Windstorm at Torrey Pines, defending champion Pavon eliminated, Rozner on favorable waiver

A year after his exploit, Matthieu Pavon did not experience the same emotions in San Diego, far from it. Even though the windstorm forced the organizers to stop play and the darkness did not allow the second round to be completed completely, the defending champion of the Farmers Insurance Open will not play this weekend. No more than Victor Perez. Antoine Rozner is well on his way to qualifying.

Twelve months later, Matthew Pavon therefore experienced headwinds on the lands of its historic triumph. The first French winner on the PGA Tour was in fact the first to defend his title. The least we can say is that the defense of this crown was not what he hoped for. The fault of a great erratic game during the first round, the fault of a very disappointing second day on the course a priori the easier of the two, the North Course.

Except that the weather has reshuffled the cards. Swept by winds with gusts of more than 40 km/h, the course which was played the day before on average two strokes less than the South Course was this Friday the most difficult to score. Regulars of the place like the veteran Joel Dahmen claimed they had never seen so much wind at Torrey Pines. And it was the North Course that was most affected.

Pavon, the false start

Already struggling to catch greens in regulation the day before, Matthieu Pavon had the misfortune of being in the “wrong” rotation. The Bordeaux player conceded a heavy 80, obviously crippling. There will be better days for him this season. It was his return week on the PGA Tour. It is undoubtedly to be forgotten.

Le leaderboard complet

Also in the running on the North Course, Victor Perez barely did better than the 2024 winner of the “Farmers”. Tarbais has not recovered from a fairly catastrophic start (+4 after 4 holes). With a sad 76, he was also eliminated, although less clearly. He is missing two strokes on the clock to cross a cut located at +1, a rarity for a regular PGA Tour tournament.

Rozner, it's almost done

But the three Musketeers competing this week did not all fail. The pleasant surprise came from the one we expected (perhaps) a little less. Shining the day before on a North Course spared by the whims of Aeolus, Antoine Rozner gritted his teeth and held the bar on the difficult South Course. Of course, he is not yet guaranteed to make the cut. After an interruption of play due to strong winds, play resumed, but the delay could not be made up.

As for some players, Rozner still has holes to play in this 2nd round. In this case two. It is currently at -1 total. Even with two bogeys on a cool Saturday morning, it will pass…

Åberg stays the course

With narrow courses, thick roughs, ultra-fast greens and a strong wind, the day's scoring average was heavy. Very heavy. Some were able to resist better than others. But the leaders are only -6.

Ludvig Åberg signed a 75 (+3) which allows him to stay in the lead, alongside the American Lanto Griffin.

The top of the leaderboard is also occupied by players who are much less expected than the great Swede. This is the case of the 294th in the world and rookie on the PGA Tour Danny Walker. There is even an amateur who plays the leading roles.

But seeing the amateur appear Luke Clanton, in 7th place is a half-surprise: second in the RSM Classic last November, he has already scored 4 top 10s in 2024. In the event of a top 5 on Sunday, the young Floridian would obtain his card on the PGA Tour.

As for one of the headliners of the tournament, Max Homahe was sailing at +11 with three holes to play. The Ryder Cup player preferred to throw in the towel. “It was just survival today”, estimated his great friend Joel Dahmen. When play was interrupted by darkness 5 other players who were down in the standings also withdrew: Philip Knowles, David Lipsky, Max McGreevy, Paul Peterson and Kevin Roy

Le leaderboard

Photo LINTAO ZHANG / GETTY IMAGES ASIAPAC / Getty Images via AFP