Course Guide: Previous host course El Camaleon was a short, flat, coastal affair on the Caribbean Sea where accuracy counted. 2023 saw the WWT Championship move to Baja, California, which is effectively the Mexican controlled “Lower California” and the fashionable resort of Cabo San Lucas. El Cardonal Golf Course is an altogether different course set in desert conditions with wide fairways, much longer in length, and overlooking the Pacific Ocean.
El Cardonal at Diamante, Los Cabos, Mexico: Designer: Tiger Woods 2014; Course Type: Desert, Resort, Long; Par: 72; Length: 7,452 yards; number of Holes with Water Hazards In-Play: 1; Number of Sand Bunkers: 48; Acres of Fairway: 97; Fairways: Platinum Paspalum; Rough: None; Greens: 8,300 sq.ft average featuring Platinum Paspalum; Tournament Stimp: 11ft.
Course Scoring Average + PGA Tour Difficulty Rank:
2023: 68.99 (-1.70), Rank 56 of 58 courses.
Fairway Widths (yards): Below are the fairway widths for El Cardonal and how they compare to recent courses that we’ve seen on Tour:
- El Cardonal: Average 60 yards up to 70 yards wide.
- TPC Summerlin: 250 yards from the tee: 35 yards wide; 275:37; 300:33; 325:30; 350:31.
- Black Desert: Average 30 yards up to 70-100 yards wide.
- CC of Jackson: 250 yards from the tee: 29 yards wide; 275:28; 300:29; 325:28; 350:25.
- Silverado: 250 yards from the tee: 27 yards wide; 275:26; 300:24; 325:25; 350:24.
- TPC Southwind: 250 yards from the tee: 29 yards wide; 275:29; 300:28; 325:31; 350:25.
- Sedgefield CC: 250 yards from tee: 29 yards wide; 275:28; 300:26 325:23; 350:22.
- TPC Twin Cities: 250 yards from the tee: 38 yards wide; 275:38; 300:31; 325:30; 350:36.
- TPC Deere Run: 250 yards from tee: 41 yards wide; 275:40; 300:36 325:33; 350:30.
- Detroit Golf Club: 250 yards from tee: 34 yards wide; 275:34; 300:35 325:34; 350:33.
- TPC River Highlands: 250 yards from the tee: 38 yards wide; 275:36; 300:29; 325:29; 350:28.
- Pinehurst Number 2: Average 35-45 yards wide.
- Muirfield Village: 250 yards from the tee: 34 yards wide; 275:32; 300:28; 325:24; 350:27.
- Hamilton G&CC: 250 yards from the tee: 29 yards wide; 275:29; 300:29; 325:27; 350:28.
- Colonial: Average 25-30 yards wide.
- Quail Hollow: 250 yards from tee: 33 yards wide; 275:32; 300:31; 325:30; 350:29.
- Harbour Town: 250 yards from tee: 29 yards wide; 275:26; 300:22; 325:26; 350:22.
- Oaks Course: 250 yards from tee: 33 yards wide; 275:34; 300:29; 325:27; 350:26.
- Memorial Park: 30–40 yards at 300 yards.
- Copperhead: 250 yards from the tee: 24 yards wide; 275:20; 300:21; 325:23 350:19.
- TPC Sawgrass: 250 yards from the tee: 31 yards wide; 275:32; 300:30; 325:28 350:20.
- Bay Hill: 250 yards from the tee: 32 yards wide; 275:33; 300:33; 325:39 350:29.
- PGA National: 250 yards from the tee: 29 yards wide; 275:27; 300:25; 325:27 350:25.
- Riviera: 250 yards from the tee: 33 yards wide; 275:27; 300:26; 325:26 350:28.
- TPC Scottsdale: 250 yards from the tee: 33 yards wide; 275:30; 300:28; 325:27; 350:27.
- Pebble Beach: 250 yards from the tee: 33 yards wide; 275:33; 300:29; 325:30 350:26.
- Torrey Pines South: 250 yards from the tee: 26 yards wide; 275:27; 300:25; 325:24; 350:23.
- Pete Dye Stadium: 250 yards from the tee: 29 yards wide; 275:27; 300:26; 325:26; 350:24.
- Waialae: 250 yards from the tee: 34 yards wide; 275:32; 300:34; 325:37; 350:34.
- Plantation Course: 250 yards from the tee: 59 yards wide; 275:61; 300:65; 325:60; 350:62.
Course Overview: El Cardonal opened in 2014. This course is part of the successful Diamante Resort and that’s worthy of note – whatever you read it’s effectively designed for the amateur golfer market. Erik van Rooyen won at -27/261 12 months ago.
The raw course numbers are also interesting. On the scorecard it’s a 7,452 yard, par 72. It’s the typical par 72 format so features 4 par-3s and 4 par-5s. The course is also within a stone’s throw of the Pacific coastline, so as it’s pretty much at sea level it plays all of that yardage.
The intrigue continues further as despite having panoramic views of the sea, the course is set in desert terrain featuring cacti, palo verde trees, scrubby desert flora, and encroaching desert arroyos. Those arroyos also effectively form the off-fairway hazards as this course features short fairway all the way. There’s no rough and errant tee shots in many cases will find a sandy or rocky location. Fairways are 60 to 70 yards wide in landing areas making them generous in the extreme, with only the Plantation Course at Kapalua and Black Desert Resort in Utah featuring such wide landing areas. In reality though, there are few forced carries with arroyos flanking holes rather than cutting across them in the main.
That link to Kapalua also holds further water as this El Cardonal layout is set on land which drops 240 feet along the mile-long stretch from the 17th tee to the 3rd fairway. There are undulations aplenty and this terrain proved demanding for both players and caddies alike. Flat holes are few and far between with ascending (par-5 14th climbs the most at 80 feet) and descending (par-5 6th falls the most at 70 feet) holes the norm.
Greens are huge which at 8,300 sq.ft.on average are some of the largest on the PGA Tour and tend to be canted diagonally. They look pretty flat. The course is also bedecked in Platinum Paspalum from tee to fairway to green. There’s no rough, with stray drives heading directly into bunkers.
WWT Championship Winners: Hosted at El Cardonal: 2023: Erik van Rooyen (-27); Hosted at El Camaleon: 2022: Russell Henley (-23); 2021: Viktor Hovland (-23); 2020: Viktor Hovland (-20); 2019: Brendon Todd (-20); 2018: Matt Kuchar (-22); 2017: Patton Kizzire (-19); 2016: Pat Perez (-21); 2015: Graeme McDowell (-18); 2014: Charley Hoffman (-17); 2013: Harris English (-21); 2012: John Huh (-13); 2011: Johnson Wagner (-17); 2010: Cameron Beckman (-15).
- 2023: Erik van Rooyen 68-64-66-63 -27/261 AM/PM Split
- 2022: Russell Henley 63-63-65-70 -23/261
- 2021: Viktor Hovland 67-65-62-67 -23/261
- 2020: Viktor Hovland 67-69-63-65 -20/264
- 2019: Brendon Todd 63-68-65-68 -20/264
- 2018: Matt Kuchar 64-64-65-69 -22/262
OWGR of WWT Championship Winners: 2023: van Rooyen 189; 2022: Henley 59; 2021: Hovland 17; 2020: Hovland 26; 2019: Todd 185; 2018: Kuchar 40.
Cut Line: 2023: -5.
Lead Score Progression at El Cardonal:
2023: Round 1 -10; Round 2 -16; Round 3 -19; Round 4 -27.
Path to Victory: Below are the end of round positions for the WWT Championship winners here at El Cardonal:
- 2023 – Erik van Rooyen: Round 1: 28th, Round 2: 5th, Round 3: 3rd.
Shots From the Lead: Below are the WWT Championship winners here at El Cardonal and where they were positioned in terms of shots from the lead during the tournament:
- 2023 – Erik van Rooyen: Round 1: 6 back, Round 2: 4 back, Round 3: 1 back.
Incoming Form of WWT Championship winners since 2013:
- Erik van Rooyen: 23rd Shriners/16th Sanderson/30th Fortinet/ 16th Irish Open.
- Russell Henley: 45th CJ Cup/MC Sanderson/35th BMW/ MC St Jude.
- Viktor Hovland: 18th CJ Cup/44th Shriners/49th BMW PGA/5th Tour.
- Viktor Hovland: 15th Houston/47th ZOZO/12th CJ Cup/13th US Open.
- Brendon Todd: 1st Bermuda/28th Houston/MC Shiners/MC Safeway.
- Matt Kuchar: 57th Shriners/28th Dunhill Links/43rd Dell Tech/60th Northern Trust.
- Patton Kizzire: 4th Shriners/10th Sanderson/MC Safeway /MC Dell Tech.
- Pat Perez: 7th Shriners/33rd CIMB.
- Graeme McDowell: 37th Turkey/24th Hong Kong/30th British Masters/19th Dunhill Links.
- Charley Hoffman: 35th Sanderson/MC McGladrey/MC Shriners/53rd BMW.
- Harris English: 27th McGladrey/7th CIMB/40th Shriners/50th BMW.
Tournament Stats: We’ve published some key player statistics for this week’s event that are well worth a look. Naturally they’ll help to shape a view on players who could go well this week: Current Form | Tournament Form | First Round Leader | Combined Stats.
My published predictor is available here. Top 10 of my published predictor are: Keith Mitchell, Lucas Glover, Tom Hoge, Patton Kizzire, Harry Hall, Jhonattan Vegas, Beau Hossler, Doug Ghim, Michael Kim and J.J. Spaun.
Our brand new predictor model is running alongside, where you can build your own rankings in live time, using the variables listed on the left hand side.
WWT Championship Winning Prices: 2023: van Rooyen 100/1; 2022: Henley 55/1; 2021: Hovland 18/1; 2020: Hovland 22/1; 2019: Todd 110/1; 2018: Kuchar 60/1; 2017: Kizzire 70/1; 2016: Perez 125/1; 2015: McDowell 33/1; 2014: Hoffman 60/1; 2013: English 25/1. Past 5 Renewals Average: 61/1; Overall Average: 62/1.
Historical Weather:
- 2023: Thursday: Mostly sunny. High of 85. Wind WSW 7-13 mph, with gusts to 21 mph. Friday: Mostly sunny. High of 85. Wind W 7-13 mph. Saturday: Partly cloudy. High of 85. Wind W 10-15 mph. Sunday: Partly cloudy. High of 85. Wind W 7-12 mph.
Weather Forecast: The latest weather forecast for Los Cabos, Mexico is here.
There has been plenty of precipitation in the build-up to the tournament with 249 mm across October, but none has fallen since the 22nd October. Baja in general – it’s a desert climate – has little rain, and that looks the case for WWT Championship week. So expect a typical Paspalum set-up with soft, slow, receptive greens. With little in the way of significant wind plus 24-26 degrees Celsius – 75-79 Fahrenheit – temperatures expect nice, low scoring.
Player Strokes Gained Rankings: These top 25 in the field rankings are based on an 8-tournament window that stretches back to the Omega European Masters which includes both PGA Tour and DP World Tour events, where recorded. Player rankings are based on performance relative to the rest of the field:
- Top 25 SG Off The Tee: 1) Austin Smotherman; 2) Taylor Moore; 3) Cameron Champ; 4) Max Greyserman; 5) Alex Smalley / Jhonattan Vegas; 7) Scott Piercy; 8) Wesley Bryan; 9) Doug Ghim / Rico Hoey; 11) Will Gordon; 12) Joseph Bramlett; 13) Alejandro Tosti; 14) Patrick Fishburn / K.H. Lee / Luke List; 17) Pierceson Coody / Ryan McCormick / Matti Schmid; 20) Daniel Berger; 21) Austin Eckroat / Neal Shipley; 23) Sam Stevens; 24) Bud Cauley / J.J. Spaun.
- Top 25 SG Approach: 1) Lucas Glover; 2) Max Greyserman; 3) Nick Hardy / Michael Kim; 5) Doug Ghim; 6) Austin Smotherman; 7) Patton Kizzire; 8) Lanto Griffin; 9) Matt Kuchar; 10) Kevin Chappell / Joe Highsmith / Scott Piercy; 13) Adam Svensson; 14) Tom Hoge; 15) Joseph Bramlett; 16) Carson Young; 17) Rico Hoey / Nate Lashley / Henrik Norlander; 20) Tom Whitney; 21) Zac Blair / Ben Griffin / Matti Schmid; 24) J.J. Spaun; 25) Trace Crowe / Jhonattan Vegas.
- Top 25 SG Around The Green: 1) Luke Donald; 2) Ben Griffin / Kevin Tway; 4) Beau Hossler; 5) Adam Svensson; 6) Robby Shelton; 7) Ben Taylor; 8) Joseph Bramlett; 9) Camilo Villegas; 10) Erik van Rooyen; 11) Austin Eckroat; 12) Trace Crowe; 13) Harris English; 14) S.H. Kim / Martin Laird / David Lipsky; 17) Joe Highsmith; 18) Taylor Moore / Hayden Springer; 20) Charley Hoffman / Patton Kizzire / Nate Lashley / Chandler Phillips; 24) Aaron Baddeley / Zac Blair / Matt Kuchar / Sam Stevens / Vincent Whaley.
- Top 25 SG Tee to Green: 1) Austin Smotherman; 2) Lucas Glover; 3) Joseph Bramlett / Doug Ghim; 5) Max Greyserman; 6) Joe Highsmith / Adam Svensson; 8) Austin Eckroat / Michael Kim; 10) Ben Griffin; 11) Rico Hoey; 12) Scott Piercy; 13) Matt Kuchar / Henrik Norlander; 15) Nick Hardy; 16) J.J. Spaun; 17) Beau Hossler; 18) Jhonattan Vegas; 19) Patton Kizzire; 20) Neal Shipley; 21) Bud Cauley; 22) Patrick Fishburn; 23) Taylor Moore / Sam Stevens; 25) K.H. Lee / Alex Smalley.
- Top 25 SG Putting: 1) Max Greyserman; 2) Kevin Tway; 3) Harry Hall; 4) Taylor Moore; 5) Taylor Montgomery; 6) Vincent Whaley; 7) Jacob Bridgeman / Wesley Bryan; 9) Sam Stevens; 10) David Lipsky / Justin Lower; 12) Wilson Furr / Matti Schmid / Neal Shipley; 15) Patton Kizzire / Chad Ramey / Jhonattan Vegas; 18) Nicolas Echavarria / Chesson Hadley; 20) Patrick Rodgers; 21) Lucas Glover; 22) Patrick Fishburn; 23) Beau Hossler / Luke List / Norman Xiong.
- Top 25 SG Total: 1) Max Greyserman; 2) Lucas Glover; 3) Wesley Bryan / Joe Highsmith; 5) Matti Schmid; 6) Doug Ghim / Taylor Moore / Neal Shipley; 9) Harry Hall / Sam Stevens; 11) Ben Griffin; 12) Beau Hossler / Jhonattan Vegas; 14) Patton Kizzire; 15) Kevin Tway; 16) Austin Smotherman; 17) Rico Hoey; 18) Scott Piercy; 19) Matt Kuchar; 20) Patrick Fishburn / Henrik Norlander; 22) Chandler Phillips; 23) Charley Hoffman; 24) J.J. Spaun; 25) Bud Cauley / Justin Lower.
Tournament Trends & Key Factors: Analysing the final stats of WWT Championship winner in 2023 gives us a little more insight into the requirements for this test
- 2023, Erik van Rooyen (-27). 301 yards (43rd), 92.9% fairways (25th), 86.1% greens in regulation (13th), 60.0 % scrambling (29th), 1.55 putts per GIR (2nd).
Let’s take a view from players as to how El Cardonal set up in 2023 and what specific skills it requires:
Erik Van Rooyen (2023): “You know, if it’s as calm as it was this morning, someone’s going to get to 25. So just keep making birdies.
The course matches me great. I’m a great iron player. Like I said, the fairways are wide so everyone’s going to be hitting all of them. It’s a second shot golf course. There’s lots of little pockets in the greens and it kind of suits my game. I’ve putted well this week as well, so everything’s coming together nicely.”
Matt Kuchar (2023): “A lot of this place is very generous fairways. Fairways are pretty easy to find. It’s I think kind of a second-shot golf course, back nine even more so than the front nine. Back nine feels like they have a lot of rejection greens, the front nine are more collection greens. So on the back nine you’ve really got to kind of focus on avoiding a few of those big fall-offs on the greens and I was able to do that pretty well today.
It was a lot of good steady golf. The 12th hole is a difficult green, hit just a 9-iron in, but nice approach shot, my third hole of the day to get going with a birdie there. It was just steady golf. I felt good over the driver. It’s a thing, these fairways are forgiving, but if you do miss it’s big trouble. You want to make sure you’re in these fairways. Even though they’re pretty wide, pretty forgiving, if you do get off, there are big numbers to be had.
Listen, the 15th hole is I think one everybody’s kind of got circled in their yardage book, this one could get you in some trouble. I hit a terrible tee shot, tried to ride the wind, tried to have a slightly shorter club in and ended up hitting a big hook instead of a little draw. It was a big hook in the junk. That’s the only one I’d love to have back.”
First Round Leader Analysis: First round leader(s), their wave and winning score since 2010. Full First Round Leader stats are here.
- 2023 – Percy – PM Wave -10/62 175/1
- 2022 – Gordon – AM Wave -9/62 100/1
- 2021 – Wolff – AM Wave -10/61 50/1
- 2020 – Knox – PM Wave -6/65 70/1
- 2019 – D Lee – AM Wave -9/62 – 55/1
- 2018 – Bozzelli, Hickok, Kuchar – 2 AM / 1 PM Wave split -7 64 – 250/1, 125/1, 55/1
- 2017 – Kizzire – AM Wave -9/62 – 66/1
- 2016 – Kirk – PM Wave -8/63 – 45/1
- 2015 – Baddeley, Fathauer, Leonard, Stefani – All AM Wave -6/65.
- 2014 – Berger, Finau, Garrigus, MacKenzie, Swafford, Wheatcroft – All AM Wave -6/65.
- 2013 – Karlsson – PM Wave -8/63.
For the record, here’s the breakdown of Paspalum PGA Tour victors in the field since 2008:
- 2 – Ryan Moore.
- 1 – Ryan Brehm, Joel Dahmen, Nico Echavarria, Chesson Hadley, Charley Hoffman, Patton Kizzire, Matt Kuchar, Chad Ramey, Martin Trainer, Erik van Rooyen.
The new El Cardonal at Diamante layout certainly played a little differently to its predecessor El Camaleon. A desert style, resort golf course with wide fairways, undulations aplenty and huge green complexes, Erik van Rooyen won this by 2 shots from Matt Kuchar and Camilo Villegas last year.
