Brilliant.
Couldn’t imagine the atmosphere, especially on the 16th. Maybe make the grandstand there a couple decks higher.
They should make that happen.
TPC Scottsdale
Built on the arid sands within the city limits of Scottsdale, Arizona sits one of the great stadiums of golf and host to this week’s tournament, TPC Scottsdale.
Constructed with the intent of expanding the then “Phoenix Open” to become a pillar of the tour, Tom Weiskopf and Jay Morrish were brought in by the commissioner of the PGA tour at the time, Deane Beman to construct a stadium course like the one in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. Situated on approximately 400 acres of land, the property includes resort lodging, and two courses, the Champions and the Stadium. The stadium course, affectionately referred to as “The Greatest Show on Grass” when it plays host to the Waste Management Phoenix Open is a desert classic. And while arguments can be made for whether or not the tournament is a spectacle or a sideshow during the four days when it opens its doors to over 500,000 spectators (in a normal year), it’s hard to deny the celebration that ensues when shots land close to the pin on the 16th hole.
TPC Scottsdale was brought about through a contract between the Bureau of Reclamation, the City of Scottsdale, and the PGA Tour Inc. The land continues to be leased to the TPC to this day, and even though the “rent” is around $1,000,000, the impact of the course and the tournament are enormous. A report from 2012 estimated that the tournament alone brings in over $220 million for the valley through lodging, food, and other tourism expenditures.
Building a course in the desert is not easy. It requires extra dedication to irrigation and fertility to fight the harsh climate a desert sees throughout the year. To do this, TCP Scottsdale deploys a few techniques to maintain a tour-level experience. Many desert courses use a tremendous amount of water for both general irrigation as well as “flushes” to clear our accumulated salts in the soil profile. Some courses can use upwards of 300 million gallons a year just to keep the Bermuda & ryegrass beyond the brink of wilt. TPC Scottsdale uses a sophisticated irrigation system that allows control of individual heads to hit hot spots and limits overseeding (planting ryegrass into Bermuda in this case) to just the playing surfaces. This means less area to water and more effective control over which areas need it the most. They also use effluent water (reclaimed from wastewater treatment) and have minimized nearly any intrusion into the desert habitats beyond the playable property.
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Had the privilege of playing TPC Scottsdale today! Such a great experience playing a course you’ve seen so many times on TV. Even snuck in a little birdie on 6 and a par on the famous 16th. Overall, I shot an 81 which I am thrilled with considering my skill level and lack of experience on courses of this length and abundance of bunkers.
I know it’s not much, but it was a cool experience for someone who doesn’t golf anywhere outside of my home course very often! Also, being from North Dakota, we don’t have any courses that look like this😂 I think I hit more bunker shots today than I ever have in my entire golfing career combined up to this point lol.
My question is are there any other courses that have roaring crowds at specific holes like TPC? I wish HB had more crowds and excitement like at Scottsdale. Does anyone know?
I'm playing TPC Scottsdale this weekend with my girlfriend's dad and family. I'm... not great, so obviously playing such an iconic course is a little daunting. I haven't played 18 holes in probably 10 years, and I've played probably 10 total 9 hole courses over that span. I've seen a lot of "not easy, but not as hard as you think" kind of stuff about the course online, but I still feel like that's directed at a more experienced crowd lol
I'm not so bad that I'll completely embarrass myself (I usually shoot high 40s/low 50s on a Par 9), but any help is much appreciated!
