Paige Spiranac, Scottie Scheffler Bewildered by ‘Rowdy’ Scenes at 16th Hole on TPC Scottsdale

There is something special about the WM Phoenix Open that makes it different from any other. Can you guess what it is? The fan experience! The overwhelming crowd has been a signature of the Arizona event that since 2018 the tournament has not shared official attendance figures.

“The People’s Open” as it is otherwise called, had 577,000 people walk through its gates in the 2018 season with at least 217,000 of those coming on Saturday. For context, the Masters at Augusta National only sees about 40,000 people coming in. One look at Paige Spiranac’s story can tell you that the crowd was a standout feature this time as well. And it was not just her who was stumped.

The crowd’s reaction after the hole-in-one was captured by Paige Spiranac in her Instagram Story. “Hole in One on 16”, the influencer’s story read. It then showed a very vocal crowd cheering the Argentine golfer’s brilliant ace at the par 3 hole. The crowd was also throwing their bottles onto the course as a form of salutation to the incredible feat from Grilo.

Even Scottie Scheffler opened up about crowd influence on golf

World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler feels that the amount of people watching the event on the sidelines is a unique feature that not many opens can boast of. The Phoenix Open has been billed as one of the rowdiest events of the Tour calendar and with due reason. Scottie stated that the crowd in Arizona was special in its way. “Yeah, it’s definitely very unique. The crowd is a bit more of a factor this week than it is other weeks, especially when you get to some of the holes where there’s a lot of people.”

With there being a degree of freedom for the fans, the experience at the tournament is unique. But it also paves the way for a new set of problems. Crowd proximity allows for talks and yells to reach the golfer on the course, allowing for easy distractions. So, focus becomes a key attribute of this particular course. Scottie recalled a particular incident that involved his tee partner, Max Homa, at the 6 hole. “I think of yesterday, we were on No. 6 and Max has a putt from 12 or 15 feet, and a guy in the crowd yells out, it’s dead straight. And then Max starts reading the putt, and he’s like, stop reading it, Max, it’s dead straight, and he’s yelling at him. So like you can’t not hear it. So sometimes you have to make a conscious effort to be like, I’m either going to totally ignore that person or maybe he’s sitting here all day, maybe he knows something.”

Despite the grayness surrounding the crowd, Scheffler thinks it is a huge selling point. He even recounted a situation from last season where the crowd’s instructions helped him deal with a particularly tricky hole.  “I think overall it’s a positive effect. I think the crowds here are great. It’s fun to get to play in front of so many people. Stuff like that — I remember in Memphis last year I had an instance like that where a guy was yelling in the crowd, everybody is leaving is short; hit it a little harder than you think, and he yelled it a bunch of times, and sure enough, two guys on a similar line left it short, and I was like, I guess I’d better hit it a little harder and ended up hitting it a little harder and making it.”

The famed Hole No.16 at the TPC Scottsdale is dubbed the Coliseum. Why so? Because inside it is like a battle arena reminiscent of the Roman Gladiator encounters. The atmosphere is heavy with nearly 17,000 fans in close proximity and every shot a golfer is going to take is scrutinized as loudly as possible. “I think when you get the crowd on 16 they’re probably having a few beverages so I’m not really going to trust what they have to say. But maybe No. 6 was a little less rowdy.”

And it is not just Scottie Scheffler who had similar thoughts concerning the crowd. His and Homa’s tee partner Tom Kim also recalled the situation at the WM Phoenix Open.

Crowd reactions at Arizona stun golfers

The South Korean pro also feels that when the crowd gets involved while you are preparing for a shot, it can be cumbersome. There is a fine line between random shouts and educated guesses from the crowd and it is up to the golfer involved to make a decision, based on his knowledge. “Yeah, I think sometimes it can get confusing as players because you’re normally — I feel like you trust a player to read a putt more than anything else, but they have been literally standing there all day seeing putts do this and that and certain clubs being short or long. But I think at the end of the day you have to trust yourself.”

The crowd’s presence could also make the professional golfers on the circuit rethink their approach to the shot, especially on hole no. 16. With an energizing atmosphere at very close quarters, the hole requires a higher level of concentration and effort to pull off. “I think a little bit. I do think it’s going to go two to three, four yards. I think you’re going to scrunch it a little bit more, you’re going to hit it in the middle of the face more. It’s electric out there, and you can’t really hear anything but noise out there. Definitely that hole definitely takes adjustment.”

The Coliseum was a spectacular phenomenon this time around after Emiliano Grilo nailed a slam dunk for what was only the 12 ace at the WM Phoenix Open since it moved to TPC Scottsdale’s Stadium Course in 1987.

Crowd behavior has created problems in the past, with the 2024 edition even seeing one man get arrested. However, they are undoubtedly one of the essential facets of the game and contribute to the novelty and excitement surrounding the Phoenix Open. What are your thoughts?