2025 WM Phoenix Open will make several key crowd-related changes
Oct 25, 2024, 5:00 AM
Fans walk the course in the rain during the first round of the WM Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale on Feb. 08, 2024, in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
PHOENIX — After massive rowdy crowds and wet weather wreaked havoc on the last WM Phoenix Open, several key changes are coming to next year’s golf tournament.
“The People’s Open” will be making its return to TPC Scottsdale on Feb. 3-9.
Some ticketed fans were denied entrance during the third round of the February 2024 tournament when the event’s gates were temporarily closed due to crowd management.
It marked the first time in the 89-year history of the Valley’s annual PGA Tour event that ticket holders were turned away at the gates.
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The tournament also later stopped serving alcohol at multiple venues around the grounds during the third round.
In a separate incident, a woman fell through the bleachers located on the frenzied 16th hole during the second round.
A day after the conclusion of the 2024 tournament, The Thunderbirds executive director Chance Cozby, told the Golf Channel the group would look to make sweeping changes to next year’s event.
“We have 365 days to fix this,” Cozby said. “I think you will see a complete operational change of how we manage really our Friday and Saturday — but our entire week. We’re very proud of what we’ve built. But we don’t like what happened on Saturday. The players don’t like what happened on Saturday. The fans don’t like what happened Saturday. Nothing is off the table.”
What changes are coming to the WM Phoenix Open 2025?
The Thunderbirds, the event organizers, announced their 2025 plans on Monday.
The changes include an additional tournament entrance, a digital-only ticketing platform for general admission patrons, enhanced walking areas for spectators and venue upgrades.
“By adding this third entrance, we feel like we’re giving our fans a lot more options and we’re giving ourselves a lot more flexibility, just in terms efficient traffic flow in and out of the golf course,” Matt Mooney, the upcoming tournament’s chairman, told KTAR News 92.3 FM’s The Mike Broomhead Show on Wednesday.
The new entrance will be installed on Greenway Hayden Loop, just north of Frank Lloyd Wright Boulevard, near the tee on the 18th hole.
After nearly an inch of rain fell in the area of TPC Scottsdale during this year’s tournament, fans were forced off the muddy grass and dirt spaces, where they could normally walk or view the course, onto the concrete walkways as a result. This partly led to the overcrowding that temporarily closed the gates on Saturday.
To better handle the crowds, some of the walkways around the course have also been expanded. For example, the path near the 17th fairway that extends to the 11th hole is now twice as wide as it was before.
The digital-only ticketing platform for general admission attendees will also help manage crowds during times of entry and exit.
Further, the organizers have eliminated the general admission any-day ticket, where in the past patrons could purchase a ticket before the tournament and then select which day they would like to attend.
Although Friday and Saturday general admission tickets sold out for the last tournament, officials couldn’t know in advance how many fans would show up on those days. Now there will be a hard cap on the number of attendees because without the variability that came with any-day tickets.
“That’s just a move for us to be able to really control each day’s crowd down to the exact number,” Mooney said.
In addition, general admission tickets for Friday or Saturday have increased to $125 for 2025, up $50 from the last tournament. And prices for Wednesday, Thursday or Sunday increased by $25 to $75.
Venue upgrades also coming to WM Phoenix Open 2025
Two of the course’s general admission venues will also see upgrades before next year’s event.
The Taylor Morrison Fairway House at the 12th hole will now offer viewing areas that are more accessible, including an upgrade to the concessions area.
In addition, the Desert Oasis BBQ and Beer Garden, located near the seventh hole, has been redesigned to offer fans a view of multiple holes along the course.
“Every decision that we make on the golf course is through the lens of fan experience and player experience, and we’ve been so overwhelmed with support from the community,” Mooney said.
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