It was a box office hit. It’s beloved by golf and film fans around the world. And here in 2026, “Tin Cup” turns 30. No, for real.
According to IMDB, Tin Cup is only the third best golf movie behind “Caddyshack” and “The Greatest Game Ever Played,” but the one thing Tin Cup has going for it is that it’s the highest grossing golf movie ever made. It was on Aug. 16, 1996, that the film starring Kevin Costner, Rene Russo, Don Johnson and Cheech Marin was released in theaters.
Here are some interesting facts about the movie that you may or may not have already known.
Kevin Costner and Don Johnson in “Tin Cup”.
‘Tin Cup’ in Arizona and Texas
Mostly set in Texas and North Carolina (for the climactic U.S. Open scene) the film was, in fact, shot in a few spots in the Lone Star State but also in Arizona.
Tucson and Tubac, Arizona, as well as Kingwood, Texas, were the primary shooting locations. The fictional U.S. Open in the film was shot at Kingwood’s Deerwood course. Tubac ― population 1,375 ― is about 30 minutes north of the Mexico border and about 90 minutes west of Tombstone, famous for the shootout at the O.K. Corral. Tubac Golf Resort has several commemorative signs for the movie, including the “Tin Cup 3-wood”, where Costner’s Roy McAvoy, while caddying for Don Johnson’s David Simms, drills a second shot over a lake onto the green.
Tubac Golf Resort in Tubac, Arizona.
Famous golfers and golf commentators are in the film
“Tin Cup” features a robust lineup of cameos from former PGA Tour golfers and commentators, including Phil Mickelson, Johnny Miller and Jim Nantz. Others in the film include Gary McCord, Lee Janzen, Peter Jacobsen, Fred Couples, Corey Pavin, Craig Stadler, Jerry Pate, Tommy Armour III, Jeff Maggert and legendary CBS golf producer Frank Chirkinian. Only Happy Gilmore 2 featured a wider variety of golfing cameos.
In the movie, rivals McAvoy and Simms were teammates at the University of Houston, which is tip-of-the-cap to real-life former UH teammates Nantz and Couples.
Gary McCord taught Kevin Costner his golf swing
Costner contributed the foreword in McCord’s book Golf for Dummies, where he wrote about their relationship and how McCord made Costner’s swing look real enough for a feature film.
Tubac Golf Resort in Tubac, Arizona, was the set location for several scenes in the Kevin Costner film Tin Cup.
‘Tin Cup’ at No. 1 at the box office
“Tin Cup” was the No. 1 movie in theaters in its first week of release. Made for about $45 million, it grossed $54 million in the U.S. and about $76 million worldwide, making it the highest-earning golf film. “Caddyshack” is No. 2 at about $40 million.
How the Tin Cup cast came together
Director Ron Shelton had previously worked with Kevin Costner on the beloved baseball movie “Bull Durham.” Costner’s McAvoy character has a romantic interest in Molly Griswold, and that role reportedly was offered to Michelle Pfieffer first, but the filmmakers went with Rene Russo. Dennis Quaid turned down the role of Simms. Pierce Brosnan and Alec Baldwin were also considered before it went to Johnson.
Johnson later confirmed to Golf magazine there were plenty of fun extracirruclars during the making of the film as he and Costner were “both single at the time, so we just played golf and partied.”
Kevin Costner, Rene Russo and Don Johnson in the romantic comedy “Tin Cup”.
Roy McAvoy’s scores at fictional U.S. Open: 83-62-64-78
After taking a 12 on the 18th hole in the movie, holing out from the fairway with the last ball in his bag, Roy McAvoy’s final-round score in the fictional U.S. Open was a 78. He finished at 1-under 287 after posting scores of 83-62-64-78.
The scene where he hits ball after ball into the water actually happened to Gary McCord in the 1986 FedEx St. Jude Classic in Memphis, when he hit five in the water and carded a 16 on the hole to cap a round of 87.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: ‘Tin Cup’ turns 30. Here are 7 fun facts about the Kevin Costner golf movie
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