WM Phoenix Open 2025: Everything you need to know about the PGA Tour’s biggest party
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It’s about to get loud as the PGA Tour arrives in Arizona for the Waste Management Phoenix Open.
Not too loud mind…
Organizers of this year’s WM Phoenix Open have introduced a ‘zero tolerance’ policy for behavior deemed to cross the line, with fans having to click on a code of conduct acknowledgment before attending the iconic PGA Tour tournament/party.
Last year saw 54 arrests, 211 ejections, and 653 emergency calls made as a minority of fans’ drunken antics brought the event into disrepute, angering many players including Billy Horschel, Zach Johnson, and Ben An.
The beating heart of this frenzied festival of golf is TPC Scottsdale’s notorious Coliseum Hole. The par-3 16th is undoubtedly the loudest and most exciting hole on the PGA Tour roster, if not golf altogether. Expect a boozy, party atmosphere, where sticking one close will send the 20,000-strong crowd wild, but missing the green will result in a chorus of boos. It’s something to behold and a unique spectacle most of the pros enjoy living up to, tempting them back year after year.
Canada’s Nick Taylor managed to harness the energy to his advantage last time out, securing a fourth PGA Tour victory in a playoff victory over Charley Hoffman. Taylor returns to defend in a strong field featuring Max Homa, Sam Burns, and Rickie Fowler.
The 156 pros competing can be found here once finalized.
WM Phoenix Open: Key details
Venue: Stadium Course at TPC Scottsdale (Par 71 – 7,261 yards).
Format: 72-hole strokeplay with 36-hole cut.
Purse: $9.2 million with the winner receiving $1.6 million.
FedEx Cup: 500 points
Favorites: TBC
Defending champion: Nick Taylor (CAN), -21 (playoff)
Most wins: Arnold Palmer, Gene Littler, Mark Calcavecchia, Phil Mickelson (3)
How to watch the WM Phoenix Open
US viewers can catch all the action on Golf Channel.
All times EST
Thursday, February 06: The Golf Channel, 16.00
Friday, February 07: The Golf Channel, 16.00
Saturday, February 08: The Golf Channel, 13.00
Sunday, February 09: The Golf Channel, 13.00
UK viewers can catch all the action on Sky Sports Golf.
All times GMT
Thursday, February 06: Sky Sports Golf, 21.00
Friday, February 07: Sky Sports Golf, 21.00
Saturday, February 08: Sky Sports Golf, 18.00
Sunday, February 09: Sky Sports Golf, 18.00
WM Phoenix Open 2025: Tee Times
Tee times and groupings can be found here.
WM Phoenix Open Betting Tips
Our resident betting expert Tom Jacobs has picked out three names to watch at TPC Scottsdale…
The Banker: Sepp Straka
40/1 (Paddy Power/Betfair 8 places)
Sepp Straka will be desperate to make it back onto the European Ryder Cup team in 2025, and he’s going the right way about it.
Straka kicked off an important year with a 15th-place finish at The Sentry, before finishing 30th at the Sony Open. The Sentry isn’t his ideal course and he promised to do a lot better early on at the Sony, so it wasn’t a huge surprise when he took the best of those two showings, and went on to pick up his third PGA Tour win at the American Express.
After an excellent frontrunning performance on Sunday at the Amex, he could be forgiven for a quiet week at Pebble Beach, but that wasn’t the case. Instead, the Austrian led for the first three rounds there as well, before ultimately struggling to keep up with the pace on Sunday, eventually finishing 7th.
Some may wonder if the bubble has burst, and the suggestion could be that he has run out of steam, but at 40/1 I am willing to chance that is not the case.
His game did fall away on Sunday and the underlying ball striking numbers weren’t good enough in round 4, but that can happen when you are being hunted by Rory McIlroy. His overall body of work for the week saw him rank 10th for SG: Approach and 3rd for SG: Tee to Green overall, suggesting another fine week from the Austrian.
In three starts here, Straka has finished MC-MC-66, but he hasn’t played here since becoming a winner on the PGA Tour. A three-time winner who has also lost two playoffs, Straka is a different player now, and this course could eventually suit.
There is plenty of crossover in form between winners here and those at the Honda Classic, where Straka picked up his first win, and the same is true for the RBC Heritage where he has finished 3rd and 5th, and the Players Championship where he was 9th in 2022.
At 40/1, I will give Straka another chance to show he’s in excellent form, until a string of results suggest otherwise.
The Outsider: Billy Horschel
80/1 (Paddy Power/Betfair 8 places)
Billy Horschel is a winner. He might not be the most consistent, but he’s certainly a player to consider when confidence is high, which it should be after a strong week at Pebble Beach this past weekend.
Horschel finished 9th this past weekend, despite opening with a lackluster round of 72, and that is a great sign. Ultimately he ran out of holes on Sunday, but rounds of 65 and 66 at the famed Pebble Beach Golf Links is a sign of strong form.
This is backed up by him ranking 3rd in SG: Approach and 19th in SG: Tee to Green last week, and he now returns to a golf course he has shown a liking for over the years.
His best finish at TPC Scottsdale came three years ago when finishing 6th, and that was two years after his other top 10 finish (9th). When 9th in 2020, Horschel was actually better placed after two rounds, sitting inside the top 3 going into the weekend, and just couldn’t carry that form into the weekend.
The 6th and 9th place finishes remain his best efforts so far, but he’s also finished 11th and then 24th twice, making him an intriguing prospect when in form. When he finished 6th here, he had finished T11 at Torrey Pines two weeks earlier and with a similar effort last week, led by an incredible iron week, I am confident he can post a career-best finish in Phoenix.
The Long Shot: Charley Hoffman
90/1 (Paddy Power/Betfair 8 Places)
Is Charley Hoffman lining up for one Last Dance in 2025? OK, so he’s not a player that needs his own documentary, and Netflix certainly won’t be knocking at his door for a tell-all series any time soon, but he has been reasonably big name on the circuit over the years and is showing some strong form.
Hoffman was hovering around the top 10 mark going into the weekend here a year ago, but a Saturday 64 put him right in the mix, as he was in 3rd place and just one stroke back going into Sunday. When you shoot a Sunday 64 from that position, you will often get over the line, but Nick Taylor, who was already in the lead, shot a final round 65, which meant these two headed to a playoff. Taylor then had to birdie the second playoff hole to deny Hoffman a fifth PGA Tour win.
This isn’t just a case of leaning on last year’s effort though, as Hoffman had finished 14th in 2023 as well and his current form suggests he can roll back the years and contend again.
At 48, we know Hoffman is in the twilight of his career, but he’s finished 5th and 25th in his last two starts which offers encouragement. He held a share of the halfway lead at the American Express, while a 25th place finish at the demanding Torrey Pines is not to be sniffed at either. He now returns to an easier course that we know he enjoys, and should be far easier on his body.
Hoffman has ranked 4th, 17th and 3rd in his last three starts in SG: Tee to Green, and 11th, 35th and 34th in SG: Approach, suggesting his game is in fine fettle and ready for perhaps one last run at this coveted Phoenix Open title.
Notable mentions: Rasmus Hojgaard (50/1), Lee Hodges (90/1), Ryan Fox (125/1)
Tom Jacobs is a betting expert who works for Oddschecker. He hosts a weekly podcast called Lost Fore Words reviewing and previewing the latest from the world of tour golf.
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The Waste Management Phoenix Open is renowned on the PGA Tour for its rowdy atmosphere.
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The infamous 16th 'Coliseum' hole at TPC Scottsdale.
