Riviera tournament moving to Torrey Pines in San Diego because of LA wildfires

The PGA Tour is relocating the Genesis Invitational out of wildfire-ravaged Los Angeles, announcing Friday it will be held Feb. 13-16 on the South course at Torrey Pines in San Diego with an emphasis on relief initiatives for victims of the fires.

That gives Torrey Pines two tournaments in a span of four weeks.

The tour said the $20 million signature event hosted by Tiger Woods would return to Riviera Country Club next year.

Riviera was not damaged, but it is located in the Pacific Palisades community that has been devasted by fires that have killed 28 people and destroyed more than 14,000 structures in Greater Los Angeles since Jan. 7.

“While Riviera remains the home of the Genesis Invitational, we look forward to playing on another championship caliber golf course this year and using the tournament to support those affected by the fires in the Los Angeles area,” Woods said.

The announcement came as the South course at Torrey Pines was preparing for the third round of the Farmers Insurance Open. Going to the same course twice in four weeks allows the tour to take advantage of infrastructure already in place.

Marty Gorsich, the CEO of Century Club of San Diego that runs the Farmers Insurance Open, said tournament organizers and volunteers were ready to help even as a new group — Woods’ TGR Live — is responsible for operating the Torrey tournament in February.

“This wasn’t a bid process. It wasn’t about getting something. It was being able to be chosen to help,” Gorsich said. "I think here in San Diego, we compete so much with LA on the field and consider them a rival, yet we’re all SoCal together.

“This is an opportunity for San Diego to come together and do something with our brothers and sisters up in LA. I really, truly feel like that’s a part of it,” he said. “It’s about being able to give them a place to host their event and have their sense of community and keep going (with) what they need and rise above the challenge, and for us to be able to help deliver that for them, it was really exciting for us in that regard.”

Woods has not indicated if he will be playing. The Genesis Invitational is the only non-major he has played since his legs were badly injured in a February 2021 car crash in LA. Woods is an eight-time winner as a pro at Torrey Pines, including the 2008 U.S. Open. He last played Torrey Pines in 2020 and tied for ninth, his last top 10 on the PGA Tour.

This will be the first time what previously was called the Los Angeles Open is not at Riviera since 1998, when it was held at the TPC Valencia because Riviera was preparing to host the U.S. Senior Open that year. The tournament was first held at Riviera in 1929.

Riviera has hosted U.S. Open and the PGA Championship. The club will host the U.S. Women’s Open for the first time in 2026, and the golf competition for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. It also will host the U.S. Open in 2031 for the first time since 1948.

Torrey Pines has been part of the PGA Tour since 1968 and has hosted two U.S. Opens.

“Highlighting the resilience of Los Angeles and the need for continued support for the ongoing recovery efforts is what our collective teams are working towards with the playing of the Genesis Invitational at Torrey Pines,” PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan said.

Torrey Pines twice has held tournaments five months apart when the U.S. Open was held on San Diego's fabled municipal course in 2008 and 2021.

An even quicker turnaround was at Muirfield Village in 2020 when it hosted tournaments in consecutive weeks — the Workday Charity Open and the Memorial — as part of a reconfigured schedule brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

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AP Sports Writer Greg Beacham in San Diego contributed to this report.

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AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf