The game of golf is extremely important to the State of Arizona, and with roughly 200 golf courses in the Phoenix area alone, the game is a defining feature of the Valley of the Sun. The Thunderbirds – hosts of the Waste Management Phoenix Open – are obviously extremely familiar with golf, using the game to raise millions of dollars for charity each year from the proceeds generated from one of the PGA TOUR’s most iconic stops.

The Thunderbirds aren’t only interested in the world’s best players who tee it up at TPC Scottsdale each year for “The People’s Open”. The game of golf can only grow through participation of youth who enjoy the game, which is why The Thunderbirds have sponsored the Junior Golf Association of Arizona (JGAA) for decades, and proudly support one of the JGAA’s largest annual events – The Thunderbird Invitational.

Shah honored for golf excellence, leadership skills and community service

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (May 13, 2021) – University of Akron sophomore Ivana Shah has been named the 2021 Dinah Shore Trophy award winner, bolstering her status as one of the top collegiate female players who has made an impact on the golf course with her leadership and in the community through charitable endeavors.

Administered by the LPGA Foundation, the Dinah Shore Trophy recognizes women’s golf student-athletes who excel in academics (3.2 on a 4.0 scale) and athletics—playing at least 50% of the team’s scheduled events, while maintaining a scoring average of 78 or less. Nominees must also demonstrate outstanding leadership skills and community service.

“It is such an honor to be the recipient of the 2021 Dinah Shore Trophy award,” said Shah, a two-time Women’s Golf Coaches Association (WGCA) All-American Scholar. “Winning this award proves to me that no matter how bad things may seem in life, we can always do more to serve and support those around us. I am so grateful that I have the opportunity to play the sport I love, while also receiving an amazing education.”

Quail Hollow Club is known as one of the most difficult golf courses on the PGA TOUR due to its extreme length and tricky greens. Check out some of the best “golf is hard” moments from the 2021 Wells Fargo Championship.

Leaving Augusta National last month, Brooks Koepka didn’t know whether he’d be healthy enough to make another start before the PGA Championship.

And though he said Wednesday at the AT&T Byron Nelson that he’s still not 100% healthy, he’s still months ahead of schedule after injuring his right knee in a freak accident in March.

“It’s dramatically better than it was at Augusta,” he said. “I feel like the strength is getting there. The mobility is getting there. I’m ahead of schedule – a long ways ahead of schedule of where I should be at this point, so I’m very pleased.”

Golf is an individual sport. We take our equipment, tee the ball up and play. Granted we are in the company of others on most occasions, but the reality is it’s a contest between us and the course. Every so often, we are presented with an opportunity to play a little team golf. A great example of this type of golf was on display this past weekend during the Walker Cup matches. A biennial team match between the United States and Great Britain/Ireland. Each team is composed of ten young amateur players.

Even though we’ve discussed being a great golf teammate before on PGA.com, a true team competition like the Walker Cup brings about an increased level of partner pressure.

As the match unfolded this past weekend, it was interesting to observe how the different players came together. After all, each member of the USA competes against one another every other week. How do golfers successfully unite toward a common cause? It seems simple, just play good together, but as we have all seen in several Ryder Cup and Walker Cup matches what’s on paper seldom is used for a script.