The Waste Management Open has risen in popularity in the last few years. It is known for its crazy atmosphere and raucous fans. The 2024 WM Open may have gotten out of hand, but the focus of the tournament organizers has not. The Waste Management Open has partnered with Peter Millar to turn byproducts from the tournament into merchandise for the next year’s tournament. The goal of the WM Open is to be 100% wasteless, and the results of last year’s tournament were on display this past weekend in Phoenix.
The Process Of Turning Waste Into Fashion
There is a long process for the waste, from the tournament, to get ground up and made into materials that can be made into clothing. But the goal of it is to ensure that all of the byproducts of the tournament are put to good use. According to the WM website, “all of the vendors and partners follow sustainability requirements to make sure that packing, food service, signage, operations, décor, and more can all be used again.” Keeping golf fashion sustainable is important, because according to a Golf Digest, over 95 percent of golf merchandise is made from virgin materials. Meaning that less than 5 percent of the material has been recycled. This initiative is great for the environment and a great reminder that everyone has a role in helping the Earth. It is a big step for golf to become more sustainable. Golf is a sport that relies on nature, and being able to keep nature untainted will go a long way to keeping golf as a sport that people can play for a long time.
WM worked with Peter Millar and Unifi to create something special for the WM Phoenix Open.
The 2024 Waste Management Open Gets Out-Of-Hand
This year’s edition of the Waste Management Open was memorable to say the least. Saturday, the 10th, provided plenty of drama off the course. It was said that around 500,000 people ended up at TPC Scottsdale, causing all kinds of mayhem. Reports stated that security gave up trying to take tickets at the gate, so people with and without tickets began flooding the premises. This inevitably caused a boost in alcohol sales, which then led to the complete halt of alcohol sales when things got out-of-hand. Videos flooded social media with people doing ridiculous things like running onto the course, with one man doing snow angels in the 16th hole bunker. This year’s Waste Management Open was extremely entertaining, albeit a little reckless. With that said, there will certainly be plenty of recycled material from this year’s tournament to continue the sustainability project well into 2025. The question is, what will next year’s Waste Management Open have in store?
