Dalton Dean Wins Desert Amateur

MARICOPA, Arizona—With rounds of 67 and 68 (-9), Dalton Dean (Lynnwood, WA) won the Desert Amateur at Ak-Chin Southern Dunes.  Dean, a member of the Bellevue College golf team, finished with a two-shot win over Pablo Ereno (Spain) and Omar Morales (Mexico), who are both on the UCLA golf team.  Saturday, which was originally scheduled for 36 holes, had play suspended just after 3:00 pm local time due to wet conditions caused by record rainfall in Maricopa, with players a few holes into the 2^nd round. Soon after play began in the first round it began raining, not stopping until just prior to the 2^nd round being re-started on Sunday morning.  Sunday’s weather was mostly overcast with highs in the high 50s and light winds.  The Committee was forced to short the event when it was determined a third round wouldn’t be completed by the required deadline of Sunday at sunset.

DEAN ON WIN AND DESERT AMATEUR:  “The driver and short irons were clicking on all cylinders which made it a pretty stress free tournament.  The course was in great shape with the amount of rain during the first round.  Being from Washington definitely helped staying calm and composed during the rounds.  I want to thank Ak-Chin’s grounds crew for keeping the course in tip-top shape.”

AK-CHIN SOUTHERN DUNES:  This is the 2^nd Desert Amateur to be held at Ak-Chin Southern Dunes and the 13^th overall individual event in the Troon Saguaro Amateur Series hosted at Ak-Chin Southern Dunes.  Southern Dunes routinely hosts US Open qualifiers and is a host sight for the Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying Tournament.

PLAYER OF THE YEAR LIST:  Dean is likely to vault up the 2022-23 Troon Saguaro Amateur Player of the Year Standings. The updated ranking will be released to the portal on Tuesday.  Damon Vilkauskas is the current points leader.  You can find the full points list at www.TSASMember.GolfGenius.com.

TROON SAGUARO AMATEUR SERIES:  The Troon Saguaro Amateur Series is a world-ranked amateur tournament series that is hosting 12 tournaments in the 2022-23 season.  The Desert Amateur is the 7th tournament in the 2022-23 Troon Saguaro Amateur Series.  2022 marks the 3^rd Desert Amateur. The full Series schedule and Player of the Year standings are available at www.SaguaroAmateur.com as well as at www.TSASMember.GolfGenius.com.  The next event in the Troon Saguaro Amateur Series will be the Agave Amateur, December 16-19 at Shadow Hills Golf Club in Indio, California.

Roy Edwards
Chairman, Troon Saguaro Amateur Series
Head Men’s Golf Coach, University of Colorado

Joe Jensen
Vice Chairman, Troon Saguaro Amateur Series
Director of Golf, University of Wyoming