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One of the best golf events of the early part of the year takes place this week at TPC Scottsdale with the Waste Management Phoenix Open. While Phoenix doesn’t carry the weight of Riviera or the allure of Pebble Beach or perhaps the anticipation of Torrey Pines, there’s a case to be made that it’s at the top of their class — which we’ll talk about in a bit. The field reflects that, too. Fifteen of the top 20 players in the world will tee it up in the most loaded field of the year, which will be a nice lead-in to the Bengals-Rams game in Super Bowl 56 on Sunday evening.
Let’s take a closer look at this week’s contest with odds provided via Caesars Sportsbook.
Event information
Event: Waste Management Phoenix Open | Dates: Feb. 10-13
Location: TPC Scottsdale – Scottsdale, Arizona
Par: 71 | Purse: $8.2 million
Three things to know
1. Phoenix rocks: Though it gets a bit overplayed because of the hype of the famous par-3 16th hole, this tournament has turned into a giant on the PGA Tour. Consider the strength of field from the last 10 Phoenix Opens:
2013: 322
2014: 343
2015: 357
2016: 350
2017: 377
2018: 428
2019: 392
2020: 350
2021: 418
2022: 536
This is, by far, the best field Phoenix has had in the last 10 years, and it’s tantamount to the strength of field at last year’s Memorial Tournament (more on that below). This is one piece of the puzzle for this event. Its reputation as the People’s Open has been good for branding, and though the golf course is perhaps not great in the traditional sense of what we think of when we envision championship courses, it works splendidly for this tournament. The closing kick — and especially No. 17 — certainly helps with that. There’s a buzz this week that just doesn’t exist in most of the other weeks of the first part of the golf year, and as somebody who loves and consumes this sport on a daily basis, that has me fired up for the next few days.
2. That 61:…
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Source : cbssports
