WMPO Wraps Up Super Bowl Sunday

Michael Thompson watches his birdie putt on hole #16 during round three of the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

Micahel Thompson will be playing in the Waste Management Phoenix Open's final round today.  He is currently tied for 59th at even par.

He is paired with Nick Taylor and Ricky Barnes.  They tee off from the tenth hole at 10:15am local Phoenix time.

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Live@ Streaming

Rough Start but Cut Made

by Roz Roberts III

Michael Thompson opened his second round with three straight bogeys and then held on to finish his second round with a four over par 75 in difficult rainy conditions at the Waste Management Phoenix Open.  It was enough to make the cut so he'll play the weekend.

He is paired with Nick Taylor and Kevin Na in the third round.  They tee off at 10:00am local Phoenix time.

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Michael's Scorecard
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Live@ Streaming

Strong Closing Stretch Propels Thompson Up the Leaderboard

Michael Thompson tees off on hole #16 during the first round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

by Roz Roberts III

Five birdies over the last seven holes during the first round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open propelled Michael Thompson into a tie for ninth place after posting a four under par 67.  Michael's round was highlighted by a hot putter as he dropped five birdies from 12 feet or more.  He was +4.105 in strokes gained putting which leads the tournament.

Michael even nabbed a birdie at the stadium 16th hole (pictured above) which hasn't been overly kind to him over the years.  As usual, the galleries were large.  In fact, Thursday's first round attendance at the WMPO topped 118,000 which broke the previous record by more than 30,000 spectators.  The tournament expects the large crowds to continue despite a rainy forecast for tomorrow' second round.

For round two, Michael will once again be paired with Mike Weir and Chesson Hadley.  They are scheduled to tee of from the tenth hole at 7:15pm PT although that might be delayed slightly since round one was suspended due to darkness.

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Live@ Streaming

Thompson Kicks Off 2015 in Phoenix

by Roz Roberts III

After a short break, Michael Thompson is back in action this week at the Waste Management Phoenix Open.  It will be the first event in a busy stretch over the next few weeks as he kicks off his 2015 season during the west coast portion of the PGA Tour schedule.

The Waste Management Phoenix Open is known for the largest and most raucous galleries on tour.  This year's tournament coincides with the Super Bowl which is also being played in Phoenix this weekend.

The PGA coverage of the WMPO will include Live@ streaming of holes 12 and 16.

For his first round of 2015, Michael will be paired with Mike Weir and Chesson Hadley.  The group tees of from the first hole at 11:25pm PST.

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Live@ Streaming

Thompson Saved His Best for Last

Michael Thompson watches his birdie putt on hole #13 during the fourth round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

by Roz Roberts III

Michael Thompson saved his best round at the Waste Management Phoenix Open for Sunday's final round.  He shot a four under par 67 and moved up 21 spots into a tie for 19th.  The top 20 finish moves Michael up to 74th on the FedexCup points list.  The fourth round proved to be the highest scoring round of the tournament with many pins being tucked into tight corners of the greens.  Michael managed to score well despite the harder pin placements because his putter got hot.  For the day he was +2.816 in strokes gained putting.

Michael will be playing next week at the ATT&T Pebble Beach Pro Am on the Monterey Peninsula in central California. There aren't many more spectacular vistas in golf than three courses used for AT&T:  Pebble Beach Golf Links, Spyglass Hill Golf Club, and the Monterey Peninsula CC’s Shore course.

Finishing Strong in Phoenix

Michael Thompson tees off at "the Colesium" in Saturday's third round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open.  The par 3 16th hole is fully enclosed with over 25,000 spectators.

by Roz Roberts III

While he was at Alabama, Michael Thompson latched on to one of coach Jay Seawell's favorite mottos:  "finish strong".  This week Michael has been making that motto a reality at the Waste Management Phoenix Open where, for the third consecutive day, Michael finished his round with a birdie.

Unfortunately, Michael wasn't able to make a big move on Saturday as his one under par 71 only moved him up eight spots into a tie for 40th.  He'll look to climb the leaderboard in tomorrow's final round and finish strong for the week.

Round 4 Tee Time
Michael is paired with Robert Garrigus and James Driscoll for the fourth round.  They tee off at 8:55am local time (10:55am ET).

Video Coverage

Online streaming coverage will be broadcast with Live @ Streaming on PGATour.com from 11:30am - 5:30pm ET.  They have coverage of holes 13 and 16.  Golf Channel and CBS will carry the television coverage.

Sun

2-Feb

PGATOUR.COM GOLF CBS

11:30am - 5:30pm ET 1pm - 2:30pm ET 3pm - 6pm ET

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Michael's Scorecard

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Birdie-Birdie Finish Vaults Thompson Over the Cut Line in Phoenix

Michael Thompson putts for birdie on the 13th hole during Friday's second round at the Waste Management Phoenix Open

by Roz Roberts III

After his first round 72 left him two shots on the wrong side of the cut line at the Waste Management Phoenix Open, Michael Thompson needed a good round on Friday in order to stick around for the weekend.

He played well all day but heading to the tee on the driveable par 4 17th hole, he was still one shot outside the cut line.  A great 307 yard tee shot left him sitting a mere 29 yards from the hole just off the green in the fairway.  A solid chip left him five feet from a much needed birdie.  Michael made the putt and sat at one under par for the tournament just inside the cut.

He then went to the 18th tee needing at least a par to make the cut.  The 18th hole's difficult tee shot over water is the primary reason the hole is the third most difficult on the course.  Michael hit a perfect tee shot 306 yards into the fairway with only 136 yards left to the hole.  He hit a nice second shot to the green 17 feet from the hole.  He made the putt for a birdie-birdie finish and is now two full shots inside the cut line at -2 for the tournament and his is currently tied for 48th.  A few golfers still need to finish their second rounds.

It is the first time Michael will make the cut at the Waste Management Phoenix Open.  He had missed the cut in his previous two attempts.  The made cut was the direct result of his solid second round which included hitting 12 out of 14 fairways and 16 out of 18 greens in regulation.

Round 3 Tee Time
Michael is paired with Sang Moon Bae and Ryan Palmer for the third round.  They tee off from the tenth hole at 10am local time (noon ET).

Video Coverage

Online streaming coverage will be broadcast with Live @ Streaming on PGATour.com from 10am - 7:30pm ET.  Golf Channel and CBS will carry the television coverage.

Video Coverage Schedule

Sat	1-Feb	PGATOUR.COM GOLF CBS	11:30am - 5:30pm ET 1pm - 2:30pm ET 3pm - 6pm ET
Sun	2-Feb	PGATOUR.COM GOLF CBS	11:30am - 5:30pm ET 1pm - 2:30pm ET 3pm - 6pm ET

Online Links

Leaderboard

Michael's Scorecard

Michael on ShotTracker

Michael's Group on ShotTracker (Coming Soon)

Back Home in the Desert

The par 3 16th hole at the Phoenix Open is one of the hottest party locations on the PGA Tour.

by Roz Roberts III

Michael Thompson has made a return trip to the Arizona desert.  This week he is competing in the Waste Management Phoenix Open.  Known for its huge, and raucous galleries, the Phoenix Open is one of the more unique stops on the PGA Tour.  Over 500,000 people are expected to be in attendance over the four day tournament at TPC Scottsdale - by far the most of any PGA Tour event.

This is the one stop on tour were open heckling, both good and bad, is not only tolerated but almost encouraged.  Players and their caddies often hand out goodies to the fans in the stadium surround the par 3 16th hole to help gain crowd approval.  A player not bearing gifts can be met with plenty of cat calls.  A missed green will bring lots of boos but a great tee shot will be met with huge cheers.

Last week Michael  made it back to his hometown of Tucson Arizona where he was the featured speaker at 2014 Friends of Scouting Dinner.  The event raised money for the local Boy Scouts.  You might recall Michael is an Eagle Scout and

Round 1 Tee Time
Michael will be playing with Martin Laird and Mike Weir for the first two rounds.  They tee off round one on Thursday morning at 10:33am ET  (8:33am local time).

Video Coverage

Online streaming coverage will be broadcast with Live @ Streaming on PGATour.com from 10am - 7:30pm ET.  Golf Channel and CBS will carry the television coverage.

Video Coverage Schedule

Thu	30-Jan	PGATOUR.COM	10 AM - 7:30 PM ET
		GOLF	3 PM - 7 PM ET
Fri	31-Jan	PGATOUR.COM	10 AM - 7:30 PM ET
		GOLF	3 PM - 7 PM ET
Sat	1-Feb	PGATOUR.COM	11:30 AM - 5:30 PM ET
		GOLF	1 PM - 2:30 PM ET
		CBS	3 PM - 6 PM ET
Sun	2-Feb	PGATOUR.COM	11:30 AM - 5:30 PM ET
		GOLF	1 PM - 2:30 PM ET
		CBS	3 PM - 6 PM ET

Online Links

Leaderboard

Michael's Scorecard

Michael on ShotTracker

Michael's Group on ShotTracker

Thompson Playing Well in Scottsdale

Twitter photo via @sformz

by Randy Roberts

Michael shot 2 under par today, which has him sitting in T58th going into friday's second round.  He tees off at 11:48am Arizona time (10:48am PST) and again will be playing with Jimmy Walker and Ken Duke.

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After today's round, a news station in Tucson released the following interview.  In it he recaps what he learned last year while out on tour.

Tucson News Now

Tompson Returns to Arizona For The Waste Management Phoenix Open

by Randy Roberts

Michael Thompson will be returning to his home state of Arizona when he plays in the Waste Management Phoenix Open this week.  Growing up in Tucson, about a two hour drive to the south, Michael Thompson dreamed of playing in a PGA event in Arizona when he was a boy.  This will be the second time fulfulling that dream, as he played in the event last year, and I'm hoping that the familiarity of the course will benefit him in his second try.  We heard that he'll have quite a crowd following him as numerous friends and family members from Arizona will be making the trek to Scottsdale to watch him play.

Michael will be teeing off at 7:48 Arizona time (6:48 PST) with Jimmy Walker and Ken Duke.

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Round One Is In the Books

by Roz Roberts III

Michael Thompson finished his first round at the Waste Management Phoenix Open this morning at one under par in a tie for 51st.  As a result of another frost delay this morning, the second round actually started before all of the groups still on the course finished round one.

Michael will once again be paired with Jason Dufner and Matthew Goggin.  The group has taken a short break and is back on the course for round two.

Online Scoring Links for Round Two
Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard
Michael on Shot Tracker
Michael's Group on Shot Tracker

Darkness Halts Round 1 in Phoenix

by Roz Roberts III

Early morning frost delayed the start of round one at the Waste Management Phoenix Open and, as a result, a large number of afternoon rounds weren't able to be completed before darkness set in over the Scottsdale area.  Michael Thompson was midway through his fourteenth hole when the horn sounded.  At 7:30am Arizona time on Friday morning, Michael will face a 28 foot for birdie on the par four fourteenth hole.  He is currently one under par and tied for 50th.  First round leader Ryan Palmer finished the first round at seven under par.

The early morning re-start means that Michael's first professional encounter with par three sixteenth hole known as "The Coliseum" will certainly be more subdued than it would have been yesterday afternoon although I'm sure the Mimosas and Bloody Mary's will be plentiful.

After his first round is complete, Michael will have a short break before his second round gets underway. Round two is scheduled to begin on time which means Michael's second round would start at 8:42am local time although additional frost delays are possible.

Sweet Home Arizona

Aerial view of the Stadium Hole #16 at TPC Scottsdale.  This is where the party happens at the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

by Roz Roberts III and Randy Roberts

As a kid growing up in Tucson, Arizona Michael Thompson always dreamed of playing on the PGA Tour in Arizona.  Tomorrow, Michael gets his chance when the Waste Management Phoenix Open gets underway at TPC Scottsdale. 

Talk about an exciting way to realize your dream.  The WMPO consistently boasts the largest crowds for ANY golf event - more than 100,000 people a day.  It's also known for the "The Coliseum"; the par 3 fully enclosed 16th hole that has stadium seating for more than 30,000 people.  It's the biggest party on the PGA Tour; alcohol is plentiful and the crowd is raucous.  To get an idea of what "The Colesium" is all about, check out the video at the bottom of this post.

After the Farmers Insurance Open, Michael flew out to Tucson to get some practice time with his swing coach Susie Meyers. He will have some extra support this week as he will have local family, friends, and fans from his home state of Arizona following him.

Michael will be paired with Jason Dufner and Matthew Goggin for the first two rounds.  The group gets their first round underway at 12:52pm Arizona time from the first hole.  By the time they reach "The Coliseum", the crowd should be well lubricated.

Television Coverage
The first two rounds will be aired on the Golf Channel from 4pm - 7pm ET.

Online Scoring Links
Leaderboard
Michael's Scorecard
Michael on Shot Tracker
Michael's Group on Shot Tracker