Expert Picks: Sony Open in Hawaii

With a new season comes a new evolution for PGA TOUR Expert Picks. Fans of PGA TOUR betting can now see tips and picks for specific markets that the Golfbet team will be riding with each week. The traditional format for lineups and rosters will remain with Experts looking to come out on top in PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf.

How it works: Each week, our experts from PGATOUR.COM will make their selections in PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf. Each lineup consists of four starters and two bench players that can be rotated after each round. Adding to the challenge is that every golfer can be used only three times per each of four Segments.

Aside from the experts below, Golfbet Insider Rob Bolton breaks down the field at the Sony Open in Hawaii in this week's edition of Power Rankings.

Betting picks

WILL GRAY (Lead, Fantasy & Betting)

• Winner: Corey Conners (+2800) – Four straight top-12s here, including a T3 in 2019 when he Monday qualified. The Canadian is among the top ball-strikers on TOUR and his relative weakness on and around the greens is mitigated by the demands of Waialae Country Club.
• Top 10: Andrew Putnam (+400) – Got progressively better each round at The Sentry, capped by a closing 64. Putnam was 25th last season on TOUR in Strokes Gained: Approach and likes the look of Waialae CC, having finished second in 2019 and T4 last year.
• Longshot: Adrien Dumont de Chassart (+12500) – Bettors need to learn the name. The Belgian breezed through the Korn Ferry Tour last year and won’t have triple-digit prices in the outright market for much longer.
• Head-to-Head (H2H): Denny McCarthy (-110) over Keegan Bradley – Taking the steadier option against Bradley, who has been more up-and-down at this event. McCarthy enters off a career season, still seeking a breakthrough win, and has the skill set to shine this week on Oahu.

BEN EVERILL (Senior Writer, Fantasy & Betting)

• Winner: Sahith Theegala (+2800) – I’m going to ride some form last week over long-term venue form – which is a little dangerous, except that this is always one of the most unknown weeks to pick as the majority of the field gets started on their year. Don’t be afraid to look at longshots.
• Top 10: Chris Kirk (+275) – Momentum aspect again. Kirk’s ball-striking won’t disappear on the short island hop.
• Longshot: Robert MacIntyre (+15000) – Whenever you can get a recent Ryder Cup winner at 150/1 you’re almost obligated to entertain them as an option. If the winds were to get up around Waialae then Bobby Mac would be sweet.
• H2H: Brendon Todd (+100) over Byeong Hun An – Ben An was great off a long break last week, but I’m going to go with the proven putter at plus money on a bit of a hunch.

CHRIS BREECE (Senior Content Manager, Golfbet)

• Winner: Sahith Theegala (+2800) – Theoretically, no one in this field is in better recent form. He doesn’t follow up good performances with bad ones either. In his 12 top 10s in 2022 and 2023, he only missed the cut once in the following tournament.
• Top 10: J.T. Post (+320) – Four good rounds at The Sentry for T5. Has also had three top sevens in his last six starts.
• Longshot: Nick Taylor (+8000) – Has shot 62 here in each of his last two starts (T7 in 2023, T11 in 2021).
• H2H: J.T. Poston (+100) over Chris Kirk – He’s the underdog, but the hangover effect has to be real for Kirk. Feels like the smartest play.

MATTHEW DELVECCHIO (Social Content Manager, Fantasy & Betting)

• Winner: Tyrrell Hatton (+1600) – Hatton couldn't keep up with the high scoring last week, but, he still finished T14 with only four holes over par. Harder course this week. He gets the win in his first start at Waialae CC.
• Top 10: Sahith Theegala (+275) – My longshot last week did everything he could for the win but came up a bit short. He’ll continue his hot streak with a high finish this week.
• Longshot: Akshay Bhatia (+6000) – Bhatia’s par-4 scoring rank is 15th. If he can clean up his game and limit mistakes, he’ll be in the winner’s circle sooner rather than later.
• H2H: Brendon Todd (+100) over Byeong Hun An – You’re getting plus odds for the better player. A couple of big mistakes cost Todd a high finish last week, but his stats show he may be in better form than An.

Want to see how to set up your PGA TOUR Fantasy Golf lineup? Scroll below.

THINK YOU'RE BETTER THAN OUR EXPERTS? The PGA TOUR Experts league is once again open to the public. You can play our free fantasy game and see how you measure up against our experts below.

Joining the league is simple. Just click here to sign up or log in. Once you create a team, click the "LEAGUES" tab. Then click on "FEATURED," and then on the PGA TOUR Experts league that populates.

SEGMENT

SEASON

*Brett Jungles joined the Expert Picks league at the beginning of Segment 1 and did not accumulate any points from the FedExCup Fall.