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The unique aspect of this Championship is that the players, in addition to competing in a 54-hole stroke-play tournament, also honor our military heroes. At the opening ceremony, each golfer receives and carries a commemorative PING golf bag that bears the name and branch of a fallen or wounded hero. Additionally, all of the golfers have the opportunity to visit Luke Air Force Base, the training center for our nation’s F-35 fighter pilots. There, they meet with the Base Commander, fighter pilots and crew, and tour the base while participating in activities rarely seen by civilians.

The PGA TOUR announced its 2025 “Best Of” award winners today, naming the WM Phoenix Open “Event of the Year” for the sixth time in tournament history. 

The PGA TOUR’s “Event of the Year” acknowledges a tournament that excels in every facet of the event, from fan and player experience to charitable impact and title sponsor integration/activation.

“On behalf of the PGA TOUR, congratulations to The Thunderbirds and WM on the WM Phoenix Open being named 2025 PGA TOUR ‘Event of the Year’,” said Tyler Dennis, PGA TOUR Chief Competitions Officer. “The Thunderbirds take great pride in their relentless push for improvement, which was evident in all aspects of this year’s edition. With a dedicated partner in WM, the WM Phoenix Open continues to showcase what makes the event one that must be experienced on the PGA TOUR calendar.”

Welcome to The People’s Open

Home to the largest and most enthusiastic crowds in the game as well as the most iconic hole on the PGA TOUR – the famed 16th hole Coliseum – the WM Phoenix Open has captured the hearts of millions of golf fans around the world. From hall-of-fame champions, par-4 aces and the loudest hole in golf, to after-hours concerts, Saturday breakfast clubs and more than $208 million raised for charities, there is simply nothing like it in professional sports.

History of the WM Phoenix Open

The WM Phoenix Open has been able to capture the wonder and amazement embodied by the great game of golf for the better part of a century. Take one step onto the course at TPC Scottsdale and you can feel the presence of the world’s greatest golfers from the past century like Ben Hogan, Byron Nelson, Jack Nicklaus, and Arnold Palmer. Their great achievements live on through the ambiance created by thousands of cheering fans eager to see hungry new athletes leave their own mark on history. The green grass, the beautiful February weather, the iconic saguaro cacti and the remarkable level of play are all reminders of where the game of golf has been and the great things the game has done for people around the globe.

The Phoenix Open began in 1932, but due to lack of local support, the tournament was discontinued after the 1935 event. The tournament was revived thanks to the energy and vision of one man, Bob Goldwater, Sr.  An avid golfer, Goldwater persuaded his fellow Thunderbirds into running the event, and his influential manner was successful. So, in 1939, Bob Goldwater’s new fledgling golf tournament was the official rebirth of the Phoenix Open.

Goldwater was left with most of the work, because his fellow Thunderbirds were not yet as enthusiastic about the event as he was. Never one to back down from a challenge, Goldwater printed the tickets, sold sponsorships and obtained use of Phoenix Country Club. He even invited a few of his friends to tee it up at the tournament. Those friends just happened to be Bing Crosby, Bob Hope and a golfer by the name of Ben Hogan.

“I loved those early years,” said Goldwater. “I look back on those days with a sense of pride mixed with wonderment.” And, yes, after a few more persuasive talks and the success of the 1939 Phoenix Open, The Thunderbirds came around and lent their full support.

During that 1939 tournament, a 27-year-old up-and-comer named Byron Nelson won the $700 first prize. Hogan finished second, 12 strokes back, and collected $450. Since then, The Thunderbirds have sponsored an Open every year except 1943, when wartime travel restrictions forced a one-year hiatus.

The list of professional golfers who have won in Phoenix reads like the golf Hall of Fame – Byron Nelson, Ben Hogan, Jimmy Demaret, Billy Casper, Gene Littler, Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus, Miller Barber, Johnny Miller, Ben Crenshaw, and more recently Lee Janzen, Vijay Singh, Phil Mickelson, Tom Lehman, Mark Calcavecchia, Kenny Perry, Brooks Koepka and Rickie Fowler, just to name a few.

Over the tournament’s nearly 90-year history, the Open has been known by many names, including the Western Open, the Arizona Open, the Ben Hogan Invitational, the Phoenix Open, the FBR Open and now the WM Phoenix Open. The tournament has been played at Phoenix Country Club, Arizona Country Club and TPC Scottsdale – the home course of the tournament since 1987 – and 2024 will mark the 37th consecutive year the tournament has been played at TPC Scottsdale. Aside from the TPC Sawgrass, TPC Scottsdale has the longest continuous stretch a Tournament Players Club has hosted a PGA TOUR event.

About TPC Scottsdale

Located just outside of Scottsdale, Arizona and only a half hour from Phoenix, TPC Scottsdale offers two legendary championship courses both open to the public to enjoy – The Stadium Course and the Champions Course. The Club is the permanent home to the WM Phoenix Open, and hosts many other events throughout the year. TPC Scottsdale has been named “One of America’s Best Courses” by Golfweek Magazine, one of the “Top 50 Golf Resort Destinations in the World” by Condé Nast Traveler, and is consistently named one of the top courses in Arizona.

But unparalleled golf is just the start of what makes your TPC Scottsdale experience so extraordinary. As our guest, you’re invited to take advantage of all the services and amenities we offer:

• PGA TOUR standard services and amenities in our clubhouses
• Toro at TPC Scottsdale
• Event hosting and planning
• Annual Pass Program exclusive privileges
• Luxury stays at our resort partners: The Fairmont Scottsdale Princess, and the Scottsdale Marriott at McDowell Mountains
  And much more

TPC Scottsdale is also part of the PGA TOUR’s acclaimed TPC Network.

About The Thunderbirds

From caring for the underprivileged to helping those striving to make the United States Olympic teams, The Thunderbirds – hosts of the WM Phoenix Open –  are doing all they can to make a difference for those who call Phoenix their home. The Thunderbirds began in 1937, when the Phoenix Chamber of Commerce expanded its role as a convention and tourism bureau. There was a need for a special events committee to venture into new fields. Five young executives were selected to lead the committee. The Phoenix Chamber of Commerce suggested that the committee become an “official” group and expand its membership. Each of the five then selected ten additional members to make up a committee of 55 active members – the number of current active members each year.

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The Thunderbirds, hosts of the WM Phoenix Open, have appointed Jason Eisenberg the Tournament Chairman for the 2026 edition of “The People’s Open”, which is set to tee it up Feb. 2-8 at TPC Scottsdale. Additionally, The Thunderbirds announced that Chris Camacho has been named Assistant Tournament Chairman for the 2026 event, which will be the 91st edition of the WM Phoenix Open. Eisenberg and Camacho took over planning duties immediately following Thomas Detry’s win at the 2025 WM Phoenix Open on Sunday, February 9.

Eisenberg assumes the role of Tournament Chairman after serving last year as Assistant Tournament Chairman alongside Matt Mooney. He will lead The Thunderbirds organization in the planning and execution of all facets of the 2026 event, including sponsorship generation and renewals, security and safety, community relations, logistics, development of on-course venues, and overall fan experience enhancement.

Every year, Bill Ross of Bill Ross Fitness Solutions does a pushup challenge. Since he turned 68 this year, he had to do 68 pushups. Did he do it? Watch this video and find out!

Click here for more information about Bill Ross Fitness Solutions

Good things happen when you get the ball in the short grass. Not so much if you don't. Watch the best “golf is hard” moments from the thick stuff over the years as even the best players in the world like Tiger Woods, Hideki Matsuyama, Justin Thomas, and Collin Morikawa struggle like us mere mortals when shots miss the fairways and greens around the PGA TOUR.

It was a Mother’s Day to remember for LPGA Tour veteran Sophia Popov. With four generations of her family – her grandmother, mother, herself and daughter – standing either on the green or greenside, Popov sunk her final par putt on the 18th green at TPC Scottsdale’s Champions Course to claim her first professional victory since the 2020 AIG Women’s Open at Royal Troon Golf Club.

Some of Popov’s family drove in from Tucson, and her dad carried her bag, making the celebratory moment even more meaningful. While thanking her “corner” during her champion’s speech, the Fountain Hills, Ariz. resident got emotional, shedding a few tears while talking about the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity she had to win in front of her almost two-year-old daughter Maya on Mother’s Day.

“You only get this chance once a year, so I think that was also a driving force behind me playing this week. It's a home game, finishing on Mother's Day, and I wanted it so bad,” said Popov. “I don't know if she'll ever get to see me win on Mother's Day again, and I think starting out the round, I thought about that a lot, and I was trying to calm my brain a lot because I was like, there are many things going on, a lot of thoughts and what ifs, but you've got to play 18 holes.

“Hailee (Cooper) was playing great golf, and all the girls in front of us were playing great, so it means the world to me to calm my mind a little bit and end up getting it done.”

The 32-year-old carded four birdies and two bogeys on the day to hold her third-round lead and finish the tournament with a four-day total of 14-under. Despite having a four-shot lead heading into Championship Sunday, Popov felt the nerves more than usual.

“It's a very special feeling, winning again. I always say to everyone, I think winning the second time is a lot harder than the first,” said Popov. “It doesn't matter what event, on what tour, the nerves were there just as much, especially because it's Mother's Day and my daughter is here and my mom's here. And I know it would be so special to win. So my last four holes, I've rarely been this nervous. It's very special to get it done.”

The LPGA Tour’s first reshuffle took place after the inaugural Black Desert Championship presented by Greater Zion, and Popov will now see herself get into more tournament fields, thanks in large part to a T30 finish at The Chevron Championship in April. The win in Scottsdale allowed the Heidelberg, Germany native to free her mind a bit and let her talent show, making her return to LPGA Tour competition even more exciting.

“I knew my game is in a great spot, and that's why I was excited to come here this week and feel like I could show off that game. Maybe mentally it freed me up a little bit to not play on LPGA and play on the Epson Tour for a week and be out there with myself and my thoughts and my game plan,” Popov said.

Just two shots behind Popov, at 11-under, was Michelle Zhang, who has proven in back-to-back years that she loves TPC Scottsdale’s Champions Course. In 2024, the then-Epson Tour sophomore found herself in the final pairing with Arizona native Dana Fall but was unable to secure a victory, ultimately finishing in a tie for fifth. Despite not being in the final pairing in 2025, Zhang bettered that performance with a solo second finish on Sunday. The People’s Republic of China native shot 5-under in the final round, carding seven birdies and two bogeys.

While Popov will next compete on the LPGA Tour at the MEXICO Riviera Maya Open at Mayakoba, the Epson Tour heads to Hurricane, Utah, for the Copper Rock Championship, which will be played from May 15-17 at Copper Rock Golf Course.

At the almost halfway point of the season, every week is an opportunity for athletes to jump up the Race for the Card standings as they pursue membership for the 2026 LPGA Tour season. 

Source: https://www.epsontour.com