The 41st Arizona Stroke Play Championship teed off Thursday at Wickenburg Ranch Golf & Country Club, marking the start of the final men’s major championship of AZ GOLF’s 2026 competition season.
Overnight storms worked in the field’s favor during the opening round, with soft greens helping players post low scores.
Thirty-five-year-old Chris Large leads the clubhouse after firing a 7-under 64 in his opening round.
Large is using this championship as preparation for the next step in his golf career. He will compete in the pre-qualifying stage of PGA TOUR Q-School next month, while maintaining his amateur status unless he advances further through the Q-School stages.
“I’m trying to peak right now and it’s going well,” Large said. “I had a clean round of fairways and greens, but it can go sideways pretty quick. I wasn’t super dialed in, but I made smart choices and it paid off.”
Large said his focus for the remainder of the weekend will be keeping the ball in play and adjusting to the conditions if the course begins to dry out.
His round was highlighted by six birdies and an eagle on the par-4 sixth hole.
“Hit a good drive, put it to about 15 feet,” Large said. “I had an uphill putt over a ridge. I thought it broke the other way, so I technically misread it, but it happened to go in. It wasn’t a great putt, but it found the bottom.”
One stroke behind Large, Cody Massa and Ben Keil are tied for second at 6-under.
Keil, a senior transferring to Grand Canyon University this fall, closed his round with three birdies over his final five holes.
Massa is coming off a recent victory at the Southwest PGA Section’s Arizona Open and is carrying that momentum into this weekend.
“I finally hit the wedges good today,” Massa said. “I’ve been struggling with the wedges lately, and I hit them well. I hit quite a few pretty close and made some putts.”
The par-4 first hole gave the field its biggest challenge of the day, yielding just 10 birdies while producing 29 bogeys or worse. Meanwhile, the driveable par-4 sixth gave players plenty of opportunities to make up ground, with two eagles and 30 birdies against just 10 bogeys or worse.
The four-day championship continues Friday morning, with a 36-hole cut to follow. The top 42 players, plus ties, will advance to the weekend.