If there ever is a course for Tiger Woods to make his season debut on and end a winless streak, it is absolutely Torrey Pines outside San Diego and that is the site of this week’s PGA Tour stop, the Farmers Insurance Open.
How dominant has Tiger been at Torrey Pines? Every golf fan and bettor remembers the 2008 U.S. Open at this course, when Tiger beat Rocco Mediate on Monday’s 19th playoff hole. That was the last time Tiger has played here (incidentally he will be paired with Mediate for the first two rounds this week).
Not including that Open, Tiger has six victories in 11 pro starts at Torrey Pines. He is 4-for-4 at the course when he opens the season there and has six total victories overall in his first event of the season. Tiger didn’t play this tournament in 2009 because of knee surgery and skipped it last year while taking a break from personal issues that led to divorce.
Tiger, who says he’s healthy entering a season for the first time in at least four years, also will debut a tweaked swing. After changing his swing in 1998 under the tutelage of Butch Harmon, Woods came back and won eight times in ’99 and nine times in 2000, including three majors. The following year he won the Masters to complete the so-called “Tiger Slam,” holding all four of the sport’s glittering prizes at the same time.
In 2004, when he changed his swing yet again, this time under Hank Haney, Woods won only once. But he roared back and, in the next five seasons, won six, eight, seven, four (in only six events) and six times.
Of course last year, amid his personal issues, Woods didn’t win although his best finishes were at two majors, the Masters and the U.S. Open, where he finished tied for fourth. Tiger is the 5/2 favorite this week on Bodog.
Phil Mickelson (16/1) also makes his PGA Tour debut this week after being a non-factor last week on the European Tour’s Abu Dhabi Championship. Lefty is a San Diego native who knows this course better than anyone: this will be his 22nd tournament appearance overall and only Mark O’Meara has played more pro rounds here in the last three decades. Lefty has finished in the top five of this tournament seven times, including victories in 1993, 2000 and 2001.
Dustin Johnson plays for the first time since the Hyundai Tournament of Champions and also is at 16/1. However, Johnson missed the cut here last year, although he seems to always play well on the California Swing.
How about Bill Haas (28/1)? He was epic in winning the Bob Hope Classic last week, shooting 20 under over his last 54 holes, including a 62 on Saturday. Through nine rounds this year, he’s hit 79.7 percent of his fairways and 83.3 percent of greens in regulation: he is No. 1 in all-around ranking. Haas was T37 at this event last year.
Ben Crane (40/1) is the defending champion here and finished in the Top 10 in 2009 as well. Rickie Fowler (20/1), the 2010 PGA Tour Rookie of the Year makes his season debut and was T5 here last year. No player has won his first tournament at Torrey Pines since Jay Don Blake in 1991.
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