The first month of the PGA Tour season saw a series of worthy champions, with Chris Gottapp, Scottie Scheffler and Justin Rose hoisting trophies early in the 2026 campaign. Gottarup and Scheffler will be looking for their second win this week at the raucous WM Phoenix Open. 123 players head to Scottsdale, Arizona to face some interesting tests against the mischievous locals and TPC Scottsdale’s Stadium Course.
This tournament marks the fourth year Scheffler has won the first of his current 20 wins on the PGA Tour. At the time, he beat Patrick Cantlay in a playoff, but now he arrives as the clear world No. 1, looking to continue a torrid winning streak that includes seven trophies in the last 13 PGA Tour events dating back to last season.
Of course, Scheffler is a creature of habit and takes pride in his preparation, so it’s no surprise that once he understood TPC Scottsdale, he knew it forever. The four-time major champion has two wins, two top-10 finishes and 25 T25s in his last five starts in this tournament. Coincidentally, T25 in 2025 was his last finish outside the top 20.
A number of American players have joined the field, including Xander Schauffele, Cameron Young, J.J. Spaun, Sam Barnes, Ben Griffin, Maverick McNeely, Harris English, Rickie Fowler, Jordan Spieth, Brooks Koepka, Collin Morikawa, and Gotterup. Like Scheffler, many of these players have had success in these areas throughout their careers.
Koepka will make his second start on the PGA Tour following his comeback at the Farmers Insurance Open. There were encouraging signs from tee to green, but his putting showed that work still needed to be done. While the likes of Schauffele and Spieth have done everything but win here, he has two wins at the WM Phoenix Open. Fowler also returns as a former tournament champion.
On the international front, Hideki Matsuyama and Nick Taylor will start this week as former champions. Siu Kim might hit the ball as well as anyone other than Scheffler, and Viktor Hovland will make his 2026 PGA Tour season debut after a stint in the desert on the DP World Tour.
2026 WM Phoenix Open Schedule
date: February 5th to February 8th
position: TPC Scottsdale (Stadium Course) — Scottsdale, Arizona
Par: 71 | Yardage: 7,261 | Architect: Tom Weiskopf / Jay Morrish
wallet: $9.6 million
2026 WM Phoenix Open Field, Odds
Odds from FanDuel Sportsbook
- Scotty Scheffler (10/23)
- Xander Schauffele (19-1)
- Shime Kill Kill (25-1): It has been a ball hitting clinic since August. Kim has finished in the top 25 10 times this season at the Sony Open, American Express, and Farmers Insurance Open, all with top 11 finishes. Over the past six months, he ranks second in tee-to-green strokes, eighth in strokes gained off the tee, second in strokes gained on approaches and 18th in strokes gained around the green. Only one other player can claim to be in the top 20 in each of these metrics, and that player is running the sport. Kim has quietly finished in the top 25 at the WM Phoenix Open for three consecutive years.
- Hideki Matsuyama (25-1): It was a really great start to the season for Matsuyama. The Japanese native, known as a player who can do damage early on on the PGA Tour calendar, will be aiming for his third title this week at the Phoenix Open. Through eight rounds in 2026, Matsuyama remained vintage. His iron play has improved rapidly, and his chipping and pitching are top-notch, but his putting leaves some to be desired.
- Cameron Young (25-1): Young didn’t have much to show for it in his season debut last week, but he had a quality result with a T22 finish at Torrey Pines. For players from the East Coast like him, it’s always difficult to put on the Poa Anua greens, so the move to TPC Scottsdale should bring a more comfortable feeling with a putter in his hands. He has conquered those greens the past two seasons, finishing T8 and T12. If his tee-to-green prowess remains, he’s still a favorite to win.
- Sam Burns (27-1)
- Ben Griffin (27-1)
- Viktor Hovland (30-1): Hovland competed in the tournament in three of the four years from 2020 to 2023, but missed the last two years and will be returning to TPC Scottsdale for the first time in several seasons. His chipping and pitching in these parts were brutal, but he emerged with some confidence following a T14 at the Dubai Desert Classic, his only start of the year. Take note, as driver speed and accuracy have significantly decreased since the FedEx Cup win.
- Chris Gotterup (30-1): What he’s doing on the tee right now is really sexy. As of 2026, Gottharp has successfully sculpted, shaped, and launched golf balls off the pegs with a perfect blend of distance and precision. He followed up his Sony Open victory with a T18 at the Farmers Insurance Open, but struggled on the greens. Gotterup has struggled in his last two outings with two early exits, but he has never been here as a player at this level.
- Maverick McNeely (33-1)
2026 WM Phoenix Open Pick
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