Arizona Athletics to build new golf facility at Tucson Country Club

The Arizona Wildcats men’s and women’s golf programs are getting a new home.

Arizona Athletics announced Thursday it has reached an agreement to build the William M. “Bill” Clements Golf Center at Tucson Country Club. The athletics department has exceeded the fundraising minimum of $10.5 million of the $14.86 million project.

The facility will be named in honor of philanthropist and community icon Bill Clements who passed away in 1995.

The Clements Golf Center will give Arizona men’s and women’s golf a premiere home facility with a laser-guided putting green, hitting bays, locker rooms, a student-athlete lounge and a medical services room among other amenities.

The facility will feature an indoor-outdoor pavilion that will “flow seamlessly” between indoor and outdoor settings.

“The construction of the William M. “Bill” Clements Golf Center will create a transformational home for our women’s and men’s golf programs as they continue their traditions of excellence on the course, in the classroom and in the community,” said Arizona Athletics Director Dave Heeke. “The student-athletes in our programs have built championship legacies, and this facility will be a tribute to that greatness. The Clements Golf Center will have a generational impact on the student-athletes in our programs, elevate the recruitment of future Wildcats for years to come and grow the longstanding relationship between our athletics department and the tremendous golf community in Southern Arizona. We look forward to our partnership with Tucson Country Club and the development of one of the premiere collegiate golf complexes in the country.”

Former Arizona golfer Jim Furyk and his wife Tabitha are among significant donors to the facility. Other major donors include the Clements Family, the Peter and Nancy Salter Family Foundation, Thunderbirds Charities, Humberto and Czarina Lopez, Jim and Vicki Click, Tim and Jane Garigan, Brian and Kris Hogan as well as Thomas and Joanne Quebedeaux.

The announcement of the new facility comes a day before Arizona men’s golf competes at the NCAA Championships.

Men’s golf coach Jim Anderson said the facility will “greatly enhance every facet of the Arizona golf programs.”

“The experience of golf student-athletes at the University of Arizona will be elevated with a world-class facility to practice, train, study and call home,” Anderson said. “This facility will have an everlasting impact on recruiting future Wildcats and developing student-athletes into champions. The Clements Golf Center epitomizes the excellence of our university, athletics department and Tucson golf community.”

The facility should improve Arizona’s ability to recruit elite players, women’s golf coach Laura Ianello said.

“Our new home facility is a gamechanger for both golf programs at the University of Arizona,” said Ianello. “I am so thankful for the generosity of everyone who supported this important project. The powerful philanthropy of our donors and the Tucson golf community has created a home for future generations of Wildcat golfers to achieve their dreams and graduate as Wildcats for life. The Clements Golf Center is crucial to our ability to recruit future champions from across the country and around the globe while providing a state-of-the-art space for Wildcats to grow and develop as golfers and as students.”

Arizona’s golf programs are currently based out of Sewailo Golf Club. Arizona Athletics expects to break ground on the new golf facility this summer and will continue to fundraise towards its completion.