Thomas Detry believed that he was leading Torrey Pines overnight because he was doing everything correctly. Detry only had to make it through the 18th to be the outlier on a day when the majority of the field backed up. On Friday, during the third round of the Farmers Insurance Open, he was the only player in the last six groups under par, standing in the renowned par 5 fairway.
However, Detry gave up with one shot after fighting for five hours to pull ahead and take the lead by himself. Observing his third stroke, a wedge struck at a distance of 78 yards, went through the centre of the green, beyond the pin and back into the sea.
Detry claimed, “I got punched in the face.” He recorded a third-round 73 after making a double bogey on 18.
He wasn’t by himself. It was Friday that made everyone realise how powerful Torrey Pines’ greatest blow was. The day the storied South Course barked. After two rounds, the third round’s score average (73.55) was a shot and a half harder. During the first two days, 16 players on the South Course had rounds of 68 or better. On Friday, just two players had the same score, and neither of them had started the day in the top 60.
With great aptness, Matthieu Pavon stated, “Today the golf course showed its best.”
It sets up a well-known climax for this Saturday’s Farmers Insurance Open, which is a competition that anybody can win. It was difficult to get separation with the subdued scores. At 11-under, Stephen Jaeger is the leader, followed by Pavon and Nicolai Højgaard by one shot. Detry is two strokes back at 9-under. However, 26 players are only 5 shots behind the lead.
How could that be relevant? The Farmers Insurance Open was won by Max Homa and Luke List, who each rallied from five strokes down. At least three strokes behind the lead have been held by eight of the past ten winners.
Part of the reason is the difficulty of the course. With the pressure in one of the last groups, hardly many can score as high as Homa did a year ago in the final round. You’ll probably have an opportunity to win if you do.
Jaeger wants to go against the grain. It is the first time he has led the PGA TOUR going into a final round. He is currently alone atop the scoreboard. In 129 TOUR tournaments, this is only the fourth round in which he has held a lead or co-lead. After seven holes, Jaeger was at 14 under, with only Pavon, Højgaard, and Detry trailing the lead by six strokes.
Jaeger, though, soon felt the same pressure that the rest of the field was under from Torrey Pines. On the eighth par-3, he missed the green long and was unable to get back up in time for par. He drove the ninth par-5 in the rough, but was unable to capitalise on the opportunity. Two additional bogeys resulted from poor tee shots at the par-3 11th and par-4 12th holes. More than a dozen players at 7- and 8-under suddenly had life.
“Now that I’ve played Torrey Pines enough, I understand that you don’t play the South Course every day and shoot a 4, 5-under par. I simply knew that I was playing well enough and that I had a decent chance of winning on Sunday if I could just maintain my composure and continued to pursue my goals. Really, that’s all I want.” Jaeger said following his third round 73.
He is as excellent a candidate as any, albeit he will probably face comparable difficult circumstances. The leaderboard is becoming closer, the dense rough is getting longer, and the uneven Poa annua greens are getting bumpier.
The man attempting to win on the PGA TOUR, Højgaard, put it simply, “It’s just tricky.” In November, he took home the DP World Tour Championship.
The contenders in the last round all have that as a theme. On the PGA TOUR, no player has won when they are currently four strokes behind the lead.
However, Jaeger will be counting on a different kind of victory. The 34-year-old German has taken home six Korn Ferry Tour victories, second only to Jason Gore’s seven career victories. Whether he can use anything he learnt from those lessons on Saturday is still to be seen.
“While prior accomplishment is admirable, it doesn’t actually translate into anything. I’m going to feel anxious and nervous tomorrow.” Jaegar said.
And tomorrow, Torrey Pines and the pressure will undoubtedly hit him again. On the PGA TOUR, things operate like that. The last man standing will be the one who navigates it the best.
