Farmers Insurance Open preview: Sahith ready to Thee it up at Torrey Pines

The West Coast Swing continues this week as a selection of the world’s top golfers take to Torrey Pines for the Farmers Insurance Open.

After last week’s selections seemed to be prone to a water hazard as soon as they reeled themselves into contention, we have opted this week for two players whom we hope can keep the ball dry.

We take a closer look at two key contenders below.

Sahith Theegala 25/1

One of the key components for the Farmers Insurance Open is course form and Theegala is a man who possesses exactly that at Torrey Pines.

You only have to go back a year to see his stellar performance here, finishing T4, just four shots behind the victor Max Homa. Homa preceded that win by taking home the trophy at the Fortinet Championship just a few months before, and that could be key…

Theegala was 2023’s Fortinet Championship winner, finishing 21-under, a joint record at the tournament. His liking for Torrey Pines is emphasised by his performances at both the Fortinet and Farmers in recent years, and he could certainly go even better this year.

His ball-striking was among the best at The Sentry earlier this month, where he recorded an impressive outright second, just one shot behind Chris Kirk. He had a lapse at the Sony Open a week later but we can forgive him that after a gruelling first effort of 2024.

The Californian will feel more comfortable back playing in his home state and that could just bring the best out of him. A repeat of his T4 finish here last year would work nicely with William Hill’s 6 places each-way, and at 25/1 he could prove great value for the win.

Charley Hoffman 300/1

Talk about an outside shout, Charley Hoffman at 300/1 is our longest-price tip to date! The American is a well-known player on the PGA Tour and has four wins to his name between 2007 and 2016.

Hoffman is no stranger to Torrey Pines having taken place in 25 separate events there since his course debut in 1994. His successes have not been limited to the distant pass, recording a ninth-place finish as recently as the 2020 Farmers Insurance Open.

Looking at it objectively, Hoffman seems now to be a fairly average player on the PGA Tour, ranking between 33rd and 110th on the Tour for all of strokes gained in total, from tee to green, off the tee and when approaching the green.

Where we’ll be looking for him to excel is on the greens, where he ranks 23rd for strokes gained and 15th for average putts per round. In 2020 he gained over 1.5 shots on the field with the flatstick on his way to the top 10.

We’re not expecting Hoffman to storm clear at the top of the leaderboard, but he could use the putter to keep up with the top players. If he is still in contention for a place (6 places at 1/5 odds with William Hill) then his final round 65 in 2020 will offer great hope that he can provide good each way value at 300/1 this week.