LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Preparations are underway at the Pleasant Valley Country Club in Little Rock as crews get ready to welcome a group of professional golfers to the course.
Last September, Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders announced that the PGA Tour Champions tournament would be coming to the capital city this fall. Now, we're just a little over a month away from the big event.
Associate Tournament Director for Simmons Bank Championship, Caley Beacham, explained how they've been prepping the course at the country club ever since the day the announcement was made.
"We have structures on the property for hospitality guests, which we're planning to host about 450 here every day," Beacham described.
Those numbers don't include all the vendors that will also be making their way to the capital city. Beacham said that they're expecting about 40 vendors as of right now, and a full staff of volunteers.
"Most people don't really realize all the volunteers that are required to make a golf tournament happen. So, we've got about 900 of those on our team working all positions," Beacham added.
Pleasant Valley Country Club General Manager, Michael Auerbach, shared that the club itself has also been doing touch-ups to prepare ahead of the event.
"We're just finishing up with our clubhouse, getting ready to move in. There's all kinds of stuff going on everywhere you look around here these days," Auerbach said.
Despite all the work going on, both Auerbach and Beacham said it's an exciting time at the course and that it's also a great opportunity for Little Rock.
"The time is getting closer and it's generating a lot of excitement not only for our community but the members here at Pleasant Valley," Auerbach explained.
The PGA TOUR Champions tournament will debut in Little Rock on October 21-27, 2024.
For information on where to find tickets, please click here.