Many people these days understand that Mesquite, Nev., located 77 miles north of Las Vegas, has become a mini-golf mecca with quality and quantity of courses. Plus, the gaming destination is also now home to the Mesquite Amateur, one of the largest amateur tournaments in the United States. Overall 2023 Champ Nav Purewal from Aldergrove, B.C., Canada, has been visiting Mesquite for years and enjoys the vibe on and off the courses. –By Brian Hurlburt, www.lasvegasgolfinsider.com
“I love that tournament and this was my 10th time playing in it,” said Purewal, 74, who survived a 6-hole playoff to win the title. “That is one of the tournaments that I look forward to all year. I play in a lot of tournaments here locally, but that one is more of an international sort of tournament. There are hundreds of golfers from around the United States, Canada and the world, and I have made a lot of wonderful friends. Players come from France, Canada, Netherlands, and all kind of different places. I love the Mesquite Amateur for a lot of reasons, but the people I have met make it very special to play in. This year, the playoff was exciting. We played the 18th and first holes over and over three times before I made a par to win. The other guys in the playoff were a lot younger than me, so it was nice to win one for the old guys.”
The Mesquite Amateur celebrated 20 years in 2023 and is anchored at the CasaBlanca Resort and Spa and organized by Mesquite Gaming. There are nightly banquets, many different flights, tee gifts and other prizes, and much more. There were 340 entrants, and event sponsors were Callaway, Adidas, TaylorMade and the Mesquite Resort Association. The tournament was played May 29-June 2.
Stay tuned to the official CasaBlanca and Mesquite Amateur website for information about 2024.
The official tournament features three rounds before the winners from each flight play off to determine the overall champion during a special fourth round.
“This year’s Mesquite Amateur brought a lot of firsts to a storied championship,” said Christian Adderson, CasaBlanca/Virgin River Assistant General Manager and tournament director. “It was our first three-way tie, first six-hole playoff, and first international champion, and definitely most exciting finish ever.”
Purewal was still on cloud nine a week or so after earning the title in that 6-hole playoff that Adderson mentioned. He edged C, Robert Stoner from Sandy, Utah (2nd Place), and Joel Ramsdell from Tremonton, Utah.
“The reason I like the Mesquite Amateur so much is that it is very competitive and you are trying to win your flight to get to the championship round,” Purewal said. “Also, you play three different golf courses and then you play a fourth day/course during the championship round. This year I played The Palms, Coral Canyon and CasaBlanca, and then the CasaBlanca again during the championship round.”
As for Mesquite, in general, Purewal always visits for the Mesquite Amateur but sometimes visits to just play the variety of golf courses. His preferred place to stay is the Virgin River, where he always gets a room overlooking the pool.
“The courses in Mesquite are terrific and playing and staying in Mesquite is an amazing value,” Purewal said. “I can’t wait to get back there and play again soon.”
Purewal is retired and was formerly in the Marina development industry. He designed and built marinas in many locales, including one for the U.S. Coast Guard.
The CasaBlanca is an official partner of LasVegasGolfInsider.com
