Waste Management Phoenix Open: PGA Golf Odds and Predictions
The PGA Tour stays on its West Coast Swing this week but leaves California for Arizona and the Waste Management Phoenix Open. We’ll cut to the chase for those of you who are Tiger Woods backers: He’s not in the field after a solid tournament in San Diego.
We cashed on Tiger Woods to make the cut at Torrey Pines in San Diego, a course at which he has eight career professional victories. In his first official tournament in year, Tiger had a very respectable showing of T23 at the Farmers Insurance Open despite hitting only 17 fairways the entire week. It was his first made cut in an official event since 2015. Our winning pick last week was Tony Finau at +4000, but he at least cashed a Top 10 with a finish of T6 at 6 under, 10 shots out of a playoff trio of Jason Day, Alex Noren and Ryan Palmer.
Palmer was eliminated on the first playoff hole, and Day and Noren were still tied through five extra holes when it became too dark Sunday night. They finished Monday morning with the Aussie Day, the former world No. 1, winning on the sixth extra hole for his first victory since 2016. Hopefully, you also followed my recommendation of Justin Rose for a Top 10 as he finished T8.
Waste Management Phoenix Open Betting Odds
PGA Tour events are very staid for the most part – you aren’t supposed to make a sound when someone is in mid-swing; that golfers whine about that yet Major League Baseball players can hit a 100 mph fastball in a stadium full of noise is an argument for another day. This week’s Waste Management Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale’s Stadium course is easily the biggest party atmosphere on the PGA Tour – especially the raucous par-3 16th. If you watch the tournament at all and there’s a crazy-good shot at 16, you will see some fans giving each other a beer shower. That it’s annually held on Super Bowl weekend only adds to the party mood.
World No. 1 Dustin Johnson isn’t playing but five of the top seven in the rankings are. Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama is attempting to become the first player to win a Tour event three straight years since Steve Stricker from 2009-11 at the John Deere Classic (held week before British Open). Last year, Matsuyama finished at 17 under with Webb Simpson and won in a playoff. The year before, Matsuyama finished 72 holes at 14 under and beat Rickie Fowler in a playoff. Arnold Palmer won this event three years in row from 1961-63.
Yet, Matsuyama isn’t even the betting favourite this week at +1000. That goes to Jordan Spieth at +558. He has played here twice, finishing ninth last year and seventh in 2015. Spieth hasn’t finished outside the Top 20 in any event worldwide since last year’s PGA Championship.
Spaniard Jon Rahm (+1100), an alum of nearby Arizona State University, Fowler (+1100) and Justin Thomas (+1600) round out the favourites. Rahm entered last week’s Farmers Insurance Open as the defending champion and having won two of his past three worldwide events but blew up on the weekend and finished T29. He was fifth here in 2015 and 16th last year. Fowler missed the cut last week, but was fourth at TPC Scottsdale last year and lost that playoff to Matsuyama in 2016. Thomas has missed the cut the previous two years.
Canadian PGA Golfer Odds
No Canadian was in contention last week in San Diego with Corey Conners finishing the best at T29. Adam Hadwin is +5700 this week. He was T35 last week at 1 under, never breaking 70. Hadwin missed the cut in his first trip to this tournament in 2015 but was 17th the next year and 12th in 2017. Mackenzie Hughes (+31200) is really struggling right now with six straight missed cuts. He shot 72-73 last week to miss out and also was MC here in 2017 after rounds of 74-71.
Nick Taylor is +16100 and Ben Silverman +27300. Taylor finished 75th last week and has a best result of T59 in three trips to Scottsdale. Silverman was 67th last week and makes his debut in this event.
The lone Canadian winner of this tournament was George Knudson back in 1968.
Waste Management Phoenix Open Picks
Can’t recommend Matsuyama to win a third straight year as that’s just so tough to do – he will finish Top 10, though, as will Spieth. Roll the dice on Brendan Steele at the nice price of +5400 for a victory. He won back in October and has never missed the cut in this tournament with three Top-6 finishes.