It was a sleepless night Sunday and a long, tough Monday for Brandt Snedeker at Torrey Pines.
And he didn’t even have to hit a shot in the brutal conditions that humbled the rest of the field at the delayed Farmers Insurance Open.
Snedeker watched for more than two hours as the contenders tried to beat the six-under par score he posted on Sunday, thanks to one of the finest bad-weather rounds ever on the PGA Tour.
“You would not imagine what was going through my mind,” Snedeker said after K.J. Choi failed in his attempt to birdie the 18th hole and tie Snedeker. “I hate watchin’ this stuff,” he said after he saw overnight leader Jimmy Walker start at seven-under par then promptly bogey his first hole of the day, the par three 11th. Walker would never recover and three more bogeys coming home dropped him three-under and a tie for fourth.
The man Snedeker had to worry about was Choi.
Choi, playing with Walker, started the final eight holes at six-under before a bogey at the 14th dropped him back to five. A series of great up-and-downs kept the South Korean star in the game as blustery winds drove scores up. Choi worked his way to the 18th tee and needed a final-hole birdie at force a playoff.
Choi laid up to 113 yards and Snedeker’s victory was saved after Choi’s eight-iron third shot landed 40 feet above the hole. There would be no birdie and Snedeker celebrated his eighth PGA Tour win on the practice green with his family. It was his second victory at the Farmers and his fourth in California. “I love the greens, I love being out here,” he said with a broad smile.
Snedeker won this on Saturday when the conditions were worse than Monday. He was 14-for-14 on putts inside 10 feet and his 69 was his low round of the week. In 2012 he came from seven shots back after 54 holes to win and came from five back this year.
