The WM Phoenix Open, also known as ‘The People’s Open,’ returns to TPC Scottsdale this week in its usual spot as a lead-up to the 2022 Super Bowl. Last year the spectators were limited, but the tournament returns to full capacity this year which will enhance a tournament that is already unlike any other on the Tour’s schedule. Tournament play begins on Thursday, February 10th, and concludes on Sunday, February 13th.
Brooks Kopeka, a two-time winner here, returns to defend his title along with a handful of past winners. Koepka fired a Sunday round of six-under to best K.H. Lee and Xander Schauffele by one stroke. The victory was the 31-year old’s first win since capturing the FedEx St. Jude Invitational in 2019.
The winner of the tournament takes home $1.476 million in prize money and 500 FedEx Cup points. The total purse for the tournament is $8.2 million. That said, let’s take a look at our Golf Betting analysis for the Phoenix Open event along with their PGA Tour odds.
Golf Betting Preview for the Waste Management Phoenix Open
About TPC Scottsdale
The TPC Scottsdale Stadium Course was designed by Tom Weiskopf and Jay Morrish and opened its doors in 1986, and was renovated in 2014. The par-71, 7,261-yard track has hosted the WM Phoenix Open every year since 1987. The par-3 16th hole is the only fully enclosed hole on the PGA Tour.
The final holes of the course are high risk, high reward and can provide drama for the thousands of spectators. Over the last five years, the averaging winning score has been just below 18-under.
The WM Phoenix Open Field
Six of the top 10 players in the world and 26 of the top 50 will be teeing it up this week, providing the WM Phoenix Open with one of the strongest fields in the tournament’s history. With daylight still reduced, the field will be limited to 132 players.
Highlighting the field is the world’s top-ranked player Jon Rahm and current FedEx Cup leader Hideki Matsuyama. Viktor Hovland’s jumped up to the no. 3 spot in the world after winning the Dubai Desert Classic on the DP World Tour, his third victory in his last five tournaments. Patrick Cantlay, the no.4 ranked player in the world, tees it up for the first time at this event.
Louis Oosthuizen returns to action on Tour for the first time in almost four months. Oosthuizen’s last finish was a T38 at the CJ Cup in mid-October. Daniel Berger is back in the field after withdrawing from the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am last week with back issues.
Sponsor exemptions were handed out to some young and upcoming stars, including Sahith Theegala, Austin Eckroat, and Arizona State freshman Preston Summerhays.
WM Phoenix Betting Favorites
In any tournament Rahm is in, the odds are high that he will be the pre-tournament betting favorite. This week is no different, with Rambo sitting at +600. Following Rahm is Justin Thomas (+1000), who’s finished 13th, 3rd, 3rd, 17th over his last four starts here.
Matsuyama (+1400), Jordan Speith (+1600), Cantlay (+1600), and Hovland (+1600) round out the top players. Matsuyama is a two-time tournament winner, claiming victory in 2016 and 2017.
Other notable betting odds are last year’s champion Koepka at +3000, previous week’s champion Tom Hoge (+6500), and 2019 champion Rickie Fowler (+8000).