Torrey Pines California Farmers Insurance Open

Torrey Pines in California is the next stop on the PGA Tour with the Farmers Insurance Open and DraftKings and Moneyball are offering contests for Australian DFS players. A total of 152 entrants will tee up with the cut at 70 players plus ties. A class field will assemble over two courses, the North course at 7250 yards and the brutally long South course at 7698 yards. It is Winter in the states and the large field cannot play the same course in one day (there is not enough sunlight!) so players will alternate playing the North and South courses in the first two rounds. The South course will then host rounds 3 and 4 so keep that in mind when building lineups.

The major contest on DraftKings is the $500,000 King of the Pines contest with a $5 entry. For those who like to enter the Single-Entry contests look for the $20,000 Caddie contest for a $6 entry. The lobby is very extensive so there is plenty of options for all players to compete in.

At Moneyball the feature is the $500 contest for a $10 buy-in. A $2 contest is also available in the lobby.

Last year’s champion is Jason Day and he will be back to defend his title. Also in the field is current world number 1 in Justin Rose and other familiar major tournament winners including Tiger Woods, Jordan Speith and Rory McIlroy. With the long distance, it can be easy just to target the long bombers but golfers who have a great all-round game are suited at Torrey Pines. Look for players with great long iron play and the ability to save par. The past four winners – Jason Day (twice), John Rahm and Brett Snedeker all profile nicely to the course. Long of the tee, good on the long approach and score well off the long Par 5’s (Holes 9 and 13 are 614 yards long!).

It would be a stretch if a big odds player takes the big cheque home come Sunday, so look to get to the class of the field. Lockout for the event is at 4:00am AEDT on Friday.

With that all said and done, let’s look at some golfers to target for the Farmers Insurance Open!

Tony Finau (DK $9,900 MB $7,900) – Tony just looks great on paper no matter where you look. Finau has finished in the top 25 in the past 3 seasons at this event; the course suits his long game and he is currently leading the PGA in driving distance. You are going to get a little salary discount outside of John Rahm and world number 1 Justin Rose as well. Add the bonus that Finau will probably only be 10-15% owned with other big players in the field. He is a serious player in my line-ups.

Jason Day (DK $10,100 MB $8,100) – 2 wins in 4 seasons seems pretty good form at Torrey Pines. Well rested after not playing the Sony Open, Day led the field in Driving Distance at the previous event at the Sentry Tournaments of Champions. With this mind Day will be likely to be one of the highest owned players on the slate.

Tiger Woods (DK $10,500 MB $8,400) – The 7-time winner of this event and 8 times on the course is back on the tour after an extended holiday break. This is his first event since the “loss” to Phil Mickleson in the “Match” and the below par performance at the Ryder Cup.  Tiger will be fresh, and the bookies have installed him as 3rd favourite. To roster or not to roster, a compelling case can be made for both.

Patrick Cantlay (DK $9,200 MB $7,400) – After a top 10 finish in the Desert Classic in his first tournament of the season, Cantlay is a very consistent golfer and for him to play well at Torrey Pines obtaining shots gained from approach will be key. Cantlay was ranked number 1 for this category last week. Again, we will see a good amount of ownership and he is an excellent choice for your line-ups.

J.J Spaun (DK $7,300 MB $5,800) – The value pick for me. Spaun has made the cut in his previous 7 events on the tour and also made the cut in last week Desert Classic for a 51st placing. Yet what jumps out is his 9th place finish in this event last year. He is not the flashy player on tour but gives you 4 rounds and hopefully a good score for his salary.

The one golfer I am looking to avoid is Rory McIlory (DK $11,100 MB $8,900) due to two key reasons: McIlory is the 2nd most expensive golfer on the slate and hasn’t competed in the event in the past. McIlory in seasons past is usually on the European Tour at this time of the season in the sunny Emirates but will tee it up in California on a course he is not familiar with. Yes, it is Rory McIlory and he is a quality golfer but those two factors alone mean he is not for me this week.

DraftKings Golf

Always remember to gamble responsibly. When the fun stops, stop. If gambling is having a negative impact on your life, seek support at Gambling Help Online.  18+ only.