We have arrived at our first full-field event of the 2025 season, where several top players have made their way to a very different-looking golf course in Hawaii this week for the Sony Open, held annually at Waialae Country Club.
Waialae CC is one of the last works of art from renowned architect Seth Raynor, a layout from the 1920s that utilizes sharp doglegs and strategic questions that still challenge the players of the modern game despite being only 7,000 yards in length.
I have carefully evaluated the field-to-project proper course fits and looked heavily into how players' incoming form has been in the categories that matter the most here. Let's dig into my Top-10 Power Rankings for the 2025 Sony Open.
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No. 10 - Cam Davis
- Consecutive -9 under par rounds at Kapalua for a solid result after beginning the tournament +4 through his first four holes.
- Statistically, a top putter from five to 10 ft., a necessity for making birdies at Waialae CC.
- Plays the Sony Open every year. Last five years: T9, 31st, T27, T32, T30.
After a horror start to The Sentry, Cam Davis posted the joint-best second-round score of the day to claw his way into the top 20 in the field. https://t.co/NEMWtw7gHy
— ABC News (@abcnews) January 4, 2025
No. 9 - Maverick McNealy
- One of the best chippers and short-game players in the field.
- Ability to separate from the field on Approach from 125-200 yards, where most shots will come from this week.
- Break-through victory in the Fall at the RSM Classic, another short coastal golf course with similar greens agronomy.
No. 8 - J.T. Poston
- Comfortability on Bermuda grass, where he has the most success. Elite around the green play.
- Steady improvement at Waialae CC over the years. His best finish came last year with a solo sixth-place result.
- Was able to get solid reps under his belt at The Sentry and now moves across the island to a much better course fit for his game.
No. 7 - Byeong-hun An
- One of the longest hitters in the field can cut doglegs but also has the ability to gain strokes off the tee by clubbing down. Top-10 SG: OTT on short courses.
- Nearly won this tournament last season. Finished T2, losing in a playoff to Grayson Murray (RIP).
- Has become a great chipper on Bermudagrass. No. 1 player in the field in SG: ARG on Bermuda over the last 12 months.
No. 6 - Si Woo Kim
- 2023 Sony Open Champion.
- Elevates his performance on courses that require accuracy off the tee and clutch shot-making ability.
- Top-5 in Ballstriking and Strokes Gained: OTT on short golf courses under 7,200 yards.
SI WOO HIM 🔥
An incredible chip-in from Si Woo Kim answering @HBuckley13’s birdie @SonyOpenHawaii. pic.twitter.com/0cgRc3cfKD
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) January 16, 2023
No. 5 - Keegan Bradley
- Purely anecdotal, but I watched Bradley play a lot of golf last week. Highly motivated this season as Ryder Cup Captain and looks ready for a big year!
- Since 2019, he's gained +30.65 strokes Tee to Green at this event. If he can just have a good putting week...
- Also lost in the playoff at the Sony Open last year. Boom or bust course fit for Bradley.
No. 4 - Russell Henley
- Henley has owned the Sony Open over his career. He ranks No. 1 in strokes gained total over the last 5 seasons at Waialae and, frankly, should have easily won this tournament in 2022.
- Lethal combination of driving accuracy and Bermudagrass putting has served him extremely well on this layout over the years.
- Finished in the back half of the field at The Sentry and made too many bogeys or worse, which has me downgrading Henley modestly for this week.
No. 3 - Corey Conners
Corey Conners has a front-row seat to watch Hideki Matsuyama and Collin Morikawa tear apart the Sentry to the tune of record-breaking low scores.
Conners wasn't too bad himself; he ended up finishing T5 on a golf course at Kapalua, which mitigates the strengths of his game and skill set. You can typically count on Conners to hit a ton of fairways, and he's still one of the best mid-range approach shot players on the PGA Tour.
He has now finished T7 or better in his last three starts and also played admirably in the Presidents Cup this Fall. You can't ask for a much better course history from a play either, as Conners has been dominant at Waialae, with the only exception being last year. His previous four starts went T3, T12, 11th, and T12. I fully expect him to be on the leaderboard this Sunday afternoon.
No. 2 - Tom Kim
Tom Kim had to be disappointed to be on the outside looking into the big payday at The Sentry last week, and I think he will show up at Waialae this week. He is highly motivated to perform well. He's arguably the most accurate driver of the golf ball in the field this week, ranking No. 1 in accuracy and distance from the edge of the fairway on misses.
He has no real course history here, except in 2023, when he missed the cut. That said, his skill set is a great fit for Waialae because he's not at the normal distance disadvantage that he faces most weeks, thus allowing him to focus on his iron play and shot game.
Kim looked great at the Hero World Challenge and Grant Thornton, finishing in second place on both occasions. It will come down to his putting, but statistically, this is the easiest course on the PGA Tour to putt from inside 10 ft.
No. 1 - Hideki Matsuyama
At the time I am penning this article, Hideki Matsuyama is still in the field at the Sony Open after winning the Sentry and recording the lowest 72-hole score in PGA Tour history. It was an epic week for Matsuyama, who is in the midst of the best 12-month span of his career. Nobody has the ability to go completely nuclear with their scoring quite like Matsuyama, as witnessed this past weekend.
If he chooses to tee it up again this week, it's because he loves the Sony Open, and there is nobody more likely to win than Matsuyama. He won the Sony Open in 2022, and I would argue that it could be a better course fit for him than Kapalua.
His irons are red hot and he finally found a putter that is working for him. He'll once again be able to show off his amazing short game at Waialae Country Club, and he's the deserving pre-tournament favorite to win for good reason.
Hideki Matsuyama wins The Sentry with the lowest 72-hole score in PGA TOUR HISTORY (-35). 🔥👏 pic.twitter.com/JkMiXRn9na
— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) January 6, 2025
Enjoy the Sony Open, and thanks for reading! Good luck, RotoBaller family!
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