WGC-Mexico Championship 2020 Preview

The first of the WGC events for 2020, the WGC-Mexico, takes place at Club de Golf Chapultepec in Mexico City as a star-studded line-up of 72 of the world’s best golfers bid for glory and a share of the $10.5 million prize fund.

Big names withdrew from WGC-Mexico

Held from February 20-23, the WGC-Mexico event will be missing some big names after former world number one Brooks Koepka and 15-time major winner Tiger Woods withdrew on Monday to join the likes of Rickie Fowler, Patrick Cantlay, Justin Rose, Phil Mickelson and Henrik Stenson in skipping the tournament.

WGC-Mexico lineup still brings excitement

The line-up for the WGC-Mexcio features the highest ranked 50 remaining players in the Official World Golf Rankings as well as 22 other entries, and the names include some huge golfing talents—not least world number one Rory McIlroy and reigning champion Dustin Johnson.

The duo fought it out at Club de Golf Chapultepec 12 months ago before Johnson stormed to a five-shot victory, and they are among the leading contenders to repeat that battle in the 2020 edition of the event.

Johnson enjoys the course is the winner of two of three tournaments played here since the WGC-Cadillac Championship has been moved to Mexico.

The American defeated Tommy Fleetwood by a shot in 2017 and then triumphed last year for his third victory in total in the event having also won it at Doral Golf Resort.

If you take his wins across both venues, Johnson has won three of the last five editions—as well as finishing runner-up in 2011—and that undoubtedly makes him the man to beat this week after warming up with a 10th place finish in the Genesis Invitational.

A final round blow out saw McIlroy finish in fifth place last week behind Genesis Invitational winner Adam Scott, and the new world number one will be looking to put that behind him and go one better than last year’s runner-up finish.

Scott won the last WGC-Cadillac tournament at Doral in 2016 and will arrive in positive frame of mind after ending a near four-year drought without victory on the PGA TOUR at Riviera last week.

Who else will be at the WGC-Mexico Championship?

The field for the WGC-Mexico is stacked with other big names too including world number three Jon Rahm. Additionally, world number four Justin Thomas, who started the year with victory in the Tournament of Champions.

Already winners this season too, Cameron Smith (Sony Open), Farmers Insurance Champion Marc Leishman and Phoenix Open victor Webb Simpson will be out to add to their victories with another PGA TOUR success.

Best of the European Tour

The best from the European Tour will also feature including recent winners Lee Westwood and Graeme McDowell, while Sergio Garcia, former WGC-Cadillac winner Patrick Reed, Fleetwood, Xander Schauffele, Hideki Matsuyama and Bryson DeChambeau have committed to play.

Jordan Spieth, meanwhile, has sneaked into the field after a ninth-place finish in Pebble Beach Pro-Am. This halted his slide down the world rankings and saw him move back within the top 50 places.

More than the top 50 players

In addition to the world’s top 50 players, the WGC field is made up of players in top 30 on the PGA TOUR FedExCup list and the top 10 from the Genesis Invitational, the top 20 European Tour rankings and the top 10 from the last tournament and the top two players from the Asian Tour, Japan Golf Tour, PGA TOUR of Australasia and Sunshine Tour.

The highest ranked Mexican player gets a start, while the remainder of the field—if needed—can be made up at the discretion of organizers. There is no cut, with all 72 players playing all four rounds of the WGC-Mexico Championship.