LAS VEGAS – David Lipsky, who calls Las Vegas home, shot a 3-under 67 in the final round of the Emerald Coast Classic last week to force a playoff before a bogey on the first playoff hole ended his day with a second-place finish.Lipsky, who hails from Los Angeles and played his collegiate golf at Northwestern, will be among the favorites when the Korn Ferry Tour makes its next stop April 15-18 at the inaugural MGM Resorts Championship at Paiute. Lipsky, who plays locally primarily at TPC Summerlin, TPC Las Vegas and Shadow Creek, is one of seven players on the Korn Ferry Tour that resides in Las Vegas.
Lipsky said, “It’s great. I’m playing well and I’m in a good spot on the points list. It’s going to be a nice home event. I don’t think I’ve experienced that before, so I’m looking forward to sleeping in my own bed next week. I think we’ll have a little bit of an advantage as locals, but I think it will be more because of the elevation than the desert golf. I think I’ll have a bit of an advantage with just knowing the distances, altitude and ball flight.“
His second-place finish in Sandestin, Fla. moved him up six spots to No. 8 on the Tour’s regular-season points list. Fellow Vegas pro and former UNLV Rebel Taylor Montgomery held firm at 17th in the points standings. The Top 25 at the end of this summer’s regular season earn their PGA TOUR card for the 2021-22 season. An additional 25 cards will be awarded following the Korn Ferry Tour playoffs.
As many as seven professionals in the field call Las Vegas home now, including former UNLV golfers Harry Hall and John Oda, Alex Kang, Alex Cejka and Alex Prugh, who finds himself as an alternate for next week’s event. They will be part of a full field of 156 professionals, battling for a $600,000 purse with $108,000 going to the winner. The four-day tournament will be played on Paiute’s Sun Mountain Course, a 7,112-yard, par-72 desert course located just 25 minutes from the world-famous Las Vegas Strip. Paiute has played host to the World Series of Golf, the World Long Drive Championships and the ESPN Golf Challenge, but never a professional tour event.
Josh Franklin, Tournament Director, said, “It adds a welcomed local flavor to a tournament when you have familiar names like David and Taylor playing well coming into their own hometown event. Las Vegas continues to build its golf reputation, and having locals that are this talented is a tribute to the exceptional golf talent being produced, and attracted to, this golf destination.”
Due to local COVID restrictions, limited tickets are available for the tournament. The tickets, priced at $100 daily for the four tournament rounds on Thursday-Sunday, are available at www.mgmresortschampionship.com. The first 100 guests that purchase tickets also will receive a tournament-logo tailgating chair upon entry which can be used at the course to watch the action.
An enhanced Pro-Am experience will precede the tournament rounds. The Official Pro-Am will be played on the tournament course Wednesday, April 14 and an off-site Pro-Am will be held at Southern Highlands Golf Club Tuesday, April 13. Participants in each Pro-Am will play alongside Korn Ferry Tour pros and receive premium gifting packages each day.
Wednesday’s Pro-Am at Paiute will be star-studded with sports celebrities joining the Korn Ferry Tour pros. Baseball Hall of Famer Ken Griffey, Jr., new UNLV men’s basketball coach Kevin Kruger as well as former UNLV and Oklahoma coach Lon Kruger are slated to participate.
Parties interested in securing one of the few remaining Pro-Am positions at both Paiute and Southern Highlands can contact Tournament Director Josh Franklin at 859.494.3932 or [email protected]. Complete tournament information can be found at www.mgmresortschampionship.com or on social media at @MGMResortsChamp.
Pro-Am Charity Auctions Featuring Derek Carr, Hunter Renfrow & Mark McMillian
Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr is auctioning off two playing positions alongside himself, wide receiver Hunter Renfrow and a Korn Ferry Tour pro in the tournament’s “unofficial pro-am” at Southern Highlands. The package includes food and drinks and premium gift packages for both participants. Bidding runs through this weekend and the auction can be found at https://go.memberforaday.co/raiders. Proceeds from the auction benefit Valley Children’s Hospital.
A second auction ended earlier this week to play alongside former NFL veteran, Emmy Award-winner and local media personality Mark McMillian. The auction winners will receive three playing positions in the Official Pro-Am on Wednesday, April 14 at Paiute with proceeds benefitting the Southern Nevada Junior Golf Association.
Volunteer Information
A limited number of volunteer positions are available for the MGM Resorts Championship at Paiute. The $70 registration fee includes the official volunteer uniform (Greg Norman Collection polo shirt and pullover and Nike hat), meals on the days of service, on-site parking pass, one round of golf at Las Vegas Paiute Golf Resort (post-event; blackout dates may apply) and additional tournament merchandise available for purchase at 25% off retail.
Volunteers are critical to the success of Korn Ferry Tour events and tournament roles available include walking scorers, on-course marshals, shuttle drivers, practice area/range and parking/admissions.
Volunteer registration is available at www.mgmresortschampionship.com/volunteers.
Media Credentials
Media members can apply now for credentials for the tournament. Credentials only allow access to the grounds for the tournament. Any access to players must be coordinated through Preston Smith with the Korn Ferry Tour.
The Media credential application is available at https://mgmresortschampionship.com/mediaregistration/.