The PGA Season kicks off 2025 in Hawaii with The Sentry, formerly known as the Tournament of Champions, with a red-hot field that includes many of the world’s best though Scottie Scheffler will miss after picking up a hand injury during Christmas dinner.
Key Stats/Skill Set Required
- Birdie or Better
- Scrambling
- Putting Average
- Strokes Gained: Putting
- Strokes Gained: Tee To Green
- Par 4 Scoring
The Plantation Course at Kapalua is a Coore/Crenshaw design that is one of the easiest PGA Tour players will face all season.
Sinking putts and making birds is the absolute key to success here.
Key Correlation Courses/Tournaments
- Waialae Country Club
BEST BET
SAM BURNS
Sam Burns is one of the best players on the planet to not win a major and after finishing 2024 in such good nick, confidence is high that he will have a big 2025.
Last season, he finished with five straight Top 14 finishes including a T-2 in the BMW Championship.
He should be well suited here ranking second in Putting Average and fourth in Birdie or Better as well as Top 15 in Strokes Gained: Putting and Par 4 Scoring.
Should be very keen on his chances this weekend.
BEST VALUE
HIDEKI MATSUYAMA
Major winners have a great record in this event and Matsuyama projects to have a big tournament.
He ranks second in Scrambling, third in Strokes Gained: Tee To Green and 14th in Par 4 Scoring.
He has finished Top 4 in this tournament three times and his form is strong with a win and a second in his last five tournaments.
MAX GREYSERMAN
Greyserman is one of the best young players on Tour and he has a tournament in his sights in 2025.
He finished runner-up in three of his last six starts so he clearly has the talent to compete.
His strongest skill is putting and that will serve him well in this glorified putting competition.
Skew the Top 5 but have something the win.
BEST ROUGHIES
TAYLOR PENDRITH
Canadian Taylor Pendrith is a very talented player who is another who looks well suited this week.
Ranks fifth in Putting Average and in Strokes Gained: Putting, while he ranks 13th in Birdie or Better and 14th in Par 4 Scoring.
Won the Byron Nelson last year and has finished Top 23 in nine of his last 10 tournaments.
DENNY MCCARTHY
Elite putter Denny McCarthy is always worth a ticket when a putting competition is on hand and that is what we have this week.
McCarthy ranks fourth in Strokes Gained: Putting and 12th in Putting Average while he also ranks sixth in Scrambling.
He has gained at least a stroke on the field on the greens in three of his last five tourneys.
TOP AUSTRALIAN
JASON DAY
Three Aussies tee it up this week and Jason Day is the clear standout – and bless – he is not the favourite in the category.
Day ranks Top 10 in Putting Average and Strokes Gained: Putting. Love him to best both Adam Scott and Cam Davis.
TOP BRITISH
HARRY HALL
Four Brits tee it up this week and outsider Harry Hall looks a great bet.
Key here is he ranks third in Birdie or Better.
If the flat stick is on – and it usually is for the flat cap donning Brit – he can lead the UK contingent at nice odds.