ARIZONA GOLF AUTHORITY

Author: Staff AZGA

Charles Schwab Cup Moves to Desert Mountain in 2012

Champions Tour’s Finale To Be Contested at Cochise Course

From the Arizona Golf Authority AZGA Golf News Desk

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. – The Champions Tour and the Desert Mountain Club announced today that its season-ending event, the Charles Schwab Cup Championship, will be hosted next year by the Desert Mountain Club in Scottsdale, Arizona. The Cochise Course, one of six at the facility designed by golf legend Jack Nicklaus, will be the venue for the championship.

The top-30 players on the Champions Tour money-list at the conclusion of the 2012 season are eligible to compete in the limited-field event, to be played October 29 – November 4, 2012.

“The Champions Tour has a lot of history at Desert Mountain and we want to continue making history by bringing one of our premier tournaments to this quality venue,” said Champions Tour President Mike Stevens. “Our players are enthusiastic to return.”

Built in 1987, the 7,019 yard Cochise Course was the host venue for The Tradition, one of five major championships on the Champions Tour, for 13 consecutive years from 1989 to 2001. During that period, the Cochise Course was voted by Champions Tour professionals as the “Best Maintained Golf Course” on Tour and was consistently ranked in the national golf magazines’ top-100 lists.

Cochise Course – Desert Mountain Golf Club

Desert Mountain offers its members six private Jack Nicklaus Signature Golf Courses, the most in one location anywhere in the world. The Cochise Course features rolling fairways surrounded by water and desert rock outcroppings. The hallmark of the course is the par-3 seventh hole and par-5 fifteenth hole where the double green for these two holes sits on a picturesque island, approached from two different directions.

“Desert Mountain has such a strong history not only in club and residential golf but in tournament golf,” said Nicklaus, a four-time winner of The Tradition on the Cochise Course. “The years during which Desert Mountain hosted The Tradition are an important part of the club’s first 25 years and its legacy, and the opportunity to host such a significant event as the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship is an ideal way to celebrate the start of the next 25 years in the Desert Mountain story.”

“Cochise is a great example of the variety of golf the members at Desert Mountain get to enjoy and among the reasons the club is so unique. It was a challenge to do six different golf courses on six different properties, and I believe we did a good job in creating courses and golf experiences that play in diverse ways. Of the six distinctive design approaches, Geronimo and Cochise were meant to be golf parks, with the sportier course being Cochise. Variety is the beauty of the overall golf experience there. I have said before, you would be hard-pressed to find a better golf complex in the world than Desert Mountain.” Visit Nicklaus Design at www.nicklaus.com and read the Cochise Course Overview.

Bob Jones, Chief Operating Officer and General Manager for Desert Mountain Club, shares the Club’s excitement in hosting the prestigious Schwab Cup event: “The anticipation of the Champions Tour professionals returning to Desert Mountain is exciting for the Club’s members and the community. What a fantastic way for us to showcase our Club and begin celebrating our 25th anniversary.”

John Cook is the two-time defending champion of the Charles Schwab Cup Championship, winning at Sonoma Golf Club in 2009 and TPC Harding Park last year. Cook is seeking to become the first player in Champions Tour history to win the event three consecutive years.

The complete Champions Tour schedule for the 2012 season is expected to be finalized later this year, visit www.pgatour.com.

December 19, 2011
Mickelson Opens McDowell Mountain Golf Club

By John Davis, GWAA

From the Arizona Golf Authority AZGA Golf News Desk

SCOTTSDALE, AZ – Phil Mickelson remains Arizona’s most popular golfer, and now has added course owner to his resume, with plans to do so in a big way around Arizona.

Mickelson announced this week that he and his manager Steve Loy, the CEO of Gaylord Sports Management, have formed the M Club and become the owners of McDowell Mountain Golf Club, a daily-fee course formerly known as Sanctuary Golf Club that recently underwent a major renovation.

It is one of four golf properties that have been purchased by the pair as part of the M Club (M as in Mickelson) master plan, which ultimately will offer full access to about 10 courses – public and private – at rates far less than golfers would normally pay for multiple memberships.

“In this day and age, it really doesn’t make any sense financially for golfers to pay membership fees at five or six golf clubs in order to have a variety of playing experiences,” Mickelson said. “We need to change that in a way so that golfers can have a private club experience at an affordable price.”

The concept, Loy said, is one that Mickelson came up with two years ago when the economy sagged and golf participation suffered with it. Along with McDowell Mountain Ranch, they now own Palm Valley Golf Club (with two courses) in Goodyear and the Rim Club and Chaparral Pines, which were built as private clubs, in Payson. They are negotiating to acquire several more courses in Arizona, including Blackstone Country Club in Peoria. Golf insiders say Quintero Golf Club near Lake Pleasant also is on the shopping list.

Plans call for the M Club to launch Nov. 1 with members paying an initiation fee of $5,000 and monthly dues of $605 to belong to all of the courses in the stable. All will be in Arizona, primarily in the metro Phoenix area and the club concierge will operate at Gaylord’s offices in Scottsdale.

“We’re convinced this is a winning play to increase options for private club members and give public golfers a private club experience,” Mickelson said. “From a selfish standpoint, I see this as a way to help grow the game and that’s important to me because the game has given me so much.”

The goal of the McDowell Mountain Ranch project was to make it a more family-oriented club that was a better fit with the overall development at the base of the McDowell Mountain Preserve. Randy Heckenkemper, who was the original designer, also handled the renovation.

Heckenkemper widened the playing corridors, added some waste bunkers, reshaped several fairways, reworked bunkering, added new tees on several holes and “flipped” the two nines to create a more dramatic finish.

More than 20,000 cubic yards of reshaping was done throughout the course, a half-million square feet of decomposed granite was added to desert areas to create more forgiveness on errant shots, and almost four miles of new hand-stacked rock walls added more aesthetic appeal.

“This is really the first time that we’ve ever had owners who emphasized the playability factors,’’ said Heckenkemper, who designed Sanctuary in 1999.

The new design offers 80 acres of turf, compared with 72 acres on the original layout, but Heckenkemper pointed out that adding the waste bunkers actually provides more than 90 acres of playing surface. The renovation project was completed in just 100 days.

Mickelson said that, although the changes improved playability for the average golfer, they also added challenges for the low-handicapper. The new tees added 460 yards from the tips, where the course now plays at 7,072 yards.

“We wanted to create an experience for all players that provides an enjoyable round of golf regardless of abilities,” Mickelson said. “We wanted to present demanding shots for the better players but give the average player more shot options. We reduced the number of forced carries and provided opportunities to run shots up to many of the greens.”

Mickelson noted that it was important to make the course integral with the McDowell Mountain community. More than 1,000 residents attended a “soft” rollout of the new course on Oct. 10 and more than 250 VIPs and media members showed up for the grand opening one day later, including Scottsdale Mayor Jim Lane.

“This is the type of project we encourage and are proud to be part of as it helps to revitalize and regenerate enthusiasm in Scottsdale,” Lane said. “We worked hard to ensure that all required approvals were handled quickly and efficiently to ensure the process was smooth. The focus on family golf is consistent with the Scottsdale experience and product.”

The city and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation own the property where the course sets, making Loy and Mickelson “leased owners.” Other plans for the course include adding a Rick Smith Teaching Academy and a Callaway Golf Fitting Center.

“We had a vision for McDowell Mountain to make it enjoyable for families, where parents and kids would learn the game, get fit for clubs and enjoy a playable golf course,” said Mickelson, who has won 39 PGA Tour titles, including four majors and two Phoenix Opens.

“There are more than 4,000 homes surrounding McDowell Mountain Golf Club and we want this facility to be a place where kids are welcome, along with their parents. The changes made will make the course fun and playable for the average golfer and if they have fun, they will come back. But it won’t be a pushover for the better player. If I want to come out and play from the back tees, I will need to play well to shoot a number.”

Loy, who was Mickelson’s coach at Arizona State University, gave him credit for the M Club concept, and Mickelson in turn gave Loy kudos for putting all facets of the project together and making them work.

This might not be an ideal time to buy properties in a struggling industry, but their partnership has been able to purchase them for about one-third of their original cost.

“I don’t know if it’s the stupidity talking or the money walking,’’ Loy cracked. “But we’re very proud of the product we’re putting together. The whole emphasis is having fun and making golf affordable, especially for families. (McDowell Mountain Ranch) will be the best value course in Scottsdale.”

For golfers who are not M Club members, the green fee will range from $69 to $135, depending on the season. Golfers also can join a Player’s Club, which essentially cuts the green fee in half. An introductory rate of $119 for that program is in effect until Nov. 15.

OB Sports manages all four courses currently in the M Club and Chris Johnson remains as general manager of McDowell Mountain Ranch in a position similar to the one he held at Sanctuary.

Visit the Arizona Golf Authority, it’s “All Things Arizona Golf.”

Their Arizona Golf Course Directory List features an AZGA Player’s Arizona Golf Course review for every golf course in the State of Arizona, click www.arizonagolfauthority.com/coursedirectory/.

December 18, 2011
TPC Scottsdale’s 4th Annual GOLF for GROCERIES Campaign Underway

TPC Scottsdale’s Holiday Program Aids the Homeless

From the Arizona Golf Authority AZGA Golf News Desk

SCOTTSDALE AZ — Charitable giving is common among professional and amateur golfers and the TPC Scottsdale is counting on that this holiday season as they kick off their holiday Golf for Groceries program.

“It is amazing how generous golfers are,” commented TPC Scottsdale’s Tiffany Nelson. “We started our Golf for Groceries program three years ago and in that short time our players have donated more than 20 tons of food to the Foothills Food Bank.”

The program is simple, during the month of December, any golfer donating either 5 canned good items or $25 in cash can play the TPC Scottsdale courses for the following rates:

$69 + tax at Champions Course

$59 + tax after 1:00 p.m.

(savings of 50% from non-resident rate)

$169 + tax at Stadium Course

$99 + tax after 1:00 p.m.

(Forecaddie included in $169 rate – 44% savings)

December 1st – December 22nd, 2011

And unlike a lot of special offers that are mired down with caveats in the fine-print, the Golf for Groceries deal is simple:

• The offer is good any day of the week

• You have a 7-day advance booking window

• 5 canned goods must be presented at the time of check-in or a $25 donation will be accepted

• Stadium course is cart path only

• Understandably, not all tee times will be offered at these rates

To take advantage of this terrific offer and support a very worthy cause, use the promo code Groceries.

Phone reservations can be made by calling (480) 585-4334.

If you prefer to book online, visit: http://channel.opencourse.com/?c=a0094a674cc6f67c&cs=1207&date=9/13/2011&days=2&players=4&pc=&rt=0&promocd=

December 2, 2011
GolfMix Hosting Its First GolfMixer December 3rd

From the Arizona Golf Authority AZGA Golf News Desk

Phoenix AZ – Jon Bloom and the folks at GolfMix are host their inaugural GolfMixer on Saturday, December 3, 2011 at Sun City Country Club and it promises to be great fun.

As their name implies, they are going to “mix” it up with a slightly different twist for a golf gathering. The event begins at noon with a free clinic featuring PGA Tour winner Arron Oberholser on the driving range and the opportunity to sample some of the latest innovations in golf from both local Arizona companies as well as some of their national brethren. “Not only will you learn from one of the best players on TOUR, you’ll get to hang with other golfers in a relaxed and fun setting,” said GolfMix CEO Jon Bloom. “Plus, everyone attending will be entered in a drawing for a chance to win a playing lesson with Arron.”

Following the instruction clinic and mixer on the range, there will be a 9-hole shotgun on the front 9 at Sun City Country Club. The field is limited to 64 players and it costs $50 per person. In addition to golf, there will be contests on every hole. And if that isn’t enough, you’ll also get a ticket to the Phoenix Coyotes vs. Philadelphia Flyers hockey game that night.

So, you guessed it. The after golf party moves just down the street to Jobing.com Arena for the opening face-off at 6pm. Should you have a date who doesn’t play golf, but likes hockey, GolfMix has additional tickets available at a discounted rate.

Best of all, GolfMix and the Phoenix Coyotes are donating the proceeds from the first Golfmixer to Sun City Country Club’s program to teach autistic kids social skills and motor skills through the game of golf.

For more information and to register, click GolfMixer #1

To watch a short video about the GolfMixer event, click View Video

November 18, 2011
Scottsdale CVB to Sponsor Waste Management Scottsdale Open Amateur Golf Tournament

WASTE MANAGEMENT SCOTTSDALE OPEN – Pure Golf. Pure Scottsdale.

Scottsdale, AZ — Waste Management and the Scottsdale Convention & Visitors Bureau have teamed up to create the Waste Management Scottsdale Open, an amateur-team golf tournament for low-handicap players to be contested over three of Arizona’s finest public golf courses, January 13-15, 2012.

The Waste Management Scottsdale Open offers 2-person amateur team competition in gross score, net score or senior-net handicap divisions. Round 1 will be hosted by Troon North Monument, the flagship property of Troon Golf, considered by many desert golf’s “Arizona Masterpiece”.

Grayhawk Golf Club hosts Round 2 where competitors will enjoy the “ultimate member-for-a-day” experience and play Tom Fazio’s high-stakes risk and reward Raptor Course.

The final tournament round will provide the ultimate test – TPC Scottsdale’s Stadium Course. Competitors will face the same tournament golf course conditions that the PGA TOUR will play when they arrive for the Waste Management Phoenix Open two weeks later.

“Several amateur tournaments occur throughout the year, but none are tailored for the avid players who want to compete in the same conditions as the pros do,” said Scottsdale CVB Vice President Brent DeRaad. “Troon and Grayhawk will definitely be challenging, but the TPC Stadium course, with the forecaddies, the 16th hole’s 20,000-seat grandstand in place, the rough grown, the greens double cut and rolled to perfection, will be the ultimate tournament conditions skills test.”

“The Scottsdale Open concept – playing the best right before the best come to play – really complements our efforts at the Waste Management Phoenix Open,” noted Waste Management Vice President Steve Neff. “It allows Waste Management to increase our partnership with the City of Scottsdale while continuing to expand the charitable contributions generated for Arizona.”

The cost to enter the tournament is $895 per player and includes three competitive rounds of golf, a tournament gift package, hole-in-one competition for a new car, a pre-tournament reception and pairings party as well as the tournament awards ceremony. Prizes and trophies will be awarded to the top three teams in each division.

All the tournament information and registration details are available at www.scottsdaleopengolf.com.

Read the Arizona Golf Authority AZGA Golf Course Buzz for each WM Scottsdale Open Tournament Course, click on the links below:

Troon North Golf Club – Monument Course

Grayhawk Golf Club – Raptor Course

Tournament Players Club of Scottsdale – Stadium Course

November 1, 2011
Humana Challenge Tickets – Tournament Website Offers Early Purchase Incentives

From the Arizona Golf Authority Golf News Desk

January 16 – 22, 2012 – La Quinta, CA.

LA QUINTA, CA – The Humana Challenge website www.HumanaChallenge.com was introduced this week and offers advanced ticket purchase options, volunteer information & registration and complete tournament information services for the PGA Tour golf tournament to be held January 16 – 22, 2012.

Tournament fans are offered discounted prices for purchasing in advance; ticket packages include daily, weekly and premiere Clubhouse Badge offerings.

The Humana Challenge continues to honor and celebrate the legacy of Bob Hope in the Coachella Valley, and will be played on the PGA West-Nicklaus, PGA West-Palmer and La Quinta Country Club courses this year.

This year’s PGA Tour tournament format will be a 72-hole Pro-Am event, with one professional partnering with a single amateur partner for three tournament rounds. The fourth and final round will feature professionals only.

Jhonatton Vegas is the defending champion after posting 27-under par last year, and then outlasting Bill Haas and Gary Woodland in a two-hole sudden-death playoff.

La Quinta is a short drive from Phoenix and Scottsdale, and there’s plenty of great golf along the way. Read the Arizona Golf Authority AZGA Arizona Golf Course Buzz for every golf course in Arizona at www.arizonagolfauthority.com/coursedirectory/.

It’s “All Things Arizona Golf” from the Arizona Golf Authority.

October 28, 2011
Arizona Golf Course Steps “Back to the Future” at Wigwam Golf Resort

Patriot Golf Course Honors the Past as the Wigwam Golf Resort Steps Boldly into the Future

From the Arizona Golf Authority Golf Course News Desk

Litchfield Park, AZ – The Wigwam Resort dedicated the first hole of its Patriot Golf Course (formerly the Blue Course) in honor of Lieutenant Frank Luke, Jr. today, the World War I flying ace immortalized throughout flying-circles as “The Arizona Balloon Buster.”

Plaque on 1st Tee – Wigwam Golf Resort Patriot Course

During the dedication ceremony held today at the Wigwam Golf Resort, complete with the U.S. Air Force Color Guard from nearby Luke Air Force base, Jerry Colangelo spoke on behalf of his company and Wigwam owners, JDM Partners, to highlight the group’s choice of Lt. Luke as the first honoree.

“We considered many Arizona candidates and Lt. Frank Luke, Jr.’s patriotic service was clearly at the top of the list. Recognition of his remarkable destruction of 14 observation balloons and 4 aircraft, and his subsequent supreme sacrifice for our country, well, that’s the courage, bravery and patriotism we want to honor and celebrate with our Patriot Golf Course.”

Don Luke, nephew of the fighter ace honoree, brought the reality of Lt. Luke’s bravery out of the hazy history books into the bright light of present day in his remarks to the assembled crowd; most will not look at a balloon aloft in the same way, ever again.

“A lot of folks know that Luke Air Force Base, just down the street from here, is named in honor of my uncle, but few ever ask why. It’s because he was the first pilot to summon the courage to target, attack and destroy the heavily defended ‘eyes of the enemy’ which were their observation balloons.”

German Observation Balloon – World War I circa 1918

Don reminded the assembly that in 1918 World War I enemy personnel climbed into baskets suspended from balloons tethered to the ground and were then raised to float 2,000-feet above the battlefield. From their lofty perch, they reported on U.S. troop movement and adjusted cannon firing-coordinates to pinpoint the U.S. soldier’s trenches.

“My uncle was at the front lines and learned those balloons struck cold, abject fear in our boys when they saw them being raised. Our troops knew those balloons were the eyes the enemy used to find them with their cannon fire. He decided to fly in and shoot them down.”

In spite of the enemy aircraft circling the balloons, guarding them from above, and artillery cannon units on the ground keeping a sharp lookout for low-flying aircraft below, Lt. Luke attacked and destroyed 14 of them, as well as 4 enemy aircraft, during ten sorties flown on just eight days. Lt. Luke was killed in action by enemy ground troops September 29, 1918 when, after destroying three balloons, he was forced to land his damaged aircraft behind enemy lines.

“His only defense was the fading light of dusk, and getting the hydrogen inside the balloons to explode would take two or three passes,” Don shared. “After the first pass, they’d start pulling the balloon down so he had to fly closer and closer to those artillery guns on the ground to finish the job.”

That’s courage and bravery beyond the call of duty, especially when you consider the fabric covered bi-plane Lt. Luke piloted flew only 100 mph. in straight and level flight, and climbed at a rate of only 4 mph.

Lt. Luke was posthumously awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor and although he’s the first to be honored at the Patriot Course, it’s a good bet he won’t be the last.

Colangelo closed his remarks by noting, “Life is about relationships; with family, with friends, with your community. Renaming our Patriot Golf Course is one way we can put our company’s principle of ’Commitment to Community’ into action, and dedicating each of these 18-holes will refresh and refocus everyone’s attention on the honors fittingly bestowed upon our own Arizona patriots.”

Par-3 15th – Patriot Course – Wigwam Golf Resort

Sometimes, past performance is good indication of the future. U.S. Olympic basketball, the Phoenix Suns and the Arizona Diamondbacks have all flourished under Colangelo’s leadership and a recent multi-million dollar renovation indicates the Wigwam will as well.

The Wigwam Golf Resort is the only golf resort in Arizona with three championship golf courses: The Gold Course and the Patriot Course, both designed by Robert Trent Jones, Sr., and the Heritage Course, a Red Lawrence design formerly named the Red course.

Read the Arizona Golf Course Directory AZGA Golf Course Buzz for every golf course in Arizona at www.arizonagolfauthority.com/coursedirectory/.

Click on:

Wigwam Golf Resort Gold Course

Wigwam Golf Resort Patriot Course

Wigwam Golf Resort Heritage Course

It’s “All Things Arizona Golf” from the Arizona Golf Authority.

October 19, 2011
Champion’s Tour Comes Back to the Mountain

Charles Schwab Cup to be Contested in 2012, 2014 and 2016 at Cochise Course

Huff’s Stuff Arizona Golf Blog – Arizona Golf Authority

The cast of characters will be slightly different than those who once played in The Tradition, but The Champions Tour is returning to Scottsdale and Desert Mountain Golf Club in 2012 — as well as 2014 and 2016. The new event is the prestigious Charles Schwab Cup, the 50-and-over circuit’s version of the PGA Tour’s season-ending Tour Championship.

The announcement came down from PGA Tour headquarters in Ponte Vedra, Fla., on Thursday after newspapers in Miami and San Francisco broke the story. Apparently it was a little too soon for all the details to be worked out, like where the Charles Schwab Cup will be played after 2012.

“The Champions Tour has a lot of history at Desert Mountain and we want to continue making history by bringing one of our premier tournaments to this quality venue,’’ said Champions Tour president Mike Stevens in the release. “Our players are enthusiastic to return.’’

Outside of that statement, as well as other obligatory comments from Desert Mountain president Bob Jones and architect Jack Nicklaus, who designed all six of the club’s highly private courses, the Tour’s release lacked a lot of details except to say the event will be held Oct. 29-Nov. 5 on the Cochise Course.

But thanks to Jones, who along with several of his current staff oversaw many of those Traditions that were held there from 1989 to 2001, he did fill in a lot of the Tour’s missing links.

“It’s a three-tournament agreement where we will host in 2012, ’14 and ’16,’’ Jones said of the deal that had been in the making since Desert Mountain’s members took over ownership of the club back in January.

“I can’t tell you for sure who will be the host (in 2013 or 2015), but I think it’s probably going to be either San Francisco or Sonoma (Calif.), or maybe both.’’

That would make sense, as the Charles Schwab Cup will be played in three weeks at the TPC Harding Park Golf Course in San Francisco for a second straight year. It had been played in Sonoma from 2003-2009.

The tournament boasts the biggest payout for the seniors of the year, with a $2.5 million purse as well as a $1 million annuity to the champion from Charles Schwab. The field is limited to the top 30 money winners each year.

Chances are none of those players who will qualify for the Charles Schwab Cup in the future ever played in The Tradition at Desert Mountain. But if they asked any of the guys who did, like Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Gary Player, Lee Trevino, Raymond Floyd, Tom Watson, Chi Chi Rodriguez, Miller Barber, Billy Casper or Fuzzy Zoeller (to name a few), they would have told them The Tradition was a heck of a golf party. Seriously, most of those guys from yesteryear talked about it like it was the best tournament ever on a track they voted “Best Maintained Golf Course’’ on Tour every year. And a lot us who attended The Tradition, or for that matter, covered the action, would concur.

Jones said the new event at Desert Mountain is to be a joint effort between the Champions Tour, HNS Sports (tournament consulting), and the staff and membership at his club. HNS puts on about 14 tournaments worldwide with the biggest being The Memorial. For the record, the “N’’ in HNS stands for Nicklaus, as in Steve Nicklaus, son of Jack.

“I think we’re in great hands, and we feel blessed to have such an experienced team of our own to run it along with the Tour and HNS Sports,’’ Jones said. “I think having the Champions Tour back here at Desert Mountain will be a great thing for us as well as Scottsdale and Arizona in general.’’

It was a sad day, indeed, when the Over The Hill Gang rode out of the Arizona desert back in 2002 after a title sponsor could no longer be secured for The Tradition, a Champions Tour “major’’ that had been founded by Lyle Anderson, the original developer at Desert Mountain. That last Tradition, by the way, had been held at Superstition Mountain Golf and Country Club, another Anderson property that had just sprung up in the East Valley at the time.

It was somewhat of an inglorious ending for a tournament that had produced champions like Nicklaus, Trevino, Floyd, Tom Kite, Tom Shaw and Jim Thorpe (to name a few). Nicklaus, who built the Cochise Course along with the other five — Apache, Chiricahau, Geronimo, Outlaw and Renegade — won the tournament a record four times (1990-91 and 1995-96), with his very first Tradition “W’’ coming in his then-Senior Tour debut.

Jones said that the members are hoping that the tournament will “put the spotlight’’ back on Desert Mountain, like it did somewhat when Anderson was at the controls. And Jones conceded that he hopes all that attention will help ease some of the financial challenges the club has faced in recent times, much like Anderson used The Tradition as a vehicle to market his multi-million-homes and pricey memberships.

“First of all, I have nothing but respect for what Lyle Anderson and (former general manager) Dick Hyland did here during their days at Desert Mountain,’’ Jones said of the former hierarchy. “But this is now the members’ time to shine, as they have really stepped up and taken control and not let happen what happened at other (high-end golf communities) like Reynolds Plantation and Sea Island (that went broke).

“So it’s a new day at Desert Mountain and we’re approaching our future in the ‘go’ mode with positive things like this (tournament). I would also say (the tournament) is more a part of our re-branding of Desert Mountain as a private club and a community (than a marketing strategy). It’s a forward-thinking brand that includes Scottsdale and Arizona, to bring all of us back into the national and world arena through the game of golf.’’

Of the almost 2,000 homes on Desert Mountain, about 10 percent are up for sale, a percentage that is low for a lot of Valley communities but still a little staggering when it comes to multimillion-dollar homes. And it’s no secret that memberships have fallen from a high of $325,000 to the current price of $140,000.

“The good news is we’ve had a tremendous amount of uptick in property and membership sales this year,’’ Jones said. “ All in all, it’s quite encouraging.’’

There is another reason for bringing the Champions Tour back to “the Mountain,’’ as the members like to call it, and it just might be the best of all, Jones noted. Nicklaus is returning in December to start working on a new master plan for the club’s six courses as the members get ready to celebrate Desert Mountain’s 25th anniversary in 2012.

“For us, bringing another great tournament like the Charles Schwab Cup here, and with Jack coming back to Desert Mountain, as well as the members now in control of their own destiny, it’s all part of our start to the next 25 years,’’ Jones said with obvious pride.

“So these are some exciting times for all of us.’’

With the return of the Champions Tour to the scene of perhaps its greatest glory, I couldn’t agree with him more.

Click on Huff’s Stuff Arizona Golf Blog for Bill Huffman’s complete archive at the Arizona Golf Authority.

October 14, 2011
Raven Golf Club – Phoenix Home to New Instruction Partnership

From the Arizona Golf Authority AZGA Golf News Desk

PHOENIX, Arizona – Two of the most innovative brands in golf instruction, Jeff Ritter Golf and Martin Chuck’s Tour Striker Golf Academies (JRG/TSGA) have announced the launch of a new instruction program set to open this fall at The Raven Golf Club – Phoenix.

One of Golf Digest’s Best Young Teachers in America, Ritter’s presence reaches all corners of the globe. Ritter’s creative approach to the game has appeared across print, television and radio, including frequent content showcased with Golf Digest magazine.

Martin Chuck is the inventor of Tour Striker Training Products, the highly successful series of golf learning aids endorsed by CBS Commentator Gary McCord. As success of the Tour Striker brand grew, Chuck launched the Tour Striker Academies, which now operate programs throughout the country.

Along with the progressive vision of The Raven Golf Club Management Team, OB Sports, long-time friends Ritter and Chuck saw the opportunity to create a program unrivaled in innovation and productivity to meet the needs of all players regardless of skill level or age group. “I had worked for years on my own building a successful coaching brand,” said Ritter. “But what I missed most was the creative process associated with collaborating with others. The opportunity to work with someone as talented as Martin to build this new program is something that I’m extremely excited about.”

Proponents of a holistic approach to learning, JRG/TSGA “Integrated Coaching” programs will offer cutting edge modalities designed to unlock a player’s true potential while providing fun and creative solutions for enhanced physical, emotional and nutritional performance.

Designed to give golfers the tools and support to achieve any goal, JRG/TSGA programs include: Private Lessons, Group Clinics, Corporate Events, Comprehensive Schools, Advanced Fitting Resources, Junior Golf Development and more.

For more information on JRG/TSGA programs visit www.ravenphx.com/instruction.

Read the Arizona Golf Course AZGA Golf Course Buzz for every golf course in Arizona at www.arizonagolfauthority.com/coursedirectory/.

It’s “All Things Arizona Golf” from the Arizona Golf Authority.

October 13, 2011