16th Hole During Tournament
GOLF’S BEST PARTY HOLE ON PGA TOUR
By Dave Wells
It is pretty much a given that the 16th hole at TPC Scottsdale – Stadium Course receives plenty of recognition as the top party golf hole on the PGA Tour, and the TPC -Scottsdale golf course will celebrate its 35th anniversary in February 2022, with 25,000 fans surrounding the raucous party atmosphere on the 16th hole with a massive number of cheers and boos, and a beer or two in attendance.
The Phoenix Thunderbirds were looking for a site to replace the Phoenix Country Club in the ’80s to provide more space for spectators in the ever-growing sport of golf during the Deane Beman days , and with the help of Mayor Herb Drinkwater of Scottsdale, construction began in January 1986, with architects Tom Weiskopf and Jay Morrish providing their talents. The 16th hole was to be a Par 3(163 yards) leading to a drivable short Par 4 17th, with Number 18 being a tough Par 4 with water on the left.
With the first tournament at TPC Scottsdale being in January 1987, the 16th hole had no bleachers, just a beer and hot dog stand on a cart path to the right of the tee, and spectators sitting on a grassy hill behind the tee with the McDowell Mountains in the distant background. In my early days in Scottsdale, I can remember sitting there with maybe 100 spectators, many who were Arizona State University students frequenting the nearby beer stand, and then the party spirit took over.
In those days, the PGA players didn’t seem to know how to handle that party spirit on the 16th tee….no smiles, just tough cool glances at the small gallery, but that didn’t stop the vocal group behind the tee shouting out their fun remarks….not doing a player’s swing, but just as they approached the tee and while they were waiting for the group on the 16th green to finish putting.
A few funnies I remember were when Fred Funk showed up, the chant started, “May the Funk Always Be with You” and the one I will never forget in the early nineties…Scott Gump walking to the tee and the students shouting out, “Run Forrest Run” during the Forrest Gump movie days.
So that is how it got started, and now, let us move a few years down the road to 1997 when Tiger Woods made his famous Hole-In-One on Number 16, and golf appreciation with player smiles took over.
There was not a more popular player in those days on the 16th hole than Phil Mickelson who was a recent ASU graduate and received accolade after accolade upon arriving on the 16th tee, and all you could hear was the “ASU”, “ASU”, “ASU” loud chant with Phil smiling and giving the thumbs up….reminds you of Phil’s current participation in the FedEx St. Jude Classic at TPC-Southwind where he played most years, the week before the U.S. Open, and Phil is supported and cheered on by the massive galleries in Memphis.
Then on into the 21st century , and the 16th hole at TPC – Scottsdale is enjoyed by all…TV spectators, the media, and an estimated gallery of 25,000 on that one hole with bleachers, corporate tents, and sky boxes totally surrounding this magical party golf hole….It is a fact that seating construction on that one hole starts the first of October each year, four months in advance of the tournament, and players now arrive through a tunnel from the 15th green laughing and enjoying the fans, even going to the spectator stands and supplying hats and assorted gifts to a multitude of cheering golf fans before sprinting to the 16th green in a race with their caddy after hitting their tee shots.
… and don’t forget the Bubba Watson and Ben Crane singing entertainment on Number 16 tee which Byron Nelson’s wife, Peggy, jokingly referred to as Wasted Management subbing some words for the Waste Management Phoenix Open, the corporate sponsor of this annual PGA event….and Peter Jacobson’s golf song, ‘Hole N16’, great song which is now on ‘YouTube’….creative and confirms that Number 16 is the ‘Best Party Golf Hole’ on the PGA Tour.
One quick story about the next hole(Number 17) at TPC -Scottsdale, the drivable 332-yard Par 4…. Andrew Magee, coming off a Double Bogey on the famous 16th hole, tees it up on Number 17 in 2001 with the threesome of Jerry Pate, Gary Nicklaus(Jack’s son), and Tom Byrum still putting on the 17th green…. then Magee’s mammoth tee shot rolls onto the green, hits Tom Byrum’s putter and rolls into the hole….the only Hole-In-One ever recorded on a Par 4 in PGA Tour history.
Funny comment by Gary’s caddy, Rusty Uresti…”It was the first putt Tom made all day.”
The best 16th hole story was saved for last….the greatest Par 3 I ever saw on the 16th hole… google ‘Amy Bockerstette – I Got This’, and you will see her Par 3 accomplishment on You Tube.
Golf gets no more enjoyable for a gallery or on TV than the 16th hole at TPC – Scottsdale, the top party golf hole on the PGA Tour…. and this golf party will be featured again February 10 – 13.
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