J A, Author at BDG Sports

Las Vegas Korn Ferry Tour pros make moves ahead of next week’s MGM Resorts Championship at Paiute

LAS VEGAS – David Lipsky, who calls Las Vegas home, shot a 3-under 67 in the final round of the Emerald Coast Classic last week to force a playoff before a bogey on the first playoff hole ended his day with a second-place finish.Lipsky, who hails from Los Angeles and played his collegiate golf at Northwestern, will be among the favorites when the Korn Ferry Tour makes its next stop April 15-18 at the inaugural MGM Resorts Championship at Paiute. Lipsky, who plays locally primarily at TPC Summerlin, TPC Las Vegas and Shadow Creek, is one of seven players on the Korn Ferry Tour that resides in Las Vegas.

Lipsky said, “It’s great. I’m playing well and I’m in a good spot on the points list. It’s going to be a nice home event. I don’t think I’ve experienced that before, so I’m looking forward to sleeping in my own bed next week. I think we’ll have a little bit of an advantage as locals, but I think it will be more because of the elevation than the desert golf. I think I’ll have a bit of an advantage with just knowing the distances, altitude and ball flight.“

His second-place finish in Sandestin, Fla. moved him up six spots to No. 8 on the Tour’s regular-season points list. Fellow Vegas pro and former UNLV Rebel Taylor Montgomery held firm at 17^th in the points standings. The Top 25 at the end of this summer’s regular season earn their PGA TOUR card for the 2021-22 season. An additional 25 cards will be awarded following the Korn Ferry Tour playoffs.

As many as seven professionals in the field call Las Vegas home now, including former UNLV golfers Harry Hall and John Oda, Alex Kang, Alex Cejka and Alex Prugh, who finds himself as an alternate for next week’s event. They will be part of a full field of 156 professionals, battling for a $600,000 purse with $108,000 going to the winner. The four-day tournament will be played on Paiute’s Sun Mountain Course, a 7,112-yard, par-72 desert course located just 25 minutes from the world-famous Las Vegas Strip. Paiute has played host to the World Series of Golf, the World Long Drive Championships and the ESPN Golf Challenge, but never a professional tour event.

Josh Franklin, Tournament Director, said, “It adds a welcomed local flavor to a tournament when you have familiar names like David and Taylor playing well coming into their own hometown event. Las Vegas continues to build its golf reputation, and having locals that are this talented is a tribute to the exceptional golf talent being produced, and attracted to, this golf destination.”

Due to local COVID restrictions, limited tickets are available for the tournament. The tickets, priced at $100 daily for the four tournament rounds on Thursday-Sunday, are available at www.mgmresortschampionship.com. The first 100 guests that purchase tickets also will receive a tournament-logo tailgating chair upon entry which can be used at the course to watch the action.

An enhanced Pro-Am experience will precede the tournament rounds. The Official Pro-Am will be played on the tournament course Wednesday, April 14 and an off-site Pro-Am will be held at Southern Highlands Golf Club Tuesday, April 13. Participants in each Pro-Am will play alongside Korn Ferry Tour pros and receive premium gifting packages each day.

Wednesday’s Pro-Am at Paiute will be star-studded with sports celebrities joining the Korn Ferry Tour pros. Baseball Hall of Famer Ken Griffey, Jr., new UNLV men’s basketball coach Kevin Kruger as well as former UNLV and Oklahoma coach Lon Kruger are slated to participate.

Parties interested in securing one of the few remaining Pro-Am positions at both Paiute and Southern Highlands can contact Tournament Director Josh Franklin at 859.494.3932 or [email protected]. Complete tournament information can be found at www.mgmresortschampionship.com or on social media at @MGMResortsChamp.

Pro-Am Charity Auctions Featuring Derek Carr, Hunter Renfrow & Mark McMillian

Las Vegas Raiders quarterback Derek Carr is auctioning off two playing positions alongside himself, wide receiver Hunter Renfrow and a Korn Ferry Tour pro in the tournament’s “unofficial pro-am” at Southern Highlands. The package includes food and drinks and premium gift packages for both participants. Bidding runs through this weekend and the auction can be found at https://go.memberforaday.co/raiders. Proceeds from the auction benefit Valley Children’s Hospital.

A second auction ended earlier this week to play alongside former NFL veteran, Emmy Award-winner and local media personality Mark McMillian. The auction winners will receive three playing positions in the Official Pro-Am on Wednesday, April 14 at Paiute with proceeds benefitting the Southern Nevada Junior Golf Association.

Volunteer Information

A limited number of volunteer positions are available for the MGM Resorts Championship at Paiute. The $70 registration fee includes the official volunteer uniform (Greg Norman Collection polo shirt and pullover and Nike hat), meals on the days of service, on-site parking pass, one round of golf at Las Vegas Paiute Golf Resort (post-event; blackout dates may apply) and additional tournament merchandise available for purchase at 25% off retail.

Volunteers are critical to the success of Korn Ferry Tour events and tournament roles available include walking scorers, on-course marshals, shuttle drivers, practice area/range and parking/admissions.

Volunteer registration is available at www.mgmresortschampionship.com/volunteers.

Media Credentials

Media members can apply now for credentials for the tournament. Credentials only allow access to the grounds for the tournament. Any access to players must be coordinated through Preston Smith with the Korn Ferry Tour.

The Media credential application is available at https://mgmresortschampionship.com/mediaregistration/.

Arizona, Michigan, Wichita State & UNLV headline 2021 Roman Main Event in Las Vegas

LAS VEGAS – Ask any Michigan fan the final refrain to the school’s iconic fight song and the response will most certainly include “Hail! Hail! To Michigan, the champions of the West!” Those words may very well ring true when Coach Juwan Howard leads his No. 4-ranked Wolverines west next season to Las Vegas for the first time in more than 25 years for the Roman Main Event. The four-team tournament, played on November 19 – 21 at T-Mobile Arena, features hometown team UNLV, Arizona and Wichita State in addition to Michigan.

“We are always looking to challenge ourselves during the non-conference to prepare us for the Big Ten,” said Howard. “The Roman Main Event is not only going to be a fun and exciting environment; it is going to give all four teams the opportunity to really test themselves early on in November.”

Since launching in 2014, the Roman Main Event has blossomed into one of the premier early season tournaments in college basketball. And for 2021, the event welcomes a new title sponsor in Roman, the digital health clinic for men that brings the care of leading providers to the privacy of one’s home

“We are thrilled to welcome Roman on board as our new title sponsor,” said Brooks Downing, President and CEO of bdG Sports, the event owner and operator. “As this tournament has matured into one of the best early season events in all of college basketball, our partners at Roman recognized the value in the high-quality teams we’ve been able to attract to our destination location in Las Vegas.”

“We’re proud to come back to the MGM as a title sponsor and support an important program, Coaches vs Cancer,” said Rob Schutz, Cofounder and Chief Growth Officer of Ro, which powers Roman. “Roman’s mission is to make high-quality healthcare accessible and convenient for people across America, and often that starts with awareness and education. Supporting the efforts of the American Cancer Society and the NABC to raise awareness for cancer will help millions of people take action to reduce their cancer risk and manage their health better.”

Michigan is expected to once again be a Top 5 program next season with two Top 10 incoming freshmen (No. 7 Caleb Houston and No. 8 Moussa Diabate). Michigan currently sits at 19-3 and earned the regular season Big Ten Championship.

UNLV will look to win its second Main Event championship belt after taking the tournament title in 2017.

UNLV men’s basketball head coach T.J. Otzelberger said, “We are looking forward to competing in next season’s Main Event. The field is tremendous, and we feel fortunate that it is right here in our own backyard at T-Mobile Arena.”

Wichita State has been one of the surprise programs of the college basketball season this year. After a tumultuous off-season, the Shockers currently sit at 15-4 and won the regular season American Athletic Conference title. Interim coach Isaac Brown earned the permanent promotion to head coach three weeks ago and has a program that critics expect will make a deep run this postseason.

Arizona, 17-9 this season, rounds out the field. The Wildcats’ fan base, one of the best in college basketball, is no stranger to Vegas as ‘Zona fans regularly pack T-Mobile Arena for the Pac-12 Basketball Tournament. Coach Sean Miller’s squad boasted 11 freshmen and sophomores this year and is expected to contend for a Pac-12 title next season.

Tickets for the two-day tournament start at $29 per day and two-day packages are available starting at $49 (prices are inclusive of tax and facility fee). Tickets can be purchased at www.tmobilearena.com or www.axs.com. First-round games will be played Friday, Nov. 19 with the consolation and championship games tipping Sunday, Nov. 21. Tickets will allow access to both games on the given day. Pairings and game times will be announced soon and the event will be nationally televised.

The tournament benefits Coaches vs. Cancer, an initiative spearheaded by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (www.nabc.com) and the American Cancer Society (www.cancer.org). Veteran Las Vegas promoter bdG Sports is managing the event, as well as Duke vs. Gonzaga on November 26 at T-Mobile Arena. Other bdG properties in Las Vegas include the Korn Ferry Tour’s MGM Resorts Championship at Paiute in April.

Complete tournament information can be found at www.romanmainevent.com and on social media at @VegasMainEvent. Tournament hotel rates are available now via the website. Rates are available for ARIA, Park MGM, MGM Grand and New York-New York. All resorts are a short walking distance to T-Mobile Arena.

November heavyweight bout pits Duke vs. Gonzaga at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas Friday, Nov. 26, 2021

LAS VEGAS – Las Vegas is the home to some of the biggest matches of all-time – Tyson vs. Holyfield, Sugar Ray vs. “Hit Man” Hearns and Mayweather vs. McGregor, among others – but this November, no game in all of college basketball will rival the heavyweight battle between Duke and Gonzaga. The two programs will meet for a 2021 – 2022 season matchup on Friday, Nov. 26, 2021 at T-Mobile Arena.

Current No. 1 Gonzaga sits at 24-0 having not lost a game in more than a calendar year. The Bulldogs are looking to win their eighth WCC Tournament title in the past nine years when they begin play in the league tournament on Monday, March 8. Since beating a top-ranked Duke squad in the championship game of the 2018 Maui Invitational, Gonzaga has been arguably the best team in college basketball compiling an 82-6 record, finishing the 2019 regular season as the top-ranked team in the country and being ranked No. 2 nationally when the season was abruptly canceled last year due to COVID-19.

“We have nothing but the utmost respect for Coach K and Duke,” said Gonzaga head coach Mark Few. “We look forward to playing in an exciting event in a world-class facility, that will get the focus to college basketball between two great teams early in the season.”

Duke returns to Las Vegas for the first time since selling out T-Mobile Arena in the venue’s first college basketball game when the Blue Devils beat UNLV before a standing-room-only crowd of 19,107 fans. Coach Mike Krzyzewski’s squad will be bolstered by two McDonald’s All-Americans and top-15 players in the 2021 class (No. 3 Paolo Banchero and No. 14 A.J. Griffin) as the Blue Devils seek to win the program’s sixth national championship under the Hall of Fame coach. The game marks the first trip to the west coast for Duke since 2017.

“We are excited to play in Las Vegas next season against such a great program,” Krzyzewski said. “We have a tremendous amount of respect for Gonzaga and the program Mark Few has built there. The results speak for themselves. Certainly, this will be a showcase game during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, and we are honored to be part of it.”

Veteran Las Vegas promoter bdG Sports, which annually hosts the Roman Main Event tournament and the Korn Ferry Tour’s MGM Resorts Championship in April, has contracted the marquee matchup.

“This game could be played anywhere, but when you talk about a big-event city, a town whose very definition is ‘entertainment,’ there was no better place in the world to stage this game than Las Vegas,” said Brooks Downing, CEO of bdG Sports. “We fully expect this game to serve as a ‘return to standing-room-only,’ just as it was in ’16 when we hosted Duke-UNLV in T-Mobile Arena. We’re certain this matchup will put this pandemic in the rear-view mirror with a record crowd.”

Tickets range from $39 in the upper level to $169 in the lower level sideline club seats. A limited number of courtside tickets will be available for $299, $499 or $799 depending on the location. Tickets will be on-sale to the public starting Friday, March 12 at 10 a.m. PT and can be purchased at AXS.com or t-mobilearena.com.

For complete information, visit www.dukezags.com or on social media at @VegasMainEvent.

CBSSports.com Court Report: Vegas trying to pull off 10 league tournaments in 10 days

In the past decade Las Vegas has become the busiest hub for conference tournaments. The pandemic isn’t changing that — it’s in fact making it more crowded. After months of speculation over whether or not conference tournaments should happen, or would happen, all 31 leagues are sticking with their initial plans and will hosting bracket play this week and next.

MGM Resorts International named title sponsor of Korn Ferry Tour event at Paiute

LAS VEGAS – MGM Resorts International (www.mgmresorts.com) has agreed to serve as the title sponsor of the Korn Ferry Tour’s first event at Las Vegas Paiute Golf Resort (www.lvpaiutegolf.com) at the tournament’s Media Day on Tuesday. The newly named “MGM Resorts Championship at Paiute” (www.mgmresortschampionship.com) will be played April 15-18 and feature a full field of 156 players who will compete for a $600,000 purse.

“The Korn Ferry Tour has quickly become one of the sport’s leading Tours, providing some of the world’s best golfers the opportunity to qualify for the PGA Tour,” said Lance Evans, MGM Resorts International’s Senior Vice President of Sports & Sponsorships. “The April tournament will showcase why Las Vegas is the leading sports and hospitality destination for championship events.”

Among the announcements at Tuesday’s Media Day were an enhanced Pro-Am experience as part of the tournament week and a limited number of fans for tournament play Thursday through Sunday. The Official Pro-Am will be played on Paiute’s Sun Mountain course on Wednesday, April 14 and an off-site Pro-Am will be held at Southern Highlands Golf Club on Tuesday, April 13. Participants in each Pro-Am will play alongside Korn Ferry Tour pros and receive premium gifting packages each day.

Brooks Downing, CEO of bdG Sports (www.bdglobalsports.com), a global sports management firm operating events in Las Vegas for the past decade, said, “We are excited to welcome our long-time partners at MGM Resorts to the Korn Ferry Tour family as the title sponsor of this tournament. Adding first-class hospitality and lodging on The Strip at MGM Resorts’ properties and a second pro-am day at the exclusive Southern Highlands Golf Club only enhances the premium experience we are offering as part of the MGM Resorts Championship.”

Fans will be in attendance at the tournament. VIP tickets will be available for purchase which include complimentary food and drinks at the course and on-site parking. The tickets, priced at $100 daily for the four tournament rounds on Thursday-Sunday, are available beginning Friday, March 5 at www.mgmresortschampionship.com. Additional options for sponsorship are available which include Pro-Am teams, VIP tickets and access to 18^th green hospitality. All guests will be required to comply with the applicable health and safety regulations as established by local and state authorities for the tournament.

Jeff Reid, General Manager of Las Vegas Paiute Golf Resort, said, “We are extremely excited and humbled to be a part of bringing another world class event to the city of Las Vegas and look forward to watching the next Tour stars tackle the Sun Mountain course in April.”

The MGM Resorts Championship at Paiute is expected to feature a number of Korn Ferry Tour pros with Las Vegas ties. Local members of the Tour, who are competing as a part of a season-long points race to earn one of 25 PGA TOUR cards which has been expanded to include all 2020 and 2021 events in a combined season, include Harry Hall, David Lipsky, Taylor Montgomery and John Oda.

Montgomery, who finished T2 in the LECOM Suncoast Classic two weeks ago, currently sits 14th in the regular-season points standing. His former college teammate at UNLV, John Oda, finished T2 at the Tour’s first event of the 2020, the Bahamas Great Exuma Classic at Sandals Emerald Bay. Lipsky, who resides in Las Vegas after completing his collegiate career at Northwestern, is 10^th in the points standings after winning the TPC San Antonio Challenge and finishing T2 at the WinCo Foods Portland Open. Harry Hall, another UNLV alum, earned Korn Ferry Tour status halfway through the 2020 season but capitalized with three Top-10s in the first nine starts of his career. The top 25 at the end of this summer’s regular season earn their PGA TOUR card for the 2021-22 season. An additional 25 cards will be awarded following the Korn Ferry Tour Finals events.

The field will be tested on the Sun Mountain Course, a 7,112-yard, par-72 desert course located just 25 minutes from the world-famous Las Vegas Strip. Paiute has played host to the World Series of Golf, the World Long Drive Championships and the ESPN Golf Challenge, but never a professional tour event.

Parties interested in sponsorship or participating in the pro-am can contact Tournament Director Josh Franklin at 859.494.3932 or [email protected]. Complete tournament information can be found at www.mgmresortschampionship.com or on social media at @MGMResortsChamp.

Volunteer Information

Volunteer positions are still available for the MGM Resorts Championship at Paiute. The $70 registration fee includes the official volunteer uniform (Greg Norman Collection polo shirt and pullover and Nike hat), meals on the days of service, on-site parking pass, one round of golf at Las Vegas Paiute Golf Resort (post-event; blackout dates may apply) and additional tournament merchandise available for purchase at 25% off retail.

Volunteers are critical to the success of Korn Ferry Tour events, managing functions ranging guest services, pre-course set-up, on-course marshaling, walking scorers, operations, Pro-Am, player registration, locker room, practice facility and much more. In addition to having behind-the-scenes access and the opportunity to be up close and personal with the greatest golfers in the world, volunteers will receive a tournament polo shirt and hat to wear during tournament week, lunch, snacks and drinks at the course and free parking.

Volunteer registration is available at www.mgmresortschampionship.com/volunteers.

Air Force Reserve named title sponsor of Big West Basketball Championships

IRVINE, Calif. – The Big West Conference announced today that Air Force Reserve will serve as the title sponsor of the 2021 Big West Basketball Championships. The conference also released the 2021 Big West Basketball Championships logo.

The 2021 Air Force Reserve Big West Basketball Men’s and Women’s Championships, presented by the Hawaiian Islands, will take place March 9-13 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. All 10 men’s and nine women’s teams will compete in the 45th edition of the tournament on the men’s side and the 37th in women’s play.

“We are proud to welcome Air Force Reserve as the title sponsor of the “Air Force Reserve Big West Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships, presented by The Hawaiian Islands,” BW Commissioner Dan Butterly said. “We look forward to using this platform to promote recruitment and raise awareness of the critical role Air Force Reserve plays in protecting our freedoms at home and abroad. Their support of the Big West Conference will elevate the championship experience for our student-athletes and make this event truly special.”

Air Force Reserve will be incorporated into all marketing and promotional materials including mid-court placement of its logo at the championships. Air Force Reserve will also be prominently featured on the Championship Central pages on BigWest.org and across the Conference’s broadcast, digital and social media platforms in addition to significant in-venue presence at the Championships.

“Being the Title Sponsor of the Big West Basketball Championships is an excellent way for us to share the compelling story of the Air Force Reserve,” said SMSgt Adam Eldard, Chief of Advertising and Marketing for the Air Force Reserve. “Using this national platform to highlight the many benefits of the Air Force Reserve, including College Tuition Assistance, is a terrific way for us to engage with the students and fans of the Big West Conference. To find out more about all the great benefits in the Air Force Reserve we encourage people to go to AFReserve.com.”

Additionally, Air Force Reserve is designated as the presenting sponsor of the Big West team during the Collegiate Esports Invitational. Air Force Reserve will have prominent branding and sponsor recognition in the social media-based promotion of the Invitational, eligible to over 160,000 college students from 11 Big West member institutions to compete.

Air Force Reserve becomes the latest corporate partner of the Big West. Van Wagner manages the Big West’s sponsorship and marketing partners program.

Big West Conference announces move of 2021 Men’s & Women’s Basketball Championships to Las Vegas

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]IRVINE, CA – The Big West Conference announced today it will move the 2021 Big West Conference Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships, presented by Hawai’i Tourism Authority, to the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, March 9-13, 2021.

Due to the cancellation of conference games during the 2020-21 schedule, all 10 men’s and nine women’s teams will compete in the 2021 championship. In prior years, only eight teams qualified for each league tournament.

“We are very appreciative of our partners at Honda Center who agreed to allow us to relocate the Big West Basketball Championships, presented by Hawai’i Tourism Authority, to Las Vegas and the Mandalay Bay Events Center in 2021,” Big West Commissioner Dan Butterly said. “bdG Sports and MGM Resorts International will provide a bubble-like setting that includes significant proactive measures to mitigate the impact of the virus and safeguard the health and safety of all teams competing in the championships.”

The Mandalay Bay Events Center plays host to the WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces, and hosted both the 2019 WNBA All-Star Game as well as the 2020 Pac-12 Women’s Basketball Championship. Mandalay Bay also hosted the NBA G-League Winter Showcase in December 2019.

bdG Sports, in conjunction with MGM Resorts, will assist in managing the championships and administer a comprehensive health and safety plan for the event including use of an on-site medical center conducting both rapid antigen and PCR tests. All student-athletes, coaches and staff will be provided daily screenings and testing in accordance with NCAA recommendations, state and county restrictions, and contact tracing. Competitors also will be able to safely walk from their Mandalay Bay hotel rooms to the venue to compete in the championships without outside contact.

Additional safety protocols include dedicated meeting room space for each team, as well as sanitization of shared spaces such as on-site practice facilities, locker rooms, staff rooms, training areas and scorer’s table surfaces between each use. Team benches will be split into three appropriately distanced rows. Benches, basketballs and shared-use areas, such as media tables, will be sanitized at the start of each day and immediately upon the completion of each game.

“This is a great opportunity to partner with Dan and the Big West Conference for the first time,” said George Kliavkoff, President of Entertainment & Sports for MGM Resorts. “The men’s and women’s teams deliver a high-level of competition to basketball fans nationwide and we believe this will be another step in bringing back events to the Sports and Entertainment Capital of the World.”

All games in the Big West Basketball Championships, presented by Hawai’i Tourism Authority, will be carried on ESPN platforms. All eight women’s contests, as well as the men’s First Round and Quarterfinal games, will appear on ESPN3. The men’s basketball Semifinals and Championship game will be aired on ESPN linear networks.

“Mandalay Bay provides the ideal campus in which to create a safe ‘stay and play’ environment for all 19 Big West teams,” said Brooks Downing, President and CEO of bdG Sports, the company that has managed NCAA basketball games and tournaments in Las Vegas since 2013. “After running two separate bubbles with success in both Las Vegas and Southwest Florida to start the season, we can implement our best practices as well as the same testing and safety protocols to assist Commissioner Butterly and his team at the Big West Conference in delivering two conference champions in March that are ready to move on to the NCAA Tournament.”

The Big West will continue to monitor the COVID-19 situation and the possibility of allowing limited crowds at the event. An official determination on attendance limits, spectator health and safety protocols, and ticket pricing will be made in the near future.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

BIG WEST BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIPS SCHEDULE
10 MEN’S TEAM AND NINE WOMEN’S TEAM FORMAT
(Game Times Subject to Change)

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Tuesday, March 9

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Game 1
Game 2
Game 3