Golf
Phoenix Open preview: Charley can get Hoff the mark
The West Coast Swing takes us away from California this week as the PGA Tour heads inland to Arizona for the Phoenix Open.
This is one of the most eagerly anticipated pre-Major tournaments as TPC Scottsdale offers an atmosphere like no other. This allure, however, hasn’t managed to retain the top European players from last week, so we have an American-heavy field once again.
Europe and the rest of the world showed their dominance last week, making up six of the top eight at Pebble Beach, so their avoidance of this event will be welcomed by the home players.
Last week’s 110/1 selection, Billy Horschel, fell victim to the international class on show, narrowly missing out on a place return as he ended T9, just one shot shy of the money.
Nonetheless, there were positive signs as our big outsider came extremely close, so we’re hoping one of our two selections this week can at least get us back places.
Billy Horschel 60/1
Despite being our big outsider pick last week, we’re backing Billy Horschel as our top selection in Arizona – he’s given us every reason to stick by him. He is by no means a short-priced favourite here though as he heads to TPC Scottsdale as a 60/1-shot.
Horschel’s performance at Pebble Beach was very promising, recovering from a level-par first round to 15-under over the next three. Of the eight who finished ahead of him there only three return, so he’ll fancy his chances at breaking into the 8 places available with William Hill.
In recent years iron play has usurped putting prowess in terms of what wins you the Phoenix Open, while the par-4 scoring will also be key. Horschel’s ability to go low on the par-4s has been impressive this season, ranking 32nd on the Tour in that respect.
The ability to cope with the demands of desert golf will also be crucial, something which Horschel has already proven to possess. He’s missed just one cut in 14 starts here, with T9 and T6 finishes to his name in the past five years. The Texas Open is another TPC tournament which takes place in the desert, where Horschel has two third-place finishes to his name, as well as a T4.
With a Ryder Cup spot in the second half of 2025 likely on his mind, Horschel will want to continue his strong start to the season here and make himself unavoidable for Keegan Bradley having missed out in Rome last year.
Charley Hoffman 80/1
Our second selection this week comes by way of a desert golf specialist in Charley Hoffman. He’s really made this tournament his own, featuring in every edition since 2007, with the home crowd always getting behind the West Coast native.
At 80/1, Hoffman’s previous form here makes him look wildly overpriced. However, he is without a PGA Tour victory since the 2015/16 season and at this price we’re really looking for him to provide a nice return finishing in the 8 places available with William Hill.
In that aspect he looks a valuable selection having missed out narrowly in a play-off here twice, including last year. In addition to that he’s proven his desert golf expertise elsewhere, recording three runner-up finishes as well as a victory at the Texas Open, not to mention his three other top-10 finishes there.
All-in-all, now is the time to trust in Charley Hoffman at a bigger price as he heads back to one of his favoured courses where, who knows, he could even go one better than last year!
