Great Weather and Higher-Profile PGA Tour Players Help Attendance at Shriners Hospitals for Children Open
By ALAN SNEL
LVSportsBiz.com
LVSportsBiz.com photos by J. Tyge O’Donnell
Gorgeous fall weather and some big PGA Tour names like Rickie Fowler contending for the tourney title helped attendance on the final day of the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open.
Shriners Open Executive Director Patrick Lindsey told LVSportsBiz.com after the tourney that he was confident the PGA golf event’s attendance this year beat last year’s 40,000 mark.
Lindsey said Sunday’s attendance looked like it approached 15,000 fans, who packed “The Hill” hospitality and viewing area near the start and end of the par-72, 7,243-yard TPC Summerlin course while also viewing the action along the greens and fairways of the course in suburban Summerlin.
Bryson DeChambeau won the tourney and his projected world rank is 5. He will be a huge draw for the 2019 Shriners event in Las Vegas because of his talent and personality. He was consistent every day, shooting 66, 66, 65 and a 66 Sunday to clinch the deal.
In response to an LVSportsBiz.com question, DeChambeau said the reason the pro golfers compete is because of the Shriners kids. “I’m blessed and fortunate to have great health,” he said.
He understood the importance of the PGA Tour event’s mission — to raise money for Shriners hospitals and put a spotlight on the kids trying to make a better life for themselves.
“They have more inspiration than me winning,” DeChambeau said.
After a press conference, DeChambeau walked out to a gorgeous sunset that served as a backdrop for more photos. Before the photo session, however, he found time to autograph one of his signature hats for a young fan.
The youngster was stunned by the gift and could only utter, “What just happened?”
The fans on Sunday left event director Lindsey in a good mood after the final round. He said he never saw The Hill filled with so many fans at the Shriners Open before.
The Shriners Hospitals for Children, the Tampa, Fla.-based non-profit with 22 hospitals for kids, is counting on big crowds and lots of media viewers to make contributions to justify the millions of dollars spent on sponsoring and supporting the PGA event. The Shriners are in the first year of another three-year deal.
Shriner Karl Fraser, chairman of The Hill hospitality area at the event, said this Sunday’s crowd appeared to exceed the crowds of Sundays in past years.
“There’s bigger name players and they’re bringing in crowds the last two days,” Fraser said. “Both (Fowler and Spieth) made the cut.”
The tournament has placed a bigger emphasis on showcasing kids who receive Shriners hospital treatment and held an adaptive golf clinic to connect para-golfer instructors with hospital kid representatives during the week leading up to the tourney in the hills of Summerlin north of Summerlin Parkway. Above is a photo of a Shriner checking out the hospital kid ambassadors thanks to a photo by J. Tyge O’Donnell of LVSportsBiz.com.
And there was an effort to recruit players like three-time major winner Jordan Spieth and well-known tour pro Fowler to go along with colorful players like DeChambeau and rookie-of-the-year Aaron Wise vying for the $7 million in prize money, including DeChambeau’s winner share of $1.26 million.
On the tournament’s first day, Thursday, all was quiet at the UNLV viewing platform. But on Sunday, the UNLV social zone was packed, with everyone from former UNLV President Don Snyder to Christopher Cain, director of the PGA Golf Management program at UNLV, chatting with visitors and holding court.
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Cain said one of the stronger fields in the tournament plus the momentum built up by the Shriners in their title sponsorship helped with the event’s attendance. And he enjoyed seeing Cameron Champ blast a 431-foot drive Sunday.
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