Historic Southern Nevada Amateur Dates to 1942

Southern Nevada’s top amateur golfers will be taking aim at the SNGA’s second major of the year, the Southern Nevada Amateur Championship, which is set for June 26-27, 2021, at the Las Vegas Paiute Golf Resort’s Sun Mountain and Snow Mountain courses, both Pete Dye signature layouts. Each year, this event brings history to life. –by Bill Bowman, Las Vegas Golf Insider staff.

The Southern Nevada Amateur was first played back in 1942 in the heyday of golfers like Charlie Teel, one of the best amateur golfers in Vegas history. Teel, a member of the Las Vegas Golf Hall of Fame, set the bar high with 11 victories in this event and prior to becoming a much-noted Las Vegas golf professional.

The inaugural tournament champion was Lt. Paul T. Cook in 1942. Teel’s first win came in 1944.

This is one of those high-profile tournaments that show up nicely on the golf resume.

Just ask Brady Exber, the defending champion. Exber fired rounds of 68-75—143 to win by three strokes last year. It was the 65-year-old’s sixth time winning the crown.

“It’s a great resume-builder, that’s for sure,” he said. “It’s nice when you’re young and can say you’ve won this tournament and you’re looking to go to college. It’s a great one to have.”

And that also goes for the older crowd. After the final round in 2020, Exber admitted he had his doubts.

“I wasn’t sure I would win another one of these,” he said at the time. “There are just so many good players in the field.”

He feels the same way heading into the 2021 event as he says his approach to an event of this magnitude is the same as it’s been throughout his storied career.

“I’ll do my course management plan in advance and try to stick with it,” he said. “If I’m in contention with nine holes to go, I might deviate a little but I will just try to be as consistent as possible.”

That attitude–and his golf talent–led to an amateur career that landed him in the Las Vegas Golf Hall of Fame back in 2006. He’s also a 9-time SNGA player of the year.

Exber, who has won amateur events around the world including the British Senior Amateur in 2014 and Canadian Senior Amateur in 2018, was quick to give a little advice to those up-and-coming players looking to knock him off.

“They just need to know what their course management skills are and stick with them,” he said. “It’s not always easy to do but you’ve got to realize your strengths and use them.”