World No. 4 Johnson "First Battle of the New Year"... Clash with 'Number 1' Ram

Farmers Insurance Open Kicks Off 2022, 'Hulk' DeChambeau Joins, Korea's Im Sung-jae and Kim Si-woo Enter the Race

World No. 4 Dustin Johnson will start the 2022 season at the Farmers Insurance Open.

[Asia Economy Kim Hyun-jun, Golf Specialist Reporter] It is the first outing of the new year for Dustin Johnson, ranked 4th in the world.

On the night of the 26th (Korean time), the PGA Tour Farmers Insurance Open (total prize money $8.4 million) kicks off at the Torrey Pines Golf Course South Course (par 72, 7,765 yards) in San Diego, California. Patrick Reed (both from the USA) is defending his title, and the field includes world No.1 Jon Rahm (Spain), No.6 Justin Thomas, and No.7 Xander Schauffele. The 'Hulk' Bryson DeChambeau (USA) has also joined the fray.

Johnson is the champion of the 2020 'Fall Masters,' which was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in November 2020. From the first day, he surged with a 7-under-par and led wire-to-wire, setting the tournament's lowest score (20-under-par 268), drawing even more spotlight. It is surprising that he has not won since then. He missed the 2022 season opener, the Sentry Tournament of Champions, which is only for champions. For now, he is focusing on tuning his shot feel in practice rounds.

The tournament plays the first and second rounds on the North Course (par 72, 7,258 yards), followed by the third and fourth rounds on the South Course. This year, the event starts on Wednesday and ends on Saturday, based on local dates, to avoid overlapping with the NFL schedule. On the 30th, the NFL National Football Conference (NFC) Championship will be held at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. Although Inglewood and San Diego are about 180 km apart, TV broadcasting considerations were taken into account.

'Number 1' Jon Rahm is aiming for his first victory of 2022 at the Farmers Insurance Open.

Rahm is the 'top favorite' to win. He warmed up with a 2nd place finish at the Sentry Tournament on the 10th and a tie for 14th at the American Express that ended on the 24th. This tournament is especially his 'promised land,' where he turned pro in 2016 and won his first PGA Tour title in January 2017. He holed an 18.5-meter eagle putt on the final 18th hole (par 5). He has been particularly strong at Torrey Pines with a tie for 5th in 2019, runner-up in 2020, and tie for 7th last year.

The highlight was the US Open held on the same course last September. On the final day, he shot a 4-under-par daily best to come from behind by one stroke and win, setting a new milestone as the first Spanish US Open champion. The 'Sony Open champion' Hideki Matsuyama (Japan) is also a formidable contender. He already has two wins early in the 2022 season, including the Zozo Championship in October last year and the Sony Open on the 17th, making him a 'three-win contender.'

DeChambeau's 'long drive experiment' is always big news. The R&A and USGA have imposed restrictions on long shafts (maximum 46 inches) and tightened yardage book regulations from the start of the new year, putting brakes on this. His 'rivals' Brooks Koepka and Jordan Spieth (both USA) are watching for opportunities. From Korea, 'Shriners Champion' Im Sung-jae (24) leads the charge, accompanied by Kim Si-woo (27), Kang Sung-hoon (35, both from CJ Logistics), and Noh Seung-yul (31).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.