Remembering Tom Phillips: A Champion of Golf, Integrity, and Generosity

by Troy Andrew, PNGA Executive Director

The region’s golf community lost one of its true gentlemen with the passing of Tom Phillips on March 13, 2026. He was 72. Tom was an accomplished competitor, a passionate supporter of amateur golf, and, above all, a man whose character left a lasting impression on everyone fortunate enough to know him. 

Tom learned to play golf while growing up adjacent to the 17th fairway of Indian Canyon Golf Course in Spokane, and would attend Saint George’s School in Spokane, where he became one of the finest golfers in the school’s storied history. He continued his education at Stanford University before embarking on a successful career as an investment advisor. While his professional accomplishments were significant, golf remained a lifelong passion. 

He won the 2005 Oregon Senior Amateur Championship and the 2008 PNGA Senior Men’s Amateur Championship. He represented Washington on multiple Senior Hudson Cup and Lamey Cup teams, qualified for numerous USGA national championships, including the U.S. Senior Amateur and the 2012 U.S. Senior Open, and was a six-time club champion at Sand Point Country Club in Seattle.  

Yet, those of us who knew Tom and understood what he did behind the scenes would likely tell you that his greatest contribution to the game had little to do with his accomplishments and the trophies he collected. 

For more than two decades, Tom quietly and consistently invested in the future of golf. 

Every year, he generously gave thousands of dollars to support the Washington Junior Golf Association (WJGA), the PNGA’s Patrons of Golf Program, First Tee, and the Washington Golf Foundation. His philanthropy helped provide opportunities for thousands of young golfers, whether through competitive junior programs like the WJGA or by providing affordable access to the game through WA Golf Youth on Course.  

Most recently, he donated funds specifically to strengthen WA Golf’s Rules Education program, helping develop more volunteer Rules Officials for WA Golf and PNGA championships, all while ensuring the game remains strong for future generations and giving countless young people the opportunity to experience and enjoy it. 

Tom was also a man of extraordinary integrity. No story captures that better than one I witnessed firsthand while administering the U.S. Senior Open sectional qualifying in 2007 at Aldarra Golf Club in Sammamish, Wash.  

At the end of the stipulated qualifying round, Tom was tied with Duane Diede and Lon Hinkle after all three competitors posted a 1-over par 72, forcing a sudden death playoff for the two available qualifying spots. 

On the first playoff hole, Tom realized he had grounded his club in a hazard before playing his shot, which at the time was a breach of the Rules of Golf. No one else had seen it. No official called a penalty. But Tom knew he had violated the Rules of Golf, and without hesitation, he called a two-stroke penalty on himself.  

The penalty turned what could have been a par into a double bogey, eliminating him from the playoff and ending his opportunity to qualify for the U.S. Senior Open Championship. Diede and Hinkle both made par to earn the two coveted spots. 

That single act defined Tom Phillips. 

Golf is one of the few sports where competitors are expected to be their own officials. Tom understood that qualifying for a U.S. Senior Open would have been a remarkable accomplishment, but his honesty and respect for the Rules of Golf were unwavering, and his character beyond question.  

And there were other examples consistent with his personal integrity. Again at a U.S. Senior Open sectional qualifying round, this time in 2012, held that year at Cedars at Dungeness in Sequim, Wash., Tom again called a penalty on himself when his ball moved on the 13th green after he had addressed it. Nobody else saw it move, but Tom did, and he didn’t hesitate in assessing himself a one-stroke penalty. This time, however, he still finished as co-medalist in the qualifier despite the penalty and earned himself a spot in that year’s U.S. Senior Open. In the end, good guys do win.  

Over the past couple of months, I have communicated with several of Tom’s friends. While they all admired his remarkable playing ability, they also spoke about his great “dry sense of humor, keen intellect, and steadfast friendship.” 

The game of golf is better because Tom Phillips played it, supported it, and, most importantly, lived its values every single day. His legacy will continue to inspire golfers across the Pacific Northwest for generations to come. 

I will miss our long annual phone calls, Tom. Rest in peace, my friend. 

(Click here to read Tom Phillips’ obituary, published in the Spokesman-Review newspaper.)