The happiest people at Torrey Pines Golf Course after the 2nd round at the Farmers Insurance Open are not who you might expect.
It’s not Ryan Palmer, who’s in the lead at 11-under par and in a good position to get his first PGA Tour win since 2010.
It’s not Jon Rahm, the defending champion who shot a bogey-free 66 to get to 10-under par and into a good position to win for the second straight week and take over the world’s #1 ranking.
It’s not Jason Day, the 2015 tournament champion who went bonkers with an 8-under 64 to get to 7-under par and in a good position to make a run at another surfboard trophy.
It’s not Phil Mickelson, the local guy who’s 6-under par and in the top-10, putting him in a good position to get his first win in his home tournament since 2001, before the South Course was redesigned.
No, the happiest people in La Jolla on Friday night at the organizers of the Farmers Insurance Open because they get a weekend of Tigermania.
Tiger Woods, in the field at a PGA Tour event for the first time in a year, made the cut on the number and will get at least one more round on the course where he’s won eight times as a professional (and six more as an amateur). Woods birdied his final hole on the North Course to make his first cut on Tour in 888 days.
Keep in mind this is a man who, between 1998 and 2005, made the cut in 142 consecutive starts, beating Byron Nelson’s old record by 29.
Woods has not won on Tour since 2013. Since then he’s battled multiple injuries and last year had parts of his back fused to alleviate pain. He says so far the procedure is working and he’s had no physical setbacks, which is fantastic news for the golf community.
With Woods in the mix the galleries at Torrey Pines will be substantially larger because, even with his long winless drought, nobody moves the needle like Tiger does.
