May 12, 2008 (UPDATED MAY 14) --Las Vegas' Legacy Golf Club is an Arthur Hills design with cool holes, especially the par 3, 10th hole where the tee boxes are in the shape of each suit in a deck of cards, and the Devil's Triangle, made up of holes 11-13. And this week, the course plays host to 91 aspiring golfers looking to make it all the way to the US Open. The field at the Legacy Golf Club, one of four 18-hole Las Vegas golf courses operated by OB Sports, is stacked and includes a former US Amateur champ, some of college golf's best players, a few former PGA Tour players, and a whole lot of others who can golf their ball. "We're very proud to host the US Open Qualifier," says Tom Vold, General Manager of The Legacy Golf Club. "The Legacy sets up well for high-caliber golf tournaments with plenty of length, good all-around conditioning and a challenging complement of golf holes. The USGA must agree; they've held the event here 9 or 10 times now." There are six spots in the Regional qualifier up for grabs. And you can test your game under similar conditions because The Legacy is a resort course and open to the public. Click here for official Legacy Golf Club Las Vegas tee times at the guaranteed best rates. Read on for the qualifiers.

May 6, 2008--Local High School golfers are in the middle of the post-season, and headed for the state tournament that will be played May 12-13 at TPC Las Vegas, where the PGA Tour plays. Palo Verde won the Sunset Region golf event at Red Rock Country Club, earning a tiebreaker over Centennial, with both qualifying for the state event. "You just have to finish as one of those top teams," Palo Verde head coach Jeff Wolfram, whose team won its second straight region title, told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. "It's nice to win the regional, but the most important thing is getting to state." Coronado won the Sunrise tournament while Green Valley finished second. Coronado was led by Kevin Stratton who finished at even par 72. Both teams qualified for the state event.

May 3, 3008--Now that Justin Timberlake has joined the likes of Arnold Palmer, Bob Hope and Byron Nelson as a host of a PGA Tour event, he appears to be quickly getting down to business. This year--and for at least the next five years--the Las Vegas PGA Tour event will be known as the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open (now affectionately dubbed by some as the 'JT Open', just as the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic is dubbed 'The Hope'). Timberlake is well-known for being one of the world's biggest stars, but not so much for his love of the links. He's a single-digit handicap, and is said to be thrilled with his new role. And so far he has been very 'hands on' in the planning for the Las Vegas golf tournament that will be held October 13-19 at the private TPC Summerlin, one of two Las Vegas TPC golf courses (the resort and public TPC Las Vegas is the other). Recently, Timberlake teed it up with Tournament Chairman Gary Davis and Shriners patient Katie Walker, took a 4-hour lesson in Las Vegas with fellow event committee member Butch Harmon, and played golf at the TPC Summerlin with his father, Paul, in addition to being involved in other tournament affairs.

May 2, 2008--Nobody can truly see the future, so it is difficult to imagine what the land about 50 miles north of Las Vegas will look like in one, five, 10 or 20 years down the line, but now that Jack Nicklaus' The Chase at PGA Golf Club Coyote Springs is open and the official PGA of America flag is flying, a long-range mission and plan is in 'full swing'. On May 1, a hundred or so media, VIP's and representatives of the PGA of America, including President Brian Whitcomb, CEO Joe Steranka and several pros from Las Vegas golf courses, gathered to play the first rounds at The Chase, a Nicklaus signature design that is now open for public play. Basically, The Chase is like the first-ride at a planned Golf Disneyland that officially is called PGA Village Coyote Springs. The Village is designed to become the western home of the PGA of America and the more than 28,000 pros in the organization. "Together with The PGA of America, the PGA Village designation and the golf facilities that will be built at Coyote Springs, we have all the elements of a special community that is certain to become the next great American golf destination, literally next door to the world's most exciting vacation destination," says Harvey Whittemore, Chairman and Founder of Coyote Springs Investment, LLC.

April 20, 2008--There he was in Las Vegas at the Mandalay Bay Events Center for Tiger Jam XI, the world's greatest golfer, on crutches, working his way through the crowd on the arena floor while legendary rockers Van Halen were doing their thing on stage. Yes, a little more than halfway through the show, Tiger Woods--recuperating from knee surgery earlier in the week--hobbled through the crowd before ducking back stage. Can you just imagine the thoughts running through the heads of Woods' handlers as he walked into the sea of craziness that ensues at a Van Halen concert? For a minute, Phil Mickelson was one stray dance move by a VH fan away from becoming the world's number one player. This public appearance came following a few days of exclusive fun at Tiger Jam, Woods' annual fundraiser, where some golf was also played at Las Vegas golf course Cascata, and Las Vegas golfer and PGA Tour star Charley Hoffman filled in for Tiger during his annual children's clinic. View the Tiger Jam XI Pictures here. For more ...

This article was originally published by In Business Las Vegas, the leading business newspaper in Las Vegas.

April 16, 2008-- "Sex is like money, golf and beer - even when it's bad, it's good," Jimmy Williams.

Anytime the word billion is thrown around, you obviously know you’re talking about something substantial. It’s a strong word, and when it comes to money, a billion is where the big dogs walk. And now, after the release of study funded by the World Golf Foundation’s Golf 20/20 initiative and implemented by the Stanford Research Institute, golf as an entity is a really big dog. The study reveals that as an entire business, the direct and indirect impact of golf on the US economy was $195 billion in 2005. Now that’s a lot of Titleists.

April 2, 2008--Las Vegas and Las Vegas golf courses have a long and prestigious national history that includes Tiger Woods winning his first PGA Tour event here, the PGA Tour's inaugural Tournament of Champions being held at the old Desert Inn Golf Club, LPGA Tour major championships being played at what is today Las Vegas National Golf Club, the 1998 UNLV golf team winning the NCAA title, and about a couple dozen touring professionals having Las Vegas ties. At the local level, the Southern Nevada Golf Hall of Fame is where the local history--including that 1998 UNLV team--is celebrated and remembered. And currently the organizing committee is seeking nominations of worthy players, ambassadors, benefactors, teams, professionals and others for induction in 2008. High profile current members include Butch Harmon, Jim Colbert, Chris Riley and Robert Gamez (pictured), among others. Downloadable forms and guidelines are available on the home pages of both snga.org and wsnga.org. The deadline is June 1, 2008. For more ...

March 17, 2008--Earlier this month Ted Robinson, a legendary golf course architect and former president of the American Society of Golf Course Architects, passed away after a 10-month battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 84 years old. His lengthy career lasted five decades and he left his indelible design mark with three Las Vegas golf courses, the resort Rhodes Ranch Golf Club and Tuscany Golf Club, and the private Canyon Gate Country Club. And one Las Vegas golf pro, Daryl Driscoll, will never forget the man who made a lasting impact on him. "He was genuinely a great person, and a great guy to work with," says Driscoll, who worked with Robinson on the construction of Rhodes Ranch. For more ...

March 10, 2008--It's customary for winning Ryder Cup teams to let the champagne flow following a triumph, but just moments after UNLV golfer Seung-Su Han (pictured) ensured a Rebel victory in their home golf tournament with a scintillating third shot on the par 5, 18th hole at Las Vegas golf course Southern Highlands, the Rebels celebrated in a more fun and casual style: Choco-Tacos and Klondike Krunch ice cream for everyone! The bars were quickly gobbled up by fans, family and players (losing teams, too), symbolizing how the Rebels munched on one of the most talented and deep tournament fields in all of college golf. The Southern Highlands Collegiate Golf Championship--dubbed the Masters of College Golf because of the always stellar field--featured seven of the top 10 teams and nearly half of the best players. But it was UNLV, playing head-to-head against #1 Georgia and #4 Charlotte down the stretch, that walked away with a two-stroke win over Charlotte, giving the Rebels their third home win in four years and seventh in the last 14 home tournaments. For more ...