For elite Arizona golfers, this is their time of year. Playing in 100 degree heat is just part of the deal. The Arizona Amateur Championship kicks off on July 27. It features 36 holes of medal play to determine the 64 who will be paired off in match play. Among those who have entered from Southern Arizona are Foothills grad Charlie Curtis, CDO grad Jonathon Walters, Carillo Middle School teacher Jason Figueroa….who by the way got a hole in one on the 6th at Randolph last month, and former PGA player and newly designated amateur golfer, Eric Rustand. 144 players have signed up for the Championship Division. This years tournament will be played a Desert Forest, in Carefree.
And just a week later, the pros will be in the spotlight, along with a few amateurs at the Arizona Open Championship at Superstition Mountain. Former Foothills golfer Reece Nilsen qualified for the tournament…shooting a 67 last week at one of four regional qualifying tournaments…this one at the Gallery in Tucson. In addition to qualifying for the Arizona Amateur, CDO’s Jonathon Walters qualified for the Arizona Open as a result of him winning the Southern Arizona Amateur held a few weeks ago at Dove Mountain. He will be playing a lot of golf over that two weeks. Walters, by the way is headed off to UNLV. Nilsen is off to Northern Illinois. Other notable qualifyers include Skyline pro Chris Dompier and Rolling Hills pro Brent Lingle. Salpointes Max Krueger shot a respectable 73 and is an alternate.
Past champions of the Arizona Open include Tom Purtzer, Ronnie Black, Curt Bynum and Tucson Open winner Jim Carter…who won it twice. The purse is expected to be about $100,000…with the winner getting somewhere in the neighborhood of $15,000.
