About
There is power in numbers and also in working together. The partnership for this Nevada State Golf Association website is proof of that. The leaders of both the Northern Nevada Golf Association and the Southern Nevada Golf Association have combined efforts to create this Nevada golf online resource.
Here you will find Nevada golf news, information, scoring, results, and other key information about prestigious state tournaments, golfers, associations, women’s golf, and much, much more. Nevada golf is vibrant and our mission is to bring to life the events, tournaments and key stories with regular updates throughout the year.
The Northern Nevada Golf Association and Southern Nevada Golf Association each enjoy a deep history. The Northern Nevada Golf Association was founded in 1972 while the Southern Nevada Golf Association was created in 1967 and currently has more than 10,000 members.
These key Nevada golf organizations cooperate on an annual basis to host and organize some of the biggest and most important golf tournaments in Nevada. These Nevada golf tournaments include the following majors: Nevada State Amateur, Nevada State Mid-Amateur, Nevada State Net Amateur, Nevada State Match Play, Nevada State Senior Amateur, and the Nevada State Junior Amateur.
There are also special tournaments named in honor of some of the most important and giving members of the regional and state associations. Annually the Cobb-Whalen Cup and the Oliver Cup are played, combining both camaraderie and competition at the highest levels.
Each tournament is officially sanctioned and operated under the regulations and guidelines of the
United States Golf Association.
Past Nevada golf champions include lifetime amateurs, college stars and future PGA TOUR
champions. The Nevada State Amateur dates back to 1953 when it was won by Bill Higgins. That
year also marks the first playing of the Tournament of Champions on the PGA Tour when it was
played at the Desert Inn in Las Vegas.
Other notable champions throughout the years of the Nevada State Amateur are Las Vegas Golf
Hall of Famers Charles Teel (1957-58), Eric Dutt (1976) and Brady Exber (1991) in addition to Las
Vegas Golf Hall of Famers and future PGA TOUR players Craig Barlow (1994) and Edward Fryatt
(1992).
Also winning the Nevada State Amateur was former University of Nevada golfer and future PGA
TOUR player Rich Barcelo (1995) and fellow Northern Nevadan Butch Sheehan (1974-75).
Sheehan, became a golf professional following his amateur wins, has played in the PGA Championship and
is the brother (and former coach) of LPGA Tour Hall of Famer Patty Sheehan. Another University of
Nevada player, Nicolas Smits, won the tournament in 2014.
“There is so much history and tradition in Nevada golf that we felt compelled to create this new
online portal for everything Nevada golf,” says Brady Exber, Nevada State Golf Association
president. “There are so many wonderful champions and volunteers, and there are so many
wonderful and unique stories behind these people. We are dedicated to chronicling every inch of golf
in Nevada and creating an evolving online experience that becomes the source for golf in Nevada.”
Nevada is the “Battle Born” state and there have been plenty of golf battles over the years.
Throughout this website you will find historic information about the tournaments, epic victories and
bitter defeats … Everything that makes the game of golf so grand.
On the course, Nevada layouts are as diverse as the people in the state and, in total, there are more
than 100 Nevada golf courses. Snow-capped mountain courses are enjoyed in the North while
unique desert layouts are found in the South. Both areas also feature varying styles of courses from
links to traditional and everything in between.
On and off the course, golf in Nevada is a billion-dollar industry that is a major part of the overall
economy and an enticement to golf travelers. The Nevada State Golf Association, and its allied
associations in Northern Nevada and Southern Nevada, will work together to promote golf in Nevada
to the world.
Golf in Nevada. Epic. Exciting. Dynamic. Diverse. Competitive. Historic.
