I was pretty excited to see how this weekend went at Torrey Pines.  When you have five guys finish in the Top 10 and another eight guys make the cut, I’d call that a success.  Would I have liked to have Patrick Reed in the playbook, yea but I can never predict that guy.  The key to this weekend’s success was getting two of my value players through the cut line, Justin Suh and Richy Werenski were both under 7K.  My one and done play Ryan Palmer paid off nicely for players finished Top 5, especially when you didn’t have to burn a big name this early in the season.  It’s that time once again for us to turn the page and move onto one of my favorite events of the calendar, the Waste Management Phoenix Open.   

While the Masters is my favorite tournament on the PGA Tour Schedule, the Waste Management Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale comes in a very close second. This is not a major but it’s so much more than that.  This is one tournament where golf fans get a chance to let loose and party during the event.  It all starts with the 16th hole, oh baby!  It is a Par 3 that is fully enclosed (the only one on the PGA Tour) by grandstands which can hold up to 20,000 crazy drunk fans.  The players walk out through a tunnel and are greeted by a roar from these rowdy fans. A roar erupts every time a ball lands on the green but when a ball falls short, the boo birds are out in full force.  I will never forget when Tiger Woods aced this infamous hole in 1997, it was one of the loudest cheers I’ve heard at any sporting event. It happened before the huge grandstands were even built and the legend of this hole seems to grow with every passing year. 

I tell you all that to say that you won’t have much of that going on this weekend at TPC Scottsdale.  Normally you’d see close to 200,000 fans attend this event throughout the weekend, you’ll only see around 5,000 patrons per day because of COVID protocols.  I can’t tell you how it will look or if all the people will just run to the 16th hole but it will definitely look different in 2021.   

Ok, the sad part is out of the way, let’s talk about the course.  It is a Par 71, and it stretches out 7,266 yards with around 80 sand bunkers which are placed perfectly around the greens and on the fairways to truly punish these players.  There is also six holes with water, including three of the last four. The average winning score over the last few years has been around 18 under par which may make this course seem easier but it can easily bite a player in the ass.

When you look at the players who have had a lot of success at the Waste Management, they are all good GIR (Greens in Regulation) players.  If players can’t hit the fairway, you must look at players who are good scramblers and bunker players for success.  Length off the tee is not huge advantage on this course but it doesn’t hurt either.  This is a ball striker’s course, which is why Hideki Matsuyama is always in contention at this event.  I did not include him in play book because of ownership levels, he'll be a very popular play because of his history on this course.  You can definitely play him but I would recommend only in cash games and if you read my Best Bets article, I think he's a lock to Top 20 this weekend.

Usually this event would be must see TV and for me, it will be again but may not bring in the amount of casual fans as it usually would.  There are players on the Tour who typically love and thrive in this environment with the fans in your face but there are also guys who hate it and just want to get it over with as soon as possible.  It will be a completely different dynamic this weekend and I’m interested to see how it is handled by these players.  This is the one event every year where the PGA Tour let’s its hair down and brings the fun out and I wish more events like this would be added to the schedule.  Ok, I’ll get off my soapbox now and get to the playbook. 

ONE AND DONE PICK OF THE WEEK: Daniel Berger

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