Big names rise to task at $20M Open
The PGA Tour’s first full-field designated event is working pretty much as planned.
World No. 1 Rory McIlroy — who admitted after Thursday’s first round: “I wouldn’t say that this is a golf course that sets up terribly well for me. I struggle off the tee here.” — was never really in contention while a couple big names failed to make the cut — Patrick Cantlay, Collin Morikawa — but all in all, the formula of gathering most of the top players in the world and have them duke it out has worked.
No doubt, the best names in the game came to play at TPC Scottsdale this week.
The event started with 22 of the top 25 players in the Official World Golf Ranking in the field and 20 of those made the cut, many of them floating near the top of the leaderboard.
A Thursday frost delay led to a Saturday completion of the second round, but after three rounds, the leaderboard is stacked with big names, setting up a thrilling Sunday race to the finish line:
Defending champion Scottie Scheffler, who broke through for his first Tour win here a year ago, posted a 64 on Friday to get to 10 under. If he wins, he’ll be the ninth golfer to defend his title and just the first to go back-to-back at TPC Scottsdale. Hideki Matsuyama won in 2016 and 2017.
Adam Hadwin finished off his second-round 66 on Saturday to also get to 10 under. If he were to win, he become just the second Canadian to win the Phoenix Open since George Knudson
did so in 1968. Fellow Canadian Nick Taylor, who shared the first-round lead by Hadwin, is also in great position to
get a win this week.
Jon Rahm, after opening with scores of 68-66, was among three heavyweights at 8 under and tied for second after 36 holes. He PGA Tourleading cuts made streak goes to 23. Rahm has not finished worse than tied for 16th in the event. His best finish, a tie for fifth, came in 2015 when he was an amateur and an Arizona State golfer.
Xander Schauffele, who has finished in the top 20 in all five of his appearances at the tournament, including T-2 and T-3 the last two years, opened with a pair of 67s and is poised, at a minimum, to keep his top-20 streak at TPC Scottsdale alive for another year.
Jordan Spieth opened with a 71 but shot the round of the week so far through two rounds with a 63. It was just two years ago he torched TPC Scottsdale for a 61. He has three top-10s in six starts here.
Jason Day and Rickie Fowler have reemerged this week as contenders. Fowler, the winner of the 2019 Phoenix Open, fell to No. 160 in the world late last year. Day has also shown progress this season, recording six top-25 finishes in eight starts and twice has been in the top 10, lifting him back inside the top 100 in the world at No. 91 as of this week.
Max Homa and Tony Finau are both lurking. In 2020, the two famously wore Kobe Bryant’s jersey while playing the 16th hole to honor the fallen Lakers star, who died just a few days before the event
The first full-field event started with 134 players vying for a $20 million purse and a $3.6 million first-place prize and most of the top golfers held form, creating a stacked leaderboard for Super Bowl Sunday.
Gentlemen, start your engines.