Pro-Am Tour’s Scottsdale trip proves a classic!

The 2023 Scottsdale Classic saw the Pro-Am Tour return to the Arizona desert for the ‘Greatest Show on Grass’ once again that culminates in the Pro-Am teams playing TPC Scottsdale with the stands up in the final round.

The Tour started at Blackstone Country Club, where Simon Lilly from Wellingborough Golf Club posted a 67 to win the Welcome Challenge Day from Stoneham’s Adam Hickling. The best amateur score was 39 Stableford points from Ian Bullions of Kirby Muxloe.

The main event began with a wonderful pre-tournament breakfast at Grayhawk. The first round was played on the Raptor course and proved to be a challenging day for all. Simon Lilly led the way with one-under with former PGA Cup player Craig Goodfellow three shots back.

The second round was at We-Ko-Pa, a true desert Master on the Cholla course, which once again saw Lilly and Goodfellow rise to the top, with Lilly extending his lead by four, with the top four teams separated by eight strokes.

The third round on Saguaro saw another former PGA Cup player, this time Chris Gill from Newquay Golf Club, move up the leaderboard into third before the final day’s play on the Stadium Course at TPC.

At TPC the greens were super quick, stimping at 12. This made for an intriguing final day. From what seemed un an assailable lead, Lilly faltered and Goodfellow flourished. What was a 10-shot gap, closed to just three, but Lilly held on to that margin and became the 2023 Scottsdale Classic champion. The team event was an equally rollercoaster event, with a six-shot sway on the final day making things interesting, but the team from Kirby Muxloe held on to win by four, with Bruce Whipham, Ian and Simon Bullions and Robert Bache running out deserving winners from Adam Hickling’s Stoneham team.

Scottsdale offers such an amazing balance of fantastic, manicured golf venues and amazing fun nightlife. It caters for every eventuality on and off the course and it trumps the weather in the UK in February.

For more information on the Pro-Am Tour, head to pro-amtour. com or call Craig Trower on 020 80502969.

Being new to the game has been no barrier for Surrey golfers Sonia McCarthy and Kirsty Joly as they scooped the Volunteer of the Year award at the England Golf Awards, the winners of which were announced at a special ceremony held in Manchester on March 2.

The duo began their golfing journey in 2022 at Sandown Park Golf Centre and have not looked back since, taking the club’s offering to female players to new levels with their enthusiastic and encouraging nature.

They have helped almost 100 women achieve handicaps in fewer than ten months and thanks to their hard work, Sandown has also become a social hub which provides women with a safe environment with benefits to their mental and physical health.

Sonia and Kirsty have introduced roll-ups, away games at other clubs and even set up matches and competitions with the men’s club. As a result, the men’s section has become totally supportive of the new women’s programme and both sections have integrated well.

Described as the perfect volunteer pairing, Sonia and Kirsty’s warmth and friendship made everyone at the club feel welcome and worthwhile and restored many people’s confidence following the tough Covid pandemic period.

After picking up their award, Sonia said: “It is truly unbelievable. We came here hoping we might win, but I don’t ever think we believed we would! We were so grateful for the nomination so to win the award is just amazing. The ladies who take part in our programme are phenomenal and this award is for them just as much as it is for us. We started the programme but literally picking women out of the car park, so we’ve come a long way.”

Kirsty added: “We wanted to show women that they could get involved and enjoy golf as a social sport. We started the programme from nothing and now we have over 100 ladies playing and now nearly 40 of them have got an official handicap, so we’re absolutely delighted.”

Having won FIVE of his last NINE tournaments, Jon Rahm is the hottest golfer on the planet right now. And with the Major season just around the corner, and a Ryder Cup on the horizon, the 28-year-old Spanish star is hoping he can maintain his impressive form in the important months that lie ahead