Farmers Insurance Open Golf Tips: Kyle Stanley

After a missed cut, the bookmakers have overreacted by doubling the price of Kyle Stanley and making him 125/1 (Skybet) for the Farmers Insurance Open. Last week there was enough encouragement in an opening 68 to suggest Stanley can contend on a regular basis.

The Humana Challenge can be a slightly strange tournament. The pro-am element of the first three days, combined with the fraught chase for birdies can produce strange results. The putts simply didn’t drop and the skills that made him a tip last week haven’t deserted him in 7 days.

One of the longest hitters on tour, the 24-year-old from Washington reminds me slightly of last year’s champion Bubba Watson. Their personalities might be polar opposites but their golf games are surprisingly similar. Both are ‘grip it and rip it’ golfers perfectly suited to the monstrously long challenge of Torrey Pines South.

Last year Bubba played the par-5s in -13 on the way to victory and Kyle Stanley is equally adept at making birdies on the long holes. He played the par-5s in -7 and ranked 10th on tour for par-5 birdies or better last season.

The weakness to his game is his putting but the flat stick can get hot seemingly out of nowhere. You don’t become a bad player overnight and odds of 125/1 (Skybet) are too big to turn down. Back him each way with ¼ odds for a top five finish.