Tiger Woods isn’t the only big name golfer making his first appearance in a while. While most of the attention will be on Woods – the last time he played was at his own tournament when most onlookers watched on in shock as he flubbed chip after chip, and more recently he’s received publicity for losing a tooth while supporting Lindsey Vonn at a ski event – others including Rickie Fowler and Jordan Spieth also return to tournament golf.
Woods’ performance at the Waste Management Phoenix Open will help bring the golfing world back to stories of more sporting significance after Robert Allenby’s Hawaiian incident. Watching Woods compete for tabloid space with Phil Mickelson who is bidding to become the player with the most wins in Arizona will be fascinating over the coming (hopefully) four days.
The Course
TPC Scottsdale (Stadium) is famous for its party atmosphere and for it’s enclosed arena par 3 16th. Tiger Woods made the hole famous when he aced it as a 22-year-old, and it has held onto it’s raucous reputation ever since. The par 71 course has undergone $12 million worth of renovations affecting most of the course.
Crowd favourites Phil Mickelson and Bubba Watson should expect plenty of support from the huge galleries encompassing the 7,266 yard course.
The Sound Bites
“We wanted to rebunker the golf course, there wasn’t a lot of pressure on the TOUR player from the tee. The equipment outdated the bunkering. They were blowing it way by (the bunkers), very easily past them. So, we took 73 bunkers and pared it down to 66, but their specific locations were relative to ShotLink.” – Course co-designer Tom Weiskopf speaks about the changes.
“It’s going to be a fun year” – Short and sweet from Tiger Woods when discussing his chances on tour this year.
The Defending Champion
Stadler held steady as Watson stumbled, collecting his first PGA TOUR victory when the once-and-future Masters champion couldn’t save par on the 72rd hole. Watson actually bogeyed two of his last three holes, allowing Stadler to draw even at the top when he couldn’t convert a 6-foot par save at the par-3 16th. After both birdied No.17, Watson flew the green with his second shot at No.18 and ran his chip from a spectator mound 5 feet past the hole. After Stadler two-putted from 10 feet for a 68, Watson’s putt to force a playoff slid past on the left. The result allowed Stadler, son of 12-time PGA TOUR winner Craig Stadler, to complete the ninth pair of father/son winners in history.
The Contenders*
Bubba Watson – $15.00
Jordan Spieth – $17.00
Matt Kuchar – $21.00
Phil Mickelson – $21.00
Tiger Woods – $21.00
Rickie Fowler – $21.00
*Waste Management Phoenix Open odds courtesy of Sportsbet Australia.
The Winner
Plenty of reasons to pick one of the guys above: Mickelson has six wins in Arizona; Watson lost by one last year and has multiple other top 10’s at the course; Spieth has won his last two, he could make it three; Kuchar’s coming off a T2 and a T3 in his last two events. But for desert reasons and some nice golf last week we’re going with Mickelson.
Betfair:
Bet on Henrik Stenson to become the BMW PGA Championship Winner.
Paddypower:
Back Australia to take the Ashes home with them.
Betway:
Back Rafael Nadal to become the Mens French Open Winner.
Coral:
Back One For Arthur to win the Grand National.
Bet365:
Back Mexico to win the Confederations Cup.
