PGA Tour: last week reviewed
Mexico Open
Vidanta Vallarta, Mexico. Final round 1 November 2026.
Winner
Andrew Novak won the Mexico Open by five shots, finishing on 25 under par. It was his second PGA Tour win.
Novak began after round 1 in the top half, then he moved into the lead after round 2. He was still in the lead after round 3 and went into the final round with a lead of six shots.
Putting did most of the work: it added 8.2 strokes. Approach added 5.6 strokes and off the tee added 2.0 strokes. Around the green he also gained strokes.
| Price | |
|---|---|
| Pre-event price | 46 |
| High in-running price | 95 |
Traded below 2.0 in running
No other player traded below 2.0 in running.
Profile vs Reality
| Key metric | Priority | Winner's rank | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| Off the tee | CRITICAL | 19 | neutral |
| Driving distance | CRITICAL | 36 | anomaly |
| Approach | HIGH | 2 | perfect match |
| Around the green | MEDIUM | 32 | neutral |
| Scrambling | LOW | 14 | match |
Key metrics: what Course Fit says this venue rewards beyond the tour norm, largest weight first. Priority: the weight against every venue's (CRITICAL for the top tenth). Verdict: perfect match (top 5), match (top quarter), neutral (top half), anomaly (bottom half).
| Round 1 | 2026 | Previous 4 stagings |
|---|---|---|
| Scoring average, morning v afternoon | 69.73 v 68.78 | 69.89 v 70.43 on average |
| Better wave | Afternoon, by 0.95 | Morning 2, afternoon 2 |
| First-round leader from | Afternoon | Morning 1, afternoon 1, both 2 |
The venue rewards off the tee and driving distance, both rated CRITICAL, and the week only partly followed that. Novak ranked 19th off the tee, a neutral result, and 36th for driving distance, an anomaly. Karl Vilips led the field off the tee and finished joint 23rd, and Gordon Sargent led for distance and finished joint 34th. Approach, rated HIGH, was a perfect match. In round 1 the afternoon wave did better, by 0.95 shots per player. That was with the previous stagings evenly split, and the first-round leader came from the afternoon wave.
Lessons for next year
This staging suggests that approach play matters here, while the winner did not need to be long or especially strong off the tee. The longest and the best drivers did not contend. The wave split remains open: the afternoon edge adds to a history that has not favoured either wave.
Progress / Regress targets
A Progress target ranked much higher this week from tee to green or on approach than he finished, but much lower for putting, although over the last 12 months he has been one of the better putters in this field. His finish undersold his long game, and he may do better once his putting returns to its usual level.
A Regress target is the reverse: a weaker putter whose putting this week lifted him well above what his long game earned, so his finish may have flattered him.
Each figure is a rank in this week's field (T for tied), except the last column: his putting rank over the previous 12 months.
| Target | Player | Finish | SG: T2G | SG: Approach | SG: Putting | Putting, last 12 months |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Progress | Karl Vilips | T23 | 5 | 66 | 64 | 27 |
| Regress | Zecheng Dou | T40 | 61 | 54 | 5 | 67 |
| Regress | Garrett Endicott | T40 | 56 | 58 | 14 | 44 |
Progress: SG: Tee to Green or SG: Approach rank at least 17 places better than his finish, SG: Putting at least 17 places worse, and in the field's top quarter for putting over the previous 12 months. Regress: the reverse, and outside that top quarter. Putting, last 12 months: his rank among the 111 in the field for strokes gained putting over the year before the event, as the CC: SG table ranks it.
PGA Tour: this week previewed
World Wide Technology Championship
Diamante Cabo San Lucas (El Cardonal), Mexico. Par 72, 7,452 yards. Greens: Platinum Paspalum. 116 players.
The course
The course rewards putting above all, a CRITICAL weight, then driving accuracy, approach play and the short game around the green, each weighted HIGH. It separates players least on driving distance. Based on few stagings, Course Fit finds it has separated players on skill only a little, about typical for the tour. The event scores close to the tour average for difficulty.
| Key metric | Priority | Its leader's record, last 10 stagings |
|---|---|---|
| Putting | CRITICAL | n/a |
| Driving accuracy | HIGH | 4 top 10s, 1 win |
| Approach | HIGH | n/a |
| Around the green | HIGH | n/a |
| Putts per GIR | MEDIUM | 5 top 10s |
Key metrics: what Course Fit says this course rewards beyond the tour norm, largest weight first. Priority: the weight against every venue's (CRITICAL for the top tenth). Its leader's record: how the player who led the field for the metric at each staging went on to finish.
History
Winning scores at this week's course have ranged from 24 under par to 29 under par. The field's leader for putting on greens hit in regulation has the strongest record, finishing in the top 10 in five of 10 stagings. In round 1 the morning wave has scored better in eight of the last 10 stagings, and the first-round leader came from the morning wave more often than from the afternoon wave.
| Year | Champion | To par |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Ben Griffin | -29 |
| 2024 | Austin Eckroat | -24 |
| 2023 | Erik Van Rooyen | -27 |
| 2022 | Russell Henley | -23 |
| 2021 | Viktor Hovland | -23 |
Played at El Camaleon: 2022, 2021.
| Round 1 | 2025 | Last 10 stagings |
|---|---|---|
| Scoring average, morning v afternoon | 68.77 v 70.37 | 69.78 v 70.35 on average |
| Better wave | Morning, by 1.60 | Morning 8, afternoon 2 |
| First-round leader from | Morning | Morning 5, afternoon 3, both 2 |
Previous stagings with round 1 played in two waves, split as the In-Running page splits them.
Last year
Ben Griffin is in this week's field. He won by two shots at 29 under par. On the HIGH metric in his table, driving accuracy, he was neutral. He was a perfect match for putting on greens hit in regulation, a perfect match for par-3 scoring, and matched on par-5 scoring and greens in regulation.
| Key metric | Champion's rank | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| Driving accuracy | T31 | neutral |
| Putts per GIR | 2 | perfect match |
| Par-5 scoring | T12 | match |
| Greens in regulation | T13 | match |
| Par-3 scoring | T1 | perfect match |
Verdict: perfect match (top 5), match (top quarter), neutral (top half), anomaly (bottom half), as in the review.
Course Fit: this week's field
Course Fit ranks this week's field by how closely each player's game over the last 12 months matches what Diamante Cabo San Lucas (El Cardonal) rewards beyond the tour norm, above all putting, driving accuracy and approach play. These are the five who fit best, with each one's rank in this week's field for those skills over the same 12 months. 108 of the 116 players have played enough on the PGA Tour to be ranked. Course Fit leaves out form, class and the draw: it describes fit, not a forecast.
| Fit | Player | Putting | Driving accuracy | Approach |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Christiaan Bezuidenhout | 9 | 38 | 12 |
| 2 | Zac Blair | 17 | 8 | 4 |
| 3 | Andrew Putnam | 31 | 13 | 30 |
| 4 | Ben James | 22 | 1 | 8 |
| 5 | Jackson Koivun | 50 | 4 | 7 |
Fit: his Course Fit rank in this week's field, as on the Event Profile page. Each other column is his rank in this week's field for that skill over the last 12 months, as the CC: SG and CC: Stats tables rank it.
DP World Tour: this week previewed
Abu Dhabi Championship
Yas Links, United Arab Emirates. Par 72, 7,468 yards. Greens: Platinum Paspalum. 70 players.
The course
The course rewards scrambling, rated HIGH, with driving accuracy, putting and the short game around the green each rated MEDIUM. It separates players least on driving distance. Course Fit says it has barely separated players on skill, less than is typical for this tour, though that rests on few stagings. Over recent stagings the event scores close to the tour average.
| Key metric | Priority | Its leader's record |
|---|---|---|
| Scrambling | HIGH | 5 top 10s, 1 win in 10 stagings |
| Driving accuracy | MEDIUM | 3 top 10s, 1 win in 10 stagings |
| Putting | MEDIUM | 3 top 10s in 8 stagings |
| Around the green | MEDIUM | 3 top 10s, 1 win in 8 stagings |
Key metrics: what Course Fit says this course rewards beyond the tour norm, largest weight first. Priority: the weight against every venue's (CRITICAL for the top tenth). Its leader's record: how the player who led the field for the metric at each staging went on to finish.
History
Recent winning scores at this week's course run from 10 under par to 25 under par. The field's leader for scrambling has the strongest record of the key metrics, with five top 10s in 10 stagings. In round 1 the morning wave scored better in six of the last 10 stagings, and the first-round leader came from the morning wave in seven of them, joint leaders from both waves included.
| Year | Champion | To par |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Aaron Rai | -25 |
| 2024 | Paul Waring | -24 |
| 2023 | Victor Perez | -18 |
| 2022 | Thomas Pieters | -10 |
| 2021 | Tyrrell Hatton | -18 |
Played at Abu Dhabi: 2021.
| Round 1 | 2023 | Last 10 stagings |
|---|---|---|
| Scoring average, morning v afternoon | 71.20 v 71.89 | 71.38 v 71.67 on average |
| Better wave | Morning, by 0.69 | Morning 6, afternoon 4 |
| First-round leader from | Morning | Morning 7, afternoon 1, both 2 |
Previous stagings with round 1 played in two waves, split as the In-Running page splits them.
Last year
Aaron Rai, who is in this week's field, won in a playoff at 25 under par. He was a perfect match on driving accuracy, rated MEDIUM, and a match around the green, but he was an anomaly on scrambling, the HIGH metric. His putting was neutral.
| Key metric | Champion's rank | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| Scrambling | T46 | anomaly |
| Driving accuracy | T2 | perfect match |
| Putting | 20 | neutral |
| Around the green | 17 | match |
Verdict: perfect match (top 5), match (top quarter), neutral (top half), anomaly (bottom half), as in the review.
Course Fit: this week's field
Course Fit ranks this week's field by how closely each player's game over the last 12 months matches what Yas Links rewards beyond the tour norm, above all scrambling, driving accuracy and putting. These are the five who fit best, with each one's rank in this week's field for those skills over the same 12 months. All 70 players have played enough on the DP World Tour to be ranked. Course Fit leaves out form, class and the draw: it describes fit, not a forecast.
| Fit | Player | Scrambling | Driving accuracy | Putting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Adrian Otaegui | 21 | 8 | 34 |
| 2 | Jeff Winther | 3 | 46 | 8 |
| 3 | Shaun Norris | 33 | 39 | 2 |
| 4 | Yurav Premlall | 61 | 26 | 13 |
| 5 | Nacho Elvira | 4 | 31 | 17 |
Fit: his Course Fit rank in this week's field, as on the Event Profile page. Each other column is his rank in this week's field for that skill over the last 12 months, as the CC: Stats and CC: SG tables rank it.
The record
Tips and advised plays
| Last week | Year to date | All time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free Tips | -28pt (-67%) | -19pt (-1%) | +3,131pt |
| Sim: Win | +24pt (+29%) | +771pt (+38%) | +1,457pt (+24%) |
| Sim: FRL | +8pt (+300%) | -131pt (-30%) | +497pt (+26%) |
| Total | +4pt (+3%) | +622pt (+16%) | +5,086pt |
Profit in points, with the return on outlay in brackets. Last week is the week to 1 November 2026. The year to date runs from 1 January 2026, and all time from 2000 for Free Tips and from 2024 for Sim: Win and Sim: FRL. Both include the previous site's record, before 13 July 2026. For Free Tips, stakes were recorded only from 2025, so the all-time figure is the profit alone. So is the total's. Each figure is rounded to the nearest whole number; the total is worked out before rounding.