Torrey Pines is a brute. Honestly, it’s the kind of golf course that doesn't care about your feelings or your world ranking. On a Saturday in late January, Harris English found that out the hard way, even as he was holding the trophy. The 2025 Farmers Insurance Open leaderboard wasn't just a list of names; it was a survival log of who could handle the coastal wind without losing their mind.
English finished at 8-under 280. He won by one.
That sounds comfortable, right? It wasn't. English shot a 1-over 73 in the final round. In most tournaments, that’s how you lose a lead, not how you win a title. But this is San Diego in the winter. The wind flipped directions, the greens turned into glass, and the rough felt like it was trying to eat the players' shoes.
The 2025 Farmers Insurance Open Leaderboard Breakdown
If you look at the final scores, you’ll notice something weird. Almost everyone at the top was hanging on for dear life. English started the day with a one-shot lead, lost it immediately with a bogey on the first hole, and then watched a 20-year-old kid named Aldrich Potgieter and a steady Andrew Novak fly past him.
Here is how the top of the 2025 Farmers Insurance Open leaderboard actually shook out after 72 holes of carnage:
Harris English took the top spot at -8, banking a cool $1,674,000. It was his first win since 2021. Sam Stevens finished solo second at -7. He’s probably still thinking about his second shot on the 18th hole that found the water. Andrew Novak, who led for a chunk of the afternoon, ended up solo third at -6.
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The tie for fourth at -5 included Sungjae Im and Kris Ventura. Hayden Springer took sixth at -4, followed by a tie for seventh between Taylor Pendrith and Will Gordon at -3. Rounding out the top ten were Danny Willett, Lucas Hodges, Lanto Griffin, Greyson Sigg, K.H. Lee, and Joel Dahmen, all finishing at 2-under par.
It’s wild to think that 2-under was enough for a top-ten finish at a non-major. That tells you everything you need to know about the conditions.
Why the 18th Hole Changed Everything
Sam Stevens was playing six groups ahead of the leaders. He was the "clubhouse leader" in spirit for a long time. He fired a 68, which was easily the round of the day given the gale-force winds.
He reached the par-5 18th knowing a birdie might force a playoff or even win the thing outright. He went for the green in two. He hit a 7-iron. It looked good in the air, but the wind just knocked it down.
Splash.
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He managed to scramble for a par, but that water ball was the difference. If that ball carries another five yards, we’re probably talking about a different winner. Golf is a game of inches, but at Torrey Pines, it’s a game of "did the wind gust right when you let go of the club?"
Harris English and the Art of the "Boring" Par
English is 35 now. He’s had hip surgery. He’s been through the ringer. After he bunted his way through a messy front nine, something clicked. He stopped trying to make birdies.
He made 12 straight pars to finish the round.
Twelve. Straight. Pars.
Basically, he put the field to sleep. While Andrew Novak was riding a roller coaster—making a 54-foot monster putt on the 5th and then bleeding bogeys on the back nine—English just kept hitting it to the fat part of the green.
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He didn't make a single birdie on the back nine. Not one. But when the guys behind you are making bogeys, a par feels like an eagle. He was businesslike. He put his tee shot on 18 into the rough, hacked it out, wedged it to 25 feet, and two-putted for the win. No chest-beating. No wild celebrations. Just a guy who was relieved the round was over.
The Heartbreak for Andrew Novak
You have to feel for Andrew Novak. He and English actually live on the same island in Georgia. They’re buddies. Novak had never won on Tour and he had the lead by himself after the fifth hole.
He looked like the guy.
But Torrey South is relentless. Novak carded only one par in his first ten holes. It was birdie, bogey, birdie, bogey. You can’t win like that when the wind is blowing 20 mph. He eventually finished two shots back. He said afterward that the putt on 5 was a "one-in-a-hundred" shot, but the approach shots on the back nine just weren't close enough.
The Amateur Who Almost Did It
We have to talk about Luke Clanton. The amateur finished T15 at 1-under. He didn't get a paycheck because of his amateur status—that $132,732 went back into the purse—but he proved he belongs. To finish under par for four days at Torrey Pines as a college kid is absurd.
Actionable Insights for Golf Fans
If you're looking at these results and trying to figure out what it means for the rest of the season, here are a few things to keep in mind:
- Watch the "Grinders": Harris English is now exempt for all the Signature Events and the Masters. This win completely changes his 2026 trajectory. Players who can score when they don't have their "A-game" are the ones to bet on at tough tracks.
- Torrey Pines Knowledge: English had a history here, losing a playoff in 2015 and finishing 3rd at the 2021 U.S. Open. Course history matters more at Torrey than almost anywhere else on Tour.
- Sam Stevens is for Real: Moving from 107th to 11th in the FedEx Cup projections after one week is a massive jump. He’s a name to watch for the rest of the California swing.
The 2025 Farmers Insurance Open leaderboard proved that sometimes, the best way to win is to simply refuse to lose. Harris English didn't out-birdie the field; he out-lasted them. In a world of 350-yard drives and aggressive play, the old-school grind still works.