Charley Hoffman was in the second group of the morning and dealt with the brunt of the cold, windy weather. The veteran pro, who missed time with an injury last year, is playing on a sponsor exemption – he’s been a WM ambassador since 2007 – and carded 3-under 68 on a difficult day for scoring.
“I didn’t look at the forecast, so I didn’t know it was even projected to blow at all. It was sort of a shock to me,” he said.
That’s how you finish a round 💪@Hoffman_Charley buries a 39-footer to move to T3 @WMPhoenixOpen. pic.twitter.com/WeTxpxZMs2
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) February 9, 2023
When asked if the 14th hole played the toughest, he said, “All of them are beasts. Left, right, downwind it’s too hard to hold the greens, into the wind it’s hard to get there. I think the Tour did a pretty good job setting up the golf course with the wind. I know they changed one pin on 15 because of the wind, but you know what, it’s a tough test.”
Hadwin and Taylor both noted that the wind direction out of the northeast was unusual for TPC Scottsdale.
“We just don’t often see 15-mile-an-hour gusts to 20 out here,” Hadwin said. “Usually we’re playing inside of a dome.”