Power Rankings: Sony Open in Hawaii

On Jan 9, 2024

Rank Player Comment 15 Tyrrell Hatton His up-and-down debut at Kapalua featured an 11-under 62 in the second round en route to a T14. Although he presents as a bigger threat when par is a goal, that primer positions him nicely to keep it floored in his first appearance at Waialae CC. 14 Ludvig Åberg Oh, and he has mettle, too. Distanced himself in his debut at Kapalua with a third-round 77 but responded with a bogey-free, 10-under 63 in the finale. It included six birdies on his last seven holes. Consider it a moral victory with receipts. 13 Denny McCarthy Cracked the seal on 2024 with a T43 in his first appearance at Kapalua, but the upside is that he’s no longer cold, nor are his irons to give his top-shelf putting its chance to do work. Paced the PGA TOUR inside 10 feet last season. 12 Matt Kuchar The 45-year-old has been a threat in earnest at Waialae CC since a T5 in 2011. Dating back to it, he’s 8-for-10 with a win (2019) among seven top 10s. He’s also fourth in all-time tournament earnings. Strong fall included three top 20s worldwide. 11 Eric Cole The 2022-23 Rookie of the Year opened 2024 with a T14 in his debut at Kapalua. It’s absurd that it’s his second-worst finish of his last six starts. Golf’s preeminent gym rat with the scorer’s mentality now gets to tackle Waialae CC for the second time. 10 Matt Fitzpatrick Oiled up for his tournament debut with a T14 at Kapalua. Not that he requires too much prep given his short game and putting but reminding the muscles that it’s time to punch a clock never hurts. Sits No. 8 in the OWGR, tops in the field. 9 Sahith Theegala While he didn’t win The Sentry, the runner-up further proves that he’s easing into his status as a PGA TOUR winner quite comfortably. Of course, this has been on his trajectory since he turned pro but there’s a veteran moxie to the 26-year-old. 8 Si Woo Kim Fourth title defense for the 28-year-old. It’s been seven months since he recorded a top-15 finish, but he recently partnered with Sungjae Im to win the gold medal in the Asian Games. Prepped for this week with a T25 at The Sentry. 7 J.J. Spaun He can hang anywhere but his skill set plays up when the approach game is rewarded as well as it is at Waialae CC. He was in the hunt early last year before backpedaling for a T12, still a personal best in six trips. Closed out 2023 very strong. 6 Byeong Hun An Returned to action with gusto for a fourth-place finish in his debut at The Sentry, so expectations remain elevated for his second go-around at Waialae CC. Placed T12 here a year ago during what was a career-best season on the PGA TOUR. 5 Corey Conners Tuned up at Kapalua (T33) but his rubber has met the road at Waialae CC where he’s perfect in five trips. Since 2019, he has a T3 among four top-12 finishes and a scoring average of 66.81. His irons are stronger relatively with a little wind. 4 Russell Henley The exception to the rule (see below) has been a fixture at Waialae CC since his breakthrough win in 2013. He was a…

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