Lowdown
Purse: $20 million (€19.25 million)/$4 million (€3.85 million to the winner)
Where: La Jolla, California
The course: The South Course at Torrey Pines – 7,765 yards, par 72 – plays host to a PGA Tour event for the second time inside a month. Harris English was a surprise winner of the Farmers Insurance Open just three weeks ago and, due to the wildfires in Los Angeles which forced a change in venue from Riviera, the South Course comes in as the once-off home to the Tiger Woods-hosted tournament, a signature event on the PGA Tour. Golf course architect Rees Jones did an upgrade to the course before the US Open in 2021 which included moving some tees and bunkers to further strengthen the course’s defences to what already was the longest course on the US Open circuit.
The field: Although world number two Xander Schauffele remains sidelined due to injury, there is a stellar field headed by world number one Scottie Scheffler – playing for a third straight week following surgery for a hand injury accidentally self-inflicted on Christmas Day when using a wine glass to roll ravioli – and number three Rory McIlroy, playing for the first time since his AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am win. Tiger Woods’s absence brought first reserve Jake Knapp into the limited 50-player field, while Chris Kirk’s withdrawal saw Mark Hubbard get in.
Quote-Unquote: “I’m pretty into the ‘trusting the process’ type mindset. I know I’m getting better even if it looks like I’m getting worse. I think I know what I’m doing is right. It’s very difficult to continue to see bad, but last week I actually hit the ball incredible and I missed the cut by five. Golf does not like me at the moment, I’ve noticed that.” – former Genesis Invitational champion Max Homa on his struggling form. Homa has not had a top-10 finish since the Wells Fargo last May and missed the cut in Phoenix.
Irish in the field: Séamus Power is in the opening group off the 1st, playing alongside Patrick Rodgers and Ben Griffin (5.30pm Irish time); Rory McIlroy is in a group with Viktor Hovland and Adam Scott (off the 10th, at 6.14pm); Shane Lowry is in a three-ball with Stephan Jaeger and Jason Day (off the 10th, at 6.58pm).
Betting: Scottie Scheffler is in the third straight week of tournament play – tied ninth at Pebble Beach, tied 25th at Phoenix – and is installed as the 4-1 favourite with Rory McIlroy, who won in his PGA Tour opener at Pebble Beach, rated a 6-1 chance. The 33-1 about Robert MacIntyre looks a tempting each-way wager with the left-handed Scot finishing strongly in Phoenix to secure a tied-sixth place. Another player worth an each-way look is Sam Stevens who finished runner-up to English in the Farmers Insurance Open.
