2022 Waste Management Phoenix Open: Top 10 power rankings

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WM Pheonix Open, TPC Scottsdale, PGA Tour

Feb 5, 2022; Pebble Beach, California, USA; Patrick Cantlay plays his shot on the 17th tee during the third round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am golf tournament at Pebble Beach Golf Links. Mandatory Credit: Ray Acevedo-USA TODAY Sports /

I don’t think many of us expected Patrick Cantlay to fizzle out the way he did on Sunday last week at Pebble Beach. The Californian just looks right on the shores of the Pacific, but he couldn’t find the magic and settled for T-4th.

Cantlay entered the final round a shot off the lead and was 3-under through six to grab at least a share of the lead for a good portion of the afternoon. He just couldn’t keep the pedal down on a day where birdies were needed against a crowded leaderboard.

The 29-year-old ranked first in the field in putts per green in regulation (1.604) and was T-15th in scrambling (75%).

Nevertheless, it was still an ultra-impressive fifth straight top-10 and seventh straight top-25. The streak features wins last year at the BMW Championship and the Tour Championship.

Cantlay has played well during the West Coast swing as he’s prone to do. The former UCLA Bruin was solo ninth at The American Express prior to Pebble.

Cantlay usually eschews the Waste Management Phoenix Open. This is surprisingly his tournament debut.

TPC Scottsdale could be a good fit for his game. In reality, he’s a chameleon who can play well almost anywhere. Not to mention, the afternoon heat in Arizona should be good for his occasionally bothersome back.

Cantlay ranked in the top 30 last season on the PGA Tour in all strokes gained stats. He was third in SG tee to green (1.418) and third in SG total (1.82).

I envision Cantlay using last week’s sour finish as motivation to rack up yet another top-10.

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