The WM Phoenix Open 2023 continued to keep pace as second-round matches were halted due to darkness on Friday night. With half of the field still to complete Round 2, the former world No 1 pair will head into the weekend to top the standings. Defending champion Scottie Scheffler is under 10 points after 36 holes and two strokes from the hottest tennis player in the world, Jon Rahm.
Arriving at the tournament a season ago without a single PGA Tour win to his name, Scheffler bet on the 62nd round to make it to the winner’s round for the first time. This year, he can look back on his second round as the catalyst for his success as Scheffler 7 under 64 has put his name at the top of the leaderboard.
With the goal of becoming the first golfer to successfully defend the Phoenix Open title since Hideki Matsuyama in 2016-17, Scheffler will need to handle a chasing group filled with top talent in the game. Aside from Rahm, Sungjae Im (-7), Xander Schauffele (-6) and Jordan Spieth (-5) are all in the minority and have holes to play in the second round that will resume at 9:45 a.m. ET on Saturday .
Leader
1. Scottie Scheffler (-10): For the past month, the debate in the golfing world has been whether it’s now Rory McIlroy, Rahm and then everyone else? Scheffler reminded us on Friday that this is not the case as the world No 2 has propelled himself to the top of the rankings with a perfect 7 under 64. Hitting 12 of the 14 tees, Scheffler won a whopping 5.25 from tee to green as he led them both off the tee and on approach among those who finished the second round of the game. Surname. Even without a birdie on any of the three par 5 points, the 26-year-old made it past the group stage of the tournament and aimed to successfully defend his first PGA Tour title. mine.
“Around this place, when you hit a straight line and hit it well, the golf course can open up for you,” says Scheffler. “But the opposite can happen in a hurry because basically every hole has potential problems when there is a desert nearby. There are also a lot of holes with water. When you hit well, you have to make the most of it. Take advantage of it like I did today. Hopefully I’ll keep putting the ball in the right spot next week.”
other candidates
T2. Jon Rahm, Adam Hadwin (-8)
T4. Wyndham Clark, Sungjae Im (-7)
T6. Jason Day, Jhonattan Vegas, Sam Ryder, Xander Schauffele, Nick Taylor (-6)
T11. Adam Schenk, Jim Herman, Tom Kim, Rickie Fowler, Jordan Spieth (-5)
T16. Max Homa, Charley Hoffman (-4)
There’s a little bit of everything on this list of contenders: the siderunners, the big champions, and the in-betweens. One has to assume that the likes of Rahm, Im, Schauffele and the rest of the top 25 in the Official World Golf Ranking will continue to rise as the weekend rolls on.
This is exactly what the PGA Tour had in mind when creating these designated events. With the top players regularly competing against each other, the chances of going against either Scheffler-Rahm or Schauffele-Im increase dramatically.
“We have 18 of the top 20 players in the world,” Rahm said. “You can expect some of us [shooting a low score]. Some of them haven’t turned off yet. So I wouldn’t be shocked if I — if Scottie doesn’t lead, if he finishes ninth, if he doesn’t lead at the end of the day. Yes, the conditions can be tough, but those are the best players in the world. Someone can get out there and shoot a low one. So no, I’m not surprised.”
number 1 in the air
The world number 1 position used to be a hot topic with Rahm’s current fireplace. Claiming to be the best player in the world, Rahm is in third place behind current leader, Scheffler, and world number one Rory McIlroy, who is three points behind by 13 holes in the second round. Both Rahm and Scheffler have a chance to get to the top with a win and some help. This has weighed heavily on Rahm’s mind in recent weeks. The same cannot happen with Scheffler.
“I’ll probably have to agree [that Rory and Rahm have separated themselves]”, Scheffler said. “It’s not like I’m sitting there saying, ‘I’m playing better than those guys right now.’ They’ve won tournaments and I’ve been on the sidelines looking in. So no, I really don’t pay much attention to it.”
Players Revenge TPC Scottsdale
The course is 1.37 strokes above face value in Round 1 as frigid temperatures and windy conditions make opponents suitable. Aside from some cooler temperatures early in the morning, conditions were much friendlier on Friday — and players made the most of it. Aggregate average of -0.54 under par, players had their way with the Tom Weiskopf design.
2023 WM Phoenix Open updated odds, picks
Odds via Caesars Sportsbook
- Scottie Scheffler: 5/9
- Jon Rahm: 33/10
- Xander Schauffele: 6-1
- Sungjae Im: 10-1
- Adam Hadwin: 11-1
- Rory McIlroy: 22-1
- Jordan Spieth: 28-1
- Tony Finau: 30-1
- Wyndham Clark: 35-1
- Tom Kim: 35-1
Everyone except Scheffler, Rahm and Wyndham Clark had to complete the second round on Saturday morning. Schauffele, Spieth and Finau’s team are on the 13th hole par-5 and in the middle of the scoring gap on holes 13-17. On the other side of the course, however, Im is just three strokes behind Scheffler and has some birdie opportunities of his own. I don’t expect anyone to get past Scheffler’s total under 10, and with the possibility that I’m inching closer to 10-1 could be a steal.
