After two rounds at the 2026 Farmers Insurance Open, Justin Rose is establishing himself as the man to beat at Torrey Pines. The seasoned veteran followed his opening-round 62 with another blistering score on Friday, maintaining his remarkable scoring pace and building on his momentum from Thursday’s North Course performance.
Rose shot a 7-under 65 on the notoriously demanding South Course, breaking his own 36-hole tournament record at Torrey Pines by two shots. His 17-under 127 total is now the lowest through two rounds in event history.
While conditions remained firm and strategic, Rose’s ability to consistently hit greens in regulation and convert birdie chances has created separation on a leaderboard that is already showing depth and movement. With two strong rounds behind him, he heads into the weekend with plenty of cushion and a birdie-making touch that few can match this week.
“I don’t go into a deep dive, but I kind of saw the ‘NC, NC, NC, NC, NC, NC, NC’ on the leaderboard, so by process of elimination, I kind of knew what I was facing today,” Rose said.
“In some ways I was using that as extra patience, obviously being 10 under already. It’s a tough situation when you don’t have a great day on the North and then you have to go and find a score on the South. So I had the added benefit of being able to go and play the South I thought with the right mindset to play it, which is kind of respectfully.”
Seamus Power Surges and Others Make Their Move
Behind Rose (-17), Seamus Power has emerged as one of the biggest early stories of this event. The Irishman posted another low number in Round 2 (-13), making a long eagle putt on to close out his round. Power’s consistency has rocketed him up the leaderboard, and he now sits alone in second heading into Saturday.
“I’ll tell you, that’s good golf,” Power said. “You could shoot 2 under and play pretty well here. It’s just the standard is high.”
Also climbing are Joel Dahmen and Max McGreevy, both of whom followed strong opening rounds with repeat low scores on Friday that put them tied at third (-11). Other names in the upper bracket, like Si Woo Kim (-10) and Danny Walker (T-9), also remain in the mix, showing that a bunch of players have placed themselves within striking distance of the lead as pressures shift into the weekend.
Xander Schauffele’s Streak Ends in San Diego
One of the most unexpected narratives of Round 2 was the end of Xander Schauffele’s remarkable cut streak. The two-time major champion and San Diego native missed the cut by a single stroke, bringing to an end a stretch of 72 consecutive cuts made on the PGA Tour. That streak, which dated back to the 2022 Masters, was tied for the fifth longest in Tour history and had become one of the most consistent markers of elite performance on the circuit.
Schauffele finished the event at 2-under par through two rounds, but a missed birdie putt on the par-5 ninth brought his cut-making streak to an end after 1,391 days. When asked what went wrong, Schauffele responded:
“Several things. Kind of had some last minute tweaks to equipment and it really affected me through my bag, I thought. So unfortunate I didn’t get that dialed in in the offseason, but it is what it is. So here I am. I’ll spend this weekend cleaning it up.
“Just some driver stuff. Driver, shaft, trying to get the combination right. I don’t like switching stuff and I switched, and then when you switch back, things kind of feel weird. You start swinging to fit the club and if kind of affects like everything down the bag. So not a great place to do it.”
Tiger Woods currently holds the longest streak of 142 cuts made, not missing a weekend from 1998-2005, according to Golfweek. Following Woods on the list are:
- 113: Byron Nelson
- 105: Jack Nicklaus
- 86: Hale Irwin
- 72: Xander Schauffele
- 72: Dow Finsterwald
- 65: Scottie Scheffler (active)
Brooks Koepka Inside the Cut, Looking to Climb
One of the subplots of this year’s event, Brooks Koepka’s return to regular PGA Tour competition, took a positive turn in Round 2. After a 1-over 73 opened his week, Koepka produced a rebound performance to comfortably make the cut with a 3-under par, tied for 58th.
“I thought I played pretty well. I hit a lot of good putts that burnt the edge. I feel like it could’ve been–I guess 68 was kind of the worst I could’ve shot today,” Koepka said. “It very easily could’ve been 64, 65 if a few putts dropped, but that’s golf. Sometimes on poa [greens], I felt the speed wasn’t quite aggressive enough. I feel like that side might be a hair slower than the South. Got two more rounds to play, which I’m excited about, and it’s gonna be a tough golf course–except for, I don’t know which one Rosey’s playing.”
Though he remains well off the lead and is still searching for peak form, Koepka’s position heading into the weekend remains a storyline worth tracking. His ball-striking showed signs of rhythm throughout the round, and when his short game came together, the results followed. The highlight came on the par-5 17th, where Koepka rolled in an eagle putt that hinted at the upside still in his game.
“I think yesterday I was excited to play, nervous, and kind of didn’t know what to expect, but today was, today felt more normal, I guess,” Koepka said. “But yeah, I mean, don’t get me wrong, I definitely still got antsy but I guess maybe a little bit of nerves, just trying to figure it out and test– see where my game’s at too, right? I feel like I’m playing really well. It’s just been a long layoff.”
Farmers Insurance Open Round 2: Rose Sets Record, Schauffele Misses Cut