Wyndham Clark bounced back into form with a stunning first-round 64 at the Waste Management Phoenix Open.
The Scottsdale native made seven birdies and didn’t drop a shot in what was his standout round of the year so far.
After a nightmare stretch of golf in 2025, the Denver-born star will be thrilled with his start in Phoenix. On Thursday, Clark ranked third in strokes gained approach and also inside the top 15 for putting.
The American handled TPC Scottsdale’s firm fairways and lightning-fast greens better than anyone, and the course promises to get more challenging throughout the week.
Wyndham Clark makes iron adjustment
During his post-round press conference, Clark admitted that an adjustment he had made to his irons helped him play pinpoint approach shots.
“I made a couple of adjustments in my equipment. I moved my irons back half a degree more upright, which always helps for me,” Clark said.
“Then, really, it was just more of good start lines and kind of where we were trying to finish, it was pretty conservative, so we hit a lot of greens, and when we got a wedge, it was kind of a green light, and we took advantage.”
How often Wyndham Clark plays TPC Scottsdale
Clark lives just ten minutes away from the course, so this week’s WM Phoenix Open is a hometown event for him. However, the 31-year-old admitted he only plays TPC Scottsdale about five times a year.
“I wish I played more. I live only less than 10 minutes away, and I enjoy this golf course. But it is so busy, and my days are pretty packed with things,” Clark added.
“I don’t necessarily want to come out and play five, six-hour rounds. I play it less than five times a year.”
Wyndham Clark’s 2025 PGA Tour form
Clark started his PGA Tour season at The Sentry, where he finished in a tie for 15th on 21 under. The American would then miss the cut at The American Express before finishing well out of contention at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
During his title defence, Clark shot one sub-par round and ended the week two over. When discussing his performance at Pebble Beach, the 2023 US Open winner admitted he was pretty discouraged by his performance.
Clark continued: “I was very discouraged. It’s been a pretty c****** few, three weeks. But also, maybe what I needed was to kind of get me back into a better mental spot to reset and kind of go back to maybe some original things that helped me a few years ago.
“That’s kind of what I did this week. Listening to some of the books that I read a long time ago, looking back in my notes when I was playing well, doing some stuff in my process that helped me.”
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