Field Level Media’s Golf Glance provides weekly news and storylines from each of the major North American golf tours.
PGA TOUR
LAST TOURNAMENT: The Genesis Invitational (Ludvig Aberg)
THIS WEEK: Mexico Open at VidantaWorld, Vallarta, Mexico
Course: Vidanta Vallarta Golf Course (Par 71, 7,436 Yards)
Purse: $7M (Winner: $1.26M)
Defending Champion: Jake Knapp
FedEx Cup leader: Ludvig Aberg
HOW TO FOLLOW
TV: Thursday-Friday: 4-7 p.m. ET (Golf Channel); Saturday: 1-3 p.m. (GC), 3-6 p.m. (NBC); Sunday: 1-3 p.m. (GC), 3-6 p.m. (NBC)
Streaming (ESPN+): Thursday-Friday: 8:30 a.m.-7 p.m.; Saturday-Sunday: 8:30 a.m.-6 p.m.
X: @MexicoOpenGolf
NOTES: The first seven weeks of the 2025 PGA Tour season have produced winners from seven different countries. … This is the first event in which players can earn FedEx Cup points toward the Aon Swing 5 for the Arnold Palmer Invitational. The top five players following this week and the Cognizant Classic who are not otherwise exempt will earn spots into the fourth signature event of the year. This week’s winner will also earn spots in the five remaining signature events of 2025. … Vidanta Vallarta was designed by former LIV Golf CEO and current board member Greg Norman. Tony Finau holds the tournament scoring record of 260 set in 2023, while Jon Rahm set the 18-hole record of 61 in the third round the same year. … Blades Brown, 17, will make his second start of the season. … Knapp beat Sami Valimaki by two strokes first his first PGA Tour victory last year. No one has successfully defended a title at the event. … San Diego State senior Justin Hastings, a native of the Cayman Islands, will make his second career PGA Tour start. He previously missed the cut at the 2024 Puerto Rico Open. … There are five players from Mexico in the field: Alvaro Ortiz, Santiago de la Fuente, Jose Cristobal Islas, Gerardo Gomez, Jose Antonio Safa.
BEST BETS: Akshay Bhatia (+1400 at DraftKings) is coming off a T9 at the Genesis and has not missed a cut in four events this year. … Rasmus Hojgaard (+1800) is coming off his first missed cut since October following four consecutive finishes of T22 or better worldwide. … Kurt Kitayama (+2000) is a four-time winner who has fared well recently against softer fields, including a fifth at the Zozo and a T9 at the Shriners over the fall. … Patrick Rodgers (+2200), who held the 54-hole lead at the Genesis, is the only player to finish in the top 10 in each of the first three editions of the Mexico Open. … Knapp (+4000) is already making his seventh start of the season and is playing for the sixth consecutive week. He finished T17 at the Genesis. … Patrick Fishburn (+5500) appeared primed for a breakthrough PGA Tour win but enters this week having missed three consecutive cuts. Still, he has shown the talent over the past six months that could make him a dark horse threat in this field.
NEXT TOURNAMENT: Cognizant Classic, Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., Feb. 27-March 2
LPGA TOUR
LAST TOURNAMENT: Founders Cup (Yealimi Noh)
THIS WEEK: Honda LPGA Thailand, Pattaya, Chonburi, Feb. 20-23
Course: Siam Country Club, Old Course (Par 72, 6,632 Yards)
Purse: $1.7M (Winner: $225,000)
Defending Champion: Patty Tavatanakit
Race to the CME Globe leaders: Noh, A Lim Kim
HOW TO FOLLOW
TV/Streaming: Wednesday-Thursday: 10 p.m.-3 a.m. ET; Friday: 10:30 p.m.-3:30 a.m.; Saturday: 10 p.m.-3 a.m. (Golf Channel, NBCSports.com)
X: @HondaLPGAThailand
NOTES: This is the 18th playing of the tournament, which features no cut for the 72-player field. … Tavatanakit, who is one of 12 players from Thailand in the field, won last year following a victory the week before at the LET’s PIF Saudi Ladies International. World No. 2 Jeeno Thitikul won in Saudi Arabia last week. … Brittany Altomare returns from maternity leave to make her first start since the 2023 Ascendant LPGA.
NEXT TOURNAMENT: HSBC Women’s World Championship, Singapore, Feb. 27-March 2
LIV GOLF LEAGUE
LAST TOURNAMENT: LIV Golf Adelaide (Individual: Joaquin Niemann; Team: Fireballs GC)
THIS WEEK: OFF
Leaders: Individual: Adrian Meronk; Team: Legion XIII
NEXT TOURNAMENT: Hong Kong, March 7-9
PGA TOUR CHAMPIONS
LAST TOURNAMENT: Chubb Classic (Justin Leonard)
THIS WEEK: OFF.
Charles Schwab Cup leader: Ernie Els
NEXT TOURNAMENT: Cologuard Classic, Tucson, Ariz., March 7-9
–Field Level Media
