Farmers Insurance Open
Torrey Pines Golf Club
South Course (Host)
North Course
San Diego, CA
THE TOURNAMENT STARTS TOMORROW – READ THE PREVIEW MATERIAL HERE
Chalk (via Bet365.com)
My thoughts on the top players for betting purposes:
Xander Schauffele (+900): If Torrey equates to a U.S. Open “lite” not many play the U.S. Open better than the native San Diegan.
Patrick Cantlay (+1000): The 76 on Sunday last week should have put him back in the lab quickly on Monday morning. Weird that he’s playing this week considering his lack of reps here.
Collin Morikawa (+1100): Couldn’t hit it any better than last year (No. 1 Fairways and No. 2 GIR). It’s always the putter to get him over the hump. I’d be shocked if he wasn’t in the top 20.
Max Homa (+1100): A champion who has defended before at Fortinet, he’s the only favorite to do the business here. Super player. Every week. Any week.
Ludvig Aberg (+1800): If you pick him every week, you will be right again eventually. Too many trends working against him. You do you.
Sungjae Im (+2200): Doesn’t miss here (5-5) and the last two are in the top six. One of his two winds was a grinder at PGA National so he won’t mind tough conditions. Again.
Min Woo Lee (+2500): Like Aberg, there’s a learning curve here. The list of recent winners here, sans Rahm, needed five or more reps. Wonderful talent.
Tony Finau (+2500): I’d make a joke here about putting, but he should know every inch of these greens by now.
Jason Day (+2500): Yep. Let’s go. All of the shots, all of the experience, and all of the confidence. Day-Finau exacta.
Keegan Bradley (+2800): Loves the West Coast as well. Cashing six straight, half have paid in the top five, including solo second last year. Tough lay down.
NOW PLAYING:
| Host Course | South Course |
| Yards (per official scorecard): | 7,765 |
| Par: | 72 (36-36). |
| Greens: | Poa annua; 5,000 square feet on average. |
| Stimpmeter: | 13 feet. |
| Rough: | Overseeded Rye on Kikuyu at four inches. |
| Bunkers/Water Hazards/In-Play | 82/1/1 |
| Architect(s): | William P. Bell & William F. Bell (1957). |
| Defending Champion (event): | Max Homa (-15). |
| Multiple Champion(s) Entered: | Jason Day (2018, 2015) and Brandt Snedeker (2016, 2012). |
| Course Record (last): | 62; South Course – Tiger Woods (1999). 61; North Course – Brandt Snedeker (2007). |
| 72 Hole Tournament Record (last) | 266 (-22); Tiger Woods (1999). |
| Fact of the Week: | Since 1990, three players have made FIO their first win on TOUR. |
| Fact of the Week II: | Since 1990, two players have won on debut. |
| North Course | |
| Yards (per official scorecard): | 7,258 |
| Par: | 72 (36-36). |
| Greens: | Tyee 007 Bentgrass; 6,000 square feet on average. |
| Stimpmeter: | 12 feet. |
| Rough: | Overseeded Rye on Kikuyu at four inches. |
| Bunkers/Water Hazards/In-Play | 42/0/1 |
| Architect(s): | William P. Bell & William F. Bell (1957). Tom Weiskopf (2017). |
| Course Record (last): | 61; North Course – Brandt Snedeker (2007). |
| 72 Hole Tournament Record (last) | 266 (-22); Tiger Woods (1999). |
| Fact of the Week: | Only Woods and Mickelson have won this event more than twice. Neither are entered this week. |
| Fact of the Week II: | Four of the last five winners started on the NORTH Course. |
Notes:
- Field of 156.
- 18 holes on each course and then cut to the top 65 and ties.
- South Course hosts Rounds 3 and 4.
- The OWGR is represented by 20 of the top 50.
- Top 65 and ties will make the cut and play the weekend after 54 holes (play each course once).
- $9 million – $1.62 million – 500 FedExCup points – Sentry and Masters ticket punched.
- Last chance to get into the Aon Swing 5 for Pebble Beach next week.
Current Aon Swing 5 (*entered this week)
Grayson Murray
Christiaan Bezuidenhout*
Justin Thomas
Kevin Yu*
Carl Yuan*
Next 5
Michael Kim*
Matthieu Pavon*
Keith Mitchell*
Ryo Hisatsune*
Taylor Pendrith*
Season Winners
2023 Season Winners
| Event | Winner |
| Sentry Tournament of Champions | Jon Rahm |
| Sony Open in Hawaii | Si Woo Kim |
| The AMERICAN EXPRESS | Jon Rahm (2) |
| Farmers Insurance Open | Max Homa (2) |
| AT&T Pebble Beach | Justin Rose |
| WM Phoenix Open | Scottie Scheffler |
| The Genesis Invitational | Jon Rahm (3) |
| The Honda Classic | Chris Kirk |
| Arnold Palmer Invitational | Kurt Kitayama (first TOUR win) |
| THE PLAYERS Championship | Scottie Scheffler (2) |
| Valspar Championship | Taylor Moore (first TOUR win) |
| Corales Puntacana | Matt Wallace (first TOUR win) |
| WGC – Dell Technologies MP | Sam Burns |
| Valero Texas Open | Corey Conners |
| Masters | Jon Rahm (4) |
| RBC Heritage | Matt Fitzpatrick |
| Zurich Classic of New Orleans | Davis Riley & Nick Hardy (first TOUR win for each) |
| Mexico Open at Vidanta | Tony Finau (2) |
| Wells Fargo Championship | Wyndham Clark (first TOUR win) |
| AT&T Byron Nelson | Jason Day |
| PGA Championship | Brooks Koepka |
| Charles Schwab Challenge | Emiliano Grillo |
| Memorial | Viktor Hovland |
| RBC Canadian Open | Nick Taylor |
| U.S. Open | Wyndham Clark (2) |
| Travelers Championship | Keegan Bradley (2) |
| Rocket Mortgage Classic | Rickie Fowler |
| John Deere Classic | Sepp Straka |
| Genesis Scottish Open | Rory McIlroy (2) |
| The Open Championship | Brian Harman |
| 3M Open | Lee Hodges (first TOUR win) |
| Wyndham Championship | Lucas Glover |
| FedEx St. Jude Championship | Lucas Glover (2) |
| BMW Championship | Viktor Hovland (2) |
| TOUR Championship | Viktor Hovland (3) |
| Fortinet Championship | Sahith Theegala |
| Sanderson Farms Championship | Luke List |
| Shriners Children’s Open | Tom Kim |
| ZOZO CHAMPIONSHIP | Collin Morikawa |
| World Wide Technology | Erik van Rooyen |
| Butterfield Bermuda | Camilo Villegas |
| The RSM Classic | Ludvig Aberg |
2024 Season Winners
| Event | Winner |
| The Sentry | Chris Kirk |
| Sony Open in Hawaii | Grayson Murray |
| The American Express | Nick Dunlap (a) |
| Farmers Insurance Open | |
| AT&T Pebble Beach |
Recent Winners – Farmers Insurance Open
Italics – not entered this week.
| Year | Winner | Notes |
| 2023 | Max Homa (-13) | Closed with 66, co-round of the day, to come from five shots. Won by two over Keegan Bradley. |
| 2022 | Luke List (-15) | Defeated Will Zalatoris on the first playoff hole to become the second player to break his maiden at this event since 1990. |
| 2021 | Patrick Reed (-14) | Ran away to win by five shots over Tony Finau, Xander Schauffele and others. |
| 2020 | Marc Leishman (-15) | Became the fourth consecutive international winner in his 12th attempt. |
| 2019 | Justin Rose (-21) | Won by two shots in his 9th attempt. |
| 2018 | Jason Day (-10) | Won a three-man playoff to win for the second time. |
| 2017 | Jon Rahm (-13) | Won on debut by three shots. |
| 2016 | Brandt Snedeker (-6) | Didn’t hit a shot on the Monday finish after incredible weather rocked the event. |
Angles
Better score on the North! Playing three shots easier and 500 yards shorter, making up shots on those 18 holes is required.
The South Course is really hard annually. Check the scorecard. There are 10 Par-4 holes and eight stretch over 450 yards. Half of the Par-5 challenges are 600-yards-plus.
Rough! Wet, overseeded Kikuyugrass (with Rye) will not shorten the longest track on TOUR from 2023.
Poa annua greens prepped to run 13 feet will be more of a challenge than the two stops in Hawaii and the pro-am from last week.
Fairways are hard to hit (less than 55 percent). Greens are hard to hit (less than 66 percent). Getting it close from around the green is hard. Holing putts outside three feet is hard.
The profile of the winner this week will be a big-time player with a full bag. The South Course could be used for a U.S. Open tomorrow. The 7,765 yards will eventually expose flaws. It’s not surprising that the winners here have had multiple chances or generational talent.
Pick better golfers!
Players to consider for Top 10, Top 20, or Top 40 action:
Sepp Straka (+4000): The bigger the park, the better his chances. The Austrian thrives on approach and should be rewarded again this week.
Christiaan Bezuidenhout (+6600): The new baby arrived late last year and he’s plowing along like a proud papa. Last time he was in California he ran T6 at Fortinet. The last time he was on Poa he won $1.512 million.
Patrick Rodgers (+7000): The Quail Hollow angle is real. Ask Max Homa. Now, I know Rodgers hasn’t WON at QHC…
Keith Mitchell (+7500): All you can get. Thrives in this part of the world and will at Pebble and Riviera.
Taylor Pendrith (+9000): Because I was on him LAST WEEK. That’s just how this goes sometimes.
Taylor Moore (+11000): Won a difficult Copperhead Course last year that mimics Torrey Pines. T29 or better in five of his last six, all cashed.
Peter Malnati (+35000): Three straight T25 or better; includes T10 2021.
Chandler Phillips (+50000): Welcome to the big leagues. Let’s see if he can make it three on the trot.
One and Done
I’ll be joining Spotter’s game again this season. Now, where did I put my checkbook…
35 events.
1 player per event (plus a backup pick if your guy gets kidnapped on Wednesday night and doesn’t make it to the first tee on Thursday).
1 use per year.
Add up the total money and Spotter is yer uncle!
| Event | Selection | Earnings |
| The Sentry | Collin Morikawa | 690,500 |
| Sony Open in Hawaii | Corey Conners | 18,592 |
| The American Express | Adam Hadwin | 310,800 |
| Farmers Insurance Open | ||
| Total Winnings: | 1,019,892 |
His game has more fun stuff to it. Reach out @A340Spotter on Twitter or A340Spotter@frontier.com for more details and to join.
Recapping Last Week – The American Express
MY CHOICE: Adam Hadwin – T6
Nobody is more comfortable on these three courses, and he has the scar tissues to prove it. The Canadian will look to make it eight from eight and add to his three finishes on the podium. In an event that’s almost impossible to handicap (see: Dunlap, Nick) AND NOW HAS AN AMATEUR CHAMPION added to its history, I’ll take the money and run.
Other to Consider:
Tom Kim: Tough laydown, especially after 66 to close at Kapalua to kick-start his 2024. His desert record is making me reconsider this pick until the first tee time on Thursday. Stay tuned. 2024 has been a damp fart for his investors. Missing the cut in a desert shootout was the last spot I thought I would fill on the bingo card this week.
Chris Kirk: T18-WIN in the last two weeks plus he closed 63-64 here last year for T3. Pulled a CANTLAY on Sunday and watched the entire field lap his 73. T47.
J.T. Poston: Copied, pasted. Baby is on the way! Go look at his results in the last six months. Absolutely flying. T11.
Justin Thomas: He’s not in any Signature Events until he qualifies. One leads to another. Saving him for the PGA Championship in his native state of Kentucky outside his birth city of Louisville is understood. T3. Look who’s in the Aon Swing 5! He’s not even in the field this week! Confident!
Patrick Cantlay: If you believe he is going to have a big 2024, I would not be surprised to see it start this week on these three tracks. Sat T10 entering Sunday on 19-under on a course where he holds the scoring record. Shot 76. Cashed T52. Golf. Bloody hell.
Longshots
Taylor Montgomery: When form meets course history…Beat six players.
Patton Kizzire: Probably not in THIS format. Probably everywhere else. The streak ended. There was no format for him this week.
This Week – Farmers Insurance Open
MY CHOICE: Jason Day
It was this week or next! You know this means he’ll win NEXT week, right? NO! THIS WEEK! Cashing T34 last week and T10 in Maui produced eight rounds of 69 or better. Now that the rust is off, time to go join Woods (8) and Mickelson (3) at the top of the food chain in La Jolla.
Other to Consider:
Tony Finau: Making his 10th visit, he’s T24 or better in eight of nine. Over his last four, he’s hit the top 10 three times and MC once. For those of you playing safe or can’t decide, I’d start here. He will also defend next month in Mexico.
Max Homa: I’m going to save him for Riviera, but he’s defended once in California already at Fortinet (2021, 2022). The last player to successfully defend was Woods from 2005-2008 #FourPeat.
Keegan Bradley: Another proven player in big ballparks, he ran second to Homa last year, also closing with 66. Making his 13th start, he will have a plan.
Sungjae Im: Looking to make it six-from-six, he will look to make it three straight in the top 10.
Longshots
Harris English
Patrick Rodgers
Taylor Moore
Glass Houses 