Jason Day’s in love.
“I love this area,” he said.
“I love the people here,” he added.
“I also love the golf tournament,” he continued.
“And I love the golf course,” he finished.
Tell us how you really feel, right? But can you blame him? By most every measurable, San Diego is lovely, as are San Diegans, as is the Farmers Insurance Open, as is Torrey Pines. You’d struggle to find disagreement — though, at least this week, that’s not all that’s gone missing, peculiarly so.
Where are all the golfers?
To be sure, they are still playing the PGA Tour event, and pros are still in San Diego, including a bunch even a casual fan would recognize. It’s just not the field you were expecting, even as late as last Sunday, when the updates started to come faster than you can say Padres. Gone first were Nicolai Hojgaard, Collin Morikawa and Tyler McCumber. Then Mackenzie Hughes. Then Akshay Bhatia. Then Chesson Hadley. Then Harry Hall. Then Bronson Burgoon. Then Will Zalatoris. Then Ryan Moore (who had replaced Zalatoris.) Then Gary Woodland. Then Braden Thornberry, who pulled out after nine holes. Then Nate Lashley, who exited after 23. Then Hayden Buckley, who was gone after 27. Then Max Homa, who dropped out after 33. Then Emiliano Grillo, who was finished after 35. A whopping 16 WDs in all, and they joined a noticeable collection of stars already at home — 19 of the world’s top 25 are out this week. (Editor’s note: Another five players withdrew after Thursday’s second round was suspended due to darkness.)
Naturally, some absentees had Day reminiscing.
“It was the event to come to,” he said.
Here, then, are 11 reasons why some aren’t.
11. Usual WDs
Players withdraw every week, and stars sit out every week, and, for some, that could be the explanation this week.
10. Flu?
According to several reports, a flu bug has found its way to Torrey and forced WDs. More could come.
9. Injuries
Would Scottie Scheffler have played this week? Potentially — he played the Farmers in 2020, ’21 and ’22 — but the world No. 1 said he injured his right hand making ravioli over Christmas and underwent surgery. What about Xander Schauffele? He went to college at San Diego State, but the world No. 2 is dealing with a rib injury incurred late last year, according to Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis.
Losing the world’s top two players in this manner, obviously, is rare.
8. Schedule
This year marks the third season of the PGA Tour’s limited-field, big-money “Signature Event” series — and the third year of the Farmers being non-Signature, for lack of a better term. What does that mean? Decisions.
The year’s first event, the Sentry, is a Signature Event, so if invited, pros will go. The next two events — the Sony Open and the American Express — are options for players. The fourth event is the Farmers, which is followed by this stretch: AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, a Signature Event; WM Phoenix Open, which annually draws some of the year’s biggest crowds; and the Genesis Invitational, a Signature Event. Something has to give.
“You have Pebble next week and then Waste and then the Genesis,” Day said. “They’re three pretty big tournaments in a row, and do you want to play four big tournaments? Like I think you’ve got to understand that like tough golf courses, mentally I think only — you can only play — like because Pebble’s obviously a Signature Event and most guys aren’t going to miss that. Waste Management is a total beast in itself because it’s a mentally grueling week as well, and then you’ve got another Signature Event after that in L.A.
“So do you want to put yourself through a very, very mentally grueling week this week and then play another three events? I think most guys’ thresholds are around three, two to three weeks in a row.”
7. The Genesis move
About the Genesis …
The event at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles is being relocated this year due to the L.A. wildfires — and multiple outlets have reported that its landing spot will be Torrey. Are pros potentially skipping this week, knowing they’ll be back in San Diego in three weeks? It makes some sense. Or maybe not. Day said he thinks those playing this week at Torrey could have an obvious advantage: They’ll be better prepared.
“We get a bit of a taste test of what it’s going to be,” he said, “and we know what the conditions will be. …
“Coming off a week at Waste Management, even though it’s perfect conditions out there, different grass, you’ve got overseeded rye at the Waste Management, you’re dealing with crowds and then obviously you’re coming over here dealing with different grass. It’s a different — it’s heavy air, the density is completely different to Scottsdale, so it’s just a different type of game out here.”
6. TGL
TGL, the tech-infused, simulator league, played the third week of its first season on Tuesday — and all six of its players are out this week. Missing Torrey are Patrick Cantlay, Justin Thomas, Billy Horschel, Matt Fitzpatrick, Cameron Young and Rickie Fowler.
What did previous years look like for the six? Cantlay and Horschel played the Farmers last year. Thomas, Young and Fowler didn’t, but, in a look at recent history, Thomas played in 2023 and ’22, Young played in ’22 and ’21, and Fowler played every year from 2010 to ’23. Fitzpatrick has never played the Farmers.
5. Hero Dubai Desert Classic
The Hero Dubai Desert Classic, one of the DP World Tour’s bigger events, was played last week, meaning a 17-or-so-hour flight for Rory McIlroy, Viktor Hovland, Tommy Fleetwood, Robert MacIntyre and Adam Scott, the PGA Tour members in the world’s top 25 who played in the tournament.
What does their Farmers track record look like? McIlroy played in 2019, ’20 and ’21; Hovland played in 2019 and ’21; Fleetwood has never played it; MacIntyre played it last year; and Scott played in ’19 and ’21.
4. An early start
Starting in 2022, the Farmers was moved from a traditional Thursday-to-Sunday schedule to a Wednesday-to-Saturday schedule in order to move it away from the NFL’s conference championship games. The result?
Shorter turnarounds. Sped-up routines. The commute from the American Express — about 125 miles — is relatively fair, though.
Of course, not everyone remembered why the Tour was playing a Wednesday-to-Saturday schedule. When asked if the Wednesday start was problematic for pros, Day started his answer this way:
“I don’t — what is the reasoning behind finishing on Saturday?”
3. Torrey’s difficulty
The Farmers is played between Torrey’s North and South courses during the first two rounds, and on the South course for the final 36 holes — meaning pros play 54 in late January on a course that’s hosted U.S. Opens. Most years have just started at this point, and swings are still being ironed out.
“I just think you look at it strategically, the schedule — obviously you have Signature Events and major championships and those are at the top and you sort of schedule around that,” said Charley Hoffman, a San Diego native. “How are you going to be prepared for those major championships, the Players Championships and the Signature Events? How are you going to peak at that point in time because the points are so loaded in those events, and people are looking, do I go play two golf courses, traditionally very hard golf courses and is that the best preparation for two Signature Events I have coming up?
“Some people love the challenge and it may make those tournaments feel easier to them if they come out here and play well at Torrey Pines. It just matters what you’re looking for and what you want.
“Tiger [Woods] would always rise up to the challenge. He loved it here, he played here each and every year. He could pick any golf course to play and he chose here to play. It’s just a matter of what you want. But it is how are you going to peak and be ready for those big, big tournaments now. It’s just a different way to look at it with the Signature Events, for sure.”
2. No Tiger Woods
Speaking of Tiger Woods …
The 15-time major winner hasn’t made a Farmers start since 2020. But when he played a regular schedule, pros went where Woods went, and Woods was a regular at Torrey, where he won the 2008 U.S. Open.
“We took it for granted, there’s not a question in my mind,” Hoffman said. “As someone who’s played here for over 30 years, you took it for granted that Tiger Woods was going to show up here, and the city of San Diego was going to have the best player in the world each and every year at its event.
“We’re in reality now with what every other city has to deal with without Tiger Woods or the best player in the world playing here.”
Notably, Woods is the host of the Genesis, and he no doubt has had a word on whether the event will be moved to Torrey.
1. No LIV Golf pros
Pros with LIV Golf, the Saudi-backed tour that starts its fourth season next month, are still not allowed to play Tour events. Five LIV pros have won at Torrey — Patrick Reed, Marc Leishman, Jon Rahm, Bubba Watson and Phil Mickelson.
The future?
Is there hope for the future? Potentially. The flu and injury bugs seemingly will be cleared up. The Genesis should return to Riviera next year. Maybe the Farmers is moved on the schedule. Maybe it earns Signature status. Maybe Hoffman is named Tour commissioner for a day.
Say what? He’s thought about how he’d help the event, should he be boss for 24 hours.
“If I had a crystal ball,” Hoffman said. “I may juggle up the whole schedule, not even play a West Coast Swing on the West Coast, maybe play Florida first and maybe play the West Coast maybe more in the summer when we all want to be in San Diego.
“If I was commissioner for a day, I would take a look at the schedule and just jumble it all up and say where should we start the PGA Tour season, where is the best time to play these events and do we have to play the whole West Coast on the West Coast right after each other?
“Maybe, maybe not. I think that’s stuff — thank God I’m not on the board or do any of that stuff any longer.”
