Tag: Tom Weiskopf

Scenic Arizona golf course that battled javelinas will reopen in April after renovation

Javelinas, which are most active at night, dug up big swaths of grass at this scenic golf course.

A viral video last October showed what happens when hungry javelinas have free rein on a golf course in the dark of night.

Now, Seven Canyons Golf Club, located in scenic Sedona, Arizona, is getting ready to unveil a new look.

Originally a Tom Weiskopf design that opened in 2003, the course is putting the finishing touches on a Phil Smith renovation and, according to Golf Course Architecture, will reopen in April.

The course got new ownership in 2022 and Weiskopf visited later that year to offer some thoughts on the renovation, according to Golf Business News.

“It was Tom’s last site visit out of his home state of Montana,” Smith said of Weiskopf, who died in August of that year. “It was wonderful to have him here.”

The renovation includes a re-sequencing of the holes, levelling tees and rebunkering, with new sand in all the sand traps, which were returned to their original shapes.

New amenities include an 8,000-square-foot putting green and a social space called the Turn House.

Seven Canyons is tied for 178th on Golfweek’s Best Top 200 residential courses. The course does have a membership but tee times can be secured by staying in the Enchantment Resort or renting a townhouse at Seven Canyons.

During its back and forth with the javelinas, the grounds crew at Seven Canyons, with the aid of Arizona Game and Fish Department, managed to corral 18 of the wild animals before relocating them to less populated parts of the national forest nearby. It’s likely to be an ongoing battle, however.

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Check the yardage book: TPC Scottsdale’s Stadium Course for the 2024 WM Phoenix Open on the PGA Tour

No. 16 is famous, but how does the rest of TPC Scottsdale’s Stadium Course shape up?

There’s a lot more to the Stadium Course at TPC Scottsdale than the famed 16th, the par 3 lined by grandstands and site of this week’s party at the WM Phoenix Open. Here’s your chance to see how the rest of the course sets up for the 2024 version of the PGA Tour event.

The Stadium Course opened in 1986 with a design by the team of Tom Weiskopf and Jay Morrish. It was renovated in 2014. The site of a Tour event since 1987, the layout will play to 7,261 yards with a par of 71 this week.

The layout ranks No. 4 in Arizona on Golfweek’s Best list of top public-access layouts in each state. It also ties for No. 83 on Golfweek’s Best list of top resort courses in the U.S.

Thanks to yardage books provided by StrackaLine – the maker of detailed yardage books for thousands of courses around the world – we can see exactly the challenges the pros face this week at TPC Scottsdale’s Stadium Course.

Javelinas destroy grass at scenic Seven Canyons Golf Course in Sedona, Arizona

Javelinas, which are most active at night, dug up big swaths of grass at this scenic golf course.

Seven Canyons Golf Course in Sedona, Arizona, is one of the most scenic layouts in the Grand Canyon State, with views of the iconic red rock bluffs coming from all directions.

This northern Arizona community can also be home to a wild animal called the javelina, which is generally more commonly found in the southern part of the state. The creature sort of looks like a pig and they belong to the peccary family, which is a group of hoofed mammals. Javelinas have long, stiff bristles for hair and sharp tusks. Like all wildlife, it’s best to steer clear of them.

Javelinas are most active at night. They’re also known to dig up turf and dig up some turf they did at Seven Canyons recently.

The assistant superintendent at Seven Canyons posted a video on X showing the destruction the group of javelina — actually called a squadron — inflicted on the Tom Weiskopf design.

The course, which opened in 2003, tied for 178th on Golfweek’s Best Top 200 residential courses. The facility also has a 20,000-square-foot practice area with two tiers and 20 hitting stations.

As for the javelina, the Arizona State Department of Game and Fish website states that:

  • The department will sometimes remove javelina that are causing extensive property damage or have become aggressive toward humans. However, this is a last resort, and measures must be taken to remove attractants to prevent problems from recurring.
  • Javelina are classified as a big game species.
  • It is unlawful to injure or kill game animals, even if they are causing a problem, unless certain rigorous provisions under the law have been met.
  • It is unlawful to trap javelina.

Seven Canyons does have a membership but tee times can be secured if you stay in the Enchantment Resort or rent a townhouse at Seven Canyons.

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As Tom Weiskopf’s last design opens in Utah, his first is hosting USGA event in Arizona

“It’s a real showcase for Tom and the club.”

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — In a way, it’s all come full circle.

Tom Weiskopf’s final golf course design, Black Desert, just opened in May in St. George, Utah, a burgeoning golf community. This gem has already landed a PGA Tour stop, coming fall of 2024. The LPGA is also going to stage an event there, starting in 2025.

Black Desert, a venue he did with partner Phil Smith, is the 73rd golf course in Weiskopf’s portfolio, which features layouts located around the world. There are dozens of courses in the U.S., of course, but also Scotland, Italy and China.

His very first design, though, was built in Arizona in a then-remote part of north Scottsdale, at Troon Country Club, the name serving as a tip of the cap to Royal Troon in Scotland, where Weiskopf won his lone major, the 1973 Open Championship.

“It’s funny because we did count them up and it’s 73,” said Smith. “Can you believe that? Between design and renovation we came up with 73 and that just seems to be his lucky number.”

The private layout at Troon CC, which Weiskopf did with Jay Morrish, is set to host the 2023 U.S. Women’s Senior Amateur Championship, Sept. 30 to Oct. 5. It’ll be the second U.S. Golf Association event played there (1990 U.S. Mid-Amateur) and the 17th USGA tournament in all held in Arizona.

Troon Country Club
A mural at Troon Country Club includes a photo of golf course designers Tom Weiskopf and Jay Morrish. (Photo: Golfweek)

“The thing about Weiskopf courses is they can be played anybody or they can be set up to be played by the best in the world,” Smith said. “We based our design philosophy on that always. You think about TPC Scottsdale, where 95 percent of the time it has to be played by the municipal player and then one week out of the year you gotta be able to challenge the best players in the world [for the PGA Tour’s WM Phoenix Open] so that’s sort of been our philosophy and Tom’s philosophy from Day 1, so I think it’ll be great.”

Ranking 12th on Golfweek’s Best list of private golf courses in Arizona, Troon CC’s best stretch is on the back nine:

  • The par-4 14th, dubbed “The Cliff”, which features a dramatic, elevated second shot down over a desert transition to a large green
  • The par-3 15th, called “Troon Mountain”, which may be the most picturesque point on the property, with the iconic Pinnacle Peak seemingly towering over the green
  • The par-4 16th hole, known as “The Gunsight”, featuring a pair of large boudlers that you hit your tee shot through while aiming at what many say is a gunsight-shaped formation on the distance landscape.
Troon Country Club
The par-4 16th hole called “Gunsight” at Troon Country Club in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Photo: USGA)

Like many Weiskopf designs, Troon CC features a driveable par 4, and the fourth will play 244 yards for the senior amateurs.

The USGA first did a site visit for the Senior Women’s Am in 2019. Troon CC was officially awarded the event 2021 and Weiskopf, who passed away in August of 2022, was an active participant in the course’s tournament preparations.

“It’s ironic. Troon is where he started and it’s where he found out he was sick, that’s where we were the day he found out he had cancer,” said Smith.

The USGA received a record 594 applications for the tournament, which was first played in 1962. There are 132 golfers in the field, including defending champion Shelly Stouffer. Three-time tournament winner Laura Tennant is also playing. She won it in 2021, 2019 and 2018. There was no event in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The entire field will play two rounds of stroke play Sept. 39 and Oct. 1. The top 64 golfers will then play five rounds of match play, with the 18-hole championship set for Thursday, Oct. 5.

Troon Country Club
A mural at Troon Country Club includes a photo of golf course designers Tom Weiskopf and Jay Morrish. (Photo: Golfweek)

“The most important thing about Troon is it’s where Tom started and he won best new course right out of the gate. Who does that, right?,” marveled Smith. “I think that just shows the fact that even in the beginnings of Tom’s career he had the talent and the chops to produce a world-class golf course and that’s where it all began.

“I think it’s just great they’re hosting this event. It’s a real showcase for Tom and the club.”

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Photos: Check out the golf courses at Cabo Del Sol in Cabo San Lucas

Come for the golf, stay for the comfort stations in Mexico.

CABO SAN LUCAS, Mexico — Jack Nicklaus, designer and builder of golf courses around the world, once declared it “the best golf property I’ve seen.”

He was referring to his golf course, originally called the Ocean Course at Cabo Del Sol, now dubbed Cove Club – the centerpiece to this seaside community on the tip of the Baja California Peninsula.

Cove Club, now fully private, underwent a recent design change which rerouted a few holes and features a spectacular finish at edge of the Sea of Cortez. The club also opened some magnificent beachfront area for the entire membership to enjoy at the Cove Club.

A second 18-hole course, originally called the Desert Course and designed by Tom Weiskopf, runs higher up the hillside and offers views of the blue waters from just about every hole. That course is now called Cabo Del Sol Course and is undergoing a renovation by the team of Dana Fry and Jason Straka.

Check out some photos of the courses at Cabo Del Sol.

Photos: Black Desert Resort opens gorgeous new Tom Weiskopf/Phil Smith course in Utah

Check out photos of the new Black Desert Resort course in Utah that is quickly earning rave reviews.

Black Desert Resort Golf Course in Ivins, Utah, opened in late May as the last course designed by Tom Weiskopf, who passed away in 2022. The Golfweek’s Best raters have a lot of great things to say about the new layout not far from St. George in the southwest corner of the state.

The resort’s 18-hole layout is open for daily-fee play among the region’s ancient basalt rock formations near Snow Canyon State Park. Partnering with architect Phil Smith, Weiskopf built an expansive layout with most fairways 70 to 100 yards wide. The course features two driveable par 4s, the fifth and 14th.

Upon buildout, Black Desert will feature a full hotel and conference center, more than a thousand residences, trails, a spa and plenty more. The property is managed by hospitality-management company Troon Golf, and Black Desert is already slated to host an LPGA event starting in 2025. The course also will offer an amphiteater-style 19th hole and a 36-hole lit putting course.

After a first tour of the course, the Golfweek’s Best raters had many positive comments.

“An amazing design and absolutely stunning contrast of the lava rocks with the greenery and surrounding red mountains,” wrote one rater. “Truly an oasis. Several holes can be played in multiple different ways depending on your confidence that day as risk/reward options abound. It’s a beautiful course, one you’ll remember for a lifetime.”

“Black Desert blew me away,” wrote another. “It has everything I would want in a modern course. The combination of setting, vistas and course itself is the total package. The black lava rock is so unique, I’ve never seen it anywhere else in the mainland. You also have the beautiful sweeping vistas of the red canyons visible from every hole.”

Check out several photos from Black Desert Resort below.

Check the yardage book: TPC Craig Ranch for the 2023 AT&T Byron Nelson on the PGA Tour

Check out StrackaLine’s hole-by-hole maps of TPC Craig Ranch for the AT&T Byron Nelson.

TPC Craig Ranch in McKinney, Texas – site of this week’s AT&T Byron Nelson on the PGA Tour – opened in 2004 with a design by former Tour player and noted architect Tom Weiskopf. This will be the third time the long-running event is played at the course just north of Dallas.

The private TPC Craig Ranch will play to 7,414 yards with a par of 72 for this week’s AT&T Byron Nelson.

Thanks to yardage books provided by StrackaLine – the maker of detailed yardage books for thousands of courses around the world – we can see exactly the challenges the pros face this week at TPC Craig Ranch.

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Jim Nantz celebrates the life of dear friend in CBS special: ‘The Masterful Tom Weiskopf’

Before the coverage of Sunday’s final round of the Masters begins on CBS, Jim Nantz will host a special program.

AUGUSTA, Ga. – Before the coverage of Sunday’s final round of the Masters begins on CBS, Jim Nantz will host a special program that is close to his heart.

Jim Nantz Remembers Augusta: The Masterful Tom Weiskopf (Sunday, April 9, 1 p.m. ET) will include reflections from Nantz on the outstanding career and legacy of Tom Weiskopf, who died last year and was announced as a member of the 2024 World Golf Hall of Fame class in March (to be inducted posthumously during the week of the 2024 U.S. Open at Pinehurst). The special includes an interview with Weiskopf (done in 2020 prior to his passing in 2022) and focuses on his four runner-up finishes at the Masters, including most notably in 1975.

Weiskopf, the winner of 16 PGA Tour titles, including the 1973 British Open, was 79 at the time of his death, and had been dealing with pancreatic cancer since late 2020.

In addition to his playing career and his renown as a golf course designer, Weiskopf worked in television at both CBS and ABC/ESPN as a golf analyst. During the final round of the 1986 Masters as Jack Nicklaus charged up the leaderboard, Weiskopf was asked by Nantz to describe Nicklaus’ mindset as he played the closing stretch. “If I knew the way he thought, I would have won this tournament,” he famously said.

“Boyhood hero. Later life friend. Delivered a eulogy at his memorial service. Admire him so much. Wanted him to get his due,” Nantz wrote in an email last week. “The show documents his amazing life. I think people will be blown away by his standard of excellence in everything he touched.”

Masters 2023 leaderboard: Get the latest news from Augusta

CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus noted that Nantz forged a deep personal relationship with Weiskopf.

“It’s a labor of love, which a lot of Jim’s programs are,” McManus said. “It’s a tribute that comes from Jim’s heart, not just from his brain and not just from his voice.”

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Padraig Harrington, Sandra Palmer, Tom Weiskopf, remaining LPGA Founders inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame Class of 2024

The induction ceremony will be June 10, 2024, at Pinehurst and will coincide with the U.S. Open.

Padraig Harrington, Tom Weiskopf, Sandra Palmer, Johnny Farrell and Beverly Hanson will join the remaining seven of the 13 LPGA Founders in the World Golf Hall of Fame Class of 2024, it was announced on Wednesday.

Harrington has 21 victories worldwide, including three majors. He was a part of six Ryder Cup teams and he was the captain of the 2020 European squad.

“This is very exciting, obviously a huge honor,” said Harrington. “It’s somewhat humbling. At this stage of my life, it gives me some validation to what I’ve done in golf. Brings back a flood of memories. This is a deep-down satisfaction, and I’m very proud to be included with the players before me. Seeing your name beside the names that I’ve looked up to as a boy and young golfer, it’s very nice. Everybody on the ballot deserves to be there. It’s unfortunate that everyone can’t be in, but it’s great to be included in the Class of 2024.”

Six LPGA Founders – Patty Berg, Marlene Bauer Hagge, Louise Suggs, Babe Zaharias, Marilynn Smith and Betty Jameson – were already in the Hall. They will soon be joined by Alice Bauer, Bettye Danoff, Helen Dettweiler, Helen Hicks, Opal Hill, Sally Sessions and Shirley Spork.

Hagge is the only living LPGA founder.

The induction ceremony will take place on June 10, 2024, at Pinehurst Resort & Country Club in the Village of Pinehurst, North Carolina, and will coincide with the 124th U.S. Open.

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Padraig Harrington, Cristie Kerr among finalists for World Golf Hall of Fame 2024 induction class

Final selections for the 2024 World Golf Hall of Fame induction class will be announced the week of March 6.

The World Golf Hall of Fame announced its finalists for the 2024 Hall of Fame induction class Wednesday, and it’s loaded with star power.

Among the big names? Padraig Harrington, Jim Furyk. Cristie Kerr and Dottie Pepper.

Final selections for the 2024 World Golf Hall of Fame induction class will be announced the week of March 6. There are 12 finalists, and they include major champions, instructors and those who had a profound impact on the game, including the remaining seven of the 13 founders of the LPGA.

The finalists were selected by a nominating committee comprised of select Hall of Fame members, media, World Golf Foundation Board organizations and at-large selections. Additionally, all living Hall of Fame members were sent ballots and had the opportunity to vote.

“The nominating committee has selected finalists who represent the highest caliber of competitors and contributors,” said Greg McLaughlin, CEO of World Golf Hall of Fame. “Congratulations to all who have been nominated for this special recognition.”

These 12 finalists will be considered for admission into the World Golf Hall of Fame, Class of 2024 by a 20-member Selection Committee, comprised of Hall of Fame members, media representatives and leaders of the major golf organizations. They will be tasked with reviewing the merits and qualifications of each finalist and ultimately selecting the Class of 2024.

The 12 finalists are Padraig Harrington, Tom Weiskopf, Dottie Pepper, Jim Furyk, Cristie Kerr, Sandra Palmer, Peter Dawson, Butch Harmon, Johnny Farrell, Beverly Hanson, Jay Sigel, and the seven remaining co-founders of the LPGA: Alice Bauer, Bettye Danoff, Helen Detweiler, Helen Hicks, Opal Hill, Shirley Spork, Sally Sessions.

Harrington won 21 times professionally, 15 of those coming on the European tour. he also has three major victories and appeared on six Ryder Cup teams. He also captained the 2020 team.

Weiskopf won 16 times on the PGA Tour and captured the 1973 Open Championship.

Pepper won 17 times on the LPGA, including two majors. She was also tabbed 1992 Player of the Year and was a part of six Solheim Cup teams.

Palmer has 21 victories and two majors in her career, earning Player of the Year honors in 1975.

Dawson served as chief executive of the R&A for 16 years and played a pivotal role in golf returning to the Olympics.

Harmon is one of the best instructors in golf history. His pupils include Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson and Greg Norman.

Farrell has 22 victories on Tour and won the 1928 U.S. Open.

Furyk has captured 17 wins on the PGA Tour, including the 2003 U.S. Open. He was named Player of the Year in 2010. He’s the only golfer to have shot a 58 in competition.

Hanson won the U.S. Women’s Am in 1950 and went on to win three majors and 17 titles.

Kerr has 20 official victories and two majors and has been a part of nine Solheim Cup teams. She ranks third on the LPGA’s all-time money list.

Sigel was a stellar amateur, winning 27 total am events, including the 1982-83 U.S. Amateur, the 1979 British Am and three U.S. Mid-Ams.

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