After an exciting finish at Pebble Beach, we head to Scottsdale, Arizona for the Waste Management Phoenix Open. The raucous crowd at the famous 16th hole followed by a memorable finishing stretch of holes has turned into a Super Bowl Sunday staple leading up to the big game.

• Related: 2022 Waste Management Phoenix Open: Best DFS plays from each price range

The 2022 edition of the tournament will provide plenty of intrigue and an excellent field of 132 including Jon Rahm, Justin Thomas, Brooks Koepka, Jordan Spieth, Viktor Hovland, Patrick Cantlay, Hideki Matsuyama, Xander Schauffele, Daniel Berger, Adam Scott, and Webb Simpson.

TPC Scottsdale is a par 71 measuring 7,261 yards and features Bermudagrass greens (although they are much more of a blend rather than pure Bermudagrass).

Waste Management Phoenix Open Outright Bets

Justin Thomas (+1200) (DraftKings):

With fourteen career wins at only 28 years old, there is no one on Tour who offers more win equity than Justin Thomas. With his last win coming almost eleven months ago (March 2021), Thomas is past due for another Tour victory. 

Not only is “JT” due for a ceiling week, but TPC Scottsdale is the ideal spot on the schedule for it to happen. There are a few trends that point to Thomas as an eventual winner in Phoenix: Nine of the past ten winners at TPC Scottsdale have either a PLAYERS Championship victory, or a major championship. Thomas has both. Additionally, ten of the past eleven winners of the event have had a top seven finish or better in one of their last five starts at the WMPO. With finishes of 17th, 3rd, 3rd, and 13th respectively in his past four starts, Thomas certainly fits the bill. 

Despite the lack of wins in the past calendar year, Thomas has sneakily been playing some very good golf lately. With five top twenty finishes in his past five starts including three top threes’, he has shown he has been slowly trending towards a victory. 

TPC Scottsdale is famous for its electric atmosphere and energetic group of fans. As we saw at Whistling Straits for the Ryder Cup, the fans have seemed to be a motivation for Thomas, and I expect him to be fired up in Phoenix. 

Jordan Spieth (+2000) (DraftKings):

Last season, the Waste Management Phoenix Open is what started the career resurgence for Jordan Spieth. He finished in fourth place and gained an incredible 7.8 strokes on approach, which was his best performance on approach since 2017. Spieth parlayed that performance into a scorching hot stretch that included seven top 10 finishes in his next 12 events played. Last week, Spieth flashed the hot irons once again which may start another hot stretch for the 28-year-old. 

Along with his propensity to stay hot once he starts playing well, Spieth also tends to play well at courses that he has shown a liking to in the past. With three top seven finishes in his past five trips to the Waste Management Phoenix Open, TPC Scottsdale certainly qualifies as a course that Spieth enjoys. 

If Spieth had won last week, it is very likely that his price would be significantly slashed this week. The fact that he played well enough to win but didn’t get the odds reduction that comes with an actual win provides betting value on him this week.