Players like Scottie Scheffler and Jordan Spieth are competing in the 2025 WM Phoenix Open. One of them was Rickie Fowler. We say ‘was’ because the 36-year-old has since withdrawn from the event due to “illness.“ But that’s not the only troubling issue for Jay Monahan & Co. this weekend. It seems that the event at TPC Scottsdale might also experience delays.

This time last year, the venue for the WM Phoenix Open proved quite troublesome. The schedule seemed to be unable to keep up with the early sunset at TPC Scottsdale, leading to major delays in play throughout the tournament. In the end, the officials were forced to push the event to Monday to complete the 72 holes.

It’s no different this year as well. The first couple of rounds of the 2025 WM Phoenix Open were delayed. The weather was warm and pleasant for a good day of play. The temperature stayed around the 74°F mark. However, the scheduled play time was not sufficient to allow the golfers to complete their 18 holes. With the already persistent issue of slow play, the schedule was heavily affected, leading to the suspension of play.

This might continue in the last two days of the event as well. The second round was suspended and a lot of the action was moved to Saturday. As per AccuWeather, the weather is still pleasant with a slight increase in temperature at 76°F. The wind is not that strong with minimal possibility of precipitation. However, the sun is scheduled to set by 6:06 PM. With the completion of the first round and the entire second round to play, Saturday’s play may also get suspended.

Leading into the fourth round, reports suggest that the temperature might drop to 75°F. The wind and possibility of rain will remain the same. The nightfall is expected to begin at 6:07 PM on Sunday. If the course becomes unplayable before the round is complete, officials will need to postpone the action to Monday, February 10.

What does that mean for the players on the field? Let’s find out.

Will the delays affect the 2025 WM Phoenix Open leaderboard?

The first round of the 2025 WM Phoenix Open saw Wyndham Clark at the top of the table with a score of 7-under par 64. However, he couldn’t replicate his success from Thursday and ended up dropping points in the second round. The 31-year-old ended up finishing his 18 holes close to the dusk, which affected his ability to perform. As per the statistics on the official PGA Tour website, we can see that Clark conceded 3 bogeys in the last 5 holes of the day, which led to him ending the round with 2a -over par 73.

This allowed the likes of Thomas Detry, Alex Smalley, and Michael Kim to take the top of the leaderboard. Interestingly, Jordan Spieth, who finished the round much earlier than Wyndham Clark, also experienced improvement in play. The 13x PGAT winner managed to score 6-under par 65 to rise up 12 positions to T4. But now that these players are on the top of the table, they might face the same issue as Clark and will be forced to play in bad light during the third round. That means the leaderboard might change again going into Sunday.

Considering the challenges, who do you think will win the 2025 WM Phoenix Open? Share your views in the comments section.