While the PGA Tour’s traditional season opener, Sentry, was canceled this yearfans can still enjoy views of Hawaii at next week’s Sony Open, in which it is played Cougry Water Etiquette Club in Honolulu on the island of Oahu.
And given the strength of the field on display in the Sony Open’s announced player commitments, the world’s best are just as anxious to kick off the competitive season as fans are to watch them.
Four of the world’s top 10 players will play next week: Russell Henley (No. 5), US Open champion JJ Spaun (No. 6), Robert MacIntyre (No. 7) and Ben Griffin (No. 8).
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The PGA Tour canceled its Sentry event. Here’s what the course looks like now
Andrew Penner
Other notables in the 120-player field include defending Sony Open champion Nick Taylor, US Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley, Jordan Spieth, Tony Finau, Hideki Matsuyama, Collin Morikawa, Adam Scott and Vijay Singh, who at 62. is cashing in on his final year of Tour admission with one exception as the top 50 all-time earners on the lifetime money list. (With $71,281,286 in career earnings, Singh is No. 6 all-time, ahead of Justin Thomas and behind Jim Furyk.)
So where are the two best players in the world? World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler has played the Sentry three times over the years but never used it at the Sony Open, preferring to start the year on the continent with American Express. Scheffler has already committed to playing in the California desert this year.
World No. 2 Rory McIlroy tends to start the year on the DP World Tour in Dubai rather than the PGA Tour in Hawaii, although he played the Sentry once, in 2019. For the past two years, McIlroy’s first PGA Tour appearance of the year has come at the AT&T Pebble, which is scheduled to be played this year on February 1, 2019 in the Pebble Pro-Am.
The Sony Open begins on Thursday, January 15. You can catch the action starting at 12:00 PM ET on ESPN+, with broadcast coverage starting at 7:00 PM ET on Golf Channel.
