One PGA Tour winner who teed it up at Torrey Pines will not be playing any more golf at the Farmers Insurance Open this week.
Brooks Koepka is the talk of the tournament, making his first start on the PGA Tour since 2022, and fans were eager to see how he would fare back in familiar surroundings.
The American star posted a one-over-par 73 on his return – a steady effort considering the challenges presented by the South Course.
Koepka played well enough to show signs of form but will need to find something extra on Friday to avoid an early exit. Making the cut will not be easy, and there is not much room for error.
While the 35-year-old still has a shot at turning things around, one recent PGA Tour winner did not even get that chance. He was disqualified from play during Thursday’s opening round.
Michael Brennan disqualified from Farmers Insurance Open
While all eyes were on Koepka at Torrey Pines, Michael Brennan’s early exit from the tournament did not get much attention.
Brennan’s round got off to a solid start with a two-under 70 on the North Course, but it did not count for anything in the end.
After his round, he was told he had been disqualified for using non-permitted green-reading materials – something that has been banned on the PGA Tour since January 2022.
The ban covers detailed green-reading books, although players are still allowed to refer to their yardage books while on the greens. Spirit levels are also not allowed during pre-round practice.
PGA Tour rules do allow for “Committee Approved” yardage books, which contain only minimal information.
The tour released a statement following Brennan’s disqualification: “Michael Brennan was DQ’d after the first round of the Farmers Insurance Open for a breach of Model Local Rule G-11; use of non-permitted green-reading materials.”
Brennan was not the first to run into trouble over this rule. Collin Morikawa was disqualified under similar circumstances at the 2023 Hero World Challenge after Matthew Fitzpatrick noticed his use of a green-reading book.
It is an easy mistake for a young player to make, and there is little doubt Brennan will be more careful about it in future events.
Michael Brennan’s rule breach at the Farmers Insurance Open was a tough lesson
Morikawa’s explanation of his 2023 rules infraction could shed some light on what happened with Brennan.
Speaking after the Hero World Challenge just over two years ago, the two-time major winner said: “Me and J.J. made a mistake. From our perspective, the way the rules are put out, obviously we can’t use levels out on the golf course, but from officials we’ve asked in the past, saying it’s happened, how you read a putt on the practice green and use a level and see it move a certain amount and then write it in your book. You can’t do that.
“I think with the players there is still some confusion.
“I think there needs to be a clear line with how the rules are going, it can’t be that difficult. It’s on me, I take full blame on that, thankfully it only happened that one time.”
Brennan likely did not intend to break any rules at Torrey Pines – or at least not knowingly – but he still faced strict consequences.
In time, though, this experience could end up benefiting him. At just 23 years old – learning this lesson early may prove valuable down the line.
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