Webb Simpson Will Need A Lot To Go Right At Torrey Pines
3 years agoWebb Simpson chooses to skip the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines for a reason. It is not a suitable course for his style of play. While he has experienced some success on USGA setups, a lot would need to break in his favor for him to compete at this specific venue. Simpson did win the U.S. Open back in 2012 at the 7,100-yard Olympic Club, but outside of the Poa surfaces, it is hard to draw any similarities between Olympic and Torrey Pines. There is a universe where his putting and short game carry him to the first page of the leaderboard, but that might be wishful thinking. He finished eighth at the U.S. Open last year at Winged Foot, gaining a combined 11.9 strokes putting and around the green. When he finished 16th at Pebble Beach the prior year -- a much better course for him due to its lack of length -- he gained 7.9 strokes putting. It's certainly plausible that he repeats that putting performance this week, but his path to success is far more difficult than his similarly priced peers. Last month at the PGA Championship, he gained a combined 6.8 strokes putting and around the green and still failed to crack the top 25. Consider longer players with an easier roadmap this week.
Source: PGA Tour
Source: PGA Tour