A full field is in Honolulu, Hawaii, this week for the Sony Open at Waialae Country Club as the 2020-21 PGA Tour season kicks back into full gear. Harris English looks to go back-to-back in the 50th state after moving up to No. 6 in the Golfweek/Sagarin world rankings with victory at the Sentry Tournament of Champions last week. Below, we look at the fantasy golf power rankings and betting odds for the top 30 golfers at the 2021 Sony Open.
Also see:
2021 Sony Open: Fantasy Golf Top 30
Odds provided by BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Odds last updated Tuesday at 6:45 a.m. ET.
30. Takumi Kanaya (+15000)
Having turned pro just last year, Kanaya begins his 2021 PGA Tour schedule at No. 146 in the Golfweek rankings. He’s a two-time winner on the Japan Tour but has played just one non-major PGA Tour event (2020 Zozo Championship).
29. Zach Johnson (+4000)
Has gained 1.03 strokes per round on the field with 52 career rounds played at Waialae, according to Data Golf. He won here in 2009 but has two missed cuts against three top-10 finishes in his last 11 trips.
28. Billy Horschel (+3300)
Tied for 24th at the exclusive ToC last week, but has a top finish of 54th in three trips to Waialae.
27. Hudson Swafford (+200000)
The Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship winner in the fall swing, Swafford returns to the Sony Open with three top 10s in the last seven years. He lost 2.08 strokes per round from tee-to-green last week.
26. Tom Hoge (+10000)
Tied for 12th last year with 1.28 SG: Putting per round. He lost 0.67 strokes per round off-the-tee and the tighter fairways this year could penalize him more.
25. Kevin Na (+6000)
Hasn’t played this event since missing the cut in 2018. Has had success on similar shorter courses favoring accuracy over distance off the tee.
24. Jason Kokrak (+5000)
Putted his way to victory at The CJ Cup but missed the cut in two of his final three events of 2020 before a T-35 finish in the 42-man field at the ToC. Has played here just once since 2015.
23. Emiliano Grillo (+5000)
Made the cut here each of the last three years with a top finish of 21st last January. He averaged 1.11 SG: Tee-to-Green but lost 0.52 strokes per round around the greens.
22. Russell Henley (+3500)
The 2013 Sony Open champ has finished inside the top 50 just twice with three missed cuts in seven appearances since.
21. Branden Grace (+9000)
Finished 13th in his only career appearance here in 2017. He has fallen to 220th in the Golfweek rankings, but he ended his 2020 schedule with an impressive T-8 finish at the DP World Tour Championship, Dubai.
Place your legal, online 2021 Sony Open bets in CO, IA, IN, NJ, PA, TN and WV at BetMGM. Risk-free first bet! Terms and conditions apply. Bet now!
20. Si Woo Kim (+8000)
Averaging 0.52 SG: Around-the-Green through 20 measured rounds on the 2020-21 season. Lost in a playoff on a similar course at the 2018 RBC Heritage.
19. Brendon Todd (+5000)
Gains 0.76 strokes per round over 22 rounds at this venue. Tied for 13th in the strong field last week but relied far too heavily on his putter with 1.29 strokes lost per round off the tee.
18. Lanto Griffin (+4000)
Tied for seventh in this event last year with a strong performance off-the-tee. He comes into this year’s tournament losing 0.02 strokes per round off-the-tee over 22 measured rounds on the season.
17. Charles Howell III (+5000)
His 64 rounds played at Waialae over his career are three more than anyone else in this field. He still leads all in the field with 1.86 strokes gained per round. Has never won this event but is a two-time runner-up since 2007.
16. Marc Leishman (+6000)
Second in the field among those with a minimum of 10 rounds played at Waialae CC with 1.45 strokes gained per round. Has played his best golf between January and March over recent years,
15. Sebastian Munoz (+5000)
Missed the cut in back-to-back events to close 2020 following a T-19 finish at the Masters. Rebounded for a T-17 finish at the ToC last week despite losing 0.29 strokes per round on the putting surfaces.
14. Matt Kuchar (+4000)
The 2019 champion by four strokes at minus-22, Kuchar doesn’t have a PGA Tour victory since but still enters the calendar year 34th in the Golfweek rankings. He’s still one of the top players in the field by that measure but is just 16th by the betting odds.
13. Adam Scott (+3300)
Was awful on and around the greens last week but gained 1.70 strokes per round on approach and was able to finish in a tie for 21st. Missed the cut here in 2019 and didn’t play last year ahead of his win at The Genesis Invitational.
12. Sergio Garcia (+3300)
Tied for 11th last week with 1.18 strokes lost putting per round, but he was fourth in the field with 2.00 SG: Tee-to-Green per round. He’s oddly making his debut at this event.
11. Kevin Kisner (+3000)
Three top-5 finishes here in the last five years. Led the field with 2.63 SG: Tee-to-Green and was third among those who made the cut with 0.85 SG: Around-the-Green per round.
10. Abraham Ancer (+2500)
Tied for 17th last week with 1.67 SG: Putting per round and will look to keep the hot putter going while staying on Bermudagrass greens. Has played here each of the last three years but with a top finish of 29th.
9. Hideki Matsuyama (+2000)
Tied for 41st in the 42-man field last week, largely due to his 2.44 strokes lost per round with the flat stick. He’s still sixth by the betting odds this week and will lean on his strong play from tee-to-green while needing a more average performance on the greens.
8. Ryan Palmer (+3000)
Finished alone in fourth last week and was top-five in the field in both SG: Approach and SG: Tee-to-Green. Has played 48 rounds at Waialae with an average of 0.41 strokes gained per round.
7. Joaquin Niemann (+2500)
Second in last week’s field in both SG: Approach and SG: Tee-to-Green and lost to English in a playoff. Playing in Honolulu for the second time after a T-57 finish last year.
6. Daniel Berger (+1600)
Struggled Sunday to finish 10th at the ToC. Ranks behind only English in this field by the Golfweek rankings but has just the fourth-best betting odds.
5. Cameron Smith (+2800)
Last year’s champion returns with the ninth-best odds to win. There have been two back-to-back winners here since 2000.
4. Collin Morikawa (+1400)
The 2020 PGA Championship winner tied for seventh last week despite losing 0.11 strokes per round on the greens. He tied for 21st in his debut at this event last year.
3. Harris English (+1400)
Last week’s winner relied maybe a little too heavily on his putter with 1.71 SG: Putting per round. He lost strokes around the greens and will need to be sharper in that area as one of the greater tests at Waialae.
2. Webb Simpson (+1200)
The third-best golfer in this year’s field by the Golfweek rankings just missed out on a playoff last year. He tied for 17th last week despite losing a woeful 1.64 strokes per round off-the-tee.
1. Sungjae Im (+1800)
Led the field last week with 2.38 SG: Tee-to-Green per round but lost 0.81 strokes per round on the greens. He was previously a plus-putter on the young season, and he gained 0.84 strokes per round on these greens while finishing T-21 last year.
Get some action on the 2021 Sony Open by signing up and betting at BetMGM. If you’re looking for more sports betting picks and tips, access all of our content at SportsbookWire.com. Please gamble responsibly.
Golfweek:
- Thomas finished third at ToC despite ‘a lot of other things on my mind’
- R&A has no plans for British Open at Trump Turnberry in Scotland
Follow @EstenMcLaren on Twitter. Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter and like us on Facebook.
Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services. Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.
[lawrence-newsletter]
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1364]