SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Brooks Koepka felt comfortable in his return to the PGA Tour at Torrey Pines last week, despite his putter not always cooperating.
The five-time major champion’s second start should be even cozier, even as up to 200,000 fans cram onto TPC Scottsdale’s Stadium Course.
Success at the wet (as in booze-soaked) and wild Phoenix Open takes a certain mindset and Koepka has embraced the pandemonium, winning it twice.
“I enjoy the chaos,” Koepka said. “It’s fun. It can kind of get you in between shots, gives you something to either kind of laugh at or whatever’s going on. There’s always something to see, but it’s a fun week.”
Scottie Scheffler thinks so, too.
When Scheffler arrived at the TPC Scottsdale in 2022, he had yet to win on the PGA Tour despite several near-misses.
Since he beat Patrick Cantlay in a playoff that year, Scheffler hasn’t stopped winning, raising the trophy in a staggering 27% of his starts the past four years.
The world’s No. 1 player arrives at the Phoenix Open with a chance to become the first PGA Tour player to win three straight starts since Dustin Johnson in 2017. Scheffler closed his 2025 season with a win at the pre-Ryder Cup Procore Championship in Napa, California, and opened this year up with a win at The American Express in Palm Desert, California — his 20th PGA Tour victory.
After taking last week off, Scheffler returns to a familiar place (and sounds). He backed up his 2022 Phoenix Open win by defending his title and has four top-10s in his past six starts at the Stadium Course.
“Lots of good memories,” Scheffler said. “It’s nice to come back to this tournament. This tournament is a lot of fun for me to play in and it’s fun to be able to play in front of this crowd.”
Last year was a rare exception.
Scheffler’s start to the 2025 season was delayed after he sliced his hand trying to cut ravioli with a wine glass on Christmas. The Phoenix Open was his second start and he never found a groove, tying for 25th — his worst finish of the year and 15 shots behind champion Thomas Detry, who’s now playing in the Saudi-backed LIV Golf League.
Scheffler didn’t take long to find his form, winning two majors among his six victories and a fourth straight Player of the Year Award to match Tiger Woods’ record.
With time to prepare for the 2026 season, Scheffler looked like nothing had changed in his first tournament, erasing an early two-shot deficit in the final round to win by four shots at PGA West two weeks ago.
“Did a bit less cooking in the offseason this year — stuck to plastic silverware instead of metal stuff,” Scheffler joked. “I’m only kidding. It’s nice to get off to that kind of start. It’s nice to feel very prepared going into the season.”
Koepka had a different type of preparation his first non-major PGA Tour event since 2022.
Unsure of how he’d be received after being freed from his LIV contract, Koepka was admittedly nervous at last week’s Farmers Insurance Open. He didn’t notch his first birdie of the opening round until the 18th hole, but rallied to make the cut and finished tied for 56th.
The best part of the week was the support Koepka received, nearly all of it positive.
That could change this week.
Vitriol can be part of the game at the Phoenix Open, particularly late in the day when the booze and sun take their toll, but Koepka is ready to embrace it all.
“I’m just focused on myself,” Koepka said. “I’m focused on how I can go play the best golf over the next four days. I’m not focused on anybody else.”
Tuning out the cacophony is the key to success at the Phoenix Open — as Koepka and Scheffler have both shown.
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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
