{"id":80606,"date":"2026-10-28T15:55:23","date_gmt":"2026-10-28T20:55:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/2026\/10\/28\/dem-ags-too-many-golf-courses-remark-goes-viral-as-critics-tee-off\/"},"modified":"2026-10-28T15:55:23","modified_gmt":"2026-10-28T20:55:23","slug":"dem-ags-too-many-golf-courses-remark-goes-viral-as-critics-tee-off","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/2026\/10\/28\/dem-ags-too-many-golf-courses-remark-goes-viral-as-critics-tee-off\/","title":{"rendered":"Dem AG\u2019s \u2018too many golf courses\u2019 remark goes viral as critics tee off"},"content":{"rendered":"

Arizona\u2019s Senate president took aim at viral comments about the future of golf<\/a> from the state\u2019s Democratic attorney general as their battle to be the state\u2019s top law enforcement officer entered its final stretch before next week\u2019s midterm elections.<\/p>\n

A remark about potentially restricting golf courses<\/a> and the Grand Canyon State having “too much grass” turned a debate over water conservation into a campaign flashpoint, with Sen. Warren Petersen accusing Attorney General Kris Mayes of targeting a multibillion-dollar industry in the desert state while Mayes later insisted her remarks were taken out of context.<\/p>\n

“Kris Mayes thinks Arizona has too many golf courses. I think Arizona has too many radical politicians who believe government should dictate which industries get to thrive,” Petersen, R-Maricopa, told Fox News Digital Tuesday.<\/p>\n

100 DAYS UNTIL MIDTERMS AND DEMOCRATS ARE WINNING BECAUSE THEY ACTUALLY HAVE A MESSAGE<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

“Our golf courses support jobs, tourism, small businesses and communities across this state. Instead of attacking an industry that contributes to our economy, the attorney general should be focused on enforcing the law, protecting consumers and defending Arizona families.”<\/p>\n

In an interview with Politico delving into the data center debate<\/a> and whether the proliferation of water-intensive buildings is wise, particularly in an arid state, Mayes cited neighboring states allegedly “backed by” the Trump administration as hindrances to Arizona\u2019s local supply.<\/p>\n

Mayes’ golf course remarks came shortly after she warned that Arizona was headed toward a potential Supreme Court showdown over Colorado River water supplies<\/a>.<\/p>\n

“We could do a hell of a lot more when it comes to conservation,” she said, citing tax incentives for catchment and removal of lawns.<\/p>\n

GRAND CANYON WATER PIPELINE DAMAGED AGAIN AS FLOODING COMPLICATES REPAIRS<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

“We have way, way too much grass in Arizona. We probably, frankly \u2014 and I’m sure the golf industry is not going to like this when I say this \u2014 we probably have too many golf courses in Arizona right now.”<\/p>\n

That remark sparked blowback from Petersen and many others.<\/p>\n

“We don\u2019t have a golf course problem in Arizona. We have a dumocrat (sic) problem in Arizona,” quipped Rep. Eli Crane, R-Ariz.<\/p>\n

“Kris Mayes is promising to get rid of golf courses. I promise to get rid of Kris Mayes,” Petersen added in his own tweet.<\/p>\n

E-procurement software CEO Tom Spengler added that Arizona “honestly need[s] more golf courses.”<\/p>\n

“Tee times are very hard to get and rates have doubled or tripled since COVID,” he said.<\/p>\n

“We have too much grass \u2014 said no one ever, other than Kris Mayes,” added Turning Point USA executive Justin Streiff.<\/p>\n

Arizona\u2019s business community also took notice, and Arizona Chamber of Commerce Vice President Courtney Coolidge responded to Mayes with several statistics about golf\u2019s impact on the state.<\/p>\n

Coolidge reported a $6 billion economic impact, 66,000 jobs, $2.3 billion in wages and $520 million in tax revenue. Most relevant to the water debate, she said golf courses collectively use 2% or less of the state\u2019s water resources.<\/p>\n

Those stats also lined up closely with separate figures in a 2023 study by the Arizona Alliance for Golf<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Popular golf satire site PGA Tuor shared a clip of Mayes\u2019 comments, writing, “How to not get re-elected 101.”<\/p>\n

Another putting enthusiast said<\/a> Mayes\u2019 comments cost her his vote, saying, “[She] has no idea what the economic impact golf has on our entire state.”<\/p>\n

Fox News Digital reached out to Mayes for comment on the viral nature and content of her remarks.<\/p>\n

The Democrat separately tweeted that she was intending to make a larger point about water usage.<\/p>\n

“Relax, nobody’s closing golf courses,” Mayes said.<\/p>\n

“My point is we need incentives to help all Arizonans and major industries swap thirsty grass and catch rainwater, especially if our water situation gets worse \u2014 while I take on the foreign mega-farms and data centers draining our water.”<\/p>\n

She then accused Petersen of spreading “false claims.”<\/p>\n

SIGN UP TO GET THE POLITICS NEWSLETTER<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

But Mayes\u2019 response was also met with ridicule. X critics called it “condescending” while one also quipped, “you relax \u2013 we all heard you.” Others characterized her stated approach toward the golf industry as “communist.”<\/p>\n

With Election Day<\/a> just days away, Petersen is betting the controversy will resonate beyond the fairways, casting Mayes’ remarks as part of a larger dispute over government intervention in Arizona’s economy as Republicans seek to regain control of a state government they once reliably held.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Arizona\u2019s Senate president took aim at viral comments about the future of golf from the state\u2019s Democratic attorney general as their battle to be the state\u2019s top law enforcement officer entered its final stretch before next week\u2019s midterm elections. A remark about potentially restricting golf courses and the Grand Canyon State having “too much grass” … Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-80606","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80606","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=80606"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80606\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=80606"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=80606"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news2shorts.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=80606"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}