Photo courtesy Waste Management Phoenix Open
(Disclosure: Rose Law Group represents PGA TOUR.)
By Wayne Schutsky | Scottsdale Progress
Gambling could be on the horizon at Scottsdale’s most famous golf course if new sports betting legislation passes muster with Arizona Governor Doug Ducey.
This morning, the PGA Tour and DraftKings announced plans to open a retail sportsbook at the TPC Scottsdale golf club that plays host to the Waste Management Phoenix Open, the tour’s most-attended annual golf tournament.
The PGA Tour’s partnership with DraftKings would allow the online fantasy sports platform to offer retail sports betting and mobile betting in Arizona if the new bill is signed into law…
Under the bill, Scottsdale’s TPC course qualifies as a potential sportsbook site under a stipulation allowing an “operator of a sports facility that hosts an annual tournament on the PGA tour” to apply for a license…
If all goes according to plan, Gambuzza said the group plans to have the facility open in time for the next Super Bowl in Arizona in 2023.
Before any of that can happen, the property will need to be rezoned to allow for the new sports betting use, said attorney Jordan Rose, who is working on the project. “We’re going to partner with the city to tweak the zoning code to add the sportsbook use,” Rose said.“But note that it can only be located physically by state law at the TPC (Scottsdale) or wherever the Phoenix Open is placed…” she said.
