Jordan Spieth is looking for redemption this week
Here’s everything you need to know for the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am 2023
Tournament Basics
AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am
February 2nd to 5th
Pebble Beach Golf Links | Pebble Beach, California
Par 72 | 6,972 meters
Purse: $9 million
FedExCup Points for Winner: 500
Betting favorite, via BetMGM: Matt Fitzpatrick (+900)
Last time: Tom Hoge rallies to beat Jordan Spieth
Tom Hoge’s first career win on the PGA Tour couldn’t have happened in a better place.
Hoge rallied late in the final round with three birdies in his final five holes to win the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, narrowly beating Jordan Spieth – who had the lead on the 15th hole. It was his first Tour win and his first win in 11 years.
Hoge will be looking to defend his title at Pebble Beach this week in what will be his 10th start of the season. He only missed the cut twice and finished T3 at the Sentry Tournament of Champions in January.
“I felt like I did everything right to win last year… Second place isn’t fun,” said Spieth on Wednesday. “You can, of course, you gain momentum if you play well, but second place doesn’t go, doesn’t go into that win column and that win column cements the legacy. So you have to close them when you come and I look forward to taking that opportunity this week.”
Jordan Spieth will not risk his life on the cliff again
Despite not winning last season, there’s no question that Spieth nailed the shot of the week.
There’s just (almost) no chance he’ll do it again.
Spieth hit a terrible shot on the eighth hole of last year’s event, right on the bluff overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Luckily, Spieth put the ball back as soon as he hit it and scored safely.
Spieth said after that round that he regretted the shot, despite holding par, and reiterated that on Wednesday. If he had ended up with a bogey, it would have been “one of the worst decisions I’ve ever made.”
“I think I saved a stroke,” Spieth said. “Does the reward outweigh the risk? Not if you think the risk was dying… I think knowing my son a lot better, he was very young at the time, I might not have hit that shot.
Spieth is back in the field this week for the first time since Hawaii, where he finished T13 at the Sentry Tournament of Champions and then missed the cut at the Sony Open. He previously won the event in 2017, but Spieth’s pace of victory has slowed significantly since then. Spieth has only won twice since then and hasn’t won a trophy for more than three years during that time.
He also put on a tough show at the Sony Open, where he backed up a 64 in the first round with a 75. But that, he said, is far behind him.
“I didn’t really let that bother me and, to be honest, I didn’t really think about it,” said Spieth. “If anything, I’ve looked back and thought, man, I actually hit the ball a lot better the first two weeks in Hawaii than I did at the start of the last few years.
“Regardless of the score, I feel like it’s going in the right direction and I’m trying to keep improving… I’m feeling good. I really only took positive things from Maui and Sony. I’ve got a big stretch coming up, so I’m just trying to get a percent better every day.”
Josh Allen’s “Sick Day”
Josh Allen doesn’t want to attend the Pro Bowl games, and it’s hard to blame him.
The Buffalo Bills quarterback would rather play golf instead.
Allen is missing this week’s Pro Bowl activity in Las Vegas due to an injury, the league announced Monday, and will be replaced by Baltimore Ravens quarterback Tyler Huntley.
However, all are fine. He had already signed up to play in the Pebble Beach Pro-Am and hinted that he was having a “sick day” with a clever emoji on Instagram.
Allen will star alongside Keith Mitchell this week. The two will be collaborating with Kevin Chappell and singer Eric Church. Others such as Bill Murray, Aaron Rodgers, Larry Fitzgerald, Jake Owen, ScHoolboy Q, Macklemore, Pau Gasol and Gareth Bale will also compete.
However, as far as Allen is concerned, this may be the most relatable thing he’s ever done.