Reflection Bay is fast becoming one of the centers of collegiate golf.
The Lake Las Vegas Course hosts three major collegiate tournaments that spotlight a layout with lots of water and other challenges that make it one of the top courses in the state. For these events, the organizers change the layout daily.
“We designed the golf course so that golfers have to find their way around,” said Eric Dutt, operations manager of Reflection Bay. “You will see three different setups in terms of yards and hole positions. We want them to have to hit every club in their bag, not just flip the court every day.”
The ability to change course from one day to the next is typical of Jack Nicklaus designs.
The first event in the series is the Lake Las Vegas Intercollegiate Invitational from February 28th to March 3rd. It includes a number of Division I men’s teams including Louisiana, South Florida, Arkansas State, Arkansas-Little Rock, Rocky Mountain, Winthrop, Middle Tennessee State, Alabama, Birmingham, Michigan, Pacific, Kansas, New Mexico State, Central Arkansas, Kansas City, Stetson and Long Beach.
Next up is the Rocky Mountain Intercollegiate at Lake Las Vegas, taking place in Reflection Bay for the third consecutive year. The tournament, scheduled for March 6-8, will feature both men’s and women’s teams, including many of the top NAIA schools.
The final event of the series is the Frontier Conference Championships on April 16-19. The best teams from the conference will be represented, with the line-up to be decided in mid-March.
“Reflection Bay has emerged as one of the premier golf courses in Southern Nevada for collegiate athletes,” said Jon Openshaw, General Manager of Reflection Bay. “We have created an environment where collegiate golfers can have a great experience on a premier course in one of the most beautiful areas in the state. It’s always an honor to host collegiate teams here and give them a unique environment to show off their skills.”
Reflection Bay has hosted a number of major events over the past 10 years including the Wendy’s 3-Tour Challenge. The event featured teams of PGA Tour, LPGA Tour and Champions Tour players and was part of the off-season calendar from 1998 to 2007. Reflection Bay also hosted the 2020 Nevada State Amateur Men’s and Women’s.
Reflection Bay was ranked the seventh best course in Nevada by Golf Digest in last year’s annual ranking of the best courses to play.
Throw down the glove
Immediately after winning the PGA Tour’s Farmers Insurance Open in Torrey Pines over the weekend, champion Max Homa gave a shout-out to Las Vegas LPGA star Danielle Kang, noting that she had challenged him to capture her in wins.
“She has six and a major, and I have six now,” Homa said. “I’m coming DK.”
Homa’s first of his six wins came in May 2019. Only Rory McIlroy (eight) and Patrick Cantlay (seven) have more wins on the PGA Tour over the same period.
World Champion
Taylor Montgomery’s meteoric rise up the official golf rankings continued this week as he set a personal high of 51st. But that only makes him the fifth tallest player to call Las Vegas home. Xander Schauffele (No. 6), Collin Morikawa (No. 7), Seamus Power (No. 28) and Kurt Kitayama (No. 43) are top 50 players.
Greg Robertson covers golf for the Review Journal. He can be reached at [email protected]