Fantasy Golf Predictions

Fantasy Golf Predictions – 2014 Waste Management Phoenix Open

Published

10 years ago

January 28, 2014

Fantasy-Golf-Predictions-2014-Waste-Management-Phoenix-Open

Fantasy Golf Predictions for the 2014 Waste Management Phoenix Open Jan 30th – Feb 2nd, 2014

Tournament Preview

This week the TOUR heads south to Scottsdale where the fans love to get loud at the infamous TPC Scottsdale Stadium Course. Tiger’s caddy, Joe Lacava, won’t be partaking in this week’s “caddy races” at the stadium’s par-3 16^th (which incidently have recently been banned by the PGA TOUR) as Tiger takes some time to regroup in Dubai this week. Last week the world’s No. 1 had a disappointing showing on a course where he’s been overwhelmingly dominant for most of his career.

Last year’s WM Phoenix Open champ, Phil Mickelson, was forced to withdraw from last week’s Farmers Insurance open due to a back injury. “Lefty” plans to arrive in Scottsdale on Wednesday but makes no guarantees with regards to whether or not he’ll play.

As mentioned earlier, the always entertaining and highlight reel worthy caddy races on the par 3 16th were banned a few months ago by the PGA TOUR. TOUR executive Andy Pazder referenced injury concerns as being the primary reason the decision was made.

“We have advised the folks at Colonial and out in Phoenix to discontinue the caddie races. It was a situation where we developed a little concern about caddies’ safety. Running 150 yards puts caddies at risk for injury.” – Andy Pazder

Way to kill the party guys!

Caddys race on No. 16 in Round 3 of Waste Management

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The Course

TPC Scottsdale (Stadium) measures in at 7,216 yards and plays as a par 71. This beautiful and highly entertaining layout was built in 1986 for Open’s move to the suburbs, and quickly became the most rowdy stop on the PGA TOUR. The main attraction is the par-3 16th, which is an enclosed arena with seating for nearly 20,000 boisterous fans. Tiger Woods notched a hole-in-one here in 1997, and Andrew Magee made PGA TOUR history with his own ace at No. 17, giving him the TOUR’s first ever par-4 hole-in-one.

Weather Forecast at TPC Scottsdale in Scottsdale, AZ (from weather.com)

Round 1: Thursday (Jan 30) 76 degrees, 0% chance of rain, partly cloudy.
Round 2: Friday (Jan 31) 79 degrees, 0% chance of rain, partly cloudy.
Round 3: Saturday (Feb 1) 74 degrees, 20% chance of rain, partly cloudy.
Round 4: Sunday (Feb 2) 72 degrees, 0% chance of rain, sunny.

2013 Results

Mickelson notched his 41^st PGA TOUR victory here in 2013 when he flirted with a historic score of 59 before falling short, lipping out his final putt for a final score 60. Phil still went on to win the event by 4 strokes. In total, Mickelson finished 72 holes at a whopping 28-under 256 matching the tournament scoring record and just a couple shy of Tommy Armour’s 254 at the 2003 Texas Open. Brandt Snedeker put together a nice showing as well and managed to stay in Phil’s rearview mirror before ultimately falling short with a closing round 65.

Shots of the Week from 2013 WM Phoenix Open

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Notes

If his back is strong enough, Mickelson will look to become event’s first four-time winner. Last year’s victory, along with with wins in 1996 and 2005, put him on a short list with other great players such as Arnold Palmer, Gene Littler and Mark Calcavecchia with 3 win each. Mickelson’s career earnings at TPC Scottsdale are $3,689,782, but something tells us that even if he does play this week, there is a strong chance that he won’t be performing up to his usual standards.

Already winners this calendar year, Harris English and Patrick Reed are also back in action to try and grab their second trophy of 2014. If either player wins here this week he will join Jimmy Walker at the top with 2 wins during the new wrap-around season.