Nick Taylor using TPC Scottsdale experience to lead Phoenix Open as Arizona golfers shine

The past 12 months have been the best of Nick Taylor’s career, a stretch that circles all the way back to this same venue a year ago. This is where Taylor used a scorching weekend to finish in second place at the 2023 WM Phoenix Open, his best finish on tour in nearly three years. The performance set the tone for the summer ahead, in which he won the Canadian Open, becoming the first Canadian to win his own national open in 69 years.

Now, back at TPC Scottsdale, Taylor is set for another weekend in the heart of contention. His second round didn’t live up to the standard he set in the first round that began Thursday and ended Friday, but he is still tied atop the leaderboard at 12-under.

In Taylor’s mind, it’s not a coincidence that he’s back in that position at this same course. After he finished up a 1-under 70 in his second round, he pointed to a commonality between the 2023 Phoenix Open, the 2023 Canadian Open and the 2024 Phoenix Open.

“Last year, this tournament, being dropped in that environment and playing really well gave me kind of confidence at the Canadian Open and getting in that environment as well,” Taylor said. “I can draw on those experiences and know that I can perform well under them.”

The environment, of course, is the rowdiest on the PGA Tour, with rain-free Friday serving as a reminder of TPC Scottsdale’s typical raucousness. With the backing of the home country crowd, last summer’s Canadian Open offered a similar electricity, if one more focused on the actual golf.

Whether in Arizona or Ontario, it’s an energy Taylor seems to relish.

“It was great,” Taylor said. “There was a bunch of Canadians down here. I heard the anthem. I heard ‘Go Canada.’ It was a great. It was a lot of fun. I felt like they were following me around all day. I definitely was trying to use their energy to close the round out.”

The crowd isn’t the only part of TPC Scottsdale with which Taylor has experience. Living in Scottsdale, he said he regularly gets out on the course to play portions of the front nine. Playing the full 18 is more rare, but Taylor still estimates he’s able to do so “four or five” times a year outside of this tournament.

That’s helped him get comfortable with the sightlines off the tee boxes. But in his first eight attempts at the Phoenix Open, that familiarity didn’t help much. He missed four cuts and never finished better than the T-49 he managed in 2020.

Last year, Taylor’s fortunes at TPC Scottsdale turned in a dramatic way — a shift he attributes to his putting.

“I’ve always felt comfortable tee to green here,” Taylor said. “But the last couple years I've been able to see the lines a little bit better and put a little more work on there. That's been the biggest difference. It's obviously nice to see putts go in. You don't expect to do that like the first day all the time, but I’m seeing the lines really well, which I find is a pretty big difference out here. It's pretty tricky, subtle breaks out here a lot.”

Through two days this year, Taylor is not alone in benefitting from familiarity. Most notably, Scottie Scheffler, the two-time reigning champion, is four strokes back in a tie for fifth place.

Behind him, a group of lesser-known golfers with Arizona ties is exceeding expectations. Jake Knapp, a rookie who plays TPC Scottsdale as his home course, is in a tie for 18th. Sami Valimaki, a Finnish golfer whose cousin is Coyotes defenseman Juuso Valimaki, is in a tie for 28th. Kevin Yu, an Arizona State grad, is tied with Valimaki. Four strokes back, another Arizona State grad, Nicolo Galletti, is pushing to make the cut in his PGA Tour debut.

When the week began, one of the dominant storylines was the absence of two golfers who long stood out among the local scene: Jon Rahm and Phil Mickelson. As the weekend arrives, the state’s representation isn’t looking so bad — thanks, in large part, to an adopted Canadian leading the way.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Nick Taylor leading Phoenix Open as Arizona golfers shine