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Todd McGill's DraftKings, FanDuel PGA DFS picks for the 2025 Sony Open at the Waialae Country Club. Picks for daily fantasy golf based on course history
It was a record-setting start to the new season last week at Kapalua, as Hideki Matsuyama set the PGA Tour scoring record relative to par (-35 under). Many of the players that competed at The Plantation Course have made the quick hour-long car trip to the eastern side of the island for the first full-field event of the year.
The Sony Open makes its 60th appearance on the schedule this week, as the young season looks to keep the good times rolling in Maui. With only one player inside the top 10 in the Official World Golf Ranking (Hideki Matsuyama) making the start, it will be a decent chance for lesser-exposed players to knock off an early-season victory.
Horse For The Course is an article highlighting players in this week's field with elite course history and is part of our free PGA DFS content here at RotoBaller. For some of the favorite DFS plays of the week check, out the Core Four article written by my buddy, Joe Nicely here at RotoBaller every Wednesday. It's part of our amazing PGA Premium package that includes an all-new PGA Research Station, Lineup Builder & Optimizer, and some of the best articles in the PGA DFS industry! You can sign up now using Promo Code: TDG for an extra discount at checkout!
2025 Sony Open
Waialae Country Club will have somewhat of an ominous feel this iteration as everyone remembers the late Grayson Murray, who would be defending this week if not for taking his own life in May 2024. The focus on mental health has been a large focus in professional golf because of what happened and that grim reality will no doubt be a point of emphasis as the week progresses.
All eyes will be on Hideki Matsuyama as he looks to become the third player in history to win both the Sentry and Sony events in the same season. As someone who won this title just three years ago, he'll undoubtedly draw absurd attention from betters and DFS players who can't possibly pass up such glaring positives.
Scores are drastically more reasonable compared to last week's venue, though they can still get low if the weather cooperates. Unfortunately for the players, the forecast looks wet for most of the four days, which should certainly hamper scores.
You can find out who the smart money is on by checking out Spencer Aguiar's PGA DFS: Vegas Report every week. And be sure to read our other top-notch weekly PGA DFS articles and Player News/Matchup Outlook Posts to help you win big!
The Course: Waialae Country Club
Par 70 - 7044 yards | Greens: Tifdwarf Bermuda | Designed By: Seth Raynor
Few similarities can be made between the two Hawaiian courses on the Tour schedule that are only separated by 35 miles. Waialae Country Club possesses a plethora of tree-defined doglegs and extremely flat terrain. Greens and fairways are much smaller in comparison, and in turn, require much more precision from the air than using slopes to get the ball close to the hole.
Winners of this event are typically more wide-ranging since length off the tee doesn't quite hold the same weight as it does at other venues, especially the one last week. At 7,044 yards, it is also one of the shortest layouts they play all year, however, the closeness to sea level does negate that to some degree.
One interesting fact for bettors and lineup builders is that the flatter green complexes at Waialae typically benefit streaky and poor putters. Approach play is the ultimate king here, and those who hit it the closest usually give themselves a good shot on Sunday.
Recent Sentry Tournament Winners
- 2024: Grayson Murray (-17)
- 2023: Si Woo Kim (-18)
- 2022: Hideki Matsuyama (-23)
- 2021: Kevin Na (-21)
- 2020: Cameron Smith (-11)
The Horse
Corey Conners
- Notable Finishes: T3 ('19), 11th ('22)
Normally at a course with as much historical data as Waialae Country Club, you'd like to see a win or at least more than one top-10 finish for a guy listed at the top of a course history article. However, the stats say that most guys with good records at this venue sit more consistently in the top 10-20 range than further up the leaderboard.
Corey Conners is third in the field in true strokes gained at this course (+1.41) in six career starts. His world-class ball striking also typically makes the trip, as he boasts strong numbers in strokes gained on approach (+0.740) and off the tee (+0.692). Look for him to keep his strong play going that led to a T5 finish last week at Kapalua.
The Ponies
Byeong Hun An
- Notable Finishes: T2 ('24), T12 ('23)
Byeong Hun An hits an exceptional shot from 208 yards to right in front of the cup on 6. 🤯🔥
📺 Golf Channel 📱 NBC Sports app | #PresidentsCup pic.twitter.com/yLjY6Hukxl
— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) September 27, 2024
In two career Sony Open starts, Byeong Hun An has made the most of his opportunities. He holds the top spot for true strokes gained at Waialae Country Club (+2.17), mainly due to his impressive strokes gained putting (+1.290) stat line--which is interesting for a guy who continuously lives outside the top 100 in that statistic every season he's been on tour.
His outlier putting makes him a highly volatile selection at an otherwise strong venue for continually rewarding returning players with a strong history. It doesn't help that he began his 2025 campaign with an uninspiring T32 at Kapalua, so those wanting to force him into a parlay or lineups will be doing it on course history alone.
Taylor Montgomery
- Notable Finishes: T12 ('23), T13 ('24)
Taylor Montgomery are you serious!?
This was just one of SIX birdies he carded on the front nine today. He makes the turn at 6-under in a tie for first. #TP5x
pic.twitter.com/ow90vuEmbm— TaylorMade Golf (@TaylorMadeGolf) June 27, 2024
Waialae Country Club has proved to be one of the better places that Taylor Montgomery has found in his first two seasons on the PGA Tour. He boasts solid strokes gained metrics across the board and is second in the field in true strokes gained at this course through eight total rounds.
Back-to-back high finishes are rare occurrences, especially for a guy as low on the totem pole as him. He'll need another one to start his season off the right way and give himself a chance to make it inside the condensed FedEx Cup points list structure.
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Russell Henley
- Notable Finishes: 1st ('13), 2nd ('22), T4 ('24)
Russell Henley closing eagle for the low-round of the week!
(CC: Jim Furyk)pic.twitter.com/C1W6eaKgV3
— Underdog Golf (@Underdog__Golf) September 1, 2024
It's hard to have a course history article on this place and not have Russell Henley's name listed somewhere. He's played in this event since its name change in 2013, which is also his first career victory. In the time since, he's amassed two top 5s, two top 15s, one top 20, and only two missed cuts in 12 total starts.
Positive strokes gained metrics across the board tell the story of his success here, but his strokes gained on approach (+0.855) line is the largest factor. Look for him to bounce back from his performance at The Sentry where he didn't play poorly, he simply couldn't keep up with the birdie trains that shouldn't be quite as hard to keep pace with this week.
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