Harris English outlasts the field and Torrey Pines for first win since 2021 | The Sunday Swing

The Sunday Swing
January 26th, 2025

Welcome back to another edition of the Sunday Swing presented by 2nd Swing Golf. This week the PGA Tour continued its west coast swing, heading to the iconic Torrey Pines Golf Club in San Diego, CA for the Farmers Insurance Open.

Farmers Insurance Open - Tournament History 

Founded in 1952, the Farmers Insurance Open was originally founded as the San Diego Open and was played at San Diego Country Club. In 1968, the tournament partnered with Torrey Pines, where it has been held ever since. The South Course at Torrey Pines has since hosted two U.S. Opens that have provided fans with some of golf's most iconic moments. First in 2008, when Tiger Woods made a legendary birdie putt on the 72nd hole to force an 18-hole playoff the next day against Rocco Mediate. Then in 2021, Jon Rahm birdied the 17th and 18th holes to beat Louis Oosthuizen by just one stroke to claim his first major title. The Farmers Insurance Open plays a unique format similar to the American Express where the first two rounds are played on two courses.

Measuring 7,765 yards, the South Course is a true championship course that will test all aspects of your game. Not only is it long, but the rough is some of the thickest and most penalizing that the players will see on the PGA Tour. The Poa Annua greens are commonly known as the hardest to putt on, plus they are lightning fast and have subtle undulations that make even 3-footers dicey. The previous five winners of the Farmers Insurance Open are as follows: 

2025 - Harris English (-8)
2024 - Matthieu Pavon (-13)
2023 - Max Homa (-13)
2022 - Luke List (-15)
2021 - Patrick Reed (-14) 

The Big Swing 

This week the big swing belongs to Harris English, who entered the week as a proven PGA Tour winner but nonetheless was without a Tour victory since 2021. He had played well at Torrey Pines in previous years, losing in a playoff to Jason Day at the 2015 Farmers and finishing solo 3rd at the 2021 U.S. Open. Torrey Pines is known to be a spot where tournament history matters, so it is no surprise that English played well again this week.

Weather played a significant factor during play this week. The first and third rounds were highlighted by tame conditions, while the second and fourth rounds featured high winds and lower temperatures, which resulted in much higher scores. During the final round, it was no surprise to see players able to avoid big numbers among those in contention, including English.

On Sunday, the difficult conditions delivered a major-like feel with par serving as a good score on any hole. English was able to put together a very clean scorecard that included 15 pars, two bogeys, and one birdie, which proved enough to hold off a strong challenge by Sam Stevens. 

The key shot for English – a tricky par save on the 500-yard par-4 12th hole. A tee shot into thick rough forced a layup, and English was faced with 75 yards for a third shot. He clipped a perfect pitch with his PING Glide 4.0 wedge to under four feet, and kicked in the par save. He made par every hole the rest of the way to finish at 8-under-par and win by a shot. 

It marks English’s first PGA Tour win since 2021 and his fifth career victory on the PGA Tour. It also marks his first win as a father. 

Winner’s Bag - Harris English 

Ping staffer Harris English picked up his fifth PGA Tour title on Saturday at the Farmers Insurance Open, his first in four years. Harris English has a classic swing, and he plays some current, and some classic PING equipment. Off the tee, English employs the PING G430 LST (10.5 degrees). He carries one fairway wood, a PING G400 3-wood (14.5 degrees). In the middle of his bag, English plays a set of PING Blueprint Ts (4-9 iron), and he also carries a PING G410 Crossover (3). Around the greens, English plays a trio of PING Glide 4.0 wedges (46, 52, and 56 degrees), along with a Ping Glide Forged lob wedge (60 degrees). On the greens, English rolls a Ping Scottsdale Hohum.

Key Stats

Strokes Gained: Off the Tee- 49th
Strokes Gained: Approach to Green- 4th
Strokes Gained: Around the Green- 26th 
Strokes Gained: Putting- 3rd 
Strokes Gained: Total- T2