Phoenix Open 2024 is overloaded with spectators

The PGA Tour tournament organizers in Arizona had to temporarily close and stop selling alcoholic beverages to ensure safety when the number of spectators exceeded the capacity of the course in bad weather.

A packed grandstand at the par-3 16th hole of TPC Scottsdale during the Phoenix Open. Photo: Golfweek — A packed grandstand at the par-3 16th hole of TPC Scottsdale during the Phoenix Open. Photo: *Golfweek*

Crowd control measures were introduced at 2pm local time on February 10, as the third round began with heavy rain since the morning.

"Due to the larger than usual audience, we have temporarily closed the entrance gates and suspended the bus service to the stadium, but the return route is still operating, gathering at the parking lot. We hope you understand."

This is the first time such an announcement has been made in the history of the tournament since its opening in 1987. Despite the announcement to stop selling alcoholic beverages, many stalls recorded long lines of spectators patiently waiting to be served again and then leaving in regret.

Yesterday, crowds gathered, cheering as they waited to enter the gate from 5:40 a.m., in the drizzling rain.

For many years, the Phoenix Open has had at least 700,000 spectators on the field all week. The penultimate day of the tournament is always the highlight, attracting more than 200,000 spectators, most concentrated on the 16th hole with a three-tiered grandstand surrounding the Roman Coliseum. With such a scale, the event has been dubbed "the world's largest and most exciting people's golf tournament."

The 2024 tournament continued to assert that position despite the bad weather over the past three days. Rain made the field muddy and slippery. But that did not stop the over-excited spectators from using the grass for fun. Some even took off their shirts and somersaulted in the sand pit.

TPC Scottsdale course is muddy and slippery.

The Phoenix Open is also a chance to hang out with friends and then "hang out" on your shoulder early in the morning, or freeze on your couch with a beer in your hand.

The par-3 16th hole has always been a "nail hole" on the course. In 2022, it recorded two hole-in-ones, each time triggering a shower of beer cans from the stands.

Last year, the organizers switched to selling beer in white plastic cups. After drinking, the crowd joined the cups together, making them long like white snakes. This year, the green cups were joined together to form a "green snake".

Round 3 of the Phoenix Open continues to be unfinished due to rain, in which the last group to start the round has 12 holes left. The top of the table is currently at -13, belonging to Canadian golfer Nick Taylor who has just completed six holes.

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