PHOENIX OPEN: Professional golf has been accused of taking itself too seriously at times, but I’m guessing the people who say that have never been to the Phoenix Open, a 4-day drunkfest disguised as a golf tournament in which the normal rules of spectator decorum are, shall we say, somewhat relaxed.
This is the week when tech bros in sunglasses and hip-hugging khaki shorts down eleven White Claws and get to verbally harass old American Ryder Cuppers and loudly remind them of their failures. Predictably, that sort of thing has made this event somewhat controversial with the players, with several speaking out over the past couple of years and saying things have gone “too far”, the tournament organizers have lost control, etc. Most casual fans view the over-the-top fan behavior as a breath of fresh air, however, and many players embrace the atmosphere and have fun with it.
No longer a big-money Designated Event, this tournament returns to its roots this week as an ordinary Tour event, complete with a 132-man field, 2-round cut, and plenty of unproven young guys and crusty old journeymen in attendance. Fifteen of the world’s top 30 players won’t be here this week, but the man himself — World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler — is teeing it up and is the clear favorite, currently trading at a stunningly short price (3.9) on the BETDAQ exchange due to a history in this tournament that includes back-to-back victories in ’22 and ’23 and a T3 last year. As always, it will be tough to bet against him.
The course, the Stadium Course at TPC Scottsdale, has played host to this event since 1987 and has changed very little over the years, which is a credit to the Tom Weiskopf/ Jay Morrish design. A par-71 that measures 7,261 yards, it’s a “grip it and rip it” type of track that tempts the longer players to challenge fairway bunkers and the native desert vegetation. If the bombers are swinging the driver well the course turns into a wedge-fest, so we always see plenty of low numbers here and a winning score in the 15-20 under range. That said, the course is visually striking and has reliably churned out close, exciting finishes over the years.
Here are three players who I think may be worth a look this week:
WIN MARKET
Recommendations to BACK (odds in parenthesis)
Sung-Jae Im (27.0)- Im is off to a good start this season, with a pair of top-5 finishes in the month of January, the most recent coming at the Farmers Insurance Open two weeks ago, where he finished 4th. An aggressive player who ranked 11th on the PGA Tour in total birdies last year, Im is always dangerous on Green Light Special courses like TPC Scottsdale, and indeed he has a nice history at this tournament which includes two top-10s and three top-20s in five career appearances, with his best finish being a T6 in 2023. His stats are excellent so far this season, as he ranks in the top-20 on Tour in both total strokes gained and strokes gained putting, so he seems to be firing on all cylinders right now and he might be one of the few in the field with the horsepower to go toe-to-toe (or birdie to birdie) with Scheffler. I expect Im to contend this week and am happy to take a chance on him at a price like 27.0.
Sahith Theegala (54.0)- Though he’s yet to contend in four starts this season, he’s also yet to miss a cut, so I wouldn’t be too concerned about the state of Theegala’s game, especially when he’s still producing plenty of offense, ranking 15th on Tour with 72 total birdies in 2025. He now comes to the perfect spot to rev up his season: TPC Scottsdale, a course Theegala has absolutely devoured in his young career, shooting par or better in 11 of 12 rounds and finding the top-5 in 2 of his 3 career appearances, including a 5th-place showing last year. This is a situation where a rising young star, teeing it up at a course he loves, can be had at an inflated price due to the fact that he hasn’t been seen on the first page of any leaderboards yet this season. You won’t find a better value on the board.
Tom Hoge (112.0)- The quintessential journeyman, Hoge has logged a single win across 290 career starts, getting the job done at Pebble Beach in 2022. Despite the lack of victories, there’s no denying that he’s improved over the course of his career and has contended more frequently in recent years, notching four top-10s last season and finishing 3rd at the Travelers, where he broke 70 in all four rounds and closed things out with a brilliant final-round 62. You just get the feeling that he’s still ascending, however slowly, and another victory is going to find him in the not-too-distant future… maybe even this week. That’s supported by his recent play, with top-20 finishes in 2 of 4 starts so far this season, and by his history at this tournament, which includes three top-25s in his past 5 appearances, including a T17 last year. Hoge is a live one at a triple-digit price — act accordingly.
