(AP Photo/Paul Sakuma, File) Despite economic headwinds, New Mexico small business owners are confident in their abilities to manage their businesses through difficult times. According to a new Bank of America study, business owners are feeling pressure around inflation and supply chain issues, but the majority surveyed (76%) feel well-positioned for a strong year ahead. Despite expressing concerns about labor and a potential recession, more than half of business owners reported higher revenue in 2022 than in 2021 and expect revenue to increase during the next 12 months. While small business ..read more

University of New Mexico golfer Bastien Amat, shown in action from last September, is in the U.S. Open field. (Mike Sandoval/For the Journal) Copyright © 2023 Albuquerque Journal Some things are worth the wait. Case in point: UNM golfer Bastien Amat flipped the switch to the tune of 10 strokes in the final round of U.S. Open qualifying with a 6-under-par 65, but finished one stroke out of a playoff. Then, finding out he'd be the first alternate out of the Tacoma qualifier, he went down to California unsure of whether or not he'd actually be playing at Los Angeles Country Club. As he recounte ..read more

Editor's note: This continues the Journal's weekly package through the summer of local golf coverage. For tips or suggestions, email sports@abqjournal.com. Copyright © 2023 Albuquerque Journal It's 8:29 on a cool Tuesday evening and Puerto del Sol is almost out of balls. A taco truck – taco trailer? – whirs outside the pro shop. It's almost out of food too, shuttering its windows maybe 30 minutes later. That'll happen. Mark McFall counted about 60 or so people all hitting balls at the same time. Every conceivable swing, every possible shot flying into the night. All under the same lights. "It ..read more

Belen’s Rylee Salome, foreground, is shown at the 2023 Class 4A state golf championships at Santa Ana Golf Club on Tuesday, May 9, 2023. She won the local Junior PGA qualifier earlier that concluded Tuesday. (Chancey Bush/ Albuquerque Journal) Grady Cox of Rio Communities and Vari Mariscal of Deming qualified for the upcoming boys Junior PGA Championship in Hot Springs, Arkansas, with their performances at the qualifier held Monday-Tuesday at UNM Championship Course. Rylee Salome of Los Lunas and Olivia Zamarripa were the two girls' qualifiers from the event. (Results can be found here.) Cox ..read more

NICK TAYLOR was celebrating one of the great moments in golf history after draining a remarkable 72-foot putt and becoming the first Canadian to win his country's golf championship in 69 years. Then in less than a minute, his accomplishment was upstaged by a security guard mistakenly tackling and body-slamming to the ground fellow countryman Adam Hadwin, who had approached Taylor to celebrate by spraying him with champagne. But the takedown was perfectly executed. Perhaps Danny Gonzales could show a replay to his players, as Lobo football fans haven't seen a tackle like that since the Brian Ur ..read more

The Department of Justice and Independent Monitor mostly applauded the Albuquerque Police Department's progress — while cautioning against complacency in the home stretch — in the latest hearing on its federally-mandated reform efforts. Judge James Browning oversaw a June 6 hearing where major players gave updates and insight into what APD has done, and has left to do, to reach full compliance with the Court Approved Settlement Agreement, known as CASA. The hearing came weeks after the monitor's 17th quarterly report found APD had reached 92% "operational compliance," which tracks whether off ..read more

Well, we sure can't say it isn't happening here. Albuquerque police broke up a cockfighting operation on Sunday and confiscated six fighting roosters, some with razor blades and other lethal attachments. One rooster was dead. Another was severely injured. About 20 people fled when police arrived at the Southeast Albuquerque home. Police said the alleged main organizer, 30-year-old Adolfo Gonzales, will be summoned to court to face cockfighting charges. Eleven other people received citations. Jessica Johnson of Animal Protection New Mexico says the nonprofit has received numerous reports of il ..read more

There's just something a little untoward about seeing judges on the campaign trail. Judges are supposed to be impartial, not part of a slate of party candidates pushing an ideology and soliciting campaign donations. Explaining New Mexico's unusual system of choosing judges can be difficult. In a nutshell, metropolitan, district, Court of Appeals and Supreme Court judges are either elected or are appointed by the governor to fill a vacancy after being vetted and recommended by bipartisan judicial nominating commissions. Elected judges serve full terms. Appointed judges serve at least a full ye ..read more

Nathaniel Bays A man has been arrested in the fatal shooting of a bicyclist in 2020 in an East Central neighborhood. Nathaniel Bays, 24, is charged with an open count of murder, tampering with evidence and conspiracy in the Aug. 21 death of Daniel Collins, 34. Bays was booked into the Metropolitan Detention Center last weekend. It is unclear if he has an attorney. Police responded around 2 a.m. to the shooting in the 11600 block of Buena Ventura, according to a criminal complaint filed in Metropolitan Court. Officers found Collins fatally shot in the road with a bicycle next to him. Police s ..read more

Female wolf 2755, which wildlife advocates have named Asha, seen here at a wolf management facility outside of Socorro. It was a temporary stay. Asha was released back into the wild last week. (Courtesy Mexican Wolf Interagency Field Team) She walked 500 miles across Arizona and New Mexico deserts in search of a mate, turned her nose up at a potential suitor and is now back on the prowl as a single lady in southeastern Arizona. An endangered Mexican gray wolf who roamed out of the species' recovery area to the northern reaches of New Mexico was successfully relocated back to the wild in Ariz ..read more