SCOTTSDALE – With a big Saturday crowd on hand and 73 golfers left in the mix, the competition at the WM Phoenix Open is heating up heading into championship Sunday.
Leading the field is Hideki Matsuyama at 13-under. Friday’s leader, Ryo Hisatsune, is tied for second place after finishing round three with a 70. This brings him to 12-under on the weekend.
Several contenders moved up the leaderboard Saturday, including Viktor Hovland, Scottie Scheffler, Nicolai Højgaard and Michael Thorbjornsen.
Hovland entered Saturday 3-under, two strokes inside the cut line. An eagle on the 567-yard par-5 helped him finish his Saturday outing 6-under par, moving him to 9-under on the weekend.
Hovland noted favorable conditions and changing his putting grip last week as the factors in his comfort on the course.
“For the majority of the day (there) was hardly any wind,” Hovland said. “I felt like (the greens were) pretty gettable, but at the same time, if you short-side yourself and miss a few putts, it’s tough to shoot low.”
Hovland converted his lone bunker save and ranked first in putts per green in regulation, averaging 1.59. This helped him build an edge against the competition in round three.
“I felt like I played pretty prudent,” Hovland said. “Made a lot of putts today. … I feel way more stability over the ball and my speed control has been really good this week.”
Hovland historically has been middle to bottom of the pack at the WM Phoenix Open with his best finish being tied for 42nd. He sits 9-under-par and tied for 11th heading into Sunday.
Scheffler entered Saturday’s round at 4-under. Entering Sunday, the world No.1 sits 8-under, leaving him tied for 16th place. However, as a two-time champion, he knows he’s down but not out.
“I’m going to need a special round,” Scheffler said. “I feel very comfortable where I am at and where my game is at.”
Højgaard began his Saturday round at 6-under. After posting a 65 in round three, he now sits one behind Matsuyama and is tied for second place at 12-under.
Højgaard found 16 of the 18 in greens in regulation. Yet he feels he could have finished lower if his approach shots had landed closer to the pin.
“I’ve had a lot of scoring irons in (my) hand and I’ve just been hitting them to 20, 25 feet,” Højgaard said. “So I would like to get a little bit tighter tomorrow, but my game has been feeling really solid all week.”
Strong iron play led Højgaard in his bogey-free round as he trails first place by one stroke heading into the final round.
Thorbjornsen got off to a hot start and now finds himself tied for sixth after a 6-under round Saturday.
“Hit one close on 1, missed. But made birdie on 2, birdie on 3, and birdie on 4. Kind of something that … I wasn’t really able to do the first two days,” Thorbjornsen said.
Thorbjornsen’s weekend has come down to going 5 for 5 on saves from the sand. This efficiency while scrambling has been a key in pushing him to the top of the leaderboard.
He hopes to remain consistent with his drive from the tee box, stating he believes it’s his best club. Thorbjornsen was first in the longest drive at 380 yards during round three.
Matsuyama, a two-time WM Phoenix Open champion, has the opportunity to join a short list of players to win it three times.
However, with the lowest score of Saturday a 6-under and 10th place trailing first by three strokes, the field is open for anyone to make a jump up the leaderboard Sunday and take home the 2026 WM Phoenix Open championship.
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