The PGA Tour’s annual visit to Torrey Pines is going to be a wet one.
Large parts of San Diego were hit with flash flooding, intense rainfall, road closures and power outages ahead of the Farmers Insurance Open, the fourth event of the 2024 season.
By just after 6 p.m. local time Monday, San Diego International Airport, about 16 miles south of Torrey Pines Golf Course, had tied the record for the fifth rainiest day at 2.70 inches with rain still falling, according to the National Weather Service. Point Loma received 3.91 inches in 24 hours, bringing the total rainfall over three days to 4.49 inches. San Diego Naval Base officials also reported flooding near the area.
A flood watch was declared after excessive rainfall. The rain arrived with a low-pressure system that moved inland over Southern California and northern Baja.
On Wednesday morning, the PGA Tour declared preferred lies for the first round as well as Thursday’s second round.
Xander Schauffele, who grew up in the area and played college golf at San Diego State, noted the grass on the course was tall.
“It’s super long because it rained a ton and greens are poa annua and soft, not rolling super pure. It’s just a completely different animal,” he said Tuesday after his practice round, noting that course conditions were good. “Better than I thought, to be honest. After a few inches of rain, it’s definitely playable.”
Defending tournament champion Max Homa noted the course conditions will be challenging early in the week.
“The course is wet. The fairways here do a great job of not holding too much of that, so it’s been good. The rough is extra thick, so it’s always hard here but that’s going to be extra difficult,” he said Tuesday. “I would imagine by Friday the courses will dry out quite a bit and get back to how we normally see them.”
USA TODAY contributed to this article.
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