The PGA Tour carries on with its Aloha Swing in O’ahu, Hawaii. The Waialae Country Club is the third oldest regular venue of a PGA Tour event. From Maui and O’ahu, a lot will change. Firstly, a host of top draws flew back to the mainland after the Sentry. Secondly, don’t expect the Sony Open to be a birdie fest.

The Waialae Country Club doesn’t feature dramatic elevation changes like the Kapalua Plantation Course. But the tree-lined fairways, small and firm greens, and frequent sand traps make it a difficult course to score. Last year, Grayson Murray’s 17-under was enough to force a playoff. Justin Thomas’s 27-under in the 2016-17 iteration still remains the course record. Thomas isn’t in the field, but a bunch of the world’s top 50 golfers headline the field. Here are the top five of them.

Byeong Hun An

The South Korean International also lost in a playoff in 2024. He has played here only twice; the other time, Byeong Hun An bagged a T12. The Waialae Country Club bears similarities with Harbour Town, Colonial, and Port Royal. While Hun An’s record in the first two isn’t excellent, he was T17 at the 2023 Butterfield Bermuda Championship at Port Royal. Waialae Country Club has 83 strategically placed bunkers. Hun An’s wedge play is pretty strong; the South Korean International ranked 20th in Sand Save last year.

Sahith Theegala

The Sentry didn’t yield the result Sahith Theegala or his growing bunch of admirers thought of. But we can’t yet remove the favorite tag from Theegala for a couple of reasons. One, the Pepperdine alum was in red-hot form in the closing stretch of last season. Two, Theegala has traditionally played well at RBC Heritage, a tournament played on a course similar to the Waialae Country Club.

Last year, the 27-year-old was solo second at the RBC Heritage, and a year before, he was T5. Theegala was 25th in SG: OTT last year and 12th in the same category at the Kapalua Plantation Course. The par-70 layout at the Sony Open hasn’t favored him in his only two appearances (T48 and MC), but Theegala looked poised to change that.

Corey Conners

The two-time PGA Tour winner looked right at home at the Kapalua Plantation course. Corey Conners has been on a spectacular run since last September, netting three back-to-back top tens in his last three starts. At Sentry, his putter turned hot at the right moment, gaining 1.85 strokes with the flat stick. Conners, like Theegala, has played solidly in PGA Tour events with a similar layout. At the Sony Open, the 33-year-old from Listowel, Canada, has netted four top tens in the past. Conners hits the sweet spot between averaging 300+ yards off the tee and maintaining a 64.29% accuracy.

Hideki Matsuyama

You can’t really keep him out of contention. The Japanese International was on a roll at the Sentry, turning the Kapalua Plantation course into a birdie fest. He is also a former champion of the tournament and well familiar with the par-70 layout. This will be Matsuyama’s 12th appearance at the Sony Open. He is also an elite ball striker. Waialae Country Club values ball striking more than hitting bombs off the tee. That gives the former Masters champion a clear edge. Hideki Matsuyama was 4th in Strokes Gained: Total last year on Tour and 15th in SG: Approach to Green.

Keegan Bradley

The Ryder Cup captain returns to the field where he was denied a victory last year. Keegan Bradley missed his birdie putt on the 18th to win outright. Locked in a playoff with the late Grayson Murray, Bradley lost his chance. The veteran golfer went to net that elusive seventh title at the BMW Championship and netted a solo 5th at the Hero World Challenge regardless. Bradley looked solid at the Sentry as well, bagging a T15. The former major winner is the second-highest-ranked golfer in the field, with over a decade of experience teeing off in the Sony Open.

Along with these five, keep track of Tom Kim, Robert MacIntyre, and Russell Henley. Kim will make his 2025 debut after a brilliant season that saw him come runner-up to Scottie Scheffler at the Travelers Championship. Interestingly, Kim once again came second to Scheffler at the 2024 Hero World Challenge. 

On the other hand, Russell Henley’s CV is sprinkled with top-five finishes. The 35-year-old was 9th in driving accuracy in the PGA Tour last season, a quality that comes in handy at the Sony Open. Whereas, Robert MacIntyre will land in O’ahu after a T15 at The Sentry. He hasn’t finished outside the top 25 in any tournament dating back to August. The Sony Open will be live on TV from Thursday on Golf Channel and NBC.