The PGA tour stays in California, heading south to San Diego for the Farmers Insurance Open. The tournament, as ever, is hosted at Torrey Pines on both the North and South courses. The latter is by far the trickier of the two courses, so players will look to take advantage of the North course amidst 54-holes of tough golf on the 2008 US Open track.

Unlike last week where tournament form is of limited help (eventual winner Mark Wilson’s tournament form read 33-C-61), Torrey Pines requires a fair amount in the way of experience, and it’s interesting to note that all recent winners of this event have posted a top-10 finish in one of their previous two showings here.

In terms of course form, we have more than just this tournament itself to study. The aforementioned 2008 US Open could give us some useful pointers, and if we want to dig even deeper we can look at the results of the Callaway Junior World Championships which have taken place on the South course for many years.

Last year’s leaderboard indicates that distance off the tee is a definite bonus. Not only winner Bubba Watson is a bomber, but Mickelson, Dustin Johnson and Vegas made up the top-4 and all are powerful players. However, last year’s event did suffer from a reasonable amount of rain which softened up the course – playing into the hands of the longer hitters. Better weather this year should level the playing field to some extent, although the South course remains the longest track on the PGA tour.

Here are my 7 selections for this week:

Brandt Snedeker – It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to come up with the name of Brandt Snedeker as a potential winner this week. After all, he has finished in the top-10 in his last two appearances in this event (runner-up in 2010, no less), and he also finished inside the top-10 in the 2008 US Open here. One of the best rounds of Snedeker’s career came on the easier North course back in 2007 where he opened up with a 61. Sadly he didn’t have quite enough in the locker to keep an in-form Tiger Woods at bay, but he posted a 3rd place finish on that occasion too. To summarise, Snedeker has done pretty much everything here apart from win. However, whereas his tie for 9th last year came on the back of a missed cut at the Humana Challenge, he finished tied for 8th in the same event last week so he enters this tournament in much better shape than previously. Although Snedeker may not be a power player, he has a short-game to die for, and clearly loves it at Torrey Pines.

4pts each way 25/1 BetXchange, Sportsbet, Ladbrokes, Hollywood

Camillo Villegas – Much of 2011 was disappointing for Villegas, but he really started to heat up towards the end of the season, posting top-10 finishes in two of the FedEx Cup playoff events, followed by a top-5 in Malaysia. I’m glad he’s got one tournament under his belt so far this year, at last week’s Humana Challenge, and although he’ll be disappointed to have not gone closer, an opening 63 shows he’s doing something right. Most of Villegas’ best performances come in tougher events that this, however, such as his win in the Tour Championship in 2008, and his tie for 3rd in last year’s FedEx St. Jude Classic. Torrey Pines is also a venue that has brought him decent results. Like recent winners here, he has posted a top-10 finish in one of his last two starts here (tied 3rd in 2009), and also finished inside the top-10 in the 2008 US Open. Villegas certainly packs a lot of power for a man of 5ft 9in, and his often errant driving won’t be heavily punished this week.

2.5pts each way 40/1 Voltbet, Sportsbet, World Sports Betting

D.A. Points – Having talked up the importance of distance off the tee earlier on, I now come to another player whose game has little reliance on power. Points opened his PGA tour account last year with a win in California at the Pebble Beach Invitational, and although the remainder of the season brought him little joy, he seems rejuvenated in 2012 with solid showings in both Hawaiian events. Points has finished 9th and 5th in his last two showings in this event, and last year could have been even better were it not for an opening 73. Statistically, Points doesn’t jump off the page, but on a course he plays so well and with his game looking in great shape, he shouldn’t be omitted this week.

2pts each way 50/1 Hollywood

Robert Garrigus – If we want to find a player with plenty of distance off the tee, one of the first names we come to is that of Robert Garrigus. Garrigus put in an excellent effort last week at the Humana Challenge. After opening up with a woeful 73, he followed that with rounds of 64 and 61 before a final round 68 wasn’t quite enough to pip Mark Wilson. Whereas low scoring won’t be expected this week, this isn’t necessarily a hindrance to Garrigus who came 3rd in last year’s US Open and lost in a playoff in the 2010 FedEx St. Jude Classic, proving he can cope on tough tracks. Although Garrigus has missed the cut in each of his last two starts here, he has three top-30 finishes in recent years also, and I feel the course should suit if he can get the new flat-stick working. As well as ranking 4th in Driving Distance, Garrigus ranked 3rd on tour in Approaches from >200 yards last year which should pay dividends on the longest track on tour.

1.5pts each way 66/1 BetXchange, World Sports Betting, Ladbrokes, Hollywood

Stewart Cink – Cink has been somewhat flying under the radar lately, and I think he’s a dark horse this week. After all, I don’t think many people expected him to win the 2009 Open Championship amidst pretty average form, but he’s capable of getting it going without warning. Cink’s first start of 2012 came in the Sony Open two weeks ago where he finished inside the top-30 including a second round 66, so things aren’t looking too bad in terms of form. Cink does also tick the box of a top-10 finish in this event in one of his last two starts; a tie for 3rd back in 2008 (Cink sat out this event in 2009 & 2010) so he has some decent course form here.

1pt each way 70/1 World Sports Betting

Brandt Jobe – Jobe made a welcome return to the PGA tour last year, and made a solid go of his 2011 season, posting four top-10 finishes which included a runner-up finish at the Memorial Tournament. Looking back over the years of this tournament, Brandt Jobe has performed very well at Torrey Pines, finishing inside the top-20 from 2004 to 2006. Last year wasn’t a bad effort either, finishing inside the top-30 in one of his first starts back on tour. Jobe has plenty of distance off the tee and he ranked 3rd on tour in both total driving and ball-striking last year, so he has the game to contend at Torrey Pines.

0.75pts each way 125/1 BetXchange, Hollywood

Matthew Giles – It’s rare that I will tip a Monday qualifier for an event, but I think Matthew Giles is one to look out for this week. As I touched upon earlier, the South course plays hosts to the Callaway Junior World Championships, and this is where the name Matthew Giles stands out. Giles not only won the boys event in 2006 but he beat the field by a massive nine strokes. Some may remember another young Aussie, Andrew Buckle going very well here back in 2007, and it’s interesting to note that Buckle was also a previous winner of the very same event. Who knows how Giles will handle his first tour start, but he’s well worth a look.

0.5pts each way, unquoted, price on request

You are most welcome to add your own picks on our discussion forum

Sam Harrop has been a golfing enthusiast most of his life and has developed an in depth knowledge of the players, tournaments and stats on the PGA Tour. He has launched a website www.golfpuntersguide.com and he has kindly made his preview available to Goodforthegame.

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