Matsuyama, Schauffele and Watson Latest to Join Field for 2020 Waste Management Phoenix Open

Xander Schauffele, currently ranked ninth in the Official World Golf Rankings; two-time WM Phoenix Open champion Hideki Matsuyama and two-time Masters champion Bubba Watson are the latest to join the Waste Management Phoenix Open field and will tee it up at “The People’s Open, Jan. 27 – Feb. 2 at TPC Scottsdale.

Additionally, Waste Management ambassador Charley Hoffman has committed, along with Scottsdale resident Chez Reavie, who currently ranks 37th in the OWGR and has finished in the Top-5 the last two years at TPC Scottsdale (runner-up in 2018).

Schauffele is coming off an outstanding 2019 campaign where he recorded two wins (WGC-HSBC Championship, Sentry Tournament of Champions) and two Top-5 finishes in Majors (Masters, T2 and U.S. Open, T3) on his way to a runner-up finish in the 2019 Fed Ex Cup standings. The 26-year-old already has four PGA TOUR victories under his belt since turning pro in 2015, and has finished T10 and T17 in his two appearances at the WM Phoenix Open.

Matsuyama is a two-time WM Phoenix Open champ (2016, 2017) and has had incredible success in his six appearances in Scottsdale, notching four Top-5s and five Top-15 finishes in six starts (he withdrew due to injury in 2018). In 2019 Matsuyama finished ninth in the final Fed Ex Cup standings, earning seven Top-10s, two third-place finishes and missed only two cuts in 24 starts. The five-time PGA TOUR winner currently ranks 21 in the OWGR.

Watson is no stranger to the WM Phoenix Open and will be making his 14th consecutive appearance in Scottsdale, where he has finished in the Top-5 four times, including three in the last six years and runner-up finishes in 2014 and 2015. The two-time Masters winner has 12-career PGA TOUR wins and currently ranks 45th in the OWGR.

With the addition of Matsuyama the 2020 field now has five former WM Phoenix Open champions including Rickie Fowler (2019), Woodland (2018), Matsuyama (2016, 2017), Hunter Mahan (2010), and J.B. Holmes (2006, 2008).

A field of 132 players will vie for the $7.3 million purse, the $1,314,000 first-place check and 500 FedExCup points. PGA TOUR members have until 5 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 24, to commit to play in the Waste Management Phoenix Open. Eligible players are assigned one of 34 PGA TOUR priority ranking categories based on their past performance on TOUR. The field will continue to change as players with higher priority rankings commit to play in the Open.

The 2020 Waste Management Phoenix Open will be held at TPC Scottsdale January 27 – February 2, 2020. “The People’s Open” was recently  named the Tournament of the Year by the PGA TOUR for 2019, an honor that has been awarded four times in the last six years (2014, 2015, 2018, 2019) to help the tournament gain legendary status for being one the most unique events in golf. The 2020 edition will mark the 85th playing of the event (one of the five oldest events on the PGA TOUR) and the 11th as the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

The Thunderbirds were founded in 1937 with the mission of promoting the Valley of the Sun through sports. The Thunderbirds consist of 55 “active” members and more than 280 “life” members.  The Thunderbirds raised a record $13.2 million for charity from proceeds from the 2019 WM Phoenix Open and have eclipsed $147 million in charitable giving since its inception in 1932.  For more information on The Thunderbirds or the 2020 Waste Management Phoenix Open, visit www.wmphoenixopen.com.

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