SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — As the Carolina Panthers and Denver Broncos prepare for Super Bowl 50 this weekend, William McGirt returns to PGA Tour action at the Waste Management Phoenix Open.

The Fairmont native and Wofford alum will have his eyes on the big game this Sunday, but first, he’ll look to bounce back from his worst finish of the season, a missed cut two weeks ago at the CareerBuilder Challenge.

“I had a pretty good week off,” McGirt told The Robesonian. “I got to spend some time with the family and had plenty of time to practice. Hopefully, I worked out some of the kinks and will be ready to go this week.”

Currently 27th in the FedEx Cup standings, McGirt looks to get back to how he was playing in his first four starts, which resulted in a pair of top-10 finishes.

He’ll tee off today at 1:40 p.m. EST on No. 1 with Jeff Overton and N.C. State alum Carl Pettersson.

Dubbed “The Greatest Show on Grass,” the Phoenix Open is hosted by TPC Scottsdale and features the rowdy par-3 16th hole, known as the loudest hole in golf.

“The course is perfect right now,” he said.

McGirt’s best finish at the event came in 2014 (19th). In three other appearances, he finished 22nd, 30th and 32nd. The tie for 30th came last season after rounds of 67, 71, 74 and 67 led to a 5-under-par performance.

Brooks Koepka is the defending champion of the event. The second-year pro wasted no time capturing his first Tour title when he shot a final-round 66 to win by a stroke in his first start at TPC Scottsdale.

As for the Super Bowl, McGirt is rolling with Carolina. It comes as no surprise since Panthers owner Jerry Richardson, team president Danny Morrison and wide receiver Brenton Bersin are Wofford grads.

“I have to go with the Panthers,” he said. “I would be pulling for Denver just to see Peyton (Manning) go out on top if they were playing anyone else. With a lot of connections to the the Panthers, I’m 100 percent behind them.”

The score?

“I’m gonna say 31-17,” McGirt said.

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By Rodd Baxley

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Rodd Baxley can be reached at 910-416-5182. Follow him on Twitter @RoddBaxley.