Trinidad Latin Golf Tournament ends after 50-year run

The Trinidad Latin Golf Tournament was played for the final time this month, closing out a run that began in 1976 and tied the summer event to scholarships for Las Animas County students. For decades, the tournament was more than a weekend on the course: it moved money to local students, brought golfers into Trinidad from across southern Colorado and New Mexico, and kept a long volunteer tradition alive.

That continuity rested on a small chain of organizers and supporters. Orace Vallejos managed the event after his brother Jack, while Ray “JR” Duran helped start the scholarship effort years ago. Franklin D. Azar later carried the tradition forward with a $40,000 donation to the Latin Golf Scholarship Fund, and Rick Torres said he had served on the Latin Golf Scholarship Committee for 20 years. Regina Torres also helped run the tournament and was part of the family labor that kept it going.

The numbers behind the tournament show why its end matters locally. One earlier edition raised money for 10 students. A more recent year donated seven $1,000 scholarships, drew 120 golfers and brought close to $30,000 into the local economy. Those dollars reached beyond the fairways, helping local restaurants, lodging and other businesses that benefited when players and families came to Trinidad.

The event also occupied a regular place on the Trinidad Municipal Golf Course calendar at 1417 Nolan Drive. The course listed the Latin Invitational for June 7-8, 2025, and again for June 13-14, 2026, both as all-day tournaments that could keep public play off the course until rounds were finished. With the final tournament now complete, Trinidad has lost one of its few multi-generational volunteer traditions, a fundraiser that depended on family stewardship, donor backing and a steady stream of golfers to keep scholarship checks coming.