Wild Crowd Forces Waste Management Golf Tournament to Stop Selling Beer
On a weekend that saw Las Vegas host the Super Bowl, the wildest and craziest event was actually roughly 300 miles southeast, in Phoenix, Ariz.
The Waste Management Phoenix Open is not like other golf tournaments — think more Happy Gilmore than Tin Cup.
Over the past few years, the event has attracted loud crowds, cheering grandstands and wild celebrations at hole 16 for the rare hole-in-one. But this year, the WM Open seemed to be even wilder than its predecessors: Organizers had to shut down entry and halt the sale of alcohol after thousands reportedly paraded through the gates without tickets in hand.
The crowd was in rare form — in fact, one nearly-nude streaker had fellow patrons in the palm of his Daisy Dukes on Saturday.
Believe it or not, law enforcement did not take too kindly to the impromptu show and arrested him, resulting in a fantastic mug shot:
At least he seems somewhat sorry?
But our streaker wasn't alone: The 16th hole at the Phoenix Open is truly one-of-a-kind. Most golf courses have the sprawling hills and wide open spaces, but 16 at TPC Scottsdale is enclosed with nearly 300 skyboxes and bleachers all around, creating almost an arena-like feel. And the crowd has always been a very non-golf-like wild.
True golfers had less-than-friendly interactions with fans, as seen in the video below (NSFW language warning):
This among many other incidents led to the event halting sale on alcohol and closing gates early.
It has many people asking whether or not the wildest event in golf should continue in its current form next year.
As for the actual golf? Nick Taylor won, beating Charley Hoffman in a two-hole playoff.
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Gallery Credit: Sterling Whitaker