SONY OPEN IN HAWAII 2023

January 12-15 2023

 Sony has sponsored this tournament since 1999.  

The field of 144 includes 4 sponsor exemptions from Japan, amateur Kohei Okada and professional Kabuki Higa who also has been invited to the Masters.  Also Japanese professionals

Yuto Katsuragawa and Kaito Onishi.  All very long shots to win.

TOURNAMENT PREVIEW JANUARY 11, 2023

SONY OPEN WAIALAE COUNTRY CLUB HONOLULU

Jan 12-15, 2023 PURSE $7,900,000+$400,000 5% PAR 70

Last year Hideki Matsuyama defeated Russell Henley by eagling the first playoff hole.  

The Sony Championship was the first PGA Tournament he played in as an amateur in 2011.

Jorden Spieth, Tom Kim are also among the 144 player field.  

This golf course is much different than Kapalua.  It is shorter but flatter and the golfers will have to make adjustments.  The scores will not be as low.

Favorites	My Favorites
#1 Tom Kim 12/1	#1 Tom Hoge**
#2 SJ IM 14/1	#1 Tom Kim**
#3 J Spieth 16/1	#3 J Spieth
#4 H Matsuyama 18/1	#4 H Matsuyama
#5 Russel Henley	#5 R Henley
#6 Tom Hoge 22/1	#6 Harry Higgs 160/1*

• Not much chance to win but I like him (Fan’s Golfer) a young John Daly with less baggage.

** Tom Hoge has had a very good year.  He started by defeating Jordan Spieth by 2 at Pebble Beach.  He had an active fall season by finishing 4th at the Shriners (won by Tom Kim), won the QEB with partner Sahith Theegale, and finished 3rd at the Sentry scoring -9 on the final round.

Hoge has played well on Ocean courses and I expect him to play well at Waialae.

He played college golf at TCU and flew to LA to watch his team get trounced by Georgia 65-7.

Hope he fares better than his football team.

*** Tom Kim turned pro in 2018 at 16 years old.  He has played on 5 tours and has 2 PGA wins,

The Shriners and the Windham Championship by 5 strokes.  He played well for the International team at the Presidents Cup. 

The 7th hole par 3 is changed to 16 for the tournament.  In 2009 Ethan Abbott a member suggested forming a W with Palm trees behind the green, inspired by the W Palm tree scene in the 1963 film “Its a mad mad world”.  It has become a popular place on the course where people pose for pictures and plan weddings. Images from Waialaecc.com