And just like that, we are back with another year of The PGA Tour. Kapalua welcomes The PGA Tour for their annual “Tournament of Champions” (or if you finish top 50 in FedEx points and didn’t win). This event is always a birdie fest that takes place on the wide open rolling hills of The Plantation Course in Kapalua. This event feels different this year. Enough guys have gone to LIV that the field for this event is becoming noticeably weaker than in years past. Obviously with Rahm not being there to defend his title, it is impossible to ignore the impact LIV is having on The PGA Tour even if you are one of The Tour’s biggest defenders and fans. With that being said, this will still be an enjoyable event. The Plantation Course always lends itself to exciting shot making thanks to its wide open design. Pair that with some of the best players in the world and you are sure to be entertained from start to finish.
We will maintain our picks format from last year. We will look at a guy from the top, middle, and bottom of the odds board for the week that we think will have a good showing. We will discuss what we like about them for the given week and pair it with a prediction for their finish in the event. This year our first pick goes too…
Max Homa
Max Homa is a superstar. Plain and simple. His metronomic consistency to his swing and his approach to the game is something that he has developed over the last few seasons and he is now one of the premier players in the world thanks to it. He grabbed his first top 10 in a major last year, won three times, and had his best statistical year to back it all up. I think he is still carrying some positive momentum from last year into this one thanks to his late season victory at The Nedbank on The DP World tour in November. Max finished T3 here last year behind scorching performances from Rahm and Morikawa. Put all this together, and I think it is the winning recipe for Max this year.
Sahith Theegala
Sahith’s biggest weakness in his game is his inaccuracy off the tee. Well at The Plantation Course, accuracy off the tee factors in much less than a usual PGA Tour stop. Sahith is elite on and around the greens in large part due to his seemingly endless creativity. If there is any golfer that could be described as “electric” to watch, it is this man right here. He grabbed his first PGA Tour win at The Fortinet in the fall, which should certainly ease some pressure from him this year in general. I think that with all of these factors coming together, Sahith puts on a great showing this week. Look for Sahith to finish in the Top 5.
Nick Taylor
Nick Taylor is a boom or bust type of player. He had five top 7 finishes including two solo seconds and of course his infamous victory at The RBC Canadian Open. In stark contrast to that high level play, he also missed the cut in 10 of his starts last season. His biggest flaw in his game is that he lacks distance off the tee. He is statistically slightly above average in virtually every other area of the game. With how much of a birdie fest this event usually is, it is important to be able to get hot. Nick Taylor was 46th on tour in birdie percentage last year, which is a very respectable number. Look for Nick Taylor to put in a respectable showing this week and sneak into the back half of the top 10.
