PGA Tour
WM PHOENIX OPEN
Site: Scottsdale, Arizona.
Course: TPC Scottsdale. Yardage: 7,261. Par: 71.
Prize money: $9.2 million. Winner’s share: $1.656 million.
Television: Thursday-Friday, 4-8 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday, 1-3 p.m. (Golf Channel), 3-6:30 p.m. (CBS); Sunday, 1-3 p.m. (Golf Channel), 3-6 p.m. (CBS).
Defending champion: Nick Taylor.
FedEx Cup leader: Sepp Straka.
Last week: Rory McIlroy won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
Notes: The tournament has a reputation as the largest party scene on the PGA Tour, particularly on Saturday. … Scottie Scheffler returns as a two-time champion, making his second start of the 2025 season. … Xander Schauffele chose not to enter, making this the third event he typically plays that he has missed with a rib injury. … The field features only three of the top 10 in the world ranking. … Florida State junior Luke Clanton is playing on a sponsor exemption. A top-10 finish would make him eligible for a PGA Tour card this summer. … Viktor Hovland was part of the field until he withdrew. … U.S. Amateur champion Jose Luis Ballester received a sponsor exemption. He plays at Arizona State. … Players who work their way into the top 10 in the FedEx Cup can earn a spot in the Genesis Invitational next week at Torrey Pines. … The Phoenix Open has been decided by a playoff in six of the last nine years.
Next week: Genesis Invitational at Torrey Pines.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/
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LPGA Tour
FOUNDERS CUP
Site: Bradenton, Florida.
Course: Bradenton CC. Yardage: 6,465. Par: 71.
Prize money: $2 million. Winner’s share: $300,000.
Television: Thursday-Friday, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. (Golf Channel); Saturday-Sunday, 2-3 p.m. (NBC Sports app), 3-5 p.m. (Golf Channel).
Defending champions: Rose Zhang (tournament), Nelly Korda (course).
Race to CME Globe leader: A Lim Kim.
Last week: A Lim Kim won the Grand Hilton Vacations Tournament of Champions.
Notes: Rose Zhang won the Founders Cup last year when it was held in May in New Jersey. Cognizant is no longer the title sponsor, and the tournament moved to Florida and replaced the LPGA Drive On event. … Nelly Korda won the LPGA Drive On at Bradenton Country Club, the first of her seven victories on the LPGA last year. … The LPGA signed on the U.S. Virgins Island as a presenting sponsor for the tournament. … A Lim Kim has won her last two LPGA titles without trailing after any round. … The Founders Cup began in 2011 in Arizona. The inaugural winner was Karrie Webb, who was the driving force in getting the LPGA founders as a group inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame last year. … Brittany Lincicome and Lexi Thompson, who announced their retirements from a full schedule last year, are both playing for the second week in a row.
Next tournament: Honda LPGA Thailand on Feb. 20-23.
Online: https://www.lpga.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: Thursday-Friday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. (FS2); Saturday, 10 a.m. to noon (FS1), noon to 3 p.m. (FS2).
Defending champion: Joaquin Niemann.
Points champion: Jon Rahm.
Last tournament: Ripper GC won the LIV Golf Team Championship.
Notes: This is the first tournament of the 14-tournament schedule for LIV Golf League, which enters its fourth year. … The 54-hole event starts on Thursday and ends on Saturday, and it will be played under the nights to get a more favorable TV viewership in the U.S. … Phil Mickelson has a shoulder injury and will not play. He is being replaced this week by Ollie Schniederjans, who won on the Asian Tour last week. … Jon Rahm and his Legion XIII team did not re-sign Eugenio Chacarra, instead picking up Tom McKibbin of Northern Ireland, who turned down a PGA Tour card. … LIV did not have any highly ranked players sign with the Saudi-funded league for 2025. … LIV signed a TV deal with Fox Sports as its network partner. It had been on The CW Network the last two years. … Patrick Reed has played three European tour events ahead of the LIV Golf League opener.
Next week: LIV Golf Adelaide.
Online: https://www.livgolf.com/
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European tour
COMMERCIAL BANK QATAR MASTERS
Site: Doha, Qatar.
Course: Doha GC. Yardage: 7,508. Par: 72.
Prize money: $2.5 million. Winner’s share: $416,667.
Television: Thursday-Friday, 4-8 a.m. (Golf Channel), 8-9 a.m. (NBC Sports app); Saturday, 4:30-8 a.m. (Golf Channel), 8-9 a.m. (NBC Sports app); Sunday, 3:30-8:30 a.m. (Golf Channel).
Defending champion: Rikuya Hoshino.
Race to Dubai leader: Tyrrell Hatton.
Last week: Laurie Canter won the Bahrain Championship.
Notes: This is the 28th edition of the Qatar Masters, which is part of the “International swing” on the European tour. … The field features only three of the top 100 players in the world ranking. … Antoine Rozner, one of 10 players to earn a PGA Tour card last year, is in the field. He is an alternate this week for the Phoenix Open on the PGA Tour. Rozner won the Qatar Masters in 2021 with a 60-foot putt, making him eligible for his first World Golf Championship at the Match Play. … Brandon Wu and Troy Merritt are among the four PGA Tour players from Nos. 126 to 200 in the FedEx Cup who are playing in Qatar this week … Adam Scott won the tournament twice. Other past champions include Ernie Els, Paul Lawrie, Retief Goosen and Sergio Garcia. … This is the fourth stop in the Middle East for the European tour. It returns in the fall for Abu Dhabi and Dubai to end the season.
Next tournament: Magical Kenya Open on Feb. 20-23.
Online: https://www.europeantour.com/dpworld-tour/
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PGA Tour Champions
TROPHY HASSAN II
Site: Rabat, Morocco.
Course: Royal Golf Dar Es Salam. Yardage: 7,349. Par: 73.
Prize money: $2.5 million. Winner’s share: $400,000.
Television: Thursday-Saturday, 8-11 a.m. (Golf Channel).
Defending champion: Ricardo Gonzalez.
Charles Schwab Cup leader: Ernie Els.
Last tournament: Ernie Els won the Mitsubishi Electric Championship.
Notes: This is the third year the Trophy Hassan II is part of the PGA Tour Champions schedule. It had been a European tour event for 10 years. … Ernie Els is in the field after winning the PGA Tour Champions opener in Hawaii. He won in Morocco in 2008 when it was an unofficial pro-am and not affiliated with a tour. … Els now has won on four Hawaiian islands with his victory on the Big Island. He also won the PGA Grand Slam of Golf on Kauai, the Mercedes Championship at Kapalua on Maui and the Sony Open on Oahu. … The field also includes Steven Alker, Padraig Harrington, David Duval and Justin Leonard. Harrington won in Morocco in 2007, the year before Els. … The tournament ends on Saturday, giving players time to get to Florida for the next tournament. … This is one of only three PGA Tour Champions event held outside the United States. The others are in England (Senior British Open) and Canada.
Next week: Chubb Classic.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/pgatour-champions
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Korn Ferry Tour
ASTARA GOLF CHAMPIONSHIP
Site: Bogota, Colombia.
Course: Bogota CC (Lagos). Yardage: 7,237. Par: 71.
Prize money: $1 million. Winner’s share: $180,000.
Television: None.
Previous winner: Kevin Velo.
Points leader: Hank Lebioda.
Last week: Josh Teater won the Panama Championship.
Next tournament: Visa Argentina Open on Feb. 27-March 2.
Online: https://www.pgatour.com/korn-ferry-tour
Other tours
Ladies European Tour: Lalla Meryem Cup, Royal Golf Dar Es Salam (Blue), Rabat, Morocco. Defending champion: Bronte Law. Online: https://ladieseuropeantour.com/tournaments
PGA Tour of Australasia: Vic Open, 13th Beach GL (Beach and Creek), Barwon Heads, Australia. Defending champion: Brett Coletta. Online: https://pga.org.au/
Sunshine Tour: Cell C Cape Town Open, Royal Cape GC, Cape Town, South Africa. Defending champion: Mikael Lindberg. Online: https://sunshinetour.com/
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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
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