San Diego beckons for the PGA Tour this week, as we have reached the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines.
While the big stories of this week usually center around a return to a major championship venue or paragliders off the coast, this week gives us quite the talking point, as Brooks Koepka is making his not-so-long-awaited return to the PGA Tour.
One of the highest-profile LIV Golf defectors (and still the only LIV player to win a major while on that tour), Koepka is going to be the center of attention as he starts his fight towards qualification for the Signature Events.
While some people may be bemoaning the return of one of the LIV guys to the PGA Tour, this is the kind of move that new CEO Brian Rolapp needed to make to show that his reign over the PGA Tour was going to be more effective than Jay Monahan.
Rolapp created a solid program that, while limited in scope, offered a clear path back to the Tour because he understands that getting the biggest names in the game together on one tour makes for more compelling events. I wish the other guys who could have taken advantage of the return program had, but it seems like it is showing some weakness on LIV, and this schism in golf could be coming to an end.
Regardless, the rankings will move along, getting focus back on Torrey Pines. Fun fact, this event marks one full year of these rankings on Pro Golf Now (shout out top performer from last year Sungjae Im with a T4), so hopefully on this anniversary week, we can find a winner in our rankings. I feel bad about taking credit for guessing Scottie Scheffler would win last week, but we'll take it to get rolling on the season. Let's get number two.
Honorable Mentions: Pierceson Coody, Max Homa, Alex Smalley, Michael Thorbjornsen, Kevin Yu
9. Brooks Koepka
The main man of the week, this pick is more out of pure intrigue than belief in Koepka's current skill. We don't really know where Brooks Koepka's game currently stands, but this is a guy who still gets up for the big events.
I want to be optimistic for his return to the Tour, and I think that being the center of attention, with the thought that he needs to play well to get into the Signature Events, and not have to do the Puerto Rico/Puntacana calendar later this year, will fuel the big name to a strong week.
8. Rasmus Hojgaard
The better of the Hojgaard twins, Rasmus is looking to bounce back from a poor T44 showing at The American Express last week. This is his first time playing the Farmers, but he has seen Torrey Pines before at last year's Genesis Invitational.
Rasmus has plenty of pop off the tee, as well as the putting skill to make the big putts when he needs to. His lack of course knowledge gives me a little bit of pause, but his talent level is high enough to warrant a spot in the rankings.
7. Ryan Gerard
Sometimes you just need to ride the hot hand, and Ryan Gerard has been red-hot to start this season, finishing second at both Sony and The American Express.
Maybe Gerard found something in Mauritius that completely opened up his game to a new dimension, and he's reaping the benefits of not having to find a win to get into The Masters. The big thing is that he's getting putts to fall finally, and usually these putting hot streaks can last a while for Tour pros (Scottie's been red hot with the mallet since 2024). If Gerard can keep the flatstick rolling, he may give former teammate at UNC, Ben Griffin, a run for his money.
6. Matt McCarty
Another runner-up from last week, McCarty is someone that I am high on this season, and if the conditions around Torrey Pines set up more like last year where distance gets a little negated, McCarty is going to be a name to watch.
The 28-year-old is above Tour average in all of the key strokes gained categories so far this season (yes, I know it's only been two events), and is kind of in the same realm that Ryan Gerard found himself in, where the ball striking is there, he just needs to make some more putts. Roll the ball well, and the lefty is going to thrive this week.
5. Maverick McNealy
Maverick McNealy's last go-around at Torrey Pines was at last year's Genesis, where he finished solo second (more on the winner later).
McNealy is coming off of a strong 2025, making the Tour Championship without a win (which I argue is more impressive than getting in with wins). His game is complete, and you can't really poke a hole anywhere besides him just getting a little bit more consistent. McNealy had a solid T24 in Hawaii to start his year, and I think his momentum will continue to build this week.
4. Marco Penge
As those of you who read my breakout candidates piece know, I am extremely excited for Marco Penge to be playing on Tour this year, and he is making his season debut this week.
Truly anything could happen with Penge this week, and I am going to be locked in. He hits the ball a mile and has very solid iron play, which always tracks on Tour. If Penge comes out and wins this week, then he's going to be a force to be reckoned with in 2026.
3. Ludvig Aberg
Last year's Farmers Insurance Open started with Ludvig Aberg racing out to a two-shot lead with an opening 63. However, the Swede was dealing with a sickness that had caused a lot of WDs early in the week, and this really got to him, resulting in a T42.
Aberg said "no matter", came back for the Genesis Invitational at Torrey Pines last year because of the fires in Los Angeles, and won the thing. History may be repeating itself this week, as Ludvig withdrew from The American Express with an illness after the second round. He's going to be feeling better getting to a course with good memories this week, and I can see him dominating the field.
2. Cameron Young
2026 feels like a make-or-break season for Cameron Young. The second half of 2025 was so strong for him; he finally got his first win, he was a star at the Ryder Cup, and it really felt like the Cam Young we saw in 2021-22 was truly back.
Now, we need to see if last year was a fluke or if he's here to stay. Torrey consistently plays as one of the longest courses on the Tour schedule, and it feels silly not to take a bomber who is feeling it all the way through the bag right now.
1. Xander Schauffele
If Xander Schauffele didn't win the Baycurrent, he would not be at No. 1 in these rankings. 2025 was such a non-starter for him with his injury problems; it just never felt like Xander fully got his feet under him.
When he showed up at the Baycurrent and took it down, it felt like the Xander we saw in 2024 was most of the way back, and if he can get closer to that level again, then Schauffele can take down a few wins this year. He's played well at Torrey in the past, he's a local kid, everything is lining up for Xander to take home the title this week.