More rain? WM Phoenix Open is next PGA Tour event in line for some weather
Sunday’s final round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am was wiped out by inclement weather. The Los Angeles area’s Riviera Country Club, host of next week’s Genesis Invitational, has been getting pounded by rain from systems pushing along the West Coast and setting rainfall records fueled by El Niño and atmospheric rivers.
What about this week’s WM Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale?
Cloudy skies eventually produced some rainfall Tuesday afternoon and there’s an 80 percent chance of rain overnight. Tom Frieders, a warning coordination meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Phoenix, said the heaviest rainfall throughout the state is expected Tuesday into Wednesday, when there is a 55 percent chance of more rain. Thursday has about a 45 percent chance, then it should get nice for the weekend.
Matt Salerno, meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Phoenix, said Phoenix won’t get the same storms and rain totals as much of Southern California simply because of the topography.
“Just due to the fact that we have mountainous terrain around the city, and we are in a low spot of the Valley, the clouds and rain tend to form around us,” Salerno said. “As the winds start blowing from the south, those clouds and precipitation move away from the Valley up towards the mountains.”
The storms will lose some of their power as they move eastward.
“These storms hitting California are fueled by the atmospheric river that is streaming along the West Coast,” said Salerno. “The amount of moisture being carried by the river is not going to stay strong enough to make it all the way inland to us here in Phoenix.”
There is no expectation of any delays in the action, though, and fans are expected to turn out in droves like they typically do. Admission for Friday’s second round and Saturday’s third round have been capped. Last year was the first time they ever had to do that.
Caralin Nunes of azcentral.com contributed to this article.
