Sport
Farmers Insurance Open preview: Max Homing in on another victory
As the PGA Tour rolls on into its fourth week the players head to one of the most iconic places in golf, Torrey Pines.
The Californian complex hosts two courses, North and South, with the midweek round split between those two, while those who make it to the weekend will face another two rounds at the latter.
With the South Course as our main focus here, distance off-the-tee, accuracy on approach, and par-5 scoring will take centre stage.
Our steady improvement continued last week as we landed a selection in the places, as Justin Thomas came so close to victory, finishing second at the American Express just two shots back from Sepp Straka. If the upward trend continues, we should be on to a winner this week!
Jason Day 25/1
Our fist selection this week comes in the form of Jason Day. Few have a better record at this tournament – other than eight-time champion Tiger Woods of course – and Day looks as though he could be set to go well again this year.
He already has two victories under his belt at this tournament, not to mention T2, T3, T5, T7 and T9 finishes outside of that. He missed the cut here in 2024, but the last time that happened he followed up by finishing T3 the following year!
Day’s start to the 2025 season has been an encouraging one, kicking off with a steady T40 at The Sentry before showing major improvement to finish T3 at the American Express last week.
So far, his approach play and short game have been the secret to his success and it’s the former which could really help him this week. This tournament tends not to be as high scoring as others on the PGA Tour and Torrey Pines will provide a real test of patience and consistency.
The Australian’s Greens in Regulation percentage currently sits at 84.03%, the fifth best on the Tour, which will be crucial if he is to land himself another finish inside the 8 places available with William Hill, or better yet, a victory at a cosy price of 25/1.
Max Homa 28/1
It is not surprising to see Max Homa being widely supported for this year’s Farmers Insurance Open and we can see no reason to go against the grain on this one. His recent record at the tournament in outstanding, with a victory, a T9 finish, and just one missed cut in his last five outings here.
2024 wasn’t really Homa’s year as he failed to add to his tally of six PGA Tour titles, but there were still positives to take as he notched three top 10 finishes, eight top 25’s and missed just four cuts.
His performance off-the-tee last season left a bit to be desired, but his first outing this year saw him gain strokes on the rest of the Tour in that respect, while also ranking 16th for driving accuracy.
He was hitting Greens in Regulation for fun at The Sentry with a strike rate of 87.5%. With both these stats in mind it’s a wonder this former winner is a 28/1-shot here, especially given how weak the field looks.
A finish in the 8 places available with William Hill would certainly provide a nice starting point as Homa heads into what will be an important season for him with Ryder Cup selection looming, while a win wouldn’t do his chances of making the team any harm.
