MARANA, Ariz. – Since the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship arrived atop this isolated slice of the Arizona desert in 2007, players have been less than impressed with either the Ritz-Carlton layout or the adjacent Gallery course, and there is increasing speculation that this may be the last Match Play at Dove Mountain.
Tournament officials confirmed to GTC that the Match Play is “contracted” to remain in southern Arizona for the next two years, but whether that means it stays at Dove Mountain and where the event goes beyond 2014 remains unknown.
Nearby Tucson National, which hosted the Tucson Open until 2006, is an option as is Dove Mountain, although its remote location has made it difficult to attract sizable galleries.
On Tuesday Tiger Woods offered at least lukewarm support to remain at the Ritz course saying, “For a player it provides so many different options. It’s wonderful for match play.”
There is also speculation that the Match Play could be headed to Doral and the WGC-Cadillac Championship – which is currently played on the Blue Monster – may be bound for a stop closer to Detroit and Cadillac’s parent company General Motors. That option, however, seems unlikely unless the Tour can find a suitable mid-summer date, which is currently not available.
