PGA Tour tales heading into Torrey Pines

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  • Mark SchlabachJanuary 22, 2025, 9:36 AM ET

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    • Senior college football writer
    • Author of Seven Books on College Football
    • Graduate of the University of Georgia

The PGA Tour’s West Coast Swing hits the halfway point at this week’s Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines in La Jolla, California.

The tournament tees off on Wednesday and gathers on Saturday to avoid competing with the NFL’s conference championship game on Sunday.

France’s Matthieu Pavon is the defending champion and he will battle a field that includes world no. 4 Hideki Matsuyama and no. 8 Ludvig Åberg.

This week’s tournament is followed by three of the tour’s biggest events: the Pebble Beach Pro-Am, the Wm Phoenix Open and the Genesis Invitational.

Here are some of this week’s stories at the Farmers Insurance Open.

Genesis Invitational on the go

Due to the devastating fire in Pacific Palisades, California, the PGA Tour is moving next month’s Genesis Invitational, which was scheduled to be played at Riviera Country Club outside Los Angeles from February 13th to February 16th.

The PGA Tour considered several new locations but appears to be leaning toward returning to Torrey Pines, sources told ESPN this week.

The Genesis Invitational, hosted by Tiger Woods, would be played on the more challenging South Course. This week’s Farmers Insurance Open is played on the North and South courses.

Woods won eight times on the South Course, including the 2008 US Open.

“Obviously with the love that (Woods) has for Torrey Pines, it looks like an easy fit,” San Diego native Charley Hoffman said. “But right now, every single guy in this field is working to get into Genesis like myself, if they’re not in it. And of course as a hometown kid, I want it to come here.”

Riviera Country Club and Torrey Pines are about 123 miles apart. Infrastructure would already be in place to support the Genesis Invitational, a signature event with a $20 million purse.

“I think the platform here in San Diego would be a very logical place to say that,” Hoffman said. “But there are so many logistics (involved in) moving an event three or four weeks out. Hotels, volunteers, rebranding the site. There’s so much that the tour has to do. It’s a tough job and I know that they’re up for it, but wherever they go, it’s going to be a tough task to figure everything out.”

Hoffman wasn’t the only PGA Tour player to support moving the Genesis Invitational to Torrey Pines.

“No pushback from me,” said Aberg. “Bring it here, please.”

“If it’s coming here, I can understand why they’ve come here,” Jason Day said. “Obviously, Tiger’s had a tremendous amount of success here. It’s not that far from LA, it’s just down the road. The infrastructure is already here. It just depends on if the city wants to hold it and what it would look like .”

Regardless of where the Genesis Invitational ends up, Day said it’s important for the tour to continue to support the people affected by fires.

“Even though we’re talking about another tournament coming to San Diego, which is a good thing for San Diego, there’s a lot of people who are out of a home that typically come in and everything is normal,” Day said . “Right now, there are a lot of people struggling, so we can’t forget that, too.”

Hoffman’s comeback

There were times in the last few seasons when Hoffman wondered if he would still be able to compete on the PGA Tour. Now 48, he was playing against much younger players, and a nagging back injury didn’t help matters either.

Last season, Hoffman had three top-10s in 24 starts. The highlight came at the WM Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale when he fell to Nick Taylor on the second hole in a playoff.

In 2022-23, Hoffman did not have a top-10 finish and missed 18 cuts in 31 tour starts.

“This is the first season in the last probably three to four years that I’ve been able to work and practice and play and coach,” Hoffman said. “In the past it was like, ‘Okay, how do I get ready to even tee it up on the PGA Tour?’ (My) back was no good.”

Hoffman’s hard work paid off at last week’s American Express at PGA West in La Quinta, California. He had a share of the 36-hole lead and tied for fifth at 20 under, five strokes behind winner Sepp Straka.

“The answer to that question is 100%, I wasn’t sure I’d ever be competitive here again,” Hoffman said. “Obviously, last year in Phoenix I was competitive. The rest of it wasn’t to my liking, but this year obviously started off on the right foot and got myself into contention.”

Hoffman assembled a team to help get his back in better shape through weight lifting, cold baths and infrared saunas.

The San Diego native is making his 27th start in the PGA Tour event at Torrey Pines. He first qualified for the Buick Invitational from California in 1994 as a 17-year-old junior at Poway High School in Poway, California.

‘Full Swing’ is coming back

Netflix announced the release date for season three of “Full Swing,” its reality show that follows golfers on the PGA Tour. The third season premieres on February 25.

According to a news release Wednesday, the third season will focus on world no. 1 golfer Scottie Scheffler’s record performance in 2024, Rory McIlroy’s Life on and Off the Course, Life Golf Star Bryson Dechambeau’s resurgence and Keegan Bradley’s comeback to unexpected Ryder Cup Captain.

The season will also feature Min Woo Lee and his sister Minjee’s quest to make the Paris Olympics and Gary Woodland’s return to the tour after battling a brain tumor.

Ohio

Jason Day was born and raised in Australia, but he moved to Westerville, Ohio, near his wife Ellie’s hometown, several years ago. Naturally, he adopted Ohio State as his college football team of choice and counts Buckeyes coach Ryan Day among his friends.

Day was thrilled to watch Ohio State defeat Notre Dame 34-23 in Monday night’s CFP National Championship presented by AT&T in Atlanta. It was redemption for Ryan Day, who was heavily criticized after the Buckeyes fell to rival Michigan for the fourth straight time in the regular-season finale.

“I have to admit, I want to say to all the people who called for his head, I’m like, ‘Come on,'” Day said. “I know we’ve lost to Michigan the last four seasons, and that’s big for Ohioans — we can’t lose to Michigan. But I’d take a championship over losing to Michigan every single year.”

The 2015 PGA Championship winner attended an Ohio State practice in October 2023. He also has relationships with former Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh, with whom he played in a pro-am, and former Buckeyes coach Urban Meyer .

But Day has earned the respect of the Buckeyes coach with the same last name.

“It was great to see his success,” said Day, who tied for third at 22 under in last week’s American Express. “Obviously, since that Michigan game, the whole team, he’s gotten along with the boys and they’ve played tremendously. It was fun to watch.

“It’s amazing to see how many times you can get gutted and then get back up and rally and keep going. It’s inspiring to see because if you’ve ever been to Columbus, Ohio, Ohio State football is there. It is a religion.