Tag: Charley Hoffman

This PGA Tour pro is about to make his 500th start (and he thinks the feat will become a rarity)

“I think the unicorn of 500 starts is going to be even harder to attain in the future for PGA Tour players.”

SAN ANTONIO — Charley Hoffman is just a few years from a major milestone, one that will afford him the opportunity to compete on multiple tours. The San Diego native is less than three years from hitting the big 5-0, meaning he’ll be eligible for the PGA Tour Champions as well as the PGA Tour.

But this week at the Texas Valero Open, the wily veteran is celebrating an even bigger number as he makes his 500th PGA Tour start.

After playing collegiately at UNLV, Hoffman made his PGA Tour debut in 2006. One year later, Hoffman tallied his first of four Tour wins at the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic.

And while with age comes wisdom, Hoffman joked Wednesday at the TPC San Antonio Oaks Course that he’s avoided too much wisdom, thus maintaining a carefree attitude through decades of competition.

“The Charley Hoffman with the long hair and trying to become a PGA Tour player and star, I think I was just dumb enough to think I could do it. I thought I could compete with the best in the world. I played my first event when I was 16 in San Diego and I thought I could play with the guys,” Hoffman said. “Then now, and I’ll use at the WM Phoenix Open, I think I’m just dumb enough to think I can compete against these 20-something-year-olds and I still think I can beat them. So I think there’s a little bit of stupidity inside there which is consistent through all this.

2024 WM Phoenix Open
Charley Hoffman on the 16th hole during the weather-delayed third round of the WM Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale on Feb. 11, 2024.

“I just love to compete, I love to play, I love to feed off people. When I was younger I used to try to get on the first tee and learn from the older guys. Now I like playing — if I go play a practice round, I don’t mind playing with the younger guys, sort of feed off their energy and what they do and their charisma and how they hit it.”

Hoffman comes to the Alamo City with three straight missed cuts at the Mexico Open, Players Championship and Valspar Championship, but he hasn’t lost any enthusiasm. Still, Hoffman is competing, as shown by a tough playoff loss to Nick Taylor at the WM Phoenix Open. The close call has him working as hard as ever.

In fact, he first learned he was nearing 500 starts in Phoenix and said he then planned for the milestone to be broken in Texas.

“I honestly strategically picked this week to have it done just because it’s so near and dear to my heart and a place where the family I knew during spring break could come and celebrate that sort of stuff with me. It’s something we hand-picked after I found out where my 500th start was going to be. It’s quite mind-blowing,” he said. “I played the pro-am ironically with Joe Ogilvie today. We just started talking, I think the unicorn of 500 starts is going to be even harder to attain in the future for PGA Tour players. Guys are traditionally playing less, there’s rumblings of a shorter season and so on and so forth. So to get to 500 starts, it’s going to be hard for the younger guys.

“It’s something that I probably never thought I’d get to and it’s quite an accomplishment. I want more, I don’t see myself going anywhere as long as I’m healthy. I obviously want to hopefully get to 600.”

Going years between victories, Hoffman is long past due. With his last win coming here at the 2016 Valero Texas Open, Hoffman is going on over eight seasons without finding the winner’s circle as he winds down his Tour career. But he’s certainly in his comfort zone here in Central Texas, finishing the Valero with three runner-up showings and seven top-10 finishes.

“I would say Texas in general I’ve played fairly well throughout my career,” he said. “Obviously we were at a different golf course, La Cantera prior, had some success there and then moved over here. I remember back in the day, like take a tour of TPC San Antonio, come over here and see if you like the golf course. I never did do that tour, but obviously it’s a golf course I fell in love with.

“It’s a golf course you’ve got to drive your golf ball well. I’ve traditionally played well in the wind, which is the reason why I think I’ve played well in Texas. It’s a ball-striker’s golf course, it’s a course that you need to give yourself opportunities on the green to be in the right sections. It’s something that just fits my eye. I think the demand of it just sort of just fits my game.”

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6 notable players who missed the cut at the PGA Tour’s 2024 Mexico Open at Vidanta

The field of 132 at the Mexico Open was reduced to 65 on Friday night after the cut came in at 2 under.

The field of 132 at the Mexico Open at Vidanta was reduced Friday night after the cut came in at 2 under, and that sent 65 players to Saturday’s third round.

It’s not the most star-studded field on the PGA Tour this season, but there were still some notable names among the 67 who failed to make the weekend at Vidanta Vallarta, a 7,456-yard golf course where Tony Finau – who is tied for ninth – is the defending champion.

Still up for grabs for those playing is the $1,458,000 first-place prize as well as a Masters invite, if one is not already secured by the man who hoists the trophy come Sunday.

Here’s a closer look at some who didn’t.

Charley Hoffman plays way into 2024 Genesis Invitational after Tiger Woods denied his sponsor invite request

“I want to kick all these young guys’ butts, believe me,” Hoffman said after his WM Phoenix Open playoff loss.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Charley Hoffman lost in a playoff on Sunday at the WM Phoenix but he did earn a consolation prize.

Hoffman’s second-place finish, his 10th runner-up in 495 PGA Tour starts, earned him 300 FedEx Cup points and a total of 315.65 in the Aon Swing 5, good for fourth place. The top five players not otherwise exempt who earned the most FedEx Cup points from the Sony Open in Hawaii through the WM Phoenix Open qualify for this week’s Genesis Invitational via the Aon Swing 5.

When Hoffman was informed by a Tour media official at the end of his post-playoff press conference, he said, “Did it? That’s awesome. I’m excited about that. I guess I’m playing next week and not going skiing.”

Hoffman, who is playing this season on a one-time exemption for being top 50 on the Tour’s career money list, said he was planning a family ski trip for a few days to Mammoth Mountain in California.

“I guess we’re going to have to change those plans,” said Hoffman. He noted that he asked Tiger Woods, who he served alongside on the PGA Tour policy board as a player director, for a sponsor’s invite to the Genesis Invitational. Tiger’s foundation runs the event and is the chief beneficiary. Tiger gave one of the four exemptions to himself. “He said, ‘They’re all taken,’ so I said, ‘I’ll play my way in,’ so I guess I did,” Hoffman said.

Hard to top showing up at Tiger’s tourney at Riviera having done just that, but Hoffman made it clear that he feels there is more left in the tank at age 47 and in his 19th season on Tour.

“I want to kick all these young guys’ butts, believe me,” he said. “I sit back and I want to beat them. I want to be in these Signature Events. I want to be one of the best in the world again. If I’m healthy I can compete, and I want to show these guys I’ve still got it.”

Here’s a look at the Aon Swing 5 standings.

Player Aon Swing 5 WMPO FedExCup Points
Matthieu Pavon 1 DNP 598.563
Grayson Murray 2 MC 500
Christiaan Bezuidenhout 3 T28 323.955
Charley Hoffman 4 2nd 315.65
Kevin Yu 5 MC 236.667
Justin Thomas 6 T12 205.667

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Nick Taylor steals 2024 WM Phoenix Open title after playoff with Charley Hoffman

The win is Taylor’s fourth of his PGA Tour career.

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Nick Taylor clawed his way back from a three-shot deficit with four holes to go using a claw grip with his putter that propelled him to victory at the WM Phoenix Open.

Taylor birdied five of his last six holes at TPC Scottsdale on Sunday in an incredible display of putting to shoot a bogey-free 6-under 65 and win a two-hole sudden-death playoff over Charley Hoffman.

Taylor dropped his putter and clenched his fists as he birdied 18 for the third consecutive time – once in regulation and twice in the playoff — the final time from 15 feet. It marked the fourth career PGA Tour title for Taylor, who finished runner-up here last year.

“The finish was pretty dream-like,” he said.

Thirteen months ago at the Sony Open, at the suggestion of his short-game coach Gareth Raflewski, the Canadian Taylor switched to putting with a claw grip in which the left hand holds the club firmly and the right hand rotates so the palm faces his thighs. The grip is pinched “clawlike” by the thumb and forefinger of the right hand, and used to guide the stroke in a pendulum arc.

“My setup got much cleaner, my face rotation slowed down, so we’ve done the same drills for a year, just constantly repeating them over and over again,” he said. “I felt like growing up the claw was kind of a stigma. If you went to that, you probably struggled on the greens, but for me, once I committed to it, I haven’t turned back, and I’ve never putted better than the last year.”

2024 WM Phoenix Open
Nick Taylor celebrates after defeating Charley Hoffman in a playoff at the 2024 WM Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale. (Photo: Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Pros trying to improve their putting is considered golf’s endless and seemingly most futile search, but for Taylor, who dubbed himself as a streaky putter, it has been a game-changer, turning the biggest weakness in his game into a strength. Taylor famously holed a 72-foot eagle putt to win the 2023 Canadian Open in a playoff and end a 69-year drought for Canadians in their national open.

Having already won in his native land, Taylor, 35, added his hometown event. He has been a local resident since he graduated from University of Washington in 2010, and practices at TPC Scottsdale frequently. And yet until last year, he had always struggled reading the greens at TPC Scottsdale. That wasn’t the case this year as he holed 184 feet, 6 inches of putts in the first round, a personal high watermark. He gained 7.2 strokes on the greens, the fifth-best 18-hole performance in the ShotLink era dating to 2004, en route to tying the course record with an 11-under 60.

“I putted out of my mind,” Taylor said.

He followed with rounds of 70-68 and shared the 54-hole lead, but he trailed Hoffman by three strokes with four holes to go before his putter turned deadly one more time. He sank a clutch 10-foot birdie at 18 to force a playoff, and drained birdie putts of 15 feet and 11 feet in extra holes. For the week, he made 459 feet, 9 inches of putts, the most in the field and the best in Taylor’s 260 career Tour starts.

On Saturday evening, after the third round of the Phoenix Open was suspended due to darkness, Hoffman was asked what it would take to win the title.

“The lowest score,” he said with a wry smile.

The 47-year-old in his 19th year on the PGA Tour went out and gave it all he had. He wrapped up the third round when play resumed on Sunday with five birdies in his final six holes to shoot 7-under 64 and then matched that figure again to be the first player in the clubhouse with a 72-hole total of 21-under 263. Hoffman, a WM ambassador since 2007, was seeking his first title since 2016 but had to settle for his first top-10 since the 2022 Rocket Mortgage Classic.

“I played my butt off,” Hoffman said. “I knew if I got to that 22 number it would be hard for (Taylor) to catch me, and left a putt short (at 18) in regulation. But I love the juices. I love competing. This builds a little fire in the belly. I definitely want to be back here.”

This time Taylor also managed to get the better of world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who was bidding to win the title for the third straight year. Scheffler charged with five birdies in a row on Sunday morning during the third round to trail by two heading into the final round. Then he reeled off four more birdies in a row starting at the second to take the lead at 17 under. Taylor’s reaction to seeing the world No. 1 charge? “Oh, boy,” he said.

But Scheffler’s putter let him down in crunch time as he lipped out for par from 6 feet at No. 7, missed for birdie from 8 feet at the ninth and most disappointing of all, failed to make a 3-foot birdie attempt at 13. A final-round 66 made for a valiant effort to defend the title – had he won they may have re-named the course TPC Scottie-Dale – but it came up short (T-3).

“I’d say I’m a bit frustrated. I didn’t really finish the way I wanted to, but I gave myself a good chance this week,” Scheffler said. “Just wasn’t able to close.”

2024 WM Phoenix Open
Nick Taylor Is awarded a check during the trophy ceremony after winning in a two-hole playoff during the final round of the WM Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale on February 11, 2024 in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Photo by Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images)

Weather delays totaling nearly seven hours had been a big part of the tournament’s story and so it was only fitting that there would be more one more on Sunday, a 76-minute frost delay, and a sudden-death playoff.

After players completed the third round, they had 10 minutes before they were sent back out for the final round. Hoffman made an eagle and six birdies in his first 15 holes to reach 21 under and build a three-stroke lead. But Taylor seized the moment.

“To find my swing a bit the last nine or ten holes and make some birdies was incredible,” Taylor said.

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Charley Hoffman’s nickname is Seagull because he, well, we’ll let him explain

“I accepted it. I embrace the term seagull as a nickname.”

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Charley Hoffman is competing in his 18th consecutive WM Phoenix Open this week.

He is noticeable in the green shirts and golf gloves, as he is sponsored by WM, the title sponsor of the tournament.

But do you know what Hoffman’s nickname is? And do you know how he got it?

Four years ago, he joined the “Gravy and the Sleeze” show on SiriusXM, which is co-hosted by Colt Knost, to get into the details.

“I accepted it. I embrace the term seagull as a nickname and it sucks because Colt eventually heard of it and didn’t let it go,” Hoffman quipped.

He then got into the origin story.

“Well, seagulls are known for flying around and (expletive) on people . . . so I am a seagull,” he said. “I fly around and drop (expletive) on people. And it usually makes them laugh or sometimes is pisses them off. It all depends on what mood you’re in.”

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8 notable names who missed the cut at 2023 Sanderson Farms Championship, including the defending champion

These players are packing their bags early.

Two rounds of the 2023 Sanderson Farms Championship at The Country Club of Jackson in Mississippi are in the books and the top of the leaderboard is crowded.

Ben Griffin is alone in first at 14 under after shooting a 9-under 63 on Friday afternoon. His round included a 65-foot eagle putt on the 14th hole.

Four players are tied for second at 12 under including Luke List, winner of the 2022 Farmers Insurance Open. Four players are tied for sixth, including Harry Higgs, at 11 under.

On the flip side, several notable names are leaving Jackson a few days early, including the defending champion Mackenzie Hughes.

Here are eight big names who missed the cut — which came in at 5-under 139— at the 2023 Sanderson Farms Championship.

Charley Hoffman makes an albatross at 2023 Wyndham Championship

It’s a feat more rare than a hole-in-one.

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It’s a feat more rare than a hole-in-one.

Charley Hoffman made an albatross on the par-5 15th hole Sunday during the final round of the 2023 Wyndham Championship.

After a 343-yard drive, Hoffman holed out his second shot from 198 yards over water to a back-right pin at Sedgefield Country Club in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Hoffman was even par on his round after a bogey, a double bogey and three birdies. The double-circled 2 got him to 3 under and into a tie for 11th. The four-time winner on Tour has a season-best finish of T-14 at the WM Phoenix Open this season.

It’s his first albatross and the fourth on the PGA Tour this season.

  • Charley Hoffman, Wyndham Championship
  • Dylan Wu, Rocket Mortgage Classic
  • Kevin Tway, AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am
  • Xander Schauffele, The American Express

There have been 35 holes-in-ones season.

PHOTOS: Charley Hoffman through the years

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Beau Hossler and Wyndham Clark chasing elusive first PGA Tour win, Sungjae Im’s birdie binge among takeaways from third round of Zurich Classic

Here are takeaways from the third round in Louisiana.

AVONDALE, La. — Beau Hossler and Wyndham Clark have achieved all sorts of accolades as golfers from qualifying for the U.S. Open as a teenager for Hossler and being part of a NCAA national championship team for Clark. Both have been successful at maintaining their PGA Tour privileges, but a win has been elusive so far for both of them.

That could change tomorrow in one fell swoop as they have teamed up to shoot 26-under 190 and claim a one-stroke lead over the team of Sungjae Im and Keith Mitchell heading into the final round of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. Hossler is 0-for-4 in converting 54-hole leads and Clark is 0-for-1. Could having a partner be the difference in finding their way to the winner’s circle?

“Sometimes when you’re alone, it feels like you’re out on an island. When the momentum gets going bad, when you’re on your own, sometimes it’s tough to turn that,” Clark said. “With a teammate, you you can kind of feed off each other and really not allow that momentum to get going in the wrong direction. So I hope tomorrow we’re light and loose like we’ve been all three days.”

On a picture-perfect Saturday in the Bayou, Hossler and Clark each chipped in five birdies in the four-ball, or best-ball, format and posted 10-under 62 at TPC Louisiana, which tied for the low round of the day. Hossler made a few birdies from inside 10 feet and Clark connected from 21 feet at the third and 26 feet at No. 12.

Zurich Classic: Sunday tee times

“That’s a tough hole, and we kind of snagged one,” Clark said. “That was a huge momentum for the back nine.”

Clark and Hossler have held at least a share of the lead after each round this week.

On Sunday, the format switches back to foursomes, or alternate shot, which defending champions Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele were able to exploit to the tune of shooting a remarkable 9-under 63 on Friday. However, they are only a combined 11-under for two rounds of best-ball, settling for 6-under 66 in the third round. Cantlay made just one birdie on the day. They will start six back at 20-under and T-10, and likely will need another special round of 63 or less – and some help – to have a chance to defend.

The final round presents a great opportunity for the 29-year-old Clark and the 28-year-old Hossler — not to mention several other contending team where one or both partners is seeking a maiden victory — to break thorough for the first time.

“I think the more opportunities you get, the more comfortable you get, and hopefully we can lean on that tomorrow,” Hossler said.

“If the momentum goes in our direction, I hope we just keep riding it,” Clark added.

Here are four more things to know from the third round of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans.

Sahith Theegala makes birdie on 18th hole to win 2022 QBE Shootout with partner Tom Hoge

Hoge and Theegala became the second rookie team to ever win the QBE Shootout.

Sunday was a grind for Sahith Theegala. He was hurt from the opening tee shot.

He pulled an oblique, and it affected him throughout the final round. Especially with his driver and longer irons, Theegala was clearly in some pain after nearly every swing.

“It’s funny, I was just telling my mom at breakfast, knocked on wood how healthy I’ve been for the last four, five years,” Theegala said.

However, he said it subsided as the round went on. He joked teammate Tom Hoge’s back was the one that was hurting because he carried Theegala all day.

He said the adrenaline of the moment took over when stepping on the 18th tee, and Theegala capitalized.

Theegala and Hoge won the 2022 QBE Shootout at Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Florida, coming from two down entering the final round to win. Theegala, who hit his best drive of the day down the 18th fairway, drilled a birdie putt to give he and Hoge a one-shot lead. Ryan Palmer and Charley Hoffman, who led after the first and second rounds, each had shorter looks at birdie but were unable to convert.

“It was an interesting day because I don’t think either one of us played our best for 18 holes, but we kind of timed it right,” Hoge said. “I got off to some good starts to both nines and then Sahith kind of brought me home. You know, kind of the ham and egg worked really well for us and holed the timely putts when we needed to, for sure.”

Theegala and Hoge are only the second rookie team to ever win at the QBE Shootout, the first pair being Keegan Bradley and Brendan Steele in 2011. Hoge won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am last year, and Theegala has yet to win on the PGA Tour.

“We’ve been playing well all week,” Theegala said. “Like we said at the start of the round, we just need two chances and we gave ourselves two really good changes on 18. Yeah, it was kind of unspoken I think that like let’s go and get this last hole.”

Hoge and Theegala shot 10-under 62 in Sunday four-ball, three better than Hoffman and Palmer’s 65, to finish at 34 under for the tournament. On the back nine, Hoffman and Palmer made birdies on five of six holes, but the biggest was on the par-5 17th that tied the teams with one hole to play.

Palmer’s third shot, a chip from the left side of the green, came up short of the green and trickled back to his feet. He hit it again, bouncing off the hill before hitting the green and finding the bottom of the cup.

That’s when Theegala came through and propelled he and Hoge to victory.

“Give credit to them, they went out and played some good golf today,” Hoffman said. “They made a lot of putts and hit a lot of good shots.”

Nelly Korda, who made her QBE Shootout debut this week playing with Denny McCarthy, chipped in for birdie on 18 to cap their second round and nearly one-upped herself Sunday. Korda’s hybrid from the fairway lipped out for eagle, but she drained the birdie putt.

Korda, who’s playing with her father in the PNC Championship next weekend, and McCarthy finished tied for fifth at 27 under.

Lexi Thompson, the other female professional in the field, shot 24 under and finished T-10 with partner Maverick McNealy. This was the first time in QBE Shootout history that there were two women in the field, but that may change again come next year.

Harris English and Matt Kuchar also shot 10 under Sunday, finishing solo third at 32 under. It’s their seventh time finishing in the top five as a team at the QBE Shootout, extending their tournament record.

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Nelly Korda shows off her short game, Jason Day and Billy Horschel go low among takeaways from Saturday at the QBE Shootout

Only four of the 12 teams reached double-digits under par Saturday.

NAPLES, Fla. — There was plenty of movement on the leaderboard during Saturday’s second round at the 2022 QBE Shootout.

Teams jockeyed for position to put themselves in contention ahead of Sunday’s final round, but one thing remains the same Saturday night as it was Friday: the names at the top.

Charley Hoffman and Ryan Palmer continued their strong play, carding a 10-under 62 in the second-round modified alternate shot format at Tiburon Golf Club. It was a fairly stress-free performance from the duo, who are pairing up for the first time but have plenty of experience at the QBE Shootout. The most difficult shot they faced was arguably a par putt on 18, which Palmer converted with ease.

“I’m surprised how low I’d say the field went,” Hoffman said. “Obviously sort of benign conditions, but you’ve still got to execute and hit golf shots around this place. Obviously 10 under is a pretty good score.”

Neither has won before, but they’ll take a two-shot lead into Sunday, the same lead they had after the first round.

Hoffman and Palmer started as hot as they finished, carding birdies on the first two holes to increase their lead. Though other duos tied the lead at points throughout the round, no one was ever able to knock Hoffman and Palmer from the top, and as they came down the stretch, they managed to make birdies and distance themselves from the pack.

They birdied three straight from Nos. 12-14. Then back-to-back on Nos. 16-17. A day after a 56, they were one of four teams (out of 12) to shoot double-digits under par on Saturday.

Their two-round total of 118 is a new record at the QBE Shootout.

“This is a format you could have shot yourself in the foot for sure if you didn’t go out and put a decent round up,” Palmer said. “To shoot 10 under, there was 12 and 11 I believe, I was watching the leaderboard a little bit when I saw them and they played some exceptional golf. We played solid all day, we didn’t do anything spectacular.

“He teed off a lot of great tee balls, my iron play was on point today and he was able to make some putts. And when I needed to, I made a few, so the tag teaming went well today. It was nice to get that round in in this format.”

The closest group chasing is Tom Hoge and Sahith Theegala, which shot 12-under 60 for the second straight day. From holes Nos. 11-17 on the back nine, they were 7 under, punctuated with an eagle on the par-5 17th.

“Today, we just kind of started off hot and never really looked back,” Theegala said. “I was just saying walking off the green it just felt really stress free today.”

Theegala and Hoge made birdie on their first three holes and five of the first six. They cooled off in the middle of the round, but then again rekindled the flame during the stretch on the back nine. They’ll be in the final group on Sunday, looking to become the second pair of first-timers to win.

“I think more than anything, in best ball both of us just need to kind of be in the hole with chances on every hole,” Hoge said. “If we can both play well, it will help it out. Ultimately, you’ve got to make a lot of birdies to catch these guys, they’re playing well.”