The 2023 opening swing through the Aloha State continues this week when the PGA Tour makes the short jaunt to Oahu for the Sony Open in Hawaii, contested at the Waialae Country Club. This also marks the first full-field event of the year with over 140 golfers taking part, including defending champ Hideki Matsuyama, and the cut rule back in place. Matsuyama closed with a pair of 63s besting Russell Henley in a playoff. If the opening tournament of the New Year is any indication, 2023 is going to be a glorious time. Jon Rahm overcame a 7-swing deficit to edge Collin Morikawa on Maui, but the pair will sit this one out. However, 19 golfers make the short trip from Maui closing out the Hawai’i stay. Visit BookMaker.eu for a complete list of betting odds when you’re ready to place a wager.
Odds to Win Sony Open in Hawaii
Tom Kim +1200
Sungjae Im +1400
Hideki Matsuyama +1600
Jordan Spieth +1600
Corey Conners +2000
Russell Henley +2000
Billy Horschel +2200
Brian Harman +2500
Maverick McNealy +2800
Taylor Montgomery +2800
Keegan Bradley +3000
Tom Hoge +3000
Adam Scott +3300
Kyoung-Hoon Lee +3300
Cameron Davis +3500
Keith Mitchell +3500
Si Woo Kim +4000
Andrew Putnam +4500
Denny McCarthy +4500
Emiliano Grillo +4500
Kurt Kitayama +4500
Alex Smalley +5000
Christiaan Bezuidenhout +5000
J J Spaun +5000
Harris English +5500
Matt Kuchar +5500
Mackenzie Hughes +6000
Will Gordon +6600
Aaron Rai +7000
Gary Woodland +7000
Greyson Sigg +7000
Odds Analysis
Harris English +5500
English came up a lot during the fall when he returned to the links after hip surgery. I got the feeling he used the early season schedule as more of tune up after missing several months and now with bigger events his game will follow. He wasn’t bad going 6 of 7 in official starts and closed 2022 with a T3 at the QBE Shootout. He’s starting for the 11th time in this tournament flashing low numbers in earlier starts. He won a few years ago in Hawai’i claiming the TOC and he’s a worthwhile investment at his price.
Tom Kim +1200
I typically don’t back favorites, but going against my own rule proved fruitful last week when I had Rahm in this section, so why not do it again with a player that has taken the Tour by storm. Waialae looks to be a better fit for Kim’s game, which is saying something since he earned a T5 at Kapalua. He’s made 14 of 15 cuts over the last two seasons with a pair of wins, including at the Shriners in his first start this season. He’s still hot so why not ride him?
Kurt Kitayama +4500
He’s been golfing professionally since 2015 but just recently joined the PGA Tour. He’s played on a number of tours with most of his damage done on the DP World Tour. And when he’s good Kitayama is really good. He has three international wins on his resume with a pair of runner-up finishes in his last eight PGA Tour starts. He’s played a number of different courses on the various tours with several coastal stops so I don’t expect him to be overwhelmed with the venue.
Taylor Montgomery +2800
I backed Montgomery several times during the fall and he came through with a stellar run that saw him make all seven cuts with six finishes among the top-15. The question now is can he continue the success into the meaty part of the schedule and earn his first Tour title. I don’t know the answer but I’m sure he’ll give it his best shot. And that’s good enough for me.
Jordan Spieth +1600
I guess I should get a big name player in this section since there are a few of them. And Spieth got warmed up last week playing just his second official tournament of the season reaching the first page of the leaderboard before facing to a T13. He hasn’t played this event since 2019 when he missed the cut, however in his last 10 rounds at Waialae his scoring average is below 67 with six of them at 66 or lower. Spieth’s game was all over the place a few years, but he’s back on track and worth backing despite the price.
Course: Waialae Country Club – 7,044-yards, par-70
The course has hosted this event since 1965 and at just over 7,000 yards is short by Tour standards. Those 19 golfers who played last week will have to do an abrupt change to their approach. The beast at Kapalua measured over 7,500 yards at par 73 and played to the big hitters. Now we have the narrow layout at Waialae with its tree-lined fairways. The track will force players to club down with importance on accuracy rather than distance. It’s a straightforward layout with few hazards, which is why we’ve seen some low scores in the past. Five years ago Justin Thomas won the prize with a record 27-under and Matsuyama was 23-under for the week to win last year in a playoff.
TV Coverage: Golf Channel
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