course ranking panelist going forward. Troon Country Club set in motion a new path for me, and a new career for Weiskopf.
I toured Troon CC with Tom in the summer of 1987 and his passion for design impressed me deeply. His then partner, Jay Morrish, did the actual architecture, but Tom’s near
photographic memory for golf holes and design features, plus his admiration for Golden Age greats like Alister MacKenzie and Donald Ross, were insightful and revealing. He and Morrish catapulted to the architectural elite and remained there until the partnership dissolved in 2000.
As a designer, Weiskopf didn’t push the envelope. Invariably, his courses were fun, playable, strategy-laced and attractive. “I had enough controversy as a player,” he told me in 2009. “I don’t need that as an architect.”
Credit Weiskopf for introducing the drivable par 4 into modern architecture, a staple of every great design today.
Borrowing the concept from the Old Course at St Andrews, his personal favorites included the 296-yard fourth at Troon CC and the 17th at TPC Scottsdale’s Stadium course, one of the PGA Tour’s most exciting risk/reward holes.
Statewide, no one created a greater number of impactful courses. He and Morrish crafted Arizona’s top-ranked Forest Highlands GC (Canyon) in Flagstaff, and he earned credit or co-credit at other northern gems including Forest Highlands GC (Meadow), Payson’s The Rim Club, Sedona’s Seven Canyons and Prescott’s Capital Canyon Club.
In Scottsdale, Troon North GC and Silverleaf CC both bear Weiskopf’s design imprint. He was also a longtime member and consultant at Desert Forest GC. All are ranked among the state’s top 20 and many of them enticed golfers to visit and to live here.
Tom Weiskopf passed away from pancreatic cancer on August 20, 2022. The Ohio native spent his final years in Montana. Nevertheless, given his 50-year love affair with the Grand Canyon State and his contributions to the golf played here, it’s fair to say he was a true Arizona original.
Weiskopf with Troon founder Dana Garmany at Troon North GC in Scottsdale.
WORKING TO IMPROVE CONDITIONS ON AND OFF THE COURSE
BY BRIANNE KENNY
ENVIRONMENT Engaging with the
In 2019 Brianne Kenny became Troon’s first environmental science manager. Based in Spokane, Wash., the 35-year-old’s role touches on a wide variety of sustainability issues that impact Troon-managed courses in Arizona and around the world.
I describe what I do as falling into three main buckets. The first bucket is environmental regulatory compliance, so I have developed an internal audit for course maintenance facilities that covers regulatory issues. The second is wildlife habitat projects, which covers native areas that include both plant and animal species out on a course. The final bucket is communications, which means talking with everyone from kids to legislators and showing all of them the important environmental work being done on golf courses. I really love getting involved with the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) First Green field trips, which
is a STEM-based outreach program for kids of all ages.
For a lot of legislators, it’s the first time that they’ve ever been on a golf course. It’s funny to watch their reactions because I remember being in their shoes when I first walked on the course at Troon Country Club in Scottsdale while working there to help pay for my master’s degree in biology at Miami University in Ohio. Naturally, water usage remains the top sustainability issue for courses in Arizona, and many good things are being done in that area. Another focus is the status of golf course maintenance facilities. Many are getting pretty old and need upgrades when it comes to chemical storage, wash pad usage and proper recycling of materials. That work is ongoing.
SEEING IS BELIEVING
Last year I was on the road about two weeks out of every month visiting courses. This year I’ve been working on a big data project, so that has cut down on the travel. But I’d like to get back to my previous schedule because my role is to support our facilities and I can’t do that so well from home. I like to be out there talking with the superintendents and the general managers, understanding what’s happening from their perspective and seeing a course for myself. There’s a saying in the wildlife world — “The map is not the territory” — which basically means it’s a lot different looking at a golf course from the map on the computer versus being there in person. I feel like my position is best served by being out in the field.
Technology that helps to address sustainability issues keeps improving, but I’ve talked about using it as a tool and not as a crutch. It’s easy for the latter to happen, especially for superintendents who are more technologyminded and like to be the early adopters. That’s great, but you have to be careful of not becoming too reliant on it, and then not keeping those handful of skills best used by being out on the course and seeing things for yourself.
There are a lot of cool items that people are working with now, like soil sensors to measure moisture in the turf. Those are great because they can give us data to be more precise and better managers. But at the same time, we can’t just get rid of our common sense.
Speaking of that, my advice to golfers who want to help with the environment? Be respectful of the course. In Arizona, fire risk is rightly getting a lot of attention. Don’t throw cigarettes or cigars into native areas! And use a refillable water bottle to help reduce plastic usage. That’s something I bring with me on every course I visit.
FUTURE LEADERS NEEDED
I’m hoping that the work I’m doing at Troon is showing its value so we can get more jobs like this in the golf industry. I get contacted pretty much every month by college graduates, many of whom are golfers with a similar field of study to mine. They hear about my job and wonder where they can find this kind of opportunity. Right now, I don’t have many places to send them, unfortunately. So I’m really trying to highlight the reasons why many more jobs like mine should open up in the industry. There’s so much work to be done!
HALLOWEDGROUND
BY JOE PASSOV
ARIZONA COUNTRY CLUB CELEBRATES A HISTORIC PAST AND A VIBRANT FUTURE.
Nestled between Camelback Mountain and the Papago Buttes, in the desirable Arcadia neighborhood which bridges Phoenix and Scottsdale, sits an oasis of turfgrass and camaraderie, Arizona Country Club. The setting is as sweet as the name of the road where it resides, Orange Blossom Lane. Yet amid the parkland tranquility and low-key family vibe beats the pounding heart of serious golf history. One of the greatest — and rarest — finishes ever on the PGA Tour happened here in 1963. A classic club, with a classic course, and an active, dynamic membership — that’s 79-yearold Arizona CC.
A STORIED PAST
Arizona CC’s origins date to 1909, when W.J. Murphy — builder of the Arizona Canal, and the man who first populated the region with citrus trees — and his son Ralph opened the private Ingleside Club on a nearby site. Included were several cottages, a main building and a golf course. Its oiled sand greens were a relic of the age.
In the early 1920s, the Ingleside Club became the Ingleside Inn, the first luxury hotel of its
Arnold Palmer receives the winner’s check at the 1961 Phoenix Open at Arizona CC.
kind in the Valley of the Sun, and architect William Watson was commissioned to craft an entirely new, all-grass course on the south side of Indian School Road. Shortly after its 1929 opening, the Great Depression shuttered Watson’s creation.
In 1946, prominent Phoenix insurance executive Ernest Suggs led a group that purchased the old Ingleside property and rehabilitated the defunct Watson course. The resurrection was closer to a remodel than a restoration, but what emerged was a layout sufficiently
challenging and attractive that within eight years of opening, it hosted the Phoenix Open.
Between 1955 and 1973, Arizona CC played host to 10 Phoenix Opens. Gene Littler captured three of them, in 1955, 1959 and 1969, and Julius Boros, Miller Barber and Bruce Crampton were among other winners. Still, no one can top the King, Arnold Palmer. Arnie won three straight Phoenix Open titles from 1961-1963, the first and third at Arizona CC. Triumph number
three registers as historic — the first time ever that golf’s reigning “Big 3,” Palmer, Gary Player and Jack Nicklaus, finished 1-2-3 in a PGA Tour event. Palmer’s final-round 70 beat Player by 1 and Nicklaus by 2.
GOLDEN AGE STYLINGS
Club member Andy Staples, himself an acclaimed architect who has restored Golden Age layouts nationwide, explains what makes Arizona CC a classic course. “It’s a core golf course, void of internal housing,” says Staples. “It’s short by today’s
standards (6,720 yards, par 72) but has a charm and personality of a course that’s interesting and fun to play.”
Other classic features are the wall-to-wall grassing, short distances from the green to the next tee and easy walkability thanks to a fairly flat site and compact routing. In season, 40 to 50 percent of the rounds here are played on foot.
Nigel Spence, director of golf, notes that great classic courses are known for having subtle but creative movement in their greens and Arizona CC checks that box. Unquestionably, accurate driving is a must, as fairways are framed by thoughtfully placed bunkers and by pine, eucalyptus, cottonwood, olive and palm trees.
Yet, the greens steal the show. “The green complexes are really what make the golf course,” says Spence. “Being able to control the shot into the green is key.”
Spence’s favorite spot on the course is also his favorite green complex, at the 437-yard, par-4 17th. “We have one ridgeline that works through the property and that happens to come into play at the 17th green,” he says. “There’s a flat area in the middle and multiple little ridges and nodules around it.”
Staples identifies the 17th as the toughest hole on the course, pointing out that with OB to the right on this dogleg left, choosing your line off the tee is critical.
Staples’ favorite hole — and one of Spence’s picks for best risk/ reward test — is the drivable 327-yard, par-4 sixth. “Great classic design stands the test of time for reasons beyond length and difficulty,” says Staples. “Thoughtful decision-making, combined with a series of well-struck shots make for fun, engaging architecture.”
Spence points out that a hole location on a small plateau on the right side of the green makes it even more tempting to smack the driver, but if the miss is to the right, making par will be a difficult proposition.
Without question, Arizona CC’s version of Amen Corner comprises its signature set of holes. The 173-yard, par-3 ninth sports a striking view of the Papago Buttes, though out-of-bounds lurks hard left. At 593 yards, the par-5 10th bares its teeth via tall palms and a cascading waterfall fronting the green. The 197-yard, par-3 11th not
only demands a lake carry, but the right side of the putting surface is blocked by a mature cottonwood. Still, in Arnie’s heyday, the 11th stretched 235 yards — a monster for that era.
A WELCOMING AMBIENCE
Arizona CC whispers its virtues, rather than shouting them. Where it roars, however, is in its conviviality.
“The club environment is warm and friendly,” says Doc Belitz, general manager/COO. “It’s a very welcoming place. There are five or six staff members who have been here in the 20-year range. In the members’ eyes, they’re like extended family. I think it’s the people that make the club really warm. It’s a busy club, one with so many amenities that are family oriented that you don’t ever have trouble finding a conversation. We have a lot of multi-generational families here, many with kids
in the home. That will help preserve the character of the club for the future.”
The Phoenix Open no longer stops here, but Arizona CC hasn’t shirked its responsibility for giving back to the game.
“Our leadership understands that this is a historic club and has been an influential club in the history of golf in Arizona,” says Spence. “When we are given the opportunity to host any national qualifiers or amateur tournaments, we are always going to be a club that puts their hand up and when we do it, we’re going to do it correctly.”
Earlier in 2025, the club hosted a 36-hole qualifier for the U.S. Women’s Open. The club provided volunteer members, a complimentary lunch and a players’ lounge to ensure a full experience for competitors.
“As Arizona Country Club, it’s important to us to give back to the game,” says Spence. “We’re part of a larger ecosystem. We want to be a part of Arizona golf and we’re always doing the best we can to provide opportunities for people to come out and enjoy our club.”
“The green complexes are really what make the golf course. Being able to control the shot in to the green is key.”
— NIGEL SPENCE, DIRECTOR OF GOLF
You Need All the Fun
BY JUDD SPICER
PHOTOS BY @BRIANOAR
A fall or winter excursion to Las Vegas finds golf, gaming and more special events than
Players and gamers seeking easy desert-to-desert travel need only toss the sticks in the trunk (or travel bag for the quick flight), grab some greenbacks and traverse the mere 300 miles from Phoenix to Las Vegas.
If you road-trippers want an added kick, stop at the venerable Hoover Dam for a tour along the way. With Sin City rolling into its peak season of golf and guest engagement in fall and winter, a game itinerary of getaway fun awaits.
THE GOLF
One of two courses remaining on the Las Vegas Strip (the other is Wynn Golf Club), Bali Hai Golf Club offers ease-of-access for those aiming to stay close to the action, combined with just enough quietude to enjoy some genuine escape from the Sin City din. Dressed with black volcanic rock outlines serving in contrast to the grounds’ Augusta National-like white sand, Bali Hai’s Polynesian-style vibe and Strip-proximity finds the course especially popular with group outings.
A longtime Vegas favorite with locals and visitors alike, the pair of Arnold Palmer designs at Angel Park Golf Club mix diversity of play at
ANGEL PARK GC - CLOUD 9 COURSE
LAS VEGAS PAIUTE GR — WOLF COURSE
nearly 3,000 feet of elevation. Both the Palm and Mountain Courses make for engaging rounds, while family-style fun may be had at the facility’s lighted Cloud 9 par-3 course and/or the Devine 9 putting course.
Just 25 minutes north of the Strip, a trio of Pete Dye-drawn layouts are found at Las Vegas Paiute Golf Resort. Deservedly reputable for their natural routings and abundant desert bounty, most first-timers are sated in challenge with the Sun Mountain Course, which trades a dearth of water in play (it’s found on just three holes) for ample bunkering. The Snow Mountain Course is always a great bet, sporting multiple doglegs with a risk-reward strategy and an awesome collection of par 3s. For better sticks, the Wolf Course is the state’s longest track and howls at over 7,600 yards
from the tips; note that the test can (gulp) play even longer when the winds get sporty.
Across the area’s menu of high-roller options, Cascata in Boulder City (about 25 minutes south of the Strip) proves a required box-check for the golf-centric getaway. Dressed in all manner of impressive trimmings — a waterfall flows through the golf shop, the required forecaddie, reserved locker space — this annual entrant in the nation’s top-100 public layouts isn’t simply about the tinsel. Rather, the design from Rees Jones moves beautifully through the River Mountain Range, with the front side ascending the topography before the latter nine strategically navigates its way down the mountain slopes.
BALI HAI GC
THE ACCOMMODATIONS
Travelers seeking a value Vegas stay will want to explore The LINQ. Offering modestly-spaced — but clean and remodeled — rooms, guests will find affordability matched with awesome Strip proximity directly outside the front door. With a party vibe and active pool scene, a segue to The LINQ Promenade provides easy walking to all manner of food, fun and action mere footsteps away.
Visitors who prefer making some waves should explore the ample waters at Mandalay Bay, where a mid-level price tag isn’t a longshot for a flavor of luxury accommodation and a whole lotta sun and soak time. Featuring the lone wave pool in Vegas, along with one of the city’s only lazy rivers, the massive/sandy spread of leisure offers both family and adult spaces across its 11-acre outdoor spread, in concert with
private cabanas. Oh, and for bet-setters, the casino’s “Swingers” mini-golf course proves a primo spot to unwind with a cocktail and see what’s left in your flatstick after the day’s round.
With no shortage of luxury stay options, Vegas can overwhelm with hotel choices. For guests scheduling a special getaway, know that The Palazzo at The Venetian won’t disappoint. Connected to its namesake hotel, the more intimate Palazzo setting provides a refined elegance and enhanced privatude. Offering The Strip’s largest standard rooms (approximately 700 square feet), guests going big will find some seriously impressive suites, which are perched with awesome views of the action below and framing mountain surrounds. Walkable access to high-end shops, dining and ample pool space will find some making this stay a one-stop shop for the entire trip.
THE EVENTS
As Vegas continues to grow in scope and populace, its sporting scene has also evolved beyond fairways and greens. Entering their sixth season as the Las Vegas Raiders and seeking an inaugural Sin City playoff win with (74-year-old) Pete Carroll now at the helm, the Silver & Black’s 2025 schedule at Allegiant Stadium (aka, “The Death Star”) includes six home games between early November and early January 2026.
The 2023 Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights enter their ninth season of NHL play, with the home confines of T-Mobile Arena situated just off The Strip (behind the New York-New York Hotel Casino and Park MGM Las Vegas). The 82-game season unfurls from mid-October through mid-April.
Formula 1 fans annually get in gear for the Las Vegas Grand Prix. Scheduled for November 20-22, the event’s third year of action culminates on the next-to-last Saturday in November, with the nighttime race getting underway at 8 p.m local time. While navigating the 3.8-mile Las Vegas Strip Circuit track — which includes a portion of Las Vegas Boulevard — drivers
exceed speeds of 200 miles per hour. Ticket options include grandstand and general admission, plus 3-day experiences with premium seating and exclusive access.
Vegas-goers scrolling through the city’s ample events and concert calendar should schedule Michael Jackson ONE by Cirque du Soleil — immediately. Located at Mandalay Bay, the reimagining of The King of Pop’s greatest recordings pairs with Cirque’s entertainment institution of equal renown to make for a can’t-miss show. With lights, fire, water, video and all manner of acrobatics (featuring 63 dancers), the marriage of iconic
music and stunning visuals proves well worthy of the late singer’s singular lore.
For those yet to experience The Sphere — the future is now. Ready the neck muscles for a lil craning as the allsenses venue brings The Wizard of Oz to new life. With the unique and state-of-the art environment sporting a 160,000-square-foot visual display, along with 167,000 programable speakers, the immersive, multi-sensory experience makes Toto seems fluffier, the Wicked Witch appear scarier, the Wizard even wiser and Dorothy, well, (spoiler) she and her ruby slippers still find a way home, albeit with a newfound grandeur befitting the 1939 film classic.
And for vacationers seeking further Sphere immersion: The venue’s live events calendar currently includes performances by the Zac Brown Band (December 5 – January 10) and the Backstreet Boys (December 26 –February 15). In addition, the Eagles recently announced a slight 2026 extension of their Sphere residency for the year ahead, with concert dates on January 23-24 and January 30-31.
By breaking down silos, developer
Making an Impact
BY CAMERON MORFIT
Gregg Tryhus is not a me guy; he is as leery of microphones and tape recorders as one might be of a cholla cactus. So it was with reluctance that he acquiesced to this story, and only with the proviso that it be not about him so much as about what underpins so many stories in Arizona and the arid Southwest: water, who gets it and for how long. It’s a story, in other words, about the future of golf, the sport he loves.
GOLF VISIONARY
If you have heard of Tryhus (rhymes with Prius), it’s likely because he developed Grayhawk Golf Club, the 36-hole, high-end public facility in Scottsdale in the mid-1990s, and then went on to mastermind and develop nearby Whisper Rock Golf Club, a 36-hole private playground home to many PGA Tour pros and other elite players.
Gregg
Tryhus
has helped Arizona golf thrive.
Tryhus saw the potential of desert golf in Scottsdale as few others did. He set up the deals to make projects happen, then looked for the nearest unlit exit. Credit? He didn’t care about that. He was about community, “the hang” — a term used by Whisper Rock members — and the fully realized beauty of Sonoran Desert golf.
“When I looked at the land he looked at, I saw snakes, lizards and cactus,” said Gary McCord, the former CBS Golf analyst who counts Tryhus as one of his closest friends. “I mean there was nothing. Gregg saw (Scottsdale’s expansion) north, he saw people moving down to the desert to get out of the cold climates.
“His acumen is just beyond,” McCord continued. “I let him set up the game up at The Rock, because if he sets it up, we’re going to win. He’s a very adequate opponent on a lot of
subjects. I got the sh*t kicked out of me in chess. I didn’t even know Gregg played chess.”
Tryhus and his wife Sally hang out with Gary and his wife Dianne, whether in Scottsdale or the mountains of Colorado. Gregg and Gary have even pegged it at the Cypress Point Club member/ guest in California, where the former belongs.
But while Tryhus, 68, will let his hair down, he’s hardly tabloid fodder. More Boy Scout than jetsetter, he is largely egoless, and isn’t even paid for his main job now: the unsexy advocacy work around water rights, Colorado River conservation and golf’s right to exist.
“Golf’s got to do its share,” Tryhus said in a phone interview from his home in Colorado. “We’ve got to change public perception.”
Tryhus at the grand opening of Arizona Golf House on October 22, 2025, in Phoenix.
CHANGING ARIZONA’S GOLF LANDSCAPE
Tryhus was one of five kids growing up in Fargo, North Dakota. His father, Trueman, was a dentist and a North Dakota state amateur champion who is in that state’s Golf Hall of Fame. In high school, Gregg would drive to Detroit Lakes Golf Club, 40 minutes outside of Fargo, where he would work the driving range when he wasn’t practicing (Tryhus is a low single-digit handicap.) Partly because of a short season there, he also played football and basketball, and loved to ski.
He first alighted for warmer temperatures at Southern
Methodist University in Texas, where he majored in real estate, and then at Arizona State University, where he did his graduate work and settled in the Valley of the Sun.
To know Tryhus, you must start with ASU asking one of its most prominent benefactors for his help moving the men’s and women’s golf teams from Karsten Golf Course to a new home at Papago Golf Club in 2022.
Tryhus, whose Arizona Golf Community Foundation took on the project, spent roughly three years raising capital and facilitating the planning and permitting for a new clubhouse (the City of Phoenix had been utilizing a double-wide trailer), a new access road, the removal of 30 acres of turf, a decorative lake for water mitigation and other significant renovations.
Lou’s Bar & Grill in the Papago clubhouse now serves as a community gathering space attracting golfers and non-golfers with its wide-open backyard setting — fitting, given Tryhus’s knack for bringing people together — and its revenue helps keep greens fees down. The ASU women’s and men’s golf teams received upgraded practice facilities, plus a new team space and meeting rooms.
And all of that was just the start. “My additional condition was that I would simultaneously endeavor to reposition Papago into the hub of Arizona golf,” Tryhus said. “Where better than Papago? A facility that is owned by the citizens (and managed by Scottsdale-based Troon Golf) and therefore carries with it the responsibility for all of us to protect it.”
Tryhus played a key role in the development of the ASU golf team’s practice facility — The Thunderbirds Golf Complex — at Papago Golf Club.
Arizona Golf House opened at Papago this past June. The single-story structure adjacent to the clubhouse provides rent-free offices for AZ GOLF, the Southwest PGA, First Tee – Phoenix, Junior Golf Association of Arizona and other non-profits whose focus is outreach education and community.
No wonder Tryhus was inducted into the Arizona Golf Hall of Fame this year in recognition of those efforts.
WATER WORKS
Golf House is also where you can find Tryhus and the non-profit Arizona Alliance for Golf (AAG), which he began in 2020 to get all relevant parties acting as one for the betterment and preservation of the game. He started it after an alarming conversation with then-Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, who warned him of lawmakers pledging to save water by ending golf.
“It’s like that saying, ‘If you don’t have a seat at the table, you’re on the menu,’” said AAG Executive Director Katie Prendergast. “That’s where golf was. Other regulated water users in Arizona like agriculture, the tribes, cities, developers … they’ve all been really organized and unified. Gregg saw that golf needed to be participating in those conversations in the same way with that seat around the water policy table.”
Critics say golf uses too much water only to provide a diversion for the rich, and the Arizona Department of Water Resources and 5th Management Plan have questioned its viability. Arizona Alliance for Golf, however, makes this rebuttal:
A study released in 2023 by Rounds Consulting Group showed that golf uses two percent of the state’s water (per the 2015 U.S. Geological Survey) while agriculture is the largest water user at 70 percent. Golf also contributed an estimated $6 billion to the state economy in 2021.
“It’s baked into Scottsdale’s identity,” Prendergast said. Said Tryhus, “People have to understand what we contribute, and we’re making progress.”
The last piece of golf’s new eco-system, he added, is the Arizona Golf Fund (AGF), which raises and directs donor funds to golf nonprofits and/or their capital project needs.
Tryhus has left most of the development business to his sons, Taylor and Connor, while he stays in the chess match for the game’s survival. And he wants others to join him. “All 700,000 of us (the estimated number of golfers who live in Arizona) coming together in a unified voice is our best chance for golf to be treated fairly and equitably under the fast-approaching mandates for Arizona water savings,” he said.
“All 700,000 of us (the estimated number of golfers who live in Arizona) coming together in a unified voice is our best chance for golf to be treated fairly and equitably under the fast-approaching mandates for Arizona water savings.”
—GREGG TRYHUS
Tryhus receives the 2024 Southwest PGA PING Anser Award from John Solheim of PING.
PHOTO BY SOUTHWEST PGA/MIKE SCHOAF
BY TOM MACKIN
Championship KACHINAS PART OF AZ GOLF TRADITION Art
Ed Gowan wanted to spice things up a bit. Inject a little pizzaz into something that had become, if not stale, then perhaps a little rote.
After joining AZ GOLF as executive director in May of 1985, he and the organization’s board of directors decided to veer away from the traditional trophy awarded to the winner of the Arizona Amateur. Instead, when Mark Sollenberger won the championship that year at Tucson Country Club — the third of
his four Arizona Amateur victories — he received a colorful award unlike any other presented by AZ GOLF since its founding in 1923: a Kachina doll.
Kachinas are an integral part of Pueblo cultures. Some, like the Hopi and Zuni peoples, attribute a high degree of spirituality to the dolls, while others — such as the Navajo who make the Kachinas awarded by AZ GOLF — create them as vivid artistic expressions to convey stories and beliefs that have been passed down through generations. There are many variations of the dolls, each with its own distinct meaning. But four decades after they were introduced as trophies by AZ GOLF, all are treasured by the champions who receive one.
Halfway House | Traditions
ORIGIN STORY
The idea for a different kind of trophy started percolating in Gowan’s mind soon after he started as executive director. He knew someone who had an extensive collection of Kachinas, and seeing those provided the spark of inspiration.
“We wanted something representative of Arizona and the Southwest,” said Gowan. “The person I knew was buying them from a woman in Window Rock (Ariz.) so we bought some from her at the beginning.”
The tradition was extended to the winner of the Arizona Stroke Play in 1986 (when Billy Mayfair defeated Joe Porter on the last hole at Pinnacle Peak Country Club in Scottsdale) and then to other tournaments over the ensuing years.
“We were using other kinds of trophies for events like the MidAmateur and the Public Links,” recalled Gowan. “Probably in the late 1990s or early 2000s, every championship winner got a Kachina. We also started giving them to retiring board members, and it just became part of the fabric of the Association. Significant awards were Kachinas.
“People were thrilled to get one,” added Gowan. “Several of the players said their wives or girlfriends were more excited about it than they were, but they were excited, too. It’s a piece of art.
“We always tried to do an eagle for the theme, but once the lady up in Window Rock — which is adjacent to the Hopi reservation — passed away, the Kachinas were different,” Gowan noted. “Same theme, but different. There were a couple in the early 2000s that were the big eagles with the double wingspan. You basically needed to buy a new house to display it. We might have gone overboard with that one for a few years.”
When AZ GOLF merged with the Arizona Women’s Golf Association in 2018, major championship winners from the latter organization were also honored with Kachinas.
Four decades after the Kachinas were introduced as a symbol of golf excellence in Arizona, the tradition continues, something that Gowan, who retired in 2022, takes great pride in. “That’s pretty cool,” he said.
Robert “Doc” Graves (left) holding the 1999 Dr. Ed Updegraff Award which recognizes those who exemplify the spirit of golf. Steve Dallas (right) stands proudly alongside Graves holding a Kachina trophy at an AZ GOLF Annual Meeting.
MAKING A KACHINA
Patty Toppel, a co-owner of Kachina House in Sedona, has supplied Kachinas in different sizes, colors and designs to AZ Golf for the past decade, including this past year when winners of major tournaments received Eagle Dancer Kachinas. According to Toppel’s research, the Eagle Dancer “represents strength and power and is ruler of the sky and messenger to the great spirits. This sacred and magnificent Kachina is the protector of all.”
The Kachinas used nowadays are crafted by Navajos in New Mexico. According to Toppel, the process used to make each doll is relatively simple. “One person cuts all the bases,” she said. “Then they purchase all the wooden pieces — legs, bodies, arms, heads — before painting the heads and assembling the bodies. The last part is dressing each one and placing feathers or fur on the doll.”
Most of the pieces that form the Kachinas used by AZ GOLF are made in people’s homes, according to Toppel. “Lots of times, the person who does the bases might also assemble all the bodies, and then drop them all off at someone’s house, where another person might be painting the faces,” she said. That person might then take the bodies and painted faces to someone else’s house, where that person adds the feather and fur. “It all depends on who is working on what that day,” added Toppel. “You never really know. Usually, it’s at most three people who work on the dolls.”
Left: Kobe Valociek, winner of the 101st Arizona Amateur Championship at Seville Golf & Country Club this past August.
Below: Ashley Menne, winner of the 49th Arizona Women’s Amateur Championship in 2023 at Desert Highlands Golf Course.
“The Kachinas for winning the Amateur are the largest ones of their kind. They’re set apart in my house because they’re bigger and noticeablemore than the others.”
—KEN KELLANEY
KENNY KACHINA
To the victor go the spoils, as the saying goes. Or, as they say in Arizona, to Ken Kellaney go the Kachinas. A lot of them, in fact. He won 25 over his playing career, befitting one of the most accomplished amateur golfers ever in the state.
The Illinois native moved to Arizona in 1986 and blazed a path of winning never seen before. He won eight Phoenix city titles, five Arizona Amateur titles and multiple Arizona Four-Ball events. He stands alone as the only golfer to capture the career grand slam of Arizona amateur golf by finishing first at the Public Links, Mid-Amateur, Match Play and Stroke Play state titles. And he’s earned AZ GOLF’s Player of the Year honors a record 10 times.
“I grew up in the Chicago area and played golf at the University of Illinois,” said Kellaney. “It was always the traditional silver cup, bowl or trophy for winning tournaments. When I first saw a Kachina, I thought, ‘Wow, that is really special.’ It kind of fits with the area, with the Southwest, which makes it even more special. I think it’s great.”
From 1991 to 2003 Kellaney reached the finals of the Arizona Amateur seven times, winning five. “I won in 1991, 1992 and 1993, and three years in a row was something that had never been done before. That was special.”
His other two Amateur wins came in 2002 and 2003. “I had just come off a cancer diagnosis of melanoma in late 1999, so I took some time off and went through all the cancer treatments. Then I kind of put myself back together. So those two wins were really a great accomplishment for me personally. The Kachinas for winning the Amateur are the largest ones of their kind. They’re set apart in my house because they’re bigger and more noticeable than the others.”
Visitors to Kellaney’s house who are not well-versed in his sterling golf record often think he’s a Native American art collector when they see all the Kachinas on display.
“That’s the great thing about them,” he said. “Everybody’s used to seeing golf trophies with golfers on top, or bowling trophies with bowlers on top,” he said. “That’s what makes this a unique award. It’s art and an award all in one. That’s pretty cool.”
Others who appreciated his golf accomplishments were quick to assign him a moniker connected to his trophies. “My buddies did nickname me ‘Kenny Kachina,’” he said.
As Kellaney puts it, “Whoever wins one of these Kachinas knows that they were the best of the best in Arizona for that event.”
Ken Kellaney with the Kachinas he earned by winning five Arizona Amateurs between 1991 and 2003.
Lee Wybranski Paints the Majors and More
BY TOM MACKIN
ARTIST AT GOLF
Rory McIlroy has nothing on Lee Wybranski. While the Northern Ireland native completed the rare career grand slam this year by finally winning the Masters, the Flagstaff-based Wybranski already has 10 career grand slams. For painting though, not for playing.
The 56-year-old has created the official poster for each of golf’s four majors since 2016, a journey that started in 2008 with the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines (one of his bestselling posters ever, thanks both to Tiger’s dramatic victory and the championship’s return to Southern California after six decades). He hasn’t looked back since, creating indelible, colorful images of the host venues that have become a
collectible item for many golf fans. And he does the bulk of that work at his studio in Flagstaff, where he moved in 2009 from his native Philadelphia.
“I got here (Flagstaff) and I immediately enjoyed the slower pace of life, the accessibility of nature, the scarcity of people,” he said. “After a big metropolitan experience, it was amazing to come to a place where you could drive 20 minutes to get anywhere, and if you drove 25 minutes, you’d be in the middle of nowhere. I just loved everything about it.”
ARTISTIC SKILLS
Before coming to Arizona, Wybranski started his career by doing pen and ink portraits of homes on the Main Line outside of Philadelphia. “I’m a good drawer,” he said. “It was always really my strength. To this day, I feel like I’m more of a drawer than a painter. So I just did these drawings for a couple of years, and they got better and better as I got more into them.”
Then he thought about other buildings that evoked strong emotional ties for people. Like the clubhouses at country clubs. A project he did for Winged Foot Golf Club in New York was wellreceived and opened the doors to the golf world.
“Within a year, I was a golf artist,” he said. “And soon enough, I was doing work for more and more great clubs. Then I started to get asked, ‘We love these, we love your work, but golf is a landscape game. You’re playing outdoors. Can you paint? Can you do work in color? Can you showcase the golf course, not just the clubhouse?’ And I thought, ‘Yeah, I can do that.’ And then I had to learn how to do it!”
His first championship poster for the USGA was the 2005 Walker Cup at Chicago Golf Club. “That’s probably my favorite event in golf now. Amateur golf in general, from a spectator and fan standpoint, is so much more fun,” said Wybranski, whose company also does logos and branding for courses and clubs. “You don’t have to fight as much to see great stuff. And they go to the best places.”
THE PROCESS
Wybranski will visit a host venue six months to a year in advance of a championship, typically spending one to two days on site with a camera and sketchbook. “By the time I leave the site, I have two or three leading candidates in mind for the view,” he said. “My team and I will create a different mock up for each view and we’ll send them to the USGA for review. I usually have one strong recommendation, which they usually go with.
“This past year was interesting with Oakmont Country Club (a 10-time U.S. Open site). I probably could have easily lived with two of the three options we had, which isn’t
always the case. It’s an interesting challenge when you go back to a venue to paint it for a U.S. Open the second or third time. So it was imperative to find something different.”
Wybranski painted in watercolors before changing to acrylic and oil three years ago. The result was a similar but slightly bolder style.
“I really did that just because we wanted to change it up,” he said. “Working in watercolors was very slow and methodical. You can’t correct mistakes, because it’s a transparent medium, so you can’t cover up things and you can’t scrub them out. I started working in these other mediums which are definitely much more forgiving. I can get brighter, punchier colors.
There’s a little bit more texture involved. It was a fun, artistic departure.”
For all his championship posters — he’s also done the same for the Ryder Cup since 2016 — Wybranski has the same goal: “I want you to wish you could walk right into it and wedge up to the green.”
And yes, this AZ GOLF member plays golf whenever he gets the chance. “I really try and just get lost in the beauty when I’m on the golf course now. I try and clear my mind. I focus on the wind, or the trees or the smells, the sounds of birds, whatever it is. It’s almost like it feeds my artist brain.”
While he would love to work on more Arizona-based projects (his in-state clients currently include Forest Highlands Golf Club and Desert Mountain), Wybranski also wouldn’t mind expanding beyond fairways and greens, if only he had the time.
“We do videos of the paintings being made and those get a lot of engagement on social media. I’d like to make a whole series out of something like that. We’re so busy with golf, but I’ve really wanted to do that kind of thing for some of the Great Northern Arizona landmarks, like going out to Wupatki National Monument, Walnut Canyon National Monument or Montezuma Castle National Monument.”
Even if his golf work has, as he says, exceeded his wildest dreams, Wybranski remains very ambitious. “The higher you get, the higher you want to go, right?” he asks. “I’m dying to do golf in the Olympics. I would
“By the time I leave the site, I have two or three leading candidates in mind for the view.”
—LEE WYBRANSKI
love to do things in other sports like Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, or even the New Orleans Jazz Festival.”
But given his full slate of painting the majors and more, Wybranski is also quick to acknowledge his good fortune and singular place he has earned in the golf industry.
“There’s nobody who’s done what we’re doing right now, all four majors and the Ryder Cup, for years. Golf has a tremendous legacy of literature and art, and I very seriously consider the work that we do here to be a formidable little segment of that tapestry. I’m very proud, very thrilled and really grateful.”
Tiffany Nelson-Thorne
BY TOM MACKIN
Tiffany Nelson-Thorne is in her 10th year as executive director of the Charles Schwab Cup Championship, the seasonending tournament for the PGA TOUR Champions played at Phoenix Country Club. The Illinois native talked with Arizona Golf Insider about her role, her biggest leadership lesson and how Arizona’s golf landscape has changed since she arrived here in 1995.
ARIZONA GOLF INSIDER: What are your key responsibilities as executive director?
TIFFANY NELSON-THORNE: Those fall into three parts: taking care of the players, the host course and the spectators. It’s really about running a successful, smooth tournament for spectators and TV.
The tournament field includes just 36 players competing during four rounds with no cut. Does that make your job harder or easier?
I like the intimacy of it. I don’t have to go out and try and persuade players to play in the event, like most tournaments do. But I also don’t get sponsor exemptions, so I don’t get to pick anyone. You do get really close to some of the players, but all of them — well 95 percent of them — are awesome. The others come in, play and leave, which is fine.
Which players have you gotten to know well?
One is Bernhard Langer, who always publicly thanks me for taking such good care of the players. On my first date a few years ago with my now-husband Brian Thorne, my phone rang, and the screen said “Bernhard Langer.” Brian asked me, “Is that THE Bernhard Langer?” Yes it was!
You’ve implemented many changes at this tournament. Which are you most proud of? I think the charity aspect. I’m proud that we have been able to raise more than $2 million in the past 10 years, and that money stays in Arizona.
How many people do you supervise and what key lessons have you learned about leading a team?
There are four of us on staff but during tournament week, with all of the volunteers, I’m overseeing almost 700 people. The biggest lesson I’ve learned is that this is a golf tournament. Whatever happens, it’s not life or death. My first year I was very stressed. But since then I always say to my team, “Let’s take the obstacle in our way and see what we can do.” It may not be solved overnight, but it will eventually be solved. It took me probably a good five years to not jump when something happened.
“I’m proud that we have been able to raise more than $2 million in the past 10 years, and that money stays in Arizona.”
—TIFFANY NELSON-THORNE
What’s the biggest surprise you have encountered during your tenure as executive director?
I have to say Bernhard’s putt last year on 18 during the final round (Langer made a 30-foot birdie putt to win) because I was running around getting ready for a three-man playoff and trying to wrangle everything in place for that. Then all of a sudden I heard everybody cheering. I had to look back on the TV to see what happened, so I totally missed it!
Many people might not realize that your role is a year-round job, correct?
Yes. Even my parents didn’t know that! When I told them about this job, they said, “Well, what are you going to do the other six months? I’m like, “What?” We’re always working on sales of the hospitality areas, the Pro-Am and sponsorships, and that’s a yearlong thing. Those are deals that don’t just happen overnight.
You have worked in the golf industry since moving to Arizona three decades ago after playing golf at Purdue University. What are the biggest changes you have seen in the business since then?
One of the biggest I’ve seen is the advancement in technology. Whether it’s 100 percent digital tickets, social media, live scoring or tools like Trackman, technology has completely transformed how we watch and experience the game. Attending a golf tournament is now a more interactive and informed experience. Spectators have more access to data and insights about the players and their performance than ever before and I believe this will only continue to improve.
Your husband is general manager at Troon North Golf Club in Scottsdale. Who wins when you play golf together?
Let’s just say I can count on one hand the times I have beaten him. But he is a scratch golfer.
Left: Nelson-Thorne with 2023 Charles Schwab Cup Championship winner Steven Alker.
Below: Nelson-Thorne with her tournament team in 2024.
4 THE SHORT COURSE AT MOUNTAIN SHADOWS
BIARRITZ | 4TH HOLE | PAR 3
“This long uphill par-3 has a four-foot deep swale cutting through the middle of the green. Whether the hole is on the front or back shelf, the best play is towards the left part of the green, avoiding the bunker short and right of the green. Occasionally the hole is placed right at the bottom of the swale, making this a much more forgiving green. This is a par 3 that really acts more like a par 4.
SHADOWSMOUNTAIN
DID YOU KNOW?
This hole was inspired by one built in the late 19th century on Biarritz Le Phare, a golf course in the coastal town of Biarritz, located in the southwest corner of France. Destroyed during World War II, the hole design with the distinctive swale in the green is widely credited to Willie Dunn Jr., an Englishman who was runner-up in the first U.S. Open played in 1895.
— TOM MCCAHAN, PGA Director of Golf and Club Operations, The Short Course at Mountain Shadows
DRAWN FROM THE DESERT
BY JOËLLE CREAMER
Creosote Sonoran Kitchen and Cocktails Debuts at Tucson’s The Club at Starr Pass
They say the journey is the real reward. Sure, the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow is the ultimate prize, but the best treasures are the ones discovered along the way. Those in-between, often fortuitous, moments are exactly what Creosote Sonoran Kitchen and Cocktails, located in the newly renovated clubhouse at The Club at Starr Pass, aims to deliver. It’s a journey through unique flavors of the desert, from the time you sit to the last, lingering bite.
SOUTHWEST ROOTS
Most widely known for its familiar desert rain aromas, the creosote bush inspired the restaurant’s name. For centuries, indigenous peoples of the Southwest have relied on this evergreen desert shrub for its medicinal properties. It’s only fitting that Chef de Cuisine Ruben Ortega tapped into heritage ingredients and bold desert flavors to present a unique, yet approachable lunch and dinner menu for Creosote Sonoran Kitchen.
The Prickly Pear Short Rib is slow-cooked to melt-inyour-mouth tenderness and dressed with a prickly pear demi-glace; a traditional Mexican Camarón Culichi features sautéed shrimp in a scratch-made creamy roasted poblano sauce; and the tacos are filled with slow-braised beef birria, chicken tinga or tempura beer-battered cod.
Other desert-inspired offerings include smoked chicken wings in your choice of three sauces: smoky morita and bacanora BBQ; sour orange and agave; or the mild spicy Arizona gunslinger. For
a more traditional clubhouse treat, the Old Fashion Wagyu Smash Burger is calling.
STORIES IN A GLASS
But the journey begins long before the meal is served.
The Apothecary Bar at Creosote, with its half-indoor, half-outdoor wrap-around bar, sets the stage for a beautiful Sonoran story to unfold. Here, guests will discover a fresh perspective on mixology, with surprises and delights at every turn.
“The Apothecary Bar is a modern homage to the desert’s ancient healing traditions,” said Monica Fedri, restaurant strategist with
RealFood Hospitality, Strategy & Design, the visionary for the bar concept. “The Apothecary Bar features signature cocktails and non-alcoholic elixirs with natural, clean and restorative ingredients, all inspired by the stories of the Sonoran Desert.”
The printed bar menu is presented with sketched icons marking each drink, inviting guests to explore the menu by matching their preferences to the recipe’s flavor profile. Think floral, citrusy, smoky or herbal.
“This interactive process encourages guests to order by taste,” said Alec Harmon, director of outlets at Starr Pass. “Many have responded with genuine curiosity and enthusiasm, often sparking conversations with our staff about the origins of ingredients and balance of flavors. It transforms the cocktail experience from simply ordering a drink into an engaging discovery.”
Harmon, alongside lead bartender Taylor Posey, helped bring the bar concept to life. Drawing from the availability of fresh and local fruit, foraged herbs and wild botanicals, the culinary team and barkeeps work handin-hand to develop cocktail recipes that align with the restaurant’s food offering. The Apothecary cabinet includes artisan tequilas and mezcals, aromatic gins, small-batch bourbons, herbal liqueurs and an impressive collection of rare spirits.
BALANCED COLLECTION
Celebrating both local and international producers, The Apothecary’s wine and beer portfolio is curated for balance, diversity and quality. Local craft selections, including Dragoons Seasonal Imperial Stout from Tucson’s Dragoon Brewing Company, highlight the richness of Arizona’s brewing culture.
The wine list showcases thoughtful Old World classics next to New World standouts for a wellrounded offering that pairs well with Chef Ortega’s vibrant menu.
Tucson residents have an inviting new option for a day of golf and dining. Anyone planning a visit to Arizona’s second-largest city would do themselves a favor by adding Creosote Sonoran Kitchen and Cocktails to their culinary itinerary.
Team Arizona Joins the National Stage
New program set to reshape the future of junior golf in Arizona
BY TOM SKULSKI
Across the sun-drenched fairways of Arizona, where golf is as much a tradition as it is a sport, a new chapter is teeing off — this time with a fresh, youthful swing.
AZ GOLF is proud to announce Team Arizona, part of the United States Golf Association’s (USGA) campaign to expand the pipeline for elite junior golfers and keep American golf a global leader in the game for years to come.
Announced in February 2023, the United States National Development Program (USNDP) offers a pathway for each state’s most promising young golf talent, age 13-18, to showcase their skills in a bigger spotlight while receiving more support, training and financial assistance than ever before.
“Team Arizona represents more than just competitive opportunity for juniors — it’s a unifying initiative that brings associations together in the spirit of collaboration, all working toward the shared goal of opening doors for young athletes and empowering them to reach their fullest potential,” said Catherine Carmignani, AZ GOLF executive director.
“Just as meaningful, it gives us the chance to celebrate their achievements together, reinforcing the power of community in shaping the future of the game here in Arizona,” she added.
Team Arizona will be one of 14 states to join the USNDP in January 2027 as part of its third wave. The first wave helped launch the initiative in 2024 and second wave teams begin play in January 2026. The goal is to have a team representing each of the 50 states by 2033.
And while the start of 2027 may seem like a long way down the road, the Team Arizona roster will be selected based on a number of factors, including tournament performance in the 2026 season.
The Team Arizona Selection Committee oversees selection criteria and operates the team based on guidelines provided by the USNDP. Specific criteria may consist of a points structure, ranking system or combination of other elements, and will be published prior to the entry deadline of the first counting event in the 2026 championship season.
The selection committee will be made up of representatives from entities in the Arizona Alliance for Golf, including AZ GOLF, Junior Golf Association of Arizona, Southwest PGA and Tucson Junior Golf. The committee will also have a special advisor.
Roster sizes for each state team vary based on elite junior participation in that state. Arizona expects to have 12 boys and 12 girls competing on the initial team whose roster will be announced in late 2026.
To be eligible to compete on Team Arizona, a player must have a Handicap Index® and be a U.S. Citizen and resident of the state. Each player must be 13 years old by Jan. 1, 2027, and will not reach their 19th birthday by July 19, 2027. Players cannot be enrolled in college for the 2026-27 school year.
Once rosters are announced, Team Arizona players will be exposed to more than just drills for golf improvement. The team will have access to a mental coach, health coach, strength and condition coach, a captain to handle administrative business and a PGA or LPGA teaching professional.
During the 2027 season, all junior golfers will continue competing for a chance to represent Arizona in the 2028 season. Being on the team one year does not mean a secured roster spot for the following season.
It will be important for players to review the points list to determine which events are most important to sign up for. The list was crafted by the Selection Committee, placing greater importance on existing junior golf events to strengthen the talent pool at local competitions.
Those competing for Team Arizona will have a chance to continue down the funnel system to reach the Elite Amateur National Program with a shot at an eventual selection to the U.S. National Junior Team. All this while representing the community they grew up in and where they first discovered their passion for golf.
“There’s nothing more powerful for a young athlete than the chance to represent something bigger than themselves,” said Heather DalyDonofrio, USGA managing director, player relations and development.
“Through the State Teams program, the top juniors will have the pride of carrying their home state’s banner, which is both inspiring and motivating.
“It’s an exciting opportunity that highlights how the U.S. National Development Program is creating meaningful pathways and support for future generations of American golfers.”
Additional eligibility requirements and FAQs can be found at azgolf.org/team-arizona
Future issues of Arizona Golf Insider will feature stories from across the Alliance, providing a look into how these organizations work to keep the game we all love healthy and prospering now and in the future. For more information on the Arizona Alliance for Golf, visit azallianceforgolf.org.
Dollar Shots
We’ve all been told to hit the sand before the ball when playing a shot out of a bunker, but many struggle with what that actually means. This visual drill should help improve your results when playing out of the sand.
Imagine a dollar bill underneath your ball when it is in a bunker.
WITH AMY FRUHWIRTH
Amy Fruhwirth, Championships Manager for AZ GOLF, played on the LPGA Tour for 12 years and is a member of the Arizona Golf Hall of Fame
AZ GOLF Lesson Tee
Presented by
Bonus Tip
When playing bunker shots, ensure you are swinging hard enough to spray sand out of the bunker. If the sand isn’t getting out of the bunker, the ball won’t either.
2
When you play your shot, imagine you’re taking a dollar bill-sized divot out of the sand.
3
When practicing, you can draw a rectangle in the sand the size of a dollar bill to visualize where the club should enter and exit.
Looking for a new wedge to help with your bunker play? Visit 2nd Swing Golf today.
Evolutionary Drops
CHANGES IN HOW THE RULES OF GOLF DEFINE DROPPING YOUR BALL
The method for how we drop our golf ball when the Rules of Golf allow us to do so has evolved through the years. Early on, the Rules had us throw or drop the ball over our heads in various manners, drop the ball over our shoulders and hold our arm at shoulder height and drop to our sides. All of these methods often led to unpredictable outcomes. In 2019, as part of the latest changes to the Rules of Golf,
Rule 14.3 Dropping Ball in Relief Area states that (1) the player must drop their own ball, (2) the ball must be dropped straight down from knee height without touching the player or equipment and (3) the ball must be dropped in the relief area (or on line). These changes were implemented to increase the chance that the ball stays within the relief area, retains a desired randomness about where the ball ends up and limits the extent to which a ball will embed in sand in a bunker.
PRE1908
Various versions of dropping the ball over your head.
19081984
Stand facing the hole, stand erect, and drop the ball over your shoulder so it landed behind you.
19842019
Stand erect (no slouching), extend your arm at shoulder height, and drop the golf ball within a designated area.
2019NOW
Drop ball straight down from knee height.
Maximum
Hole Scores
I WAS TOLD THERE WOULD BE NO MATH …
You’ve got a great round going, but a couple of bad holes late derail your score and potentially move your Handicap Index® up … or do they? The World Handicap System sets a maximum score on any hole for handicap purposes to prevent these unfortunate hole scores from significantly affecting your Handicap Index®. You may have heard the term “Net Double Bogey” in the past; let’s take a look at what it actually means.
First, you must determine your Course Handicap™ for the day, which you can find by selecting your course and the tees being played in the GHIN App. Your Course Handicap™ aligns with the stroke index listed on the handicap row shown on your scorecard, so if your Course Handicap™ is 15, you will receive
a handicap stroke on the holes with the handicap of 1-15. Determining Net Double Bogey is as simple as adding 2 strokes to par plus any handicap strokes received on that specific hole. In our example, if hole three is a par 4 and the number 5 handicap hole, you would add 4 (par) + 2 (strokes) + 1 (handicap stroke) for a Net Double Bogey score of 7.
HOT TIP | Use the hole-byhole score posting option in the GHIN App and the adjustment for Net Double Bogey will be applied to your score automatically.
Following Through
Shot between the upreaching arms of an organ pipe cactus, this image from the 51st Arizona Women’s Amateur Championship (contested July 24-26, TPC Scottsdale, Champions Course) shows the power and grace of this competitor’s golf swing.
PHOTO
