WM Phoenix Open updates: Nick Taylor leads by 1; marathon on tap for Sunday

Traditionally, Saturday is "moving day" at the WM Phoenix Open. Saturdays in a 72-hole golf tournament have that nickname because it's the day when the field, which has been cut roughly in half, tries to position itself for a final push toward the top on Sunday. Well, this year "moving day" might take on a new meaning since there's still Round 2 to finish, who knows when the cut will take place, how much of Round 3 will be completed, and whether the tournament will be "moving" toward a Monday finish. Nevertheless, the "People's Open," a/k/a the "Greenest Show on Grass," continues on Saturday, which always is the craziest day of any Phoenix Open week, especially at the infamous 16th hole. When there's good weather it's not uncommon to see Saturday crowds north of 200,000. Here's a look at the activities on Saturday in north Scottsdale.

Nick Taylor leads Phoenix Open as play closes Saturday

With only a small weather-related delay in the morning to cope with, the field at the WM Phoenix Open made up some serious ground on Saturday, completing Round 2 and putting a dent into Round 3.

When the horn sounded at sunset ending play for the day, Nick Taylor of Canada was alone atop the leaderboard at 13-under, one shot ahead of Sahith Theegala. Both golfers were only able to finish six holes of their third round. No golfer was able to complete that round.

So, this is where things stand heading into Sunday. Play is scheduled to resume at 7:30 a.m., but there is the threat of another frost delay. But, even with that hurdle, there is a chance the tournament will be able to finish on Sunday. It would require some golfers to play as many as 30 holes — not ideal, perhaps, but workable, and certainly preferable to dragging everyone out to the course on Monday.

Following close behind Taylor and Theegala are Doug Ghim and Andrew Novak (-11), Jordan Spieth (-10) and four golfers at -9: Harris English, Davis Thompson, Charley Hoffman and Cameron Young. And lurking another shot back, in a group of nine players, is two-time defending champion Scottie Scheffler.

Rickie Fowler, Max Homa among notables who missed cut

When it was all said and done, 73 players moved on for 36 more holes at TPC Scottsdale. It took a score of 2-under 140 to make the cut and earn a paycheck at the WM Phoenix Open.

Two of the three Monday qualifiers made it through in Jim Knous (66, T-34) and former Arizona State golfer Nicolo Galetti (67, T-34). Kevin Chappell (68) made a 12-foot birdie putt at nine, his last hole of the day, to make the cut on the number.

But not everyone was so fortunate. Here’s a closer look at the notables who were sent packing at the WM Phoenix Open.

JT Poston – 1 under: Poston cooled off in the desert after starting the season with four top-20 finishes, including two top 10s. He entered the week ranked 10th in the FedEx Cup standings but shot 70-71 to miss the cut by one. It marked the second straight year he’s missed the cut in Phoenix. His usually trusty putter let him down in the second round (-4.765) as he was dead last in the field.

Max Homa – even par: Homa shot 73-69—142 to miss his first cut since the Travelers Championship in June, a span of 10 tournament starts. It marked the first time in six appearances that Homa has missed the cut at the WM Phoenix Open, his hometown event.

J.B. Holmes – 4 over: Holmes won this event two of the first three times he played in it (2006, 2008) but missed the cut this week for the third straight time he’s played in it. It also marked the eighth straight missed cut for Holmes dating back to last season. Next week’s Genesis Invitational marks five years since his last victory.

Gary Woodland – 4 over: Woodland, the 2018 champ, shot 8-over 79 in the first round to seal his fate. It included a penalty stroke off the tee and three-putt snowman at the second hole. Woodland missed the cut for the third time in his last four appearances, which is a surprising dip considering he made the cut in nine of his first 11 starts here.

Matt Kuchar – 4 over: The 15th appearance at the open for Kuchar didn’t go as well as his track record. Kuchar, who had made the cut 11 times and recorded three top-10 finishes at TPC Scottsdale, shot 75-71. It marked his third missed cut in four starts this season.

Grayson Murray – 4 over: Fork down for Grayson Murray, who had a cup of coffee as a golfer at nearby Arizona State. The winner of the Sony Open in Hawaii last month has come back to earth since his dramatic playoff win. Murray shot a pair of 71s to miss the cut.

Rickie Fowler – 6 over: His sluggish start to the 2024 season continues, as the 2019 Phoenix Open champ shot 73-75 and missed his second cut in four starts. His two made cuts were in limited field, no-cut events.

Brandt Snedeker – 9 over: Snedeker, who was making his 15th appearance, has struggled since returning from injury last June at the Memorial. He’s yet to record a top-25 finish in 15 starts, and missed his third cut in four starts this season.

—Adam Schupak, Golfweek

Cink wins closest-to-pin contest for charity

Stewart Cink won a closest-to-the-pin contest on the 16th hole at the 2024 WM Phoenix Open that won $10,000 for the Valleywise Health Burn Center.

The contest, dubbed the Ford Drive One for Arizona Charities, measured the best shots from everyone in the field on the famous hole over the first two rounds.

—Golfweek

Mud sliding at the 10th hole at TPC Scottsdale

All the rain this week has caused muddy conditions at TPC Scottsdale, and in the never-ending pursuit of fans trying to entertain themselves at the WM Phoenix Open, perhaps a new tradition for such conditions has emerged.

Hordes of fans gathered around the 10th hole Saturday morning, trying to convince other fans to slide on their bellies down a small muddy hill. Those who did so didn't seem to mind getting dirty.

Some even took off their jackets or shirts to flop into the mud and glide to the bottom, where more cheering fans were waiting.

—Jose M. Romero

Tee times, pairings in third round set for 2:10 p.m.

The tee times for Round 3 have been moved back to begin approximately at 2:10 p.m., according to the PGA Tour Communications account on X. The leaders will go off two hours later at 4:10 p.m.

Sahith Theegala, the leader after two rounds with 13-under on 129 strokes, will tee off at 4:10 p.m. in a group with Andrew Novak and Nick Taylor. They will almost certainly see their rounds called for darkness before they can make it to the famed stadium hole. On Friday, the horn signaling the end of play for darkness went off at 6:08 p.m. and that's also sunset on Saturday.

The top half of golfers who make the cut will begin the third round on the first hole, while the bottom half will play the back nine first. Fans at the 16th hole will likely sit back for a while as the first wave of players will likely come around 3:25 p.m.

—Jenna Ortiz

Entrances temporarily closed at crowded TPC Scottsdale

Shortly after the conclusion of the weather-delayed second round just before 2 p.m. Saturday at the WM Phoenix Open, tournament organizers temporarily closed all of the entrances to TPC Scottsdale. No more fans were being allowed into the tournament. Also, shuttle buses from off-site parking lots were put on hold.

This is the first time this has happened in event history. It's unclear what fans with tickets will do for now, but if enough fans leave then presumably more fans could be allowed in.

The tournament's Friday and Saturday rounds were declared sellouts leading up to the start of the tournament, meaning no more tickets were going to be sold for those days.

In 2019, tournament organizers stopped announcing daily attendance numbers. In 2018, the Phoenix Open reported the largest single-day crowd of 216,818 for Saturday's third round as well as and overall attendance for the week at 719,179.

—Todd Kelly, Golfweek

Here's how to track every shot at TPC Scottsdale's 16th hole

PGA Tour Live has four separate feeds at most tour stops, and that includes the 2024 WM Phoenix Open. One of the feeds this weekend could very well be the one most golf fans lock in.

They’re calling it Every Shot Live at No. 16 “Coliseum” Hole.

Yes, please.

Coverage includes the main feed, marquee groups and featured holes, which will also showcase the drivable par-4 17th and par-3 Nos. 4 and 12.

The 16th is the place to be and be seen, if you can score seats. There have been 11 holes-in-one there since the tournament started playing at the Stadium Course in 1987. Meanwhile, there have been 10 aces at No. 4 and just five on the 12th hole during that span. There has been one hole-in-one on the 17th hole, the only time there has ever been an ace on a par-4 hole on the PGA Tour.

—Todd Kelly, Golfweek

Round 3 tee times expected to begin around 1:45 p.m.

According to the PGA Tour Communications account on X, Round 3 tee times at the WM Phoenix Open are expected to begin at approximately 1:45 p.m., with the leaders going off two hours later, at approximately 3:45 p.m.

The top half of golfers who make the cut will begin the third round on the first hole, while the bottom half will play the back nine first. That means the first wave of players will likely hit the 16th hole around 3 p.m.

The leaders, meanwhile, will almost certainly see their rounds called for darkness before they can make it to the famed stadium hole. On Friday, the horn signaling the end of play for darkness went off at 6:08 p.m. and that's also sunset on Saturday.

Singing along with Duran Duran

Friday night at the Coors Light Bird Nest, plenty of music fans got to go back in time to the 1980s, the heyday of the night's performing artists, Duran Duran.

Lead singer Simon LeBon sounded great at age 65, and two original bandmates, Nick Rhodes and Roger Taylor, shared the stage. Many inside the giant Birds Nest tent sang along to the lyrics of Duran Duran's greatest hits, including "Rio," "Girls On Film," The Reflex," and "Hungry Like The Wolf."

Duran Duran has toured through the Phoenix area before but had never played the WM Phoenix Open. Fans braved chilly weather to trek to the Birds Nest, which wasn't overflowing with people but was mostly full for the show.

Fans shouted for specific songs, which ended up being on Duran Duran's setlist. The group even played covers of Rick James' "Super Freak," and their version of the hip hop classic "White Lines."

Fitz and the Tantrums opened for Duran Duran and sang some of their catchy tunes, including "Handclap" and "Out of My League."

—Jose M. Romero

Play suspended briefly early on Saturday

The resumption of Round 2 started close to on time at 7:34 a.m. Saturday morning at the WM Phoenix Open, but was suspended 22 minutes later due to unplayable conditions on the TPC Scottsdale Stadium Course.

That stoppage lasted 21 minutes, as play resumed at 8:13 a.m. According to a weather forecast shared on social media from the PGA Tour, there is a 25 percent chance of rain showers with possible isolated thunderstorm around 2 p.m., with up to a 15 percent of lightning by 4.

—Jose M. Romero

Saturday is #GreenOut Day at TPC Scottsdale

Ever since WM, formerly Waste Management, took over sponsorship of the Phoenix Open there has been a special push toward raising recycling awareness and pushing toward a total reduction in waste at the tournament. Tournament organizers remind all attending on Saturday that it's Green Out Day, and that it's hope spectators will wear green today to support WM's efforts to "Recycle Right" and make the WM Phoenix Open the largest Zero Waste event in the world.

—Mark Faller

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: WM Phoenix Open updates: Nick Taylor leads; marathon on tap for Sunday