Pioneered in Arizona due to water conservation and wildlife issues, “target golf” allows flora and the natural desert landscape to remain largely intact. For golfers, that means forced carries over dry riverbeds and arroyos, and maneuvering around boulders and cacti and across sandy, rocky wastelands to patches of turf. Nonetheless, at the resort courses in Scottsdale and Phoenix, multiple tee boxes give every golfer a chance to enjoy the stunning desert settings.

Monumental Formations
At 2,500 feet in elevation, the climate at The Boulders is ten degrees cooler than in metropolitan Phoenix, thirty miles away, and the air is clean and crystal clear, perfect for exploring the desert by jeep, hot-air balloon and on foot. You can get into the unique ecosystem by taking a rock climbing clinic, a guided hike to ancient cliff dwellings, and nighttime nature tours, where night-vision equipment reveals coyotes, owls, and night-blooming cacti. Like a mirage in the Sonoran Desert foothills, the contemporary Pueblo-style main lodge is a low-rise, russet- and ochre-toned building against a dramatic landscape of giant granite boulders and century-old saguaro cacti. Hand-rubbed woods, massive timbers, Native American-design art and fabrics, terra-cotta floors and stone fireplaces create a calming ambiance. (http://theboulders.com)

Although a five-star resort, The Boulders has a casual feel, in village-like, private clusters, each with a swimming pool. 160 casitas and fifty 1-, 2- and 3-bedroom villas have timber-beamed ceilings, wood-burning fireplaces, private patios or decks in desert settings, and earth-toned tile, fabrics and wood furnishings; villas have indoor and outdoor fireplaces, large outdoor Jacuzzis, equipped kitchens and laundry rooms, living/dining areas and king-bedded suites.

Quintessential target golf layouts, the Jay Morrish-designed North and South courses are world-famous for their startling display of vibrantly colored rock formations and rugged canyons and arroyos. Cooing doves and quail, roadrunners, fat Gila monsters, deer and the occasional bobcat and coyote roam the groves of cacti and rocky streambeds (the “coyote rule” allows you to replay a shot without penalty when a coyote grabs your ball).

Now 7,007 yards from the tips, the South Course received a million-dollar face-lift, with tees added and bunkers rebuilt, resulting in a bracing 73.3/146 rating and slope. Forced carries and elevated tees show off the desert splendor along narrow fairways lined with six-story-tall boulders and ancient saguaros, dry washes and sandy waste areas. On the signature “Boulder Pile” fifth hole, the green lies below a tremendous bastion of boulders. Fairways and shoulders are mowed short, yet, off the turf in the low brush and cacti, you’re dead. The starter hints at some interesting indigenous fauna: “You are welcome to hit out of the rough, but, bring a stick.”

A dozen doglegs and generous fairways careen across a rolling desert to super-fast greens on the North Course. Towering cacti and giant boulders are so distinctive and sizable that they are marked in the yardage booklet. On 17, a monster rock stands in the middle of a greenside bunker. On sizzling summer days, a misting system cools the air in and around the golf carts by nearly thirty degrees. Tip: tee off on weekdays; weekends can be quite slow. And, give yourself time for practice on the fabulous driving range and pitching area.

At the Golden Door Spa, a quiet, adults-only swimming pool lies below a massive boulderscape. Above, the indoor/outdoor spa café serves healthy fare and espresso drinks and fresh juices. Both co-ed and male/female lounges have fireplaces. 24 treatment rooms, traditional Japanese ofuro baths, the Watsu experience, and unique Native American-inspired treatments make this an oasis worth a long linger.

The Boulders is a half-hour drive from Sky Harbor International Airport; private planes land at the Carefree Airport, 5 miles away, and a heli-pad is available at the resort. Adjacent to the resort, El Pedregal Festival Marketplace is a pleasant, small shopping center with rather flamboyant, fun shops, the resort’s business center, and an annex of the Heard Museum.

Luxury Defined
Up against the rugged southern slope of Camelback Mountain, The Phoenician is a glamorous resort, as showy as an Italian palazzo, adorned with gleaming polished marble and golf leaf. Hundreds of palms are reflected in lagoons and pools draped with blooming vines and flowerbeds. Public spaces are galleries for a zillion-dollar art collection, from Allan Houser’s life-sized bronzes to European antiques, Persian and Navajo rugs, and French tapestries and paintings. Music wafts from eleven Steinway grand pianos. One of the several swimming pools is lined with mother-of-pearl, and a tiered series of waterfalls creates a liquid paradise. You can play on 12 tennis courts with 4 surfaces including grass. (http://www.thephoenician.com)

Three nines comprise the golf complex, the Oasis, the Desert and the Canyon, each lush with flowers, palms and shrubs. The courses have wide vistas from elevated tees of the nearby metropolis and a vast desert panorama. Rolling around the foot of the mountain on the Desert are fountains, lakes and expansive waste areas studded with tall cacti. The 120-yard eighth is a rip-roaring downhill par three demanding accuracy to make the napkin-sized, bentgrass green. Ponds, lakes and waterfalls cool golfers’ heels on Oasis, a traditional layout.

The Canyon has the most elevation change, moving between immense sandy tracks, rocks and boulders to small greens, with wide valley views from the side of Camelback. Expect a smashing finish on the eighth–with a carry over water to a sand- and palm-fringed putting surface–and on nine, a severe dogleg menaced by water along the entire 525 yards and fronting the green.

5-star rated, 468 oversized rooms and suites have private balconies or patios, large Italian marble baths and Irish linens. 119 luxury, lakeside casitas have fireplaces, kitchens, butler service and pure privacy. The Canyon Suites complex is a resort-within-a-resort around its own swimming pool.

The fine French restaurant, Mary Elaine’s, tops every list of Best Restaurants in Scottsdale; live jazz, an award-winning wine cellar and Arizona’s sole Master Sommelier are among the highlights. With two dozen treatment rooms, the Centre for Well-Being is one of the largest and most professionally operated and enjoyable spas in the southwest, offering more than 70 beauty and body treatments, aging and wellness consultation and services, and a salon.

Play Where the Pros Play
The garden courtyards of the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess are shaded by cottonwood and palm trees and cooled by cascades, fountains and pools, creating pleasant retreats among the bustle of this sprawling resort. Spanish antiques, nail-studded chests and large portraits of Spanish royalty in the lobbies recall the Spanish Colonial heritage of the region. (http://www.fairmont.com)

Adjacent to the resort at the Tournament Players Club at Scottsdale (TPC) are the Morrish/Weiskopf-designed Stadium Course, built to host the PGA Tour’s Phoenix Open (now the NBR Open), and the Desert Course, a shorter, less demanding and quite pretty resort course. (http://www.tpc.com)

Along the 7,216 yards of the Stadium Course are innumerable, fairway-lining mounds and 72 bunkers, some seven feet deep, which were redefined in a recent upgrade. Add to this a half-dozen water hazards, towering saguaro cacti and mesquite trees, what seems like endless desert scrub, and multi-tiered Bermuda grass greens in amphitheater settings, and you have some of the toughest holes on the tour (74.6/138). End up anywhere but on the landing zones and you’re lunchmeat.

The largest palo verde tree in the state stands on the 15th hole, which has an island green. In 1997 on the 16th, 21-year-old Tiger’s eagle hole-in-one set off a banshee yell from the thousands of spectators, who then tossed their beer cans in glee. On the 332-yard 17th, Andrew Magee drove the green during the 2001 Phoenix Open for the only par-four double eagle in the history of the PGA Tour. His tee shot bounced off Tom Byrum’s putter, rolling into the hole.

The 438-yard 18th is dramatic, with a large lake all along the left and a Sahara of sand on the right. Tip: in the weeks preceding the February Open, the rough is high and the greens super-fast. During tournament week, more than 500,000 fans show up, making this the best attended golf event in the world.

You will get a break on the kinder, gentler Desert Course. The course is closed through November, 2007, for a complete, much-needed renovation to include the addition of trees and the redesign of some holes to up the degree of difficulty and create a championship level par 71. Do not underestimate prevailing winds and contiguous natural rough, especially if it’s rattling . . .

Après golf, the clubhouse is a place to hang out, in the steak house, at the lively bar or by the outdoor fireplace. Good news: now, you can walk or ride with a Pinehurst-trained caddie during the high season, November through April. Full caddies carry bags, give club selection advice, rake bunkers, find and clean lost balls, read greens and figure yardage. The forecaddie program for cart riders is complimentary, providing the same services except the bag carry.

At the Fairmont, kids love their Sonoran Splash water play area, set well apart from the main resort. Little kids like the graduated deck entry into the swimming pool, while teens are into water basketball and volleyball. Those hoping for seclusion can head for the roof-top, adults-only, rooftop swimming pool at the new Willow Stream spa, a three-level complex with 25 treatment rooms, plus fireplaces, shady garden courtyards, a waterfall grotto pool, and a fitness center and salon.

5-diamond rated, 650 oversized rooms and suites each have a private terrace or balcony. Tennis and golf villas have living rooms, fireplaces and huge, luxurious bathrooms. Strolling mariachis and a blazing patio fireplace are picturesque in the 19th century ranch house setting at La Hacienda, the only 4-diamond Mexican restaurant in North America. Mediterranean cuisine is on the menu in the elegant, 5-star Marquesa.

Big Saguaro, Little Turf
In the highlands of northern Scottsdale at an elevation of 2,200 feet, within an amphitheater of spectacular granite boulders and tall saguaro cacti, the Four Seasons Resort Scottsdale at Troon North is an intimate hideaway of 200 or so Pueblo-style casitas, each luxuriously appointed and with mountain and city views from private terraces or balconies. Rooms and suites have kiva fireplaces, deep soaking tubs, walk-in closets and comfy sitting areas with armchairs and ottomans; some suites have private plunge pools and garden showers. (http://www.fourseasons.com/scottsdale)

Browsing the public areas turns up an exceptional collection of paintings, weavings, statuary and other artworks. Waterfalls connect bi-level swimming pools, and there is a separate kid’s pool with kid’s-sized chaises. The entire resort is a veritable botanical garden of indigenous cacti and other desert flora, romantically lit at night. After dark, telescopes on the lobby terrace scan a dome of sparkling stars over the pitch-black desert, high above the metropolitan area a few miles away.

By the end of 2007, about 40 new guest accommodations and a larger spa will be complete. The owners of villas at the Four Seasons Residence Club Troon North enjoy all resort facilities.

Buy, borrow or steal a camera before teeing off on the two courses at Troon North Golf Club, in a dazzling desert setting at the foot of Pinnacle Peak. With an ominous rating of 73.3 and a 147 slope, the Tom Weiskopf’s Pinnacle is true target golf with landing zones between massive boulders and granite outcroppings, mesquite and ironwood trees, with carries over yawning arroyos and canyons to multi-tiered, sometimes blind, greens. From mountainside to low desert, the track leaps up cliffs and down valleys, providing dazzling landscape and mountain views. Fortunately for mere mortals, the 7,044-yard course has five sets of tees. (http://www.troonnorthgolf.com)

Scattered with piles of gigantic boulders and seventy-nine bunkers, the Morrish and Weiskopf-designed Monument is no slouch at 7,028-yards. Tight fairways and carries over and around dry washes, saguaros, mesquite and palo verde trees, plus pot bunkers in alarming places and serious doglegs make this a memorable golfing experience. These two are often named the top two daily fee courses in the state. The clubhouse offers every amenity, from a luxurious locker room with showers and an attendant to clean and respike your shoes, to a very nice restaurant and an award-winning pro shop.

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]]> http://fairwaygolf.com/arizonagolf/arizona-golf-hotels/2008/03/15/feed/ http://fairwaygolf.com/arizonagolf/phil-mickelson/2008/03/15/ http://fairwaygolf.com/arizonagolf/phil-mickelson/2008/03/15/#comments Sat, 15 Mar 2008 12:01:10 +0000 Arizona Golf Editor http://fairwaygolf.com/arizonagolf/phil-mickelson/2008/03/15/ Philip Alfred Mickelson (born June 16, 1970) (nicknamed “Lefty” for his left-handed swing, even though he is otherwise right-handed), is an American professional golfer. He is one of the leading players of his generation, having won three major championships and a total of 33 events on the PGA Tour. He has reached a career high world ranking of 2nd in multiple years.

Career summary

Early years through college
Mickelson was born in San Diego, California and raised there and in Arizona. Mickelson swings a golf club left-handed, which he learned by watching his right-handed father swing and mirroring it. He is right-handed otherwise. He graduated from the University of San Diego High School in 1988, then attended Arizona State on a golf scholarship, where he graduated in 1992. During his time at Arizona State, Phil became the face of amateur golf in the United States, capturing three NCAA individual championships and three Haskins Awards (1990, 1991, 1992) as the outstanding collegiate golfer. He was the first collegiate golfer to earn first-team All-American honors all four years. In addition, in 1990, he became the first left-hander to win the U.S. Amateur title. Perhaps his greatest achievement, though, came in 1991 when he won his first PGA Tour tournament, the Northern Telecom Open. He did so as an amateur, becoming only the fourth in PGA history to accomplish this feat and the first since Scott Verplank, who won the 1985 Western Open in Chicago.

PGA Tour pro
Mickelson continued to win many PGA Tour tournaments, including the Byron Nelson Golf Classic and the World Series of Golf in 1996, the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am in 1998, the Colonial National Invitation in 2000 and the Greater Hartford Open in 2001 and again in 2002. He also won the Buick Invitational in 2000, defeating Tiger Woods and ending his streak of consecutive tournament victories at six. After his win, Mickelson said, “I didn’t want to be the bad guy. I wasn’t trying to end the streak per se. I was just trying to win the golf tournament.” Mickelson also shot a round of 59 at the PGA Grand Slam of Golf at Poipu Bay Golf Course on November 24, 2004. Mickelson was known for his powerful full swing but even more so for his superlative short game, most of all his daring “Phil flop” shot in which a big swing with a high-lofted wedge against a tight lie flies a ball high into the air for a short distance.

Despite these accomplishments, for many years Mickelson was often described as the “best golfer never to win a major.” Mickelson often played well in majors: in the five-year span between 1999 and 2003 he had six second-place or third-place finishes. But victory always eluded him, for reasons that were ascribed to taking too many risky shots, missing too many short putts, or a general lack of what it takes to close out a big tournament. Undaunted, Mickelson continued to refine his game and his course strategy and psychology.

Mickelson shares a record for the most second-place finishes in the U.S. Open with four (along with Bobby Jones, Sam Snead, and Jack Nicklaus).

Three majors
His first major championship win came at the 2004 Masters, where he won with a 20-foot final hole birdie putt, defeating Ernie Els in a Sunday back-nine duel in which the stars traded birdies and eagles back and forth. In addition to getting the “majors monkey” off his back, this made him only the third golfer with a left-handed swing to win a major, the others being New Zealander Sir Bob Charles who won the British Open in 1963 and Canadian Mike Weir who won The Masters in 2003. (Like Mickelson, Weir is a right-hander who plays left-handed.)

Just prior to the 2004 Ryder Cup, Mickelson was dropped from his long standing contract with Titleist/Acushnet Golf when he took heat for a voicemail message he left for a Callaway Golf executive. In it, he praised their driver and golf ball and thanked them for their help in getting some equipment for his brother. This memo was played to all of their salesmen and eventually found its way back to Titleist. He was then let out of his multi-year deal with Titleist 16 months early and signed on with Callaway golf, his equipment sponsor to this day. He endured a great deal of ridicule and scrutiny from the press and fellow Ryder Cup members for his equipment change so close to the crucial Ryder Cup matches. He faltered horribly at the 2004 Ryder Cup going 1-3-0, but refused to blame the sudden change in equipment or his practice methods on his performance.

The following year, in a Monday final round, Mickelson captured his second career major championship with his victory at the 2005 PGA Championship at Baltusrol. On the 18th hole, Mickelson hit one of his trademark soft pitches from deep greenside rough to within a foot and a half of the cup, and then made his birdie to finish at a 4-under-par total of 276, one shot ahead of Steve Elkington and Thomas Bjørn. Mickelson captured his third major championship the following spring by winning the 2006 Masters. He won his second Green Jacket after shooting a 3 under par final round, winning by 2 strokes over his nearest rival Tim Clark. This win propelled him to 2nd place in the Official World Golf Rankings (his career best), behind Tiger Woods and ahead of Vijay Singh and Retief Goosen.

Disaster at Winged Foot
At the 2006 U.S. Open at Winged Foot, Phil finished second to Geoff Ogilvy after one of the most memorable final hole collapses in major championship golf. Leading by a stroke with one hole to play, Phil chose to hit driver on the final (72nd) hole of the tournament, and hit it well left of the fairway. This decision was widely criticized since Mickelson had only hit two of thirteen fairways previously in the round. The ball bounced off a corporate hospitality tent and settled in an area of trampled down grass that was enclosed with trees. Phil decided to aggressively go for the green with his second shot rather than play it safe and pitch out into the fairway. His ball then hit a tree, with the following shot plugging into the greenside bunker. Phil was unable to get up and down from there, resulting in double bogey and costing him any chance of winning the championship outright or getting into a playoff (a bogey would’ve gotten him a playoff with Ogilvy), and also ending his bid to join Ben Hogan and Tiger Woods as the only players to win three consecutive professional majors (he had two heading into Winged Foot).

Reflecting on his performance afterwards Phil admitted: “I still am in shock that I did that. I just can’t believe I did that. I’m such an idiot”.

2006 to present
Demonstrating grace after even the toughest defeats, showing appreciation to legions of his fans and always honoring the traditions and history of the game has made Phil one of the most popular players ever to play on the Tour. During the third round of the 2006 Ford Championship at Doral, Mickelson gave $200 to a spectator after his wayward tee shot at the par-5 10th broke the man’s watch.

Mickelson has also shown other signs of appreciation. In 2007, after hearing the story of retired NFL player Conrad Dobler and his family on ESPN explaining their struggles to pay medical bills, Mickelson volunteered to pay for Conrad’s daughter Holli’s college education at Miami University in Ohio.

His popularity among fellow tour golfers is lower, however, to the point that he ranked eighth on a 2006 GQ Magazine list of the Ten Most Hated Athletes. Colleagues on the Tour refer to Mickelson as “FIGJAM”, which stands for “F*** I’m Good–Just Ask Me”. In his book A Good Walk Spoiled, noted author John Feinstein compared Mickelson’s personality to Eddie Haskell on the classic TV series Leave It to Beaver, in that he may exhibit a polite exterior but in reality is egotistical and rather mean. Sports Illustrated writer Rick Reilly added that “the entire family is like that…when I met his sister, (noted golf columnist) Tina Mickelson, she spoke to me like a kindergarten teacher: very polite and measured.”

Frustrated with his driving accuracy, Phil made the decision in April 2007 to to leave longtime swing coach Rick Smith. He currently works with Butch Harmon, a former coach of Tiger Woods.

On May 13, 2007, Mickelson came from a stroke back on the final round to shoot a three-under 69 to win The Players Championship with an 11-under-par 277. This Mother’s Day win was his first without his wife and children present.

In the 2007 U.S. Open at Oakmont, after shooting 11 over par after 2 rounds, Mickelson missed the cut (by a stroke) for the first time in 31 majors, since the 1999 British Open at Carnoustie. He had been hampered by a wrist injury that was incurred while practicing in the thick rough at Oakmont a few weeks before the tournament.

Phil and his wife, Amy, were married on November 16, 1996. The couple have three children - Amanda, Sophia, and Evan.

On September 3, 2007, Mickelson won the Deutsche Bank Championship which is the second FedEx Cup playoff event. On the final day he was paired with Tiger Woods who ended up finishing 2 strokes behind Mickelson in a tie for second. It was the first time Mickelson was able to best Woods while paired together on the final day of a tournament. The next day Mickelson announced that he would not be competing in the third FedEx Cup playoff event. His withdrawal stemmed from a disagreement with PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem over issues Mickelson would not explain.

Mickelson has spent over 500 weeks in the top-10 of the Official World Golf Rankings, the most by anyone not to be ranked number one.

Amateur wins (7)
1981 Junior World Golf Championships (Boys 9-10)
1989 NCAA Division I Championship
1990 NCAA Division I Championship, U.S. Amateur, Porter Cup
1991 Western Amateur
1992 NCAA Division I Championship

PGA Tour wins (33)
Major Championships (3)
FedEx Cup Event (1)
Other PGA Tour (29)

Other wins (7)
1993 Tournoi Perrier Paris (Challenge Tour)
1997 Wendy’s 3-Tour Challenge (with Fred Couples and Tom Lehman)
2000 Wendy’s 3-Tour Challenge (with Notah Begay III and Rocco Mediate)
2001 Tylenol Par-3 Shootout at Treetops Resort
2004 Telus Skins Game, PGA Grand Slam of Golf
2007 HSBC Champions (co-sanctioned by European Tour, Asian Tour, Sunshine Tour and PGA Tour of Australasia)

Major Championships

Wins
Year Championship
2004 The Masters
2005 PGA Championship
2006 The Masters

Note: Mickelson won as an amateur in 1991 and therefore did not receive any prize money.
Being a very popular golfer as well as a successful one, Mickelson is able to earn far more from endorsements than he does in prize money. In 2004, Forbes estimated his annual income at $20 million.

United States national team appearances
Amateur

Walker Cup: 1989, 1991 (winners)
Eisenhower Trophy: 1990

Professional
Presidents Cup: 1994 (winners), 1996 (winners), 1998, 2000 (winners), 2003 (tie), 2005 (winners), 2007 (winners)
Ryder Cup: 1995, 1997, 1999 (winners), 2002, 2004, 2006
Alfred Dunhill Cup: 1996 (winners)

Equipment
As of the 2007 Players Championship

Driver: Callaway FT-5 (8.5 degree)
Fairway Wood: Callaway X Tour (13 degree)
Hybrids: Callaway 2H X and 4H X (18 and 21 degrees)
Irons: Callaway Roger Cleveland Prototype Blades (5-PW)
Wedges: Callaway X-Tour (50, 55, 60)
Putter: Odyssey White Hot XG #9

One of the hottest destinations figuring in almost every golf package, The Valley of the Sun is the undoubted golf capital of the American Southwest. With close to 200 courses, the Valley can make a legitimate claim to being the most golf-rich region in the United States. Each year millions of golfers plan golf tours to this sun-splashed golfing pantheon to test their mettle on desert courses that yield more lost balls than birdies.

Although Scottsdale is where most golf travel begins, Tucson has pulled up its socks and offers true desert golf to entice the golf vacation population. Case in point is the Starr Pass Golf Club in Pima County. An 18-hole Bob Cupp design, Starr Pass opened in 1985 and has been attracting hundreds of golf holiday makers each year for its year-round impeccable greens and a tricky layout that demands a skilful golfer. Youd be parting with $100 to $250 from your golf vacation budget for a days play at Starr Pass but we think it’s worth it.

Some of the best public courses in Tucson like the Robert Trent Jr. designed The Arizona National Golf Club came up in the late 1990s and are still figuring top of most golf packages. Carved out of the Santa Catalina Mountains, the rugged natural terrain dictates every hole on this course and elevation changes offer stunning views of the town. Green fees range from $55 to $165 depending on the time of year you plan your golf travel. Other courses your golf tour in Tucson must include are Tom Weiskopf designed Golf Club at Visoto and the Arthur Hills masterpiece, the 6900 yards Heritage Highlands Golf Course.

All that said, it is not an Arizona golf vacation if your golf package does not include Scottsdale. And if your golf travel leads to Scottsdale, spend $275 on the Tom Weiskopf/Jay Morrish designed Troon North Monument ranked in Americas Top 100 by Golf Digest. Both tracks on the course The Pinnacle and The Monument are traditional desert style championship layouts that offer unparalleled challenges at each one of their respective 18-holes. Another Scottsdale showstopper you must include on your golf package is the Grayhawk Golf Club. One of the most enjoyable and testing courses of South west, Grayhawk offers two tracks the Talon and The Raptor. Talon is a 6973 yard par 72 David Graham/ Gary Panks design that would cost a golf tour stop $155 in the coming summer months. Raptor is a daily fee course, easy on the eyes and tough on ball control. A Tom Fazio design, this 18-hole trickster runs to 7,108 yards, par 72 and can make grown men cry.

If you are feeling the pinch of the lack of really affordable golf in the Valley of the Sun, route your golf tour to southern Arizona for some challenging tracks including Torres Blancas, San Ignacio, Canoa Hills and Canoa Ranch. Golf travel moving north in Arizona may not have sensational golf like Phoenix or Scottsdale but a golf holiday maker can rest assured he will see a completely different set of challenges, landscapes, and (for the budget minded) price points.

Mayfair was born in Phoenix, Arizona, and now lives in Scottsdale, Arizona where he plays out of Estrella Mountain Range Golf Club. He went to Arizona State University and won the 1986 U.S. Amateur Public Links and the 1987 U.S. Amateur Championship.

On July 31, 2006, Mayfair was diagnosed with testicular cancer. He had surgery on August 3 and it has been reported that the cancer was contained.

Professional career
Mayfair turned professional in 1988 and has won five events on the PGA Tour, including the 1995 Tour Championship. He has featured in the top 50 of the Official World Golf Rankings. He holds the distinction of being the only player to ever beat Tiger Woods in a playoff on the PGA Tour (1998 Nissan Open).

Amateur wins
1987 Pacific Coast Amateur
1988 Pacific Coast Amateur

PGA Tour wins (5)
1993 (1) Greater Milwaukee Open
1995 (2) Motorola Western Open, The Tour Championship
1998 (2) Nissan Open, Buick Open

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