The PGA Tour travels from Maui to Honolulu for the 57th edition of the Sony Open, the second of two stops on the Aloha Swing.
Contested at Waialae Country Club, the tournament will feature the 2022’s first full field, including major winners Hideki Matsuyama and Bryson DeChambeau.
As we do each week, here’s a round-up of information and data points to prep you for the week on the coast of Honolulu, Hawaii.
The Skinny
Tournament: Sony Open
Dates: Jan. 11-14, 2022
PGA Tour Debut: 1965
PGA TOUR Week: 12th (of 43)
TV Network: GOLF Channel
Course: Waialae Country Club
Where: Honolulu, Hawaii
Distance: 7044 yards, Par 70
Architect: Seth Raynor
Field 140 players
Format: 72-hole stroke; 36-hole cut
Purse: $7,500,000
Win Share: $1,350,000
FedEx Cup/OWGR Points: 500/40
2021 Champion: Kevin Na
How to Follow the Sony Open
TELEVISION: Thu-Sat: 7 p.m.-10:30 p.m. ET (GOLF Channel); Sun: 6 p.m.-10 p.m. ET (GOLF Channel)
PGA TOUR LIVE (ESPN+): Thu-Fri: 12-7 p.m. ET (Groups), 7 p.m.-10:30 p.m. (Holes); Sat: 4-7 p.m. (Groups), 7-10:30 p.m. (Holes); Sun: 4-7 p.m. (Groups), 7-10:30 p.m. (Holes).
RADIO: Thu-Sat: 5-10:30 p.m.; Sun: 5-10 p.m. (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM)
LINKS: Website | Facebook | Instagram
History
Like its sister tournament of the Aloha Swing (Sentry Tournament of Champions), the Sony Open has been a part of the PGA Tour for over half a century.
Beginning in 1965, then simply called the Hawaiian Open, the first tournament winner was American Gay Brewer.
In the 50-plus tournaments that have followed, big-name winners include Lee Trevino, Jack Nicklaus, Ben Crenshaw, Hale Irwin, Corey Pavin, Lanny Wadkins, Ernie Els, Vijay Singh, and Justin Thomas.
Pavin, Wadkins, Els, Hubert Green, and Jimmy Walker are the only golfers with multiple Sony wins – each with two victories. Interestingly, all but Wadkins won their two titles in back-to-back years.
in 2017, Thomas shot a 59 en route to a tournament record 27-under 253.
The Sony Open drew media attention in the 2000 decade for giving sponsor exemptions to the LPGA’s Michelle Wie, from 2004-2007. Wie missed the cut in each edition, but in her defense, all four of her appearances occurred under the age of 18.
History: Recent Winners
2021: Kevin Na*
2020: Cameron Smith*
2019: Matt Kuchar*
2018: Patton Kizzire*
2017: Justin Thomas
2016: Fabián Gómez
2015: Jimmy Walker*
2014: Jimmy Walker*
* In the field
History: Records
18-hole score: 59, Justin Thomas (2017)
72-hole score: 253, Justin Thomas (2017)
Wins: (2) Corey Pavin, Lanny Wadkins, Ernie Els, Hubert Green, Jimmy Walker
The Course: Wailalae Country Club
Established in 1927, Waialae Country Club is a private golf club in Honolulu, Hawaii. The course’s initial design was by Seth Raynor with changes made by Desmond Muirhead in 1992.
Now a mature, lushly landscaped, and player-friendly championship course, Waialae features wide forgiving fairways lined with stands of coconut, monkey pod and kiawe trees and 83 strategically place bunkers that can be in play for any golfer.
The course plays to a par 70 for the Sony Open and measures 7,020 yards from the Championship tees. It is cooled by gentle trade winds and features well-tended and manicured Bermuda grass fairways and greens.
The course is nestled in the quiet neighborhood of Waialae-Kahala and its signature hole, the par-3 eighth hole, is bordered along its full 186 yards by the Pacific Ocean. The hole was patterned after the famous Redan hole on the North Berwick Golf Club in Scotland.
The Skinny
Name: Waialae Country Club
Locale: East Honolulu, Hawaii
Established: 1927
Type: Private
Stats: 18/72/7125 yards
Greens: Tifdwarf Bermuda
Fairways: Winter Ryegrass
Designer: Seth Raynor
Website: WaialaeCC.com
2022 Sony Open Scorecard
Field Overview
The field in Honolulu this week features seven players ranked in the world top 25: Bryson DeChambeau (5), Cameron Smith (10), Harris English (12), Abraham Ancer (17), Hideki Matsuyama (18), Jason Kokrak (20), and Billy Horschel (24).
Other top-50 ranked players include Sungjae Im (26), Webb Simpson (28), Kevin Na (29), Talor Gooch (32), Marc Leishman (36), Corey Conners (38), Lucas Herbert (41) and Ryan Palmer (47).
In addition to defending champ Na and Smith (2020), the Sony field also features several former winners, including Matt Kuchar (2019), Patton Kizzire (2018), Jimmy Walker (2014-15), Russell Henley (2013), and Zach Johnson (2009).
Some of the other familiar names teeing it up this week will be Keegan Bradley, Kevin Kisner, Brandt Snedeker, Jim Furyk, and Stewart Cink.
Jeff Smith’s Power Rankings
Book Rank-Player (World Rank)
1. Bryson DeChambeau (5)
2. Cameron Smith (10)
3. Hideki Matsuyama (18)
4. Kevin Na (29)
5. Matt Jones (104)
Full Field & Odds
Waialae CC | Honolulu, Hawaii | Jan 13-16, 2022
Joel Cook contributed to this report.
Credits: PGA Tour Media, Getty Images, ASAP Sports, Bovada, Wikipedia
