The Super Bowl was well underway, but the battle between Canadian Nick Taylor and veteran Charley Hoffman to win the WM Phoenix Open wasn’t stopping any time soon. Putting has been Taylor’s strength and that was the case in Phoenix, where he had 10 feet on the second playoff hole and drained the putt to better Hoffman.
“I was seeing the lines great all week, so it was amazing that went in too,” said Taylor, from Abbotsford, BC.
Taylor, who won the RBC Canadian Open last year, shot 60 in the opening round and birdied three of his last four holes in the final round to get into a playoff with Hoffman, 47, who was already in the clubhouse. Taylor and the others in the field had to play 27 holes on Sunday due to weather, leaving a long final day where the Abbotsford, BC golfer had to make a tricky little slider on the 18th hole to shoot 65 and get into the playoff at 21-under. He’d make birdie two more times in the playoff on a hole that had given him trouble in the past.
“I tried to draw on last year,” Taylor said, referencing his second-place finish last year to winner Scottie Scheffler. “I didn’t have it early on and made some ridiculous par saves.”
Hoffman, trying to get his first win in 201 starts, recognized how impressive Taylor’s achievement was. “Nick came in and seized the moment and birdied the 18th hole three times in a row,” said Hoffman. “Hats off to him.”
It was Taylor’s fourth win on the PGA Tour and he took home US$1.58-million for the victory.
Knudson Was First
Until Taylor’s win, Canadian Golf Hall of Fame member George Knudson was the first Canadian to win in Phoenix, taking the tournament in 1968.
Super Bowl Finale
The tournament is designed to finish well ahead of the Super Bowl, but unusual weather, including cold temperatures and rain, led to a 27-hole finish on Sunday. Players were in the same groups all day, regardless of where they were on the leaderboard, meaning Hoffman, who shot 64 in the third round, played three holes ahead of Taylor’s group.
https://twitter.com/PGATOUR/status/1756817322629546102
The Wildest Hole In Golf
The atmosphere at the 16th is something other tournaments have started to emulate—think about “The Rink” at the RBC Canadian Open, for instance, with its incredible fan interaction that is far from typical most weeks. It wasn’t always that way for the 16th, especially in the early days when the TPC Scottsdale first hosted the event, which started in 1987. Twenty years later, the hole was ringed by stands, but it was a decade earlier when golf’s newest star at the time—Tiger Woods—made an ace that really started the madness that surrounds the hole today. These days fans boo any average shot. Playing only 163 yards in the final round, it is a birdie hole for everyone in the field, which is why the fans love to give the gears to anything other than a great shot.
Jim Knous
Longtime pro Jim Knous Monday qualified for the WM Phoenix Open, and played well, making consecutive birdies on the final two holes to finish a 8-under par. But rather than looking forward to what’s next, Knous is getting ready to take a desk job. The golfer, who has an engineering background, is taking a job with club maker PING at the end of February. I have three kids, there’s a lot going on in my life, and I wanted to be around,” he said. “Everyone at PING has been family to me for 12-plus years, they’ve just been awesome. And they’re deciding to take a chance on me, which I’m super grateful for.”
Nothing but love from Team Hard K ❤️
@JimmyHardK had an overwhelming amount of support from family and friends during his final TOUR start @WMPhoenixOpen. pic.twitter.com/ovLLkvgyiX— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) February 12, 2024
Hey Nick Taylor ,continued success that was so exciting to watch . Just awesome , your fan Roger Doan .