Expert Picks: Farmers Insurance Open

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RIO GRANDE, Puerto Rico – On the course, it wasn’t the week Rafa Campos was looking for. But outside the ropes, it couldn’t have gone better. “I’m proud every day to be Puerto Rican, but to see all the support and the people who go out and follow me, that’s huge. I love being a Puerto Rican,� said Campos after a final-round 1-under-par 71. The Puerto Rico Open returned to the PGA TOUR schedule for 2018-19 after Hurricane Maria blew through the island in late 2017 causing record damage. Campos said the tournament’s return has been a resounding success for the island – another event that makes things feel normal again. “It’s huge,� said Campos, who didn’t return to his apartment for three months after the hurricane. “This is huge for tourism, huge for Puerto Rico just able to broadcast worldwide. It’s really big. I’m really happy this came back and I hope it continues to come back for another 10 years.� Campos won the second event of the Web.com Tour season earlier in January and currently sits third on The 25. He’s missed only one cut this year but after five weeks in a row on the Web.com Tour, plus this week on the PGA TOUR, he’s happy for a break. “It’s a great time for a break, also for my caddie. I saw him struggling a bit,� said Campos with a laugh. “It’s going to be good to have two-and-a-half weeks off. I’ll take a couple days really off, to get some energy back, but I’m going to get back to work soon. “I really want to play good golf when I start the Web.com Tour season again.� In both 2016 and 2017 Campos parlayed top-10 finishes in Puerto Rico to other starts on the PGA TOUR. That will not be the case this week as Campos (73-68-74-71) will finish well down the leaderboard. He admitted it was a week where things didn’t go his way, but he was happy to test his mettle on the PGA TOUR once again as he prepares for the opportunity to potentially earn his first TOUR card by year’s end. “It wasn’t meant to be,� he admitted. Campos had battled injuries the last few years but said he’s been feeling great so far in 2019. He said he was “scared� coming into this year how his back was going to respond to a lot of golf all in a row, but he said he’s feeling good. The 30-year-old was the lone Puerto Rican to make the cut this week, and he said the hometown crowds that greeted him on every tee box and every green buoyed him. Even on days when he played poorly, the crowds were out in force. Campos played with Jim Knous on both Saturday and Sunday, who said it was “a blast� to play in front of such a big crowd. “They love Rafa,� said Knous. “Weren’t playing great on the weekend but they were giving him applause on every shot, and me too. It was just fun to see the home crowd get behind him so much.� Campos said it was awesome to play in front of the Puerto Rican crowd once again this week, and although it wasn’t the result he was looking for, he couldn’t help but smile on the 72nd green. He blew kisses and tipped his cap to the hometown faithful. “It’s a really special week for me,� Campos said. “It’s huge, and I love every bit of it.�

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LA QUINTA, Calif. – A World Golf Hall of Famer, the Desert Classic’s most consistent contender and a 31-year-old rookie will meet in Sunday’s final group of the Desert Classic. Phil Mickelson said he was rusty at the start of the week. Three days later, he shot the second-lowest 54-hole score of his lengthy career, a 22-under 194 (60-68-66). He’s trying to become just the third wire-to-wire in the Desert Classic’s 60-year history. He has a two-shot lead over Adam Hadwin, who’s accustomed to late Sunday tee times on PGA West’s Stadium Course. Adam Long, who’s making his sixth PGA TOUR start, is 19 under par after shooting his second 63 of the week. Mickelson is seeking the 44th win of his Hall of Fame career. He has converted 25 of 39 54-hole leads into victory, but this is just the second time since 2013 that he has started Sunday with a lead. He held a two-shot lead entering the final round of the 2016 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, but shot 72 and lost to Vaughn Taylor by one shot. “I just love being in contention, having a chance to win, being in the final group, feeling the nerves, feeling that excitement, the opportunity,� Mickelson said.. “It’s really fun.� Hadwin is 79 under par at this event since 2016. No one else has come close to matching him over those 15 rounds. Mickelson is 58 under. Only Bud Cauley, who missed the cut, stands between them (59 under). “I’ve had a chance these last few years now,� Hadwin said. “I’ve been close.� In the last three Desert Classics, he’s finished no worse than sixth. He’s shot seven consecutive rounds of 68 or lower here, going 40 under in that span. On Sunday, they’ll face the toughest course among the trio in use this week. Pete Dye built PGA West’s Stadium Course as a West Coast sequel to TPC Sawgrass. He was given orders to build the hardest golf course in the world. The course isn’t nearly as terrifying as when it opened in the 1980s, but there are still enough water hazards and deep bunkers to keep players on their toes. MUST READS: Round 3, Desert Classic The field has averaged 70.4 strokes on the Stadium Course this week, but there have been 64 scores of double-bogey or worse, as well. There aren’t any hazards in the short grass, though. Hadwin hit all 18 greens in his 65 on Thursday at the Stadium Course. Mickelson has made just one over-par score this week despite missing half his fairways over the last two rounds. He was bogey-free at the Stadium Course on Saturday while hitting just six fairways. Mickelson, who’s second in driving distance this week, said it’s just part of his plan. “I played OK. My goal or game plan of playing the Stadium Course is to actually hit drivers and to try to bomb it down there as close to the greens as you can,� he said. “It’s a course you don’t have to be perfect on. You have to hit a lot of good shots in certain spots, but if you miss it properly, you can still play this golf course. “I feel like I don’t have to be perfect. I can come out, play aggressive, which is how I like to play, try to crush drivers and get it down as close as I can to the greens and see if I can make some more birdies.� Long will round out the final threesome. He’s 205th in the FedExCup after missing three of four cuts this season (and finishing T63 in his other start, at the Safeway Open). “It will be fun,� he said. “It will be exciting. It will be a challenge. It will be tough.�

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