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Published January 08, 2015
Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - PGA TOUR - FARMERS INSURANCE OPEN, Torrey Pines (North & South Courses), La Jolla, California - The PGA Tour continues its west coast swing this week with the Farmers Insurance Open, where world No. 1 Tiger Woods will make his season debut.
Last year, Woods secured his seventh win at this event, finishing four strokes ahead of Brandt Snedeker and Josh Teater. He played the final 11 holes on Monday after all but 10 minutes of Saturday's play was stopped by fog.
It was the first of five wins in 2013 for Woods, who went on to capture PGA Tour Player of the Year honors and hoist the Vardon Trophy for lowest scoring average.
Joining Woods in this week's field will be world British Open winner Phil Mickelson and 2013 Rookie of the Year Jordan Spieth.
Golf Channel will have coverage Thursday and Friday, as well as early coverage on the weekend before handing off to CBS in the afternoon.
The PGA Tour shifts to Scottsdale, Ariz., next week for the Waste Management Phoenix Open, which Mickelson won in wire-to-wire fashion last year.
EUROPEAN TOUR
COMMERCIAL BANK QATAR MASTERS, Doha Golf Club, Doha, Qatar - The European Tour remains in the Middle East this week for the Commercial Bank Qatar Masters.
Chris Wood won this event in 2013, as the Englishman eagled the final hole to secure his first European Tour title in dramatic fashion. Wood led by three strokes entering the final round, but he was eventually surpassed by Sergio Garcia and George Coetzee. Wood went to the final hole one stroke back, needing at least a birdie to stay in contention, then blasted a drive down the fairway, sent his approach within 10 feet, and calmly drained the eagle putt for the win.
Wood will be back on hand to defend his title this week. Joining him will be 2013 FedExCup and Race to Dubai titlist Henrik Stenson, PGA Championship winner Jason Dufner and seven-time European Tour victor Luke Donald.
The event will run from Wednesday through Saturday, with Golf Channel handling coverage of all four rounds.
Next week, the European Tour heads back to the United Arab Emirates for the Omega Dubai Desert Classic, which Stephen Gallacher won in 2013.
LPGA TOUR
PURE SILK-BAHAMAS LPGA CLASSIC, Ocean Club Golf Course, Paradise Island, Bahamas - For the first time in 13 years, the LPGA Tour slate will kick off in January, at this week's season-opening Pure Silk Bahamas LPGA Classic.
Last year, this event was staged in May and the weather did not cooperate. That Tuesday, the Ocean Club Golf Course at Atlantis Resort took on a foot of rain and forced officials to scramble to come up with a playable course. The event was eventually competed over three, 12-hole rounds to reach 36 holes, which made the tournament official. Ilhee Lee emerged from the deluge a 2- stroke winner at 11-under par 126.
Lee is back in the field to defend her title. She will be joined by world No. 2 Suzann Pettersen and world No. 3 Stacy Lewis, though top-ranked Inbee Park will not be on hand.
Sixteen-year-old Lydia Ko will make her debut as an LPGA Tour member. Ko turned professional in October and was granted full tour membership shortly thereafter. She won four professional tournaments as an amateur, including the Canadian Women's Open in each of the last two seasons. In December, Ko recorded her first win as a professional at the Swinging Skirts World Ladies Masters and she has since moved to No. 4 in the world rankings.
Golf Channel will have coverage of all four rounds.
After a short break, the LPGA Tour will return Feb. 13 for the ISPS Handa Women's Australian Open, which Jiyai Shin won in 2013.
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