Like Lucius Fox in the R&D Department of Wayne Enterprises, I stood surrounded by screens. Eyeballs bounced from one buzzing broadcast to the next.
Was it sensory overload or was it sports bettors’ Shangri-La?
That was my first thought when I visited the DraftKings Sportsbook at TPC Scottsdale.
Located across the street from the 18th green of the TPC Scottsdale Stadium Course, home to the WM Phoenix Open, the DraftKings Sportsbook opened in October 2023. The 13,000-square-foot facility features more than 2,700 square feet of video walls and screens, 32 betting kiosks and six ticket windows.
Other than an occasional March Madness bracket or Super Bowl boxes, I’m not a sports bettor. I’ve been to a few books but only as a fan of having seemingly every sport within my peripheral vision rather than actually placing wagers.
Such was the case when I entered the DraftKings Sportsbook on a recent assignment in Arizona. After a round at the Stadium Course surrounded by the WM Phoenix Open buildout and a quick shower at the nearby Fairmont Scottsdale Princess, we hopped on a shuttle amid festive families oohing and aahing at the resort’s Christmas attractions. Minutes later, we were at the sportsbook.
Despite the sun being down, endless light emitted from the venue as screen after screen pulsated with sporting events ranging from Iowa-Iowa State women’s basketball to the Ducks-Senators and Warriors-Rockets.
The venue can be divided into four main areas. To the left are elevated private booths with plush couches and chairs that are great for groups. Just past that is the sportsbook floor flanked by betting kiosks and ticket windows. To the right was the large bar/restaurant blanketed with tables and booths and just beyond that was an outdoor patio with plenty of space to play backyard games while keeping a keen eye on any games of interest.
Guests must be 21 or older to enter the wagering lounge and floor inside the sportsbook but guests of all ages can enjoy the restaurant and patio. All in all, the facility features nearly 400 seats throughout the interior and exterior with additional standing room.
“This is a real popular spot for people in the Scottsdale and Phoenix areas because even if you’re not a sports bettor. You can come in, have a drink and get something to eat,” said Johnny Avello, DraftKings Director of Race and Sportsbook Operations. “If you’re a sports bettor, it’s like heaven because you have all the amenities you need and all the screens to watch all the games.”
Unsurprisingly, the sportsbook is busiest on the most popular sports betting events of the year: WM Phoenix Open, Super Bowl, March Madness and the Masters. Last year, Christian McCaffrey and the Super Bowl runner-up San Francisco 49ers were the player and team most bet on while MLB was the sport most popular with bettors.
In 2024, its first full year of operation, the DraftKings Sportsbook served more than 109,000 wings and 12,000 pizzas while pouring more than 18,000 Coors Light drafts and 17,000 Tito’s and sodas.
“If you want that true, post-golf hangout with the guys and have a couple of beers with a burger to watch the game, the sportsbook is a huge addition to the property in those terms,” TPC Scottsdale GM Brad Williams said. “We’ve done a really good job attracting business there on the big sports days but we’re working hard to drive more pre- and post-golf activity to the book, too.”
For the 2025 WM Phoenix Open, the sportsbook doesn’t require a ticket for access on Monday, Tuesday or during Sunday’s final round but daily tickets are required the rest of the week, costing $175 on Wednesday and Thursday and $225 on Friday and Saturday. Tickets include complimentary food, drinks for purchase and general admission access to the tournament.
PGA Tour’s bet on betting
Following the repeal of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) by the Supreme Court in 2018 that permitted legal sports betting in the U.S. on a state-by-state basis, North American sports leagues have gone all-in on the sector as a way to further engage audiences while increasing revenue with new partners.
The PGA Tour took a more strategic approach, learning from other organizations as the sports betting gold rush was off and running. The Tour announced DraftKings as its first of four Official Betting Operators in July 2020.
The Tour brought the Golfbet brand in-house in February 2023 after initially launching it in partnership with The Action Network in 2020. The Tour continues to double down on its betting offerings with the upcoming launch of a live betting stream for six events this year on PGA Tour Live on ESPN+ beginning with the WM Phoenix Open.
Certainly bullish on betting, the Tour and its partners see golf as a perfect sport for wagering given its oft-criticized pace of play which offers bettors the ability to place wagers between shots rather than simply picking a pre-tournament winner as in the past.
“It can be quite boring if you’re just betting a golfer to win, betting closes, then you have to wait four days, especially if he’s out of (contention),” Avello said. “Doing it with all these options we have, it gives people a chance to re-up and get in new bets. Where they would have been out, now they’re back in again. … We’ve learned to keep people engaged in the game.”
While the Tour—and other sports leagues and properties—are well aware of the value of sports betting, figuring out how to engage fans, particularly given the state-by-state rules and regulatory complexities, remains a priority.
PGA Tour Vice-President of Gaming Scott Warfield previously told me it would be “quite challenging” for the Tour to attempt to recreate the DraftKings Sportsbook at TPC Scottsdale elsewhere on the schedule but never say never.
“That one was such a unicorn and such a perfect storm,” Warfield said. “… The stars would have to line up again and right now there’s nothing on the docket to replicate that because it’s just such a unique beast out there in Scottsdale.”
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