PGA Tour heads to the party in Phoenix. LIV Golf begins in Saudi Arabia
PGA Tour
WM PHOENIX OPEN
Site: Scottsdale, Arizona.
Course: TPC Scottsdale (Stadium). Yardage: 7,261. Par: 71.
Prize money: $9.6 million. Winner’s share: $1,728,000.
Television: Thursday-Friday, 4-8 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday, noon to 3 p.m. (Golf Channel), 3-6:30 p.m. (CBS); Sunday, noon to 3 p.m. (Golf Channel), 3-6 p.m. (CBS).
Previous winner: Thomas Detry.
FedEx Cup leader: Chris Gotterup.
Last week: Justin Rose won the Farmers Insurance Open.
Notes: Brooks Koepka plays his second PGA Tour event since leaving LIV Golf. He is a two-time winner of the Phoenix Open, most recently in 2021. … Scottie Scheffler is going for his third straight PGA Tour win dating to September. The American Express was the fifth time he has won consecutive starts. He has never won three in a row. … Koepka won his first Phoenix Open in 2015, the last time the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots met in the Super Bowl. … Koepka playing means the field will have two extra spots to 123 players. … Joel Dahmen received one of the three unrestricted sponsor exemptions. … Sahith Theegala, who also received a sponsor exemption, is coming off consecutive top-10 finishes. He last did that in September 2024. … This is the final week for the leading five players from the “Swing 5” to qualify for the next two $20 million signature events. … Thomas Detry is not back to defend his title because he joined LIV Golf.
Next week: AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/
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LIV Golf League
LIV GOLF RIYADH
Site: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Course: Riyadh GC. Yardage: 7, 464. Par: 72.
Prize money: $20 million. Winner’s share: $4 million.
Television: Wednesday-Friday, 10 a.m. to noon (FS1), noon to 3 p.m. (FS2); Saturday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. (Fox Business Network).
Defending champion: Adrian Meronk.
2025 champion: Jon Rahm.
2025 team champion: Legion XIII.
Last tournament: Legion XIII won the Team Championship-Michigan.
Notes: This is the first tournament of the fourth season of the LIV Golf League. … Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed have left the Saudi-funded league. Koepka has rejoined the PGA Tour, while Reed is playing a European tour schedule this year with an eye on going back to the PGA Tour. … Jon Rahm won the individual points title without having won a tournament last year. … This is the first LIV Golf event that goes to 72 holes. … The Riyadh tournament is played at nights under lights, the only golf event to do that. … For the first time, points will be distributed to all players instead of just the top 24. There also is a $2.3 million bonus pool for players whose teams finish among the top three. … Phil Mickelson is sitting out the opening two events in Saudi Arabia and Australia because of a family health matter. He is being replaced on the HyFlyers by Ollie Schniederjans. … The league has not announced who is replacing Koepka on Smash GC.
Next week: LIV Golf Adelaide.
Online: https://www.livgolf.com/
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European tour
QATAR MASTERS
Site: Doha, Qatar.
Course: Doha GC. Yardage: 7,508. Par: 72.
Prize money: $2.75 million. Winner’s share: $458,333.
Television: Thursday-Friday, 4-9 a.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday, 4:30-9 a.m. (Golf Channel); Sunday, 3:30-8:30 a.m. (Golf Channel).
Previous winner: Haotong Li.
Race to Dubai leader: Jayden Shaper.
Last week: Freddy Schott won the Bahrain Championship.
Notes: Patrick Reed is playing for the fourth straight week on the European tour. He won the Dubai Desert Classic and lost in a playoff last week in Bahrain to move to No. 2 in the Race to Dubai behind Jayden Shaper. … This is the last stop in the Middle East until the European tour returns to Abu Dhabi and Dubai in the fall to close out the season. … Shaper is in the field as he looks to maintain his top ranking in the Race to Dubai. … Ryan Palmer and Luke List are the two PGA Tour members in the field from finishing inside the top 200 in the FedEx Cup. Palmer missed the cut in Bahrain last week. List missed the cut at Torrey Pines in San Diego. … Three-time major champion Padraig Harrington is playing the fourth straight week in the Middle East. He missed the cut the last two tournaments in Bahrain and Dubai. … The tournament has been part of the European tour schedule since 1998. Six major champions are among past winners, including Ernie Els and Adam Scott.
Next tournament: Magical Kenya Open on Feb. 19-22.
Online: https://www.europeantour.com/dpworld-tour/
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Korn Ferry Tour
ASTARA GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP
Site: Bogota, Colombia.
Course: Country Club de Bogota (Lagos). Yardage: 7,237. Par: 71.
Prize money: $1 million. Winner’s share: $180,000.
Television: None.
Defending champion: Kyle Westmoreland.
Point leader: Ian Holt.
Last week: Ian Holt won the Panama Championship.
Next tournament: Argentina Open on Feb. 26-March 1.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/korn-ferry-tour
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LPGA Tour
Last week: Nelly Korda won the weather-shortened Tournament of Champions.
Next tournament: Honda LPGA Thailand on Feb. 19-22.
Race to CME Globe leader: Nelly Korda.
Online: https://www.lpga.com/
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PGA Tour Champions
Last week: Stewart Cink won the Mitsubishi Electric Championship.
Next week: Chubb Classic.
Charles Schwab Cup leader: Stewart Cink.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/pgatour-champions
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Other tours
Challenge Tour and Sunshine Tour: Circa Cape Town Open, Royal Cape GC, Cape Town, South Africa. Previous winner: Jamie Rutherford. Online: https://www.europeantour.com/hotelplanner-tour/ and https://sunshinetour.com/
Asian Tour: Philippine Golf Championship, Wack Wack Golf and CC, Manila, Philippines. Previous winner: Julien Sale. Online: https://asiantour.com/
PGA Tour of Australasia: Webex Players Series-Sydney, Castle Hill CC, Norwest, Australia. Defending champion: Nick Voke. Online: https://golf.com.au/
Royal & Ancient GC: Africa Amateur Championship, Royal Johannesburg GC, Johannesburg. Television: Wednesday-Thursday, 6-10 a.m. (Golf Channel app); Friday, 7-11 a.m. (Golf Channel app); Saturday, 5-9 a.m. (Golf Channel app). Previous winner: Bryan Newman. Online: https://www.randa.org/
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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf