SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – The 51-player Arizona Senior Amateur Championship field faced a gauntlet of weather conditions throughout the 54-hole stroke play tournament, including temperatures of over 100 degrees each day and a lightning delay during the second round.
Despite that, Brian Miller (-8) completed a dominant, wire-to-wire victory to capture the Senior Division crown, while John Schaller’s steady, even par performance earned him the Legends Division title at TPC Scottsdale - Champions Course.
Miller set the pace by carding back-to-back rounds of 67- the lowest single-round score posted by any player in the tournament. Despite a roller-coaster third round, Miller’s lead never dropped below three strokes. Miller said that his Senior Amateur run was the best golf he had played in several months, attributing the performance to swing and putting changes that both seemed to work at the same time.
Miller awaits his tee shot on the hole no. 7 during the final round of the Arizona Senior Amateur Championship at TPC Scottsdale - Champions Course (Photo by Brandon Genson)
Although Miller’s victory was decisive, he admitted that it was not as easy as it looked due to the Champions Course’s challenges.
“This is a tough course. It’s challenging, you have to make shots, you can't make mistakes and I made very few mistakes out here,” Miller said.
On the Legends Division side, Schaller faced an uphill battle to capture his title. Three strokes out of the lead after the opening round, Schaller made a run in round two by carding a 69- tied with Terry Ruzzo for the best single-round performance in the Legends Division.
“I played really steady,” Schaller said. “I started off bad yesterday with three bogeys in a row but I hung in there, stayed positive, made five birdies and stayed two-under, so I was really proud of myself.”
Ruzzo and Tom Beach finished just one stroke behind Schaller, who birdied the 15th hole to secure his win. A 20-year veteran of AZ GOLF events, Schaller’s victory was particularly meaningful. 18 months ago, he battled leukemia and underwent chemotherapy. After narrowly missing out on last year’s Arizona Senior Amateur title, Schaller called his triumph this year “a real blessing.”
John Schaller chips on hole no. 18 on the final day of the 2024 Arizona Senior Amateur Championship (Photo by Preston McFarland)