"This tournament has been inappropriate since I've been on tour": Zach Johnson doubles down on his WM Phoenix Open criticism
The recently concluded 2024 WM Phoenix Open did not bring out the best in Zach Johnson. The atmosphere of the event doesn't seem to be to his liking, despite which he has missed few editions during his career. "This tournament has been inappropriate since I've been on tour," Johnson described it.
Zach Johnson has had a difficult time dealing with the fans, and the issue seems to have sunk in. At the end of the event, Johnson gave an interview to local AZ Central reporter Theo Mackie, speaking about his overall impression of the tournament.
This was part of what Zach Johnson said to AZ Central:
"This tournament has been inappropriate and crossed the line since I've been on tour and this is my 21st year. Bottom line is I don't have to play if I don't want to but I keep coming back."
"I don't know what the line is, but you have people falling out of the rafters, you have fights in the stands... at some point, somebody's either gonna really, really get hurt or worse. You've got a woman falling down 20 feet."
To a follow-up question from the reporter, Zach Johnson explained why he continues to attend the WM Phoenix Open year after year. Here's what he had to say:
"I don't dislike the golf course. I like the greens. I try to avoid playing on the west coast and these are overseeded Bermuda so that's usually how I base my schedule. And usually it's bouncy so I can even get loft to my hands. But it was wet this week."
Zach Johnson at the 2024 WM Phoenix Open and more
Johnson has played the tournament, currently called the WM Phoenix Open, 15 times, and has participated continuously since 2010. Johnson has suffered only two cuts at TPC Scottsdale (he withdrew in 2007), with a T10 in 2015 as his best result.
The WM Phoenix Open was the third tournament of the 2024 season for Zach Johnson. There he finished T60, with a score of even par, after posting first three rounds of 70 and a fourth round of 71. His performance included 11 birdies and eight bogeys.
Johnson began the season by making the cut at the Sony Open in Hawaii and then finished T25 at The American Express.
During the previous season, he played 22 tournaments with 13 made cuts and a T12 at The Honda Classic as his best result.