SAN DIEGO — Justin Rose turned nearly every hole into an opportunity Thursday, firing a 10-under 62 on the North course at Torrey Pines to take a one-shot lead at the Farmers Insurance Open. His impressive round came on the same day Brooks Koepka made his return to the PGA Tour after leaving LIV Golf.
Rose’s game looked sharp despite missing the cut in his 2026 debut at The American Express last week. Even without converting birdies on two par 5s, he posted an excellent score before heading to the more challenging South course for his next round.
“North Course clearly is one that you want to try to make the most of and it’s great to do that today for sure,” Rose said.
Justin Lower sits one shot back after carding a 63 on the North course. Lower is playing with a lot on his mind as his wife is 34 weeks pregnant with twins.
“If I’m being really truthful with everyone, my mind’s not really here,” Lower said. “My wife is 34 weeks pregnant with twins and I’m just trying to get home on Monday to try to help everything out as much as I can. Luckily we have family close and everything. Yeah, she’s going through it right now. Life’s about to get real if it wasn’t real already.”
Hideki Matsuyama and Max Greyserman each posted 64s, also on the North course.
The scoring difference between the two courses was significant. The North played to an average of 69.139 while the South, which has hosted two U.S. Opens, averaged 72.482. Seamus Power managed the day’s best score on the South with a 65, followed by Max McGreevy’s 66. They were the only players among the top 22 scorers who tackled the more difficult South layout.
Rose’s round was nearly flawless. He scrambled just once, on the 451-yard 14th hole, and kept a clean card throughout. His only missed opportunity came on his closing hole, the par-5 ninth, where he found a bunker and missed a 4-foot birdie putt after a nice blast out.
Koepka, who garnered significant attention as the first PGA Tour member to return after leaving for LIV Golf, struggled to a 1-over 73 on the South course. He didn’t make a birdie until his final hole.
“From the first tee on, it was great. It actually made me settle down a little bit,” Koepka said about the reception from fans. “Like I said, it made me feel good just to be out here.”
Koepka admitted to feeling nervous on the first tee, unsure what response he’d get from the crowd after his defection to LIV. He hit a 301-yard drive and an approach to 10 feet, two of his best shots of the day, but birdie chances were limited throughout his round. He finished 1 over on the par 5s until making that 8-foot birdie putt on his final hole.
Xander Schauffele, a San Diego native born across the road from Torrey Pines, played for the first time since winning in Japan last fall. Owner of the longest active cut streak at 72 tournaments, Schauffele found himself in trouble early, sitting 3 over through 11 holes on the South.
But he rallied, making birdie from a fairway bunker on the 12th hole, hitting the pin from a back bunker to set up birdie on the par-5 13th, and finishing with a chip that struck the pin on the 18th. He ended with a 73.
“I was happy with the fight,” Schauffele said. “But I only hit three fairways, and the North course also is hard from the rough. Any of those guys at 8 or 9 under on the North are hitting more than two or three fairways.”
Lower, who lost his full PGA Tour card last year when the Tour reduced full status to the top 100 in the FedEx Cup (down from 125), is making the most of this opportunity in the 147-man field spread across two courses.
