Chris Paul, Devin Booker talk golf at WM Phoenix Open luncheon

PHOENIX — When the Phoenix Suns schedule comes out each August, Devin Booker looks for a few dates. Among them are the four days of the WM Phoenix Open each winter.

Typically, the timing doesn’t work out. Even if the Suns are in town during tournament week, the demands of the NBA games make attending a midseason golf tournament difficult. This season, though, fell into place. The team plays at Indiana on Friday, Feb. 10, which is the day of the second round of the golf tournament, but then the Suns have three days off before a home date with the Kings on Feb. 14.

So for the third and final rounds on the weekend, Booker and Chris Paul will be at TPC Scottsdale, watching and enjoying the spectacle with hundreds of thousands of fans.

“I’m excited about it,” Booker said a little more than 12 hours after he scored 51 points against the Chicago Bulls. “Most of the time, we’ve been out of town. A couple times, we’ve gotten to experience it. Just the atmosphere.”

Booker spoke Thursday on a stage at Chase Field for the WM Phoenix Open Tee-Off Luncheon. Because he and Paul will be in attendance at the tournament, they were the luncheon’s featured guests — a list that has previously included the likes of Michael Phelps and Larry Fitzgerald.

Early in the session, which was conducted by Arizona Diamondbacks president and CEO Derrick Hall, the two spoke of their shared love of golf.

Paul, for his part, first played the game at TPC Scottsdale, when he was in town for the 2009 NBA All-Star Game. Prior to that visit, his trips to Phoenix had always been in and out. But being in town for a few days with minimal basketball commitments, he was able to get out and play 18 holes. More than a decade later, the weather and golf he experienced on that trip were ancillary factors in his decision to come to Phoenix — one that, admittedly, centered more around Booker and the team’s ability to contend for titles.

Booker found the game later, in part due to entering the NBA a decade after Paul. So Thursday, when Hall asked Paul if he’s a better golfer, the point guard didn’t hesitate.

“Mr. Booker can tell you what happened last time we played,” Paul said. “…but the answer to your question is yes.”

For much of their…