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Carrie Stroup with your 2012 Farmers Insurance Open betting odds. These will change throughout the tournament so check back at Sportsbook.com regularly here.
Over the years, distance has been the name of the game at Torrey Pines. The Farmers champions list is littered with long hitters, including three-time winner Phil Mickelson, Bubba Watson, John Daly and Nick Watney. With that in mind, here’s a look at our top five picks for the tournament…
Robert Garrigus (60/1): We like the long shot. Yes, Garrigus missed the cut here each of the past two years. But he has the game to succeed at Torrey Pines—fourth on the Tour in driving distance a year ago (313.4). And this year, he’s riding some momentum going into the Farmers; he recovered from an opening round 73 to shoot 23-under from Friday to Sunday, finishing tied for second in last weekend’s Humana Challenge.
Nick Watney (15/1): Watney won here in 2009 and has gone T9 and T6 in two years since then. He played the best golf of his life last winter, opening 2011 with five straight top-10’s. And he got off to a solid start in 2012, finishing T12 at the Hyundai TOC.
Phil Mickelson (15/1): Mickelson nearly made it four titles at Torrey Pines last January, shooting four sub-70 rounds and finishing one shot behind Bubba Watson. Lefty recovered from a slow start at Humana last week to shoot three sub-70 rounds, a 12-under total, from Friday through Saturday.
Bubba Watson (25/1): The defending champ overpowered Torrey Pines a year ago, going 15-under in the final three rounds for a one-shot victory. He also finished T7 at the then-Buick Invitational in 2009. The Tour’s second-longest hitter a year ago (314.9), he should be right in the thick of things again.
Gary Woodland (40/1): Woodland was uneven at Torrey Pines a year ago, but his strong finish to 2011 (seven top-25’s in his final eight Tour starts, plus a 24th at the Hyundai TOC to start this year) and length off the tee (fifth on the Tour at 310.5 yards) bodes well for a big week.
- Carrie Stroup, Gambling911.com Senior Reporter
