We have a great location for club fitting. People can come in here and grab a club and take it out to the driving range to try it out. That is unique to this facility. And with big-box retailers, you have simulators but you don’t get to hit off real grass.”

Sun City West Golf Lab operator Dave Arend

By Jennifer Jimenez
Twitter: @SCW_Independent

Concierge service for golf is a hot commodity, and one of the Recreation Centers of Sun City West’s seven golf courses offers just that with professional golf club services by way of the Sun City West Golf LAB.

With the COVID-19 numbers rising in Maricopa County, golfing outdoors is a way to remain active and socialize.

The remodel project at Grandview Golf Course, 14260 W. Meeker Blvd., began earlier this year and as of Oct. 1 the Golf LAB is under new ownership with Dave Arend who operates the Sun City West Golf LAB.

“We have a great location for club fitting. People can come in here and grab a club and take it out to the driving range to try it out. That is unique to this facility. And with big-box retailers, you have simulators but you don’t get to hit off real grass,” Mr. Arend said.

He added the continued relationship with Recreation Centers of Sun City West is great to equip golfers as well as define and develop necessary skills for golfers to play with confidence. According to Mr. Arends, there will be a financial growth for RCSCW officials in relation to the performance of the Golf LAB.

“We offer club fitting, custom club building, new, custom and used club sales and club repair and a simulator,” he explained. “I am trying to capitalize on the custom side of golf and help people understand they are getting something better than expected. This is a different business.”

Mr. Arend’s continued relationships with manufacturers and knowledge about the product helps to bring in the most relevant equipment. He said in February the expectation is to have more equipment available, which was drastically slowed down during the pandemic.

“Golf rounds are up on public courses, and people who have never golfed before are getting into the game since the virus hit,” he explained.

In Sun City West, Mr. Arend said the courses are filled with competitive golfers as well as people new to the area ready to learn the game. The mix includes golfers on the course three to four times per week to those looking for something new to do.

Sun City West resident John Milinovich has been taking lessons from Mr. Arend for the past 10 years and credits Mr. Arend’s knowledge of everything golf related with his improvement.

“I am playing better golf then I did when I was 30 years old and I am now 79,” he said. “I learn a lot from him, and the nice part is he doesn’t try and totally change your swing and start from scratch. He works with what he has and tries to refine you and improve the swing I have.”

Mr. Milinovich said it is more convenient having a complete shop like the Golf LAB in the community that does everything and can take care of the golfer from start to finish. He said the Golf LAB is for new golfers to experienced golfers, and the full service makes it easy to stay home to get it done.

“And they are more involved with the community so that is nice for the local golfers,” he added. “Out here you see retirees striving to get better at their age and when you get out there and start playing with your friends it gets very competitive.”

Golf LAB prices range from $39 to $59 for services such as equipment-base instruction, full game assessment, golf swing instruction, two-person custom lesson plan, skills presentation and skill development. Club fitting ranges from $19 to $59 for services such as consultation, basic club demonstration with a specialist, the “standard” club fitting, the “full bag” fitting, yardage gapping session and loft and lie fitting. Club sales pricing is competitive with all the major golf retailers.

The Golf LAB is open 9 a.m.-5:30 p.m. Monday-Saturday.

Call 623-544-6577.

Reporter Jennifer Jimenez can be reached at jjimenez@newszap.com or follow her on Twitter @SCW_Independent.

Jennifer Jimenez
Reporter | Sun City West
@SCW_Independent

jjimenez@iniusa.org

Meet Jennifer

In 2020, Jennifer Jimenez began working for Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA. She began her career as a sports reporter in Peoria and Glendale, covering the very same schools she used to compete at.  During this time, she also worked for television news, magazines and sports radio stations.

Community: Jennifer is a member of the Hall of Fame at Peoria High School where she graduated in 2001, alongside her father Joe Hernandez. She serves youth soccer players as a pro-trainer and coach.  

Education: Grand Canyon University 2005 B.A. Liberal Arts

Ranom Fact: She has a street named after her in south Peoria “Jennifer Rose Court.”

Hobbies: Country dancing, coaching soccer, teaching private swim lessons and running are things she does for fun.