SAN DIEGO — Tyler Strafaci said it felt like the first day of school. He arrived at the Torrey Pines golf courses for this week’s Farmers Insurance Open, looked around and realized that he’s not at Georgia Tech anymore. There were plenty of recognizable faces, but there are probably some who had no idea who he is, even as the reigning U.S. Amateur champion.
Then he came upon former Yellow Jackets teammate and roommate Andy Ogletree, and he suddenly had a friend for recess—or, in this case, his first-ever full practice round on the Torrey Pines South Course.
“Andy asked me, ‘Hey, do you want to go play 18 on the South?’ I was like, ‘of course,’ ” Strafaci said on Wednesday. “So playing with him really freed me up. It’s good to have some sort of common ground with people out here, and I’m sure over the next whatever events I get in this season I’ll develop some relationships and some friendships hopefully and it’ll be a good time.”
Both Strafaci and Ogletree are playing in the Farmers on sponsor’s exemptions. Ogletree, 22, the 2019 U.S. Amateur champion, turned pro late last year after earning low-amateur honors at November’s Masters. Strafaci, 22, is on a different path. He’s still an amateur, and after deciding to leave Georgia Tech before the spring schedule of his fifth year, he’s trying to get as many PGA Tour starts in as he can before the Walker Cup in May. After that, he plans to turn pro.
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