The PGA Tour markets the WM Phoenix Open as golf’s loudest party. And the party needed its life to enter first, but WM Phoenix had a different idea, earning it a backlash for its scheduling. Rickie Fowler, Si Woo Kim, and Min Woo Lee tee off after Max Homa, Joel Dahmen, and Keith Mitchell. While both feature in prime time for golf, one group will take prominence over the other. Fans did not like it primarily due to one key aspect.

On February 4, 2026, the fan account @Rickie_Tracker posted the comparison to X, tagging PGA Tour Live and ESPN+ with a simple verdict: “This isn’t really adding up.” The post gathered 10,300 views within hours, igniting the kind of backlash that only opaque decision-making generates.

So why did they sideline three of its most popular guests? The numbers tell a story that defies explanation. Si Woo Kim sits 30th in the Official World Golf Ranking, Min Woo Lee holds the 48th position, and checks in at 80th. Together, they average 53rd in the world. The group ESPN and PGA Tour Live chose to feature instead—Max Homa, Joel Dahmen, and Keith Mitchell, averages 147th. Homa ranks 148th, Mitchell 122nd, and Dahmen 171st without full exempt status. The gap isn’t subtle.

The tee times compound the confusion. Homa’s group goes off at 2:22 p.m. ET from the first tee, slotting into the prime Golf Channel broadcast window that begins at 3:30 p.m. Fowler’s trio follows 33 minutes later at 2:55 p.m.—still within that same window, still viable for featured coverage, still passed over. The decision wasn’t forced by scheduling logistics, but it was a choice.

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One possible justification exists in Keith Mitchell’s statistical profile: his Strokes Gained: Approach ranks fourth on Tour at +1.12, a genuinely elite number that might appeal to broadcast producers seeking analytical narrative hooks. Homa arrived at TPC Scottsdale with a T27 at the American Express and a missed cut at the Farmers Insurance Open, a form that hardly screams must-watch television. Dahmen’s exemption into the field came via an unconventional letter written on a polo shirt, a charming story that speaks to his popularity but not his current competitive standing.

The other marquee groups at Phoenix tell a different story. Viktor Hovland, Hideki Matsuyama, and Collin Morikawa tee off at 2:33 p.m., while Xander Schauffele, Cameron Young, and Brooks Koepka follow at 2:44 p.m. Those pairings make immediate sense—star power, rankings, and storylines aligned. The Homa selection sits as the outlier, the one that invites the question nobody at PGA Tour Live seems eager to answer.

Tournament officials have previously defended selection criteria by citing “personality” and “energy” alongside competitive merit, language that does little to clarify why OWGR rankings appear secondary to other factors. The explanation might satisfy internal stakeholders, but it lands differently when fans can run the numbers themselves and find the math wanting.

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Rickie Fowler fans demand transparency from PGA Tour Live

The replies to @Rickie_Tracker’s post painted a picture of collective disbelief.

“Does that say ‘Homa’?” one fan wrote, the incredulity almost audible through the screen. Another called it “an absolute joke of a selection,” dismissing the choice without hedging. A third offered the damning arithmetic directly to PGA Tour Live’s account: “Si Woo (30th), Min Woo (48th), Rickie (80th) versus Mitchell (122nd), Homa (148th), Dahmen (171st and doesn’t even have full status). You tell me which one deserves to be featured.”

The calls for systemic change followed quickly. “@PGATOURLIVE needs to have a better process for choosing featured groups,” one fan wrote. “Make it a poll every week and let fans choose who they’d rather watch.” The suggestion carries a certain logic at an event that bills itself as “The People’s Open”—a tournament where crowd energy defines the experience and fan engagement drives the brand. If TPC Scottsdale’s identity depends on spectacle, sidelining Fowler and Min Woo Lee undercuts that identity before a single shot is struck.

Another comment cut to the commercial reality: “PGA tour live is the biggest joke in the world, man. Min Woo and Rickie have two of the biggest fan bases on the PGA, insane.” The claim has merit. Fowler’s viral post engagement and Min Woo Lee’s growing international following represent tangible audience reach—the kind of metrics that should, in theory, inform broadcast decisions at a league wrestling with viewership challenges.

Round 1 will proceed as scheduled, with Fowler’s group teeing off in relative broadcast obscurity while Homa’s trio occupies the featured slot. The decision stands. The transparency problem persists. And at golf’s loudest party, the fans making the most noise aren’t cheering—they’re asking why.