Today, Wednesday, the Farmers Insurance Open kicks off on the two courses of Torrey Pines (San Diego, California), the south course, where the tournament ends on Sunday, and the north course. A classic of the PGA Tour in which, not long ago, Jon Rahm achieved his first victory on the American circuit seven years ago. How time flies and how things change. When the Barrika player won, for example, the tournament began on Thursday and ended on Sunday, as usual, but this will be the third consecutive year that it starts on Wednesday.
Up to three top ten in the world are present at the event (Max Homa, who defends the title, Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele) and a total of 55 players from the top 100 in the world. Quite something. But there is another special incentive, as this tournament closes the qualifying tour for the next Signature Event of the PGA Tour, which is held next week at Pebble Beach (field reduced to 80 players and a prize pool of 20 million). The top five from this tour (made up of three tournaments: Sony Open, American Express and Farmers) will get a place in such an exclusive event and in this fight is, among others, the winner of the last Open of Spain, the French Matthieu Pavon, who obtained the PGA Tour card through the DP World Tour ranking last year.
It is no small matter to know if any of the ten players from the European circuit who got the PGA Tour card in 2023 is able to make their way to the Signature Events right now. It would certainly be a benchmark, a proof that it is possible, even at the first attempt.
The Frenchman is currently seventh in this mini ranking of three tournaments and, therefore, it is really a more than possible goal, as he is only 24 Fedex Cup points away from the fifth, the Chinese Carl Yuan. To get a general idea of what he needs, knowing that the mathematical combinations are many and that you always also depend on what others add, let’s remember for example that a tenth place in this tournament grants 75 Fedex Cup points and the twentieth place, 45 points. He wouldn’t need, therefore, the best week of his life…
Also the Swede Alexander Bjork will have his chances, as he is eleventh in the aforementioned mini ranking of three tournaments, 57 points away from the coveted fifth place. Or the Japanese Hisatsune, who is ninth, 37 points away… They are three of the ten players who got the PGA Tour card through the ‘European route’ (also playing this week in San Diego are Adrian Meronk, Victor Perez, Ryan Fox, Sami Valimaki or Robert MacIntyre).
It is worth highlighting the presence of Meronk, who is making his debut this year on American soil and who, therefore, would need a great result to get into Pebble Beach (with a third place in the Farmers this week he should achieve it). The Pole, undoubtedly one of the fashionable players, who also comes from being second in Dubai and reaching his highest ranking to date in the world ranking (39th), has not stood out to date in the tournaments of the regular calendar of the American circuit. He has such a subject to pass, as he has missed five cuts in seven performances, with a 14th place in last year’s Honda Classic being his best record.
As is known, the flamboyant and surprising winner of last week’s American Express, the amateur Nick Dunlap, is not on the starting grid, as he has decided not to play, nor is Justin Thomas, who has dropped out once he secured his presence in Pebble Beach through the world ranking with his third place in the American Express (he rose to Number 23 in the ranking and the top thirty have their presence assured in the Signature Event).
