Executive director of The Thunderbirds Chance Cozby joins Golf Today to discuss the chaotic events of the weekend and explain what the WM Phoenix Open will do to keep fans and players safe in 2025. #GolfChannel #GolfToday #WMPhoenixOpen
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WM Phoenix Open vows changes to 2025 fan experience | Golf Today | Golf Channel
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we welcome at chance Cosby who’s the
executive director of the Thunderbirds
uh chance thanks so much for for talking
to us I know you and the Thunderbirds do
so much for the community and charity
and everything as you look back on this
year’s edition of the WM Phoenix Open
what are your
takeaways good morning Todd good morning
Rex uh thank you for having me on the
show um you know there’s H it was a it
was a challenging week um we had a great
Sunday with a great champion and a great
playoff uh with with Nick and Charlie
Hoffman and uh so we ended on a very
positive note um but the the week really
started uh in a in a tough way um when
you think of what kind of uh led to what
happened on Saturday you know we’re we
don’t get a lot of rain in Arizona I
think we get about six inches a year and
um we got significant rain on Tuesday
Wednesday Thursday and then ultimately
Saturday morning and when you think of
TPC Scottdale it’s a stadium golf course
it’s built for the WM Phoenix Open and
our fans uh when you go to a normal WM
Phoenix Open they’re enjoying the entire
property and uh they were not able to do
that this year um it was it was muddy uh
so many areas on the golf course were
simply
unusable and what that led to is our
fans ended up moving to more of our
concrete paved
areas um and really created significant
congestion uh to where ultimately on
Saturday you know we didn’t do anything
different from a ticketing or fan
perspective as we’ve done in years past
um but since areas of the golf course
were not usable uh the decision was made
by our security partners and and our
team uh to close the front gate uh to
close the concession stands to close
alcohol sales we opened up all of our
security blowouts on the entire course
to safely remove our fans from the
course and uh get thing get everything
back under control and uh and and try to
get through that Saturday which was a
very tough day now chance we’re gonna
break this down and I’m sure it’s
already been done quite a bit but how do
you walk that fine line from being the
event that the WM Phoenix Open is which
is half a golf tournament half a party
to letting it get to what you just
talked about it became on
Saturday well um we’re going to make
changes I think everybody probably
agrees that you know we have a very
unique culture of our event and and
we’ve been doing this for 89 years the
Thunderbirds were founded in
1937 this was our 89th plane and I don’t
think any of us dreamed that it would
grow to this um level of attendance and
excitement but um the fine line was
really when we felt like we were just at
a point on Saturday where our fans could
not move around the golf course um and
at that moment um the right thing to do
was um to take the steps that that we
did when you look at our course we have
a a really big pave road that we call
our Hall Road that really runs to the
right side of 18 and to the right side
of 17 behind all of our Hospitality
structures and that was the point in
time that um the people the flow of
people simply could not flow and we knew
that we need to make uh an operational
decision at that point uh to get people
off the golf course um simply for the
safety of the event the safety of the
players the safety of our fans um and
and that was the decision that we made
and and it was the it was the right
decision chance I know it’s just the day
after this tournament ended and you just
said you’re going to make changes for
next year do those changes right now
start with uh setup does it start with
more security you tell me
um I think that we’ll find out I will
tell you that um you know we spent five
or six hours on Saturday afternoon As
the course was um steadily flowing
outward um you know we sat as a
leadership team um I and and
evaluated just kind of brainstorming
what our next steps are I mean uh
there’s no time off we’ve got 365 days
to fix this so I think that you will see
um a complete operational change of how
we manage uh really our Friday and
Saturday but the the entire week I mean
the we’re very proud of what we’ve built
um you know we’ve been I think we’ve
been Tournament of the year on the PGA
tour five of the last seven years but we
don’t like what happened on Saturday the
players don’t like what happened on
Saturday our fans don’t like what
happened on Saturday and so nothing is
is off the table um you know we’re going
to look at our just general admission
ticket exposure um and how many are out
in the marketplace we’re going to look
at our complete Security plan and um and
and just how we operate I think it’s a
Saturday at the WM Phoenix Open in
2024 is going to end up being a turning
point for our tournament and our
organization uh to make our event better
uh we learned so much and we know that
we have to make improvements we owe it
to our fans we owe it to the PGA tour
players that come and support this event
and um and and we will we’re not going
to let this happen again for all these
reasons chance you’ve been around the
PGA tour for a long time you’ve been
around players for a long time what
would be your message to the players
right
now I think the message to the players I
I I was at Ping golf for 20 years and
I’ve been running this tournament for
five and I think the message to the
players is that you can count on the
Thunderbirds to get this right um you
know we know that that you’ve come and
you’ve supported our event and the 16th
hole is really unlike anything else in
golf um and we acknowledge we did not
have a good Saturday and we are
committed to making the experience at
the WM Phoenix Open better for you for
your families for our fans for our
volunteers and um you know we’ve had a
lot of challenges over our 89 years and
uh we have never been we’re not going to
rest on our Laurels uh we we will be
humble and we will make changes and we
will make this right chance I really do
appreciate you coming on and joining us
just the day after the tournament and uh
it sounds like you and the Thunderbirds
are willing to make some changes to
better that event uh and the Safety and
Security of everyone on on the grounds
there including the players uh thanks a
lot we wish you all the best and uh we
we’ll be talking to you soon I
appreciate it thank you for the time all
right that’s chance Cosby who’s the
executive director of the Thunderbirds
and it’s an interesting question that
you pointed out you want this to be a
fun sporting experience in the fact that
yes there will be some alcohol sold yes
there there is excitement there you’re
outside you’re with your friends um but
at the same time there is that line that
some that’s a minority by the way not a
majority of fans some do cross and how
do you manage that and still keep that
party atmosphere going I’m so glad we
were able to have chance on because look
this is his tournament he’s been around
it his entire life even before he was at
ping goof he understands it he lives it
and he knows that what happened Saturday
probably doesn’t need to happen again so
I will give he and the Thunderbirds just
a monsoon of credit all that being said
you and I probably had the most heated
debate we’ve ever had in our careers
together earlier this morning talking
about this because I have kind of gone
the other way and I remember having this
conversation vividly after the ride up
at m not that long ago because players
did not like the atmosphere there it was
very loud it was very Rowdy there was a
lot of drinking going on very very
similar and my argument then and my
argument now is if golf wants to be a
mainstream sport this is what mainstream
Sports look like sometimes it’s not
pretty sometimes nice things are not
said and sometimes you’re just going to
have to bite your lip and walk away and
in this particular case I think a lot of
players felt like it had gone over the
top and maybe it did but my argument is
always going to be we have spent the
last three years talking in every corner
about how we can grow the game how we
can bring new people to the game and how
we move into that mainstream how we do
it is what the Thunderbirds have created
there now are there are there things
that they can change certainly are there
things that they need to do on Saturday
to make sure that is that guy drinking
out of his shoe yeah well we we probably
don’t want that to happen but why not
that he’s a young
guy I’m am on the other side of the
fence when it comes to this and I
actually kind of of all people I got
into a conversation with my son who’s a
21y old kid that would probably drinking
out of his shoe right now if he had the
option but he felt like it was over the
top I don’t well look I I I I I do agree
with what you’re saying in some aspects
I do think in order for this sport to
thrive you have to have a conveyor belt
of new fans which includes of course
younger fans but just as much as we saw
last night in the Super Bowl when
someone ran onto the field and took off
his shirt that’s a no no you get tackled
you get taken off and I feel like that
happens quite often screaming in players
back swings I mean if you’re going to
make the comparison to the other
mainstream Sports when you watch Duke
play North Carolina the Cameron crazies
are behind the the backboard screaming
at the tar Hillel player waving their
arms trying to distract him does that
need to happen in golf too if you’re
rooting for Charlie Hoffman do you
screaming Nick T Taylor’s back swing
that’s what they do in mainstream Sports
no I don’t think you do I think that
that you can go out and have a great
time and if you want to have you a few
more drinks than you normally okay but
you have to have the Consciousness to
know that you can’t do certain things
and security needs to take care of you I
don’t I’m not going to argue with you I
I my I guess my main question to you is
how much would I have to pay you to
drink a beverage whatever beverage you
want out of your shoe that is an amazing
pivot uh that I I it it would be at
least four figures at least four figures
she must be very
dirty
29 Comments
Just don't let the stupid 1's in!
Lmfao this guy is on tik tok making food
hey clowns its called proper DECORUM give it a try all DAY long …
54 it up
Hey Chance, just in case you have zero clue what these guys are getting at, which seems to be the case, they mean what are you going to do about all the drunk assholes that intentionally disturb play (16th hole excluded obviously)? Not just the Saturday "congestion." Were you not able to pick up on that? And to the moron in red, alcohol consumption and unruly fans don't make for more mainstream golf. Schmuck.
From someone who lives in Phoenix and went to the open, once. I can confirm it is a drunken mess of an event. It’s poorly run and managed. I play golf almost every weekend and this event doesn’t represent the community here and needs an overhaul.
I’m a Phoenix resident and would never consider going there again. It’s not a golf tournament, it’s a frat party.
They should be embarrassed, but I don’t sense that they are.
Who are the thunderbirds and what happened on Saturday
Just use more plexy-glass like in hockey! 😂
They have hosted for 60 years and they are learning in 2024 how run the tournament. Classic example of overpaid clowns that honestly don’t understand shit!
The more these guys talk the more they sound like one of those old guys go back to college movies. I don’t have a problem with that, that’s how they raise more money than anyone.
IMO THE pga tour leadership are responsible in protecting the integrity of a golf tournament and everyone on site from this big frat party getting out of hand.
People —drunk or not— need to be safe in inclement weather. We understand rain rarely happens in the desert. But it happens. So You need to be ready for that.
But this event always needs prepared for drunk people.
You heard of baby proof? This thing needs to be drunk proof at all costs.
I’ve said it elsewhere there’s a reason the majors and LIv limit attendance when they could have more people.
You can take golf mainstream without destroying the integrity of the game. That was a complete sh$# show, period. I would not blame any player who didn't play in next years event. If this is the kind of crap you want golf to be, then go to an LIV event. I take that back. They don't even allow that to happen at their events.
When you get guys like Higgs and Dahman taking their shirts off and acting like fools how do you expect fans not to follow. A lot of players at 16 enjoyed the crowd, spurred them on. Fowler actually encourages them to yell when he is teeing off on 16. They expect the noise and silliness on this hole. The Thunderbirds do a good job and changed the rules for drinking on 16. No cans and no throwing objects. Several people were escorted out. The video of the kid jumping in bunker was taken during a long break between rounds. This happens everywhere. No biggie. I worked security at 16 for five days, overall it was great. Very few incidents in 16. When it comes to heckling players, happens. Billy and Jordan are two of the biggest complainers. Hershel is actually very rude to fans. Have seen it several times. Zach’s outburst was uncharacteristic. He is a gentleman. The Thunderbirds, overall, are working hard to remedy the issues. Good for them. This is a great tournament. A few hiccups this year and I agree the weather had a lot to do with it. One suggestion, remedy overcrowding in area of 10 green, 11 tee and entrances to 16 general admission. That’s a huge and dangerous area. Just not enough room.
They oversold the event. Who in their right mind would want to come to this event unless you wanted to get drunk and yell at the players. And to have "beer snakes" at this tournament says it all. Not sure this guys has the b___s to make the changes needed.
Worst tournament in golf, Worst fans in golf. This tournament will be crap if the fans stay the same there.
That's damn good!
Politician speech…less tickets? Less beer sales. Less noise, smaller grand stands?
I remember when golf was a gentlemen’s game. Not anymore. It’s become spring break for a bunch of idiots that couldn’t spell golf if you spotted them the g and the f. I can’t even imagine taking a child to that event. WM and the Thunderbirds should be ashamed and I hope that they experience blowback in a big way, beginning with players skipping it. Total disgrace.
It’s a good tournament but it’s the people that don’t care about golf or even enjoy golf that are there just to be disrespectful and get drunk and no other reason! What will happen is top golfers that did show up will no longer want to be involved.
My favorite tourney. Sure, there were some unruly fans but there ALWAYS is. It didn't seem to bother Taylor or Hoffman. It was no worse than a Ryder Cup. Golf needs more tourneys like the Phoenix Open. Most are really boring.
They will limit the ticket sales, they will limit the alcohol, and they will solve almost all of the problems. The 16th, used to be a bunch of ASU kids having fun. Now it has turned into a shitshow. I will stay away and actually play golf on that tournament weekend like I always do, and watch it at home on my 85" with a cold 805.
"We built this, WE are so proud of this event…" Blah, Blah, Blah! The police and firefighters single handedly make sure that people are safe and made the call to stop people entering when it got out of control (not the Thunderbirds).
This guy is a beta who speaks like a politician. WE THE PEOPLE are getting sick and tired of being led and talked down to by bureaucrats, whether they be govt or corporate, who are not fit to lead.
It's not just this tournament. Unruly, drunk, and loud obnoxious fans have ruined the sport, in my opinion. I can't watch golf on TV anymore. The constant screaming "in the hole" is just so obnoxious.
This is the natural evolution of Tiger Woods making golf popular with the masses.
THE CHILDREN ARE WATCHING
They want to bring new people into the game, this is what the new people look like…………..Maybe Golf will rethink going mainstream and stick with the old Country Club ways because it's players are not ready for the general public? 😂
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The fans were drunker than ever in the history of the event. The WMPO has jumped the shark.