The golfers of the PGA Tour get a treat this week as they head to the shores of beautiful Maui, Hawaii for the opening event of the PGA calendar. It’s an invite-only event, though, as the Tournament of Champions only welcomes players that won last season.
Event Details
Event: 2016 Hyundai Tournament Of Champions
Category: PGA
Date: January 7th – January 10th
Location: Plantation Course at Kapalua, Kapalua, Maui, HI
The Tournament of Champions is the annual opening event of the PGA Tour calendar. There are events that start in October but this is the calendar-year opening event. It’s a great way to start the year as the players kick things off in Hawaii, which is obviously a much more pleasant environment to play in during January opposed to the frigid temperatures of the Northeast. Although most of the players would love to make the trip to Hawaii and make a little bit of a getaway out of it, this tournament is restricted to the players who won a tournament during the previous PGA Tour season. One thing to note about this event is that it runs Friday-Monday opposed to the typical Thursday-Sunday. That allows this event to have its own day on Monday opposed to have to compete with the NFL playoffs that are happening on the Sunday.
Former Champions and Results (5 Years)
Year Champion Strokes
2015 Patrick Reed 271
2014 Zach Johnson 273
2013 Dustin Johnson 203
2012 Steve Stricker 269
2011 Jonathan Byrd 268
What To Know About The Course
There are two courses at the Kapalua Bay Resort: The Bay and The Plantation. This event is played at The Plantation. It’s one of the most unique courses on the PGA Tour in several ways. It’s the only course you’ll find that plays to par 73 as all of the other courses play between 70 and 72. It’s also the only course that entails seven holes that extend in distances beyond 500 yards. It’s also just one of two courses with six par-4’s that are shorter than 400 yards. That makes it challenging to pick a golfer to win this event. On one hand, you’d like to go for someone that crushes the ball off the tee because of the 500-yard holes but at the same time, there are also some short par 4’s. You’re looking for someone who is balanced.
The Field
The field at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions is going to be quite loaded. As mentioned, this includes all of last year’s winners. Jordan Spieth will be a hot pick after he ascended to the top spot in the golf world last season. However, Dustin Johnson – as evidenced by the odds below – is going to give him some stiff competition. Johnson finished 2015 with five Top 10 finishes in his last seven starts. If he can maintain that form, he’ll be in contention in the final round. Patrick Reed is also a popular pick as he’s registered a solo second-place result in two of his last three events. He has similar odds to Rickie Fowler, who could be a good play. He has a sixth-place finish in his only visit to Kapalua.
A Good Matchup To Bet
Danny Lee over Bill Haas
Danny Lee is playing this week thanks to his win at the Greenbrier Classic last year, which was his first Tour victory. After the win, he had four more top-six finishes to close out the year, which included a second-place result at the TOUR Championship. He seems to be in good form as him and his partner – Retief Goosen – had a seventh-place result at the Franklin Templeton Shootout. Lee was seventh in putts per round last year and that figures to be important this week. He’s a bit of a sleeper but a decent play against the pedestrian Bill Haas.
Top 5 Prediction
How about rolling the dice with Patrick Reed? It’s not really a roll of the dice when you consider how he’s been playing. This is a man who has strung together five Top 12 results in a row. He’s also the defending champion at the event, so he has a strong pedigree here. He won the event last year with an incredible -28 and also tied for 16th in 2014. He’s a reasonable bet to finish in the Top 5.
Odds To Win Hyundai Tournament Of Champions
Jordan Spieth +450
Jason Day +550
Dustin Johnson +750
Bubba Watson +1015
Patrick Reed +1015
Rickie Fowler +1015
Zach Johnson +1650
Kevin Kisner +1650
Brooks Koepka +2250
Graeme McDowell +2250
Justin Thomas +2250
TEE TIMES (All Times EST)
3:20 p.m. – Smylie Kaufman, Peter Malnati
3:30 p.m. – Graeme McDowell, Emiliano Grillo
3:40 p.m. – J.J. Henry, Padraig Harrington
3:50 p.m. – Davis Love III, Matt Every
4:00 p.m. – Fabian Gomez, Alex Cejka
4:10 p.m. – James Hahn, Troy Merritt
4:20 p.m. – David Lingmerth, Chris Kirk
4:30 p.m. – Justin Thomas, Russell Knox
4:40 p.m. – Brooks Koepka, Bill Haas
4:50 p.m. – Scott Piercy, Brandt Snedeker
5:00 p.m. – Steven Bowditch, Kevin Kisner
5:10 p.m. – J.B. Holmes, Jimmy Walker
5:20 p.m. – Dustin Johnson, Danny Lee
5:30 p.m. – Bubba Watson, Zach Johnson
5:40 p.m. – Jason Day, Rickie Fowler
5:50 p.m. – Jordan Spieth, Patrick Reed
