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2023 Sony Open odds, picks, field: Surprising PGA predictions from computer model that’s nailed 8 majors

detlef32 — Thu, 12 Jan 2023 14:30:11 +0000

The first full-field PGA event of the year will tee off on Thursday as the 2023 Sony Open takes place in Hawaii. It’s the second consecutive PGA tournament to take place in the Aloha State, with Waialae Country Club playing host. Hideki Matsuyama will look to defend his title, while Tom Kim is both the highest-ranked golfer in the Official World Ranking and FedEx Cup standings in the Sony Open 2023 field.

It should come as no surprise that Kim is the 11-1 favorite this week. The latest 2023 Sony Open odds have Sungjae Im at 14-1, with Matsuyama (15-1) and Jordan Spieth (15-1) next in line. Before locking in your 2023 Sony Open picks, be sure to see the golf predictions and projected leaderboard from the proven computer model at SportsLine.

SportsLine’s proprietary model, built by DFS pro Mike McClure, has been red-hot since the PGA Tour resumed in June of 2020. In fact, the model is up over $9,500 on its best bets since the restart, nailing tournament after tournament.

McClure’s model predicted Jon Rahm (+800) to finish on top of the leaderboard at the 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions. The model also included J.T. Poston in its best bets to win the 2022 John Deere Classic. That bet hit at +5500, and for the entire tournament, McClure’s best bets returned almost $1,100. At the 2022 Masters, McClure’s model was all over Scottie Scheffler’s first career major championship victory heading into the weekend.

In addition, McClure’s best bets included Collin Morikawa winning outright at the 2021 Open Championship, even though he was listed as a massive 40-1 long shot. The model was also all over Jon Rahm’s (10-1) first career major championship victory at the 2021 U.S. Open. Rahm was two strokes off the lead heading into the weekend, but the model still projected him as the winner.

This same model has also nailed a whopping eight majors entering the weekend. Anyone who has followed it has seen massive returns.

Now that the 2023 Sony Open field is locked, SportsLine simulated the tournament 10,000 times, and the results were surprising. Head to SportsLine now to see the projected leaderboard.

Top 2023 Sony Open predictions

One major surprise the model is calling for at the 2023 Sony Open: Matsuyama, the defending champion and one of the favorites at 15-1, stumbles this week and barely cracks the top 10. Matsuyama faced a five-shot deficit with just nine holes to play last year but fired a 31 on the back nine to finish at 23-under for the week.

However, Matsuyama has been extremely inconsistent this season, finishing T-21 or worse in each of his last five starts on the PGA Tour. Plus, Matsuyama has struggled mightily with his accuracy this season, ranking 136th on tour in greens in regulation percentage (66.98%). He’s not a strong pick to win it all and there are far better values in the 2023 Sony Open field.

Another surprise: K.H. Lee, a 34-1 longshot, makes a strong run at the title. Lee, who turned pro in 2010 and joined the PGA Tour in 2018, is off to the best start of his career. He’s notched three top-10 finishes over his last four events, and every round across those four tournaments saw him shoot under par. Additionally, Lee’s three top-10 finishes have already tied a career-high.

Lee has also broken par in each of his last eight rounds at Waialae Country Club, so he’s clearly comfortable on the course. Lee is one of the best ball-strikers in the world, with top-25 marks in driving accuracy percentage (66.79%), greens in regulation percentage (77.22%) and strokes gained: tee-to-green (1.523). Also, his current streak of 160 holes without a 3-putt is the third-longest on tour, so his all-around game should make him highly coveted in 2023 Sony Open bets. See who else to pick here.

How to make 2023 Sony Open picks

The model is also targeting five other golfers with odds of 22-1 or longer who will make surprising runs. Anyone who backs these longshots could hit it big. You can only see the model’s PGA picks here.

So who will win the Sony Open 2023? And which longshots stun the golfing world? Check out the 2023 Sony Open odds below and then visit SportsLine to see the projected 2023 Sony Open leaderboard, all from the model that’s nailed eight golf majors, including last year’s Masters.

2023 Sony Open odds, field

See full Sony Open 2023 picks, best bets, and predictions here.

Tom Kim +1100
Sungjae Im +1400
Hideki Matsuyama +1500
Jordan Spieth +1500
Russell Henley +2100
Tom Hoge +2200
Corey Conners +2200
Brian Harman +2600
Adam Scott +3100
Taylor Montgomery +3100
Billy Horschel +3200
Cameron Davis +3300
Kyoung-Hoon Lee +3400
Keegan Bradley +3400
Keith Mitchell +3700
Si Woo Kim +3700
Maverick Mcnealy +3700
J.J. Spaun +4000
Alex Smalley +4500
Christiaan Bezuidenhout +4500
MacKenzie Hughes +5000
Emiliano Grillo +5000
Harris English +5000
J.T. Poston +5000
Denny McCarthy +5000
Matt Kuchar +5000
Webb Simpson +5000
Gary Woodland +5000
Kurt Kitayama +5500
Adam Svensson +5500
Will Gordon +5500
Andrew Putnam +5500
Chris Kirk +6000
Brendan Steele +6500
Hayden Buckley +6500
Brendon Todd +7500
Nick Hardy +8000
Aaron Rai +8500
Davis Thompson +9000
Chun-an Yu +9000
Russell Knox +9500
Greyson Sigg +9500
Patton Kizzire +9500
Ryan Palmer +10000
Robby Shelton +10000
Stephan Jaeger +10000
Justin Suh +11000
Ryan Armour +11000
Troy Merritt +11000
Brandon Wu +11000
Ben Griffin +11000
David Lipsky +12000
Chez Reavie +12000
David Lingmerth +13000
Kevin Streelman +13000
Sam Ryder +13000
Kazuki Higa +14000
Michael Thompson +14000
Lucas Glover +14000
James Hahn +14000
Mark Hubbard +14000
Stewart Cink +14000
Taiga Semikawa +14000
Seonghyeon Kim +14000
Joseph Bramlett +15000
Carl Yuan +15000
Nick Taylor +16000
Brian Stuard +16000
Harry Higgs +16000
Adam Long +16000
Keita Nakajima +16000
Tyson Alexander +16000
MJ Daffue +16000
John Huh +16000
Adam Schenk +17000
Scott Piercy +17000
Cole Hammer +17000
Zac Blair +19000
Ben Taylor +19000
Austin Eckroat +21000
Danny Lee +21000
Peter Malnati +21000
Byeong Hun An +21000
Yuto Katsuragawa +21000

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2023 Sony Open picks, predictions, odds, field: Top PGA expert says fade Jordan Spieth, back Tom Kim this week

detlef32 — Wed, 11 Jan 2023 18:24:53 +0000

Hideki Matsuyama will try to defend his crown this week when the 2023 Sony Open tees off Thursday at Waialae Country Club in Honolulu. Matsuyama aims to become the first golfer to go back-to-back at Waialae since Jimmy Walker (2014-15). Matsuyama stormed back from five strokes down with nine holes to play last year and beat Russell Henley with an eagle on the first playoff hole. Henley and Walker also are in a 144-player Sony Open 2023 field that is headlined by Matsuyama, Jordan Spieth and Tom Kim. The Sony Open has been played at the Honolulu course since 1965 and has followed the Sentry Tournament of Champions on Kapalua since 1999. Nineteen of the 39 golfers are making their way over from Maui.

Caesars Sportsbook lists Sungjae Im as the 10-1 favorite in its latest 2023 Sony Open odds, followed closely by Kim at 11-1. Half a dozen other golfers are shorter than 25-1, with Matsuyama (15-1) and Spieth (16-1) among them. Brian Harman (16-1), Tom Hoge (20-1), Corey Conners (20-1) and Henley (22-1) are the others, and Walker is priced at a whopping 500-1 in the Sony Open 2023 field. Before you lock in any 2023 Sony Open picks, be sure you check out the PGA Tour predictions and best bets from SportsLine golf insider Patrick McDonald.

After spending time at FanSided and NBC Sports EDGE, McDonald joined CBS Sports as a golf writer in the spring of 2022. Now covering the sport from a broader perspective, McDonald still likes to dip his toes into the betting pools on a weekly basis on the PGA Tour.

McDonald takes a measured approach to his outright selections and is having a profitable 2022-23 season in every category. He nailed the Houston Open, backing Tony Finau to win at 25-1, and is up almost 10 units on his plays overall. That’s a profit of almost $1,000 for $100 bettors. The expert also has been on the money on his matchup plays and cashed in huge on Brendan Steele (80-1) as the first-round leader at the Zozo Championship.

The expert finished the 2021-22 season up 42 units on his outright plays, having hit Cameron Smith (22-1) at the Tournament of Champions, Hudson Swafford (250-1) at The American Express, Joaquin Niemann (70-1) at the Genesis Invitational and Justin Thomas (66-1) live at the PGA Championship. Last week he listed Jon Rahm among his top picks, and the 28-year-old shot 10 under on Sunday to capture the win. Anyone who follows McDonald’s advice has been cashing in.

Now, McDonald has studied the 2023 Sony Open field and is locking in his best bets, top sleepers and favorites to avoid. You can head to SportsLine now to see all his PGA picks and predictions.

Top 2023 Sony Open expert picks

McDonald knows Spieth is one of the top names in this field and among the favorites, but the expert is fading the three-time major champion. The former world No. 1 has 13 tour victories, one in each of the past two years, but hasn’t played Waialae since 2019. He missed the cut that year, shooting 73 in the first round. The course seems to be a bad fit, as he lacks accuracy off the tee. He hit 56% of fairways last season (150th on tour) and was 62nd in greens in regulation and 155th in strokes gained putting. McDonald calls Spieth “an easy pass” for this week.

On the other hand, Kim is the highest-ranked golfer in the field, and McDonald sees why he is among the expected contenders. The 20-year-old’s accuracy is tough to match, and that should be what wins at Waialae. The tight layout demands precision, and Kim is sixth on tour in driving accuracy (72.8%), greens in regulation (76.4%) and scoring average (69.3). He hit 89% of his fairways at the CJ Cup in late October. Kim has two tour victories and three other top-10 finishes in 15 career tour outings, and he has 11 wins worldwide, several in smaller Asian tours. You can see who else to back at Waialae Country Club here.

How to make 2023 Sony Open picks

Before this week’s PGA Tour event, McDonald has locked in his best bets for the 2023 Sony Open. His outright plays include five major long shots who come in at more than 40-1. One of these players excels on tight courses where accuracy off the tee matters, and if this player can pull off his breakthrough victory he would bring a massive payday of well over 100-1. You can find out who it is, and see the rest of McDonald’s Sony Open picks, predictions, and best bets at SportsLine.

So which 2023 Sony Open picks should you target? Which player has the off-the-tee game to pull off a victory that would pay off at well over 100-1? Check out the odds below, then visit SportsLine to see Patrick McDonald’s top prop picks for Sony Open 2023, all from the expert who is up almost $1,000 on his PGA Tour picks this season, and find out.

2023 Sony Open odds, field, top contenders

See full Sony Open 2023 picks, best bets, and predictions here.

Sungjae Im +1000
Tom Kim +1100
Jordan Spieth +1400
Hideki Matsuyama +1500
Brian Harman +1600
Russell Henley +1800
Tom Hoge +2200
Corey Conners +2200
Adam Scott +3100
Taylor Montgomery +3100
Billy Horschel +3200
Cameron Davis +3300
Kyoung-Hoon Lee +3400
Keegan Bradley +3400
Keith Mitchell +3700
Si Woo Kim +3700
Maverick Mcnealy +3700
J.J. Spaun +4000
Alex Smalley +4500
Christiaan Bezuidenhout +4500
MacKenzie Hughes +5000
Emiliano Grillo +5000
Harris English +5000
J.T. Poston +5000
Denny McCarthy +5000
Matt Kuchar +5000
Webb Simpson +5000
Gary Woodland +5000
Kurt Kitayama +5500
Adam Svensson +5500
Will Gordon +5500
Andrew Putnam +5500
Chris Kirk +6000
Brendan Steele +6500
Hayden Buckley +6500
Brendon Todd +7500
Nick Hardy +8000
Aaron Rai +8500
Davis Thompson +9000
Chun-an Yu +9000
Russell Knox +9500
Greyson Sigg +9500
Patton Kizzire +9500
Ryan Palmer +10000
Robby Shelton +10000
Stephan Jaeger +10000
Justin Suh +11000
Ryan Armour +11000
Troy Merritt +11000
Brandon Wu +11000
Ben Griffin +11000
David Lipsky +12000
Chez Reavie +12000
David Lingmerth +13000
Kevin Streelman +13000
Sam Ryder +13000
Kazuki Higa +14000
Michael Thompson +14000
Lucas Glover +14000
James Hahn +14000
Mark Hubbard +14000
Stewart Cink +14000
Taiga Semikawa +14000
Seonghyeon Kim +14000
Joseph Bramlett +15000
Carl Yuan +15000
Nick Taylor +16000
Brian Stuard +16000
Harry Higgs +16000
Adam Long +16000
Keita Nakajima +16000
Tyson Alexander +16000
MJ Daffue +16000
John Huh +16000
Adam Schenk +17000
Scott Piercy +17000
Cole Hammer +17000
Zac Blair +19000
Ben Taylor +19000
Austin Eckroat +21000
Danny Lee +21000
Peter Malnati +21000
Byeong Hun An +21000
Yuto Katsuragawa +21000

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2023 Sony Open odds, picks, field: Surprising PGA predictions from golf model that’s nailed 8 majors

detlef32 — Wed, 11 Jan 2023 16:11:46 +0000

Russell Henley has had tremendous success at the Sony Open over the years. In fact, Henley finished on top of the leaderboard in 2013 and secured a runner-up finish at this event last year. Henley could certainly find himself in the mix again this week at the 2023 Sony Open, which gets underway from Waialae Country Club on Thursday, Jan. 12.

Henley has won four times on the PGA Tour and he’s listed at 21-1 in the latest 2023 Sony Open odds. Tom Kim is the 11-1 favorite, with Sungjae Im (14-1), Jordan Spieth (15-1) and defending champion Hideki Matsuyama (15-1) next in line on the PGA odds board. Before locking in your 2023 Sony Open picks, be sure to see the golf predictions and projected leaderboard from the proven computer model at SportsLine.

This same model has also nailed a whopping eight majors entering the weekend. Anyone who has followed it has seen massive returns.

Now that the 2023 Sony Open field is locked, SportsLine simulated the tournament 10,000 times, and the results were surprising. Head to SportsLine now to see the projected leaderboard.

Top 2023 Sony Open predictions

Another surprise: Tom Hoge, a 22-1 longshot, makes a strong run at the title. Hoge has a much better chance to win it all than his odds imply, so he’s a target for anyone looking for a huge payday.

Hoge is coming off an impressive T-3 performance at the Sentry Tournament of Champions and he’s finished T-13 or better in five of his seven official starts this season. The 33-year-old ranks first in strokes gained: approach the green (1.640), 10th in greens in regulation percentage (75.69%) and 11th in total birdies (115). Those impressive stats, plus his long odds, make him a strong value pick in 2023 Sony Open bets this week. See who else to pick here.

How to make 2023 Sony Open picks

2023 Sony Open odds, field

See full Sony Open 2023 picks, best bets, and predictions here.

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2023 Sony Open predictions, expert picks, odds, field rankings, golf best bets at Waialae Country Club

detlef32 — Tue, 10 Jan 2023 23:11:25 +0000

Getty Images

The PGA Tour makes its way to the capital of the Aloha State for the 2023 Sony Open this week. Taking place at Waialae Country Club, players will be faced with a much different task compared to last week’s Plantation Course at Kapalua. Measuring just over 7,000 yards and playing to a par 70, this Seth Raynor design puts an emphasis on keeping the ball in the fairway and playing positional golf.

Despite the contrasted natures of the two Hawaii golf courses, 19 of the 39 players from the Tournament of Champions will be making the short trip from Maui to Honolulu. Led by South Korean phenom Tom Kim, historically those who competed in the first part of the Aloha swing have found success in the second leg; 17 of the last 24 Sony Open winners were participants the week prior.

Jordan Spieth will be making the trip as well as he plays in the Sony Open for the fifth time in his career and the first time since 2019. In contention at the halfway point at Kapalua, he will hope to string together a full 72 holes at Waialae CC. Sungjae Im, defending champion Hideki Matsuyama and a slew of Georgia Bulldogs such as Brian Harman and Russell Henley round out other big names set for the second event of the new year.

Event Information

Event: 2023 Sony Open | Dates: Jan. 12-15
Location: Waialae Country Club — Honolulu, Hawaii
Par: 70 | Yardage: 7,044 | Purse: $7,900,000

2023 Sony Open field, odds

Odds courtesy of Caesars Sportsbook

Tom Kim (11-1)
Jordan Spieth (14-1): Spieth is the highest-ranked player in this field and will be making his first appearance at Waialae since 2019. Knocking off a standard Tour event from his playing obligations early in 2023, he has decided to stay in Hawaii a week longer than usual. Statistically, this is not a golf course that should fit his game as there is a prerequisite on finding fairways and playing positional golf — something Spieth doesn’t do all too well. Then again, he has found success at golf courses such as Colonial Country Club and Harbour Town Golf Links, both of which possess similar features, so who really knows.
Sungjae Im (14-1)
Hideki Matsuyama (16-1): The man from Japan has remained winless over the past year due to injuries and uncertainties around his game. Hopefully the return to Waialae can get him back to his usual ways as it has been a rough number of months for Matsuyama. Without a top-20 finish in a full-field event since his backdoor top five at the U.S. Open, the former Masters champion will need to rediscover his ball striking if he is to put up a strong defense effort.
Brian Harman (20-1)
Russell Henley (22-1): Henley’s main blunder in 2022 was his inability to find the fairway on the par-5 18th both in regulation and extra holes. Squandering a five-stroke lead over the final nine holes, the 33-year-old was unable to collect his second Sony Open title. Still, there was plenty of good which came of the week as he posted 23 under including a final round 5-under 65. Since breaking through at Mayakoba, perhaps the monkey is off his back and he can redeem himself this year.
Tom Hoge (22-1)
Corey Conners (22-1)
Billy Horschel (28-1)
Taylor Montgomery (30-1): He is the lone player who did not play at Kapalua to check in at or below 30-1 on the odds board. The last we saw of Montgomery, he was making an early claim on PGA Tour Rookie of the Year honors. Posting six top-15 finishes in his seven starts during the swing season, the UNLV product consistently leaned on booming drives and ridiculously hot putting. He is currently 12th in the FedEx Cup standings and is presented with a nice opportunity to improve on that this week should he hit enough fairways.
Keegan Bradley (33-1)
K.H. Lee (33-1)
Keith Mitchell (33-1)
Cam Davis (33-1)
Maverick McNealy (33-1): McNealy may very well be the best player on the PGA Tour still without a victory. After missing the cut in his first event of the season, the 27-year-old collected four straight top-20 finishes including a pair of top-10 efforts. He can run as hot as anyone on the greens, but his inaccuracy off the tee and inability to consistently strike his irons have caused problems. Whether he figured out his ball striking during his month off will go a long way not only this week, but also in his fourth year on Tour.
Adam Scott (33-1)

2023 Sony Open expert picks

Who will win the Sony Open, and which longshots will stun the golfing world? Visit SportsLine now to see the projected leaderboard and best bets, all from the model that’s nailed eight golf majors and is up over $9,500 since June 2020.

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2023 Sony Open picks, predictions, odds, field: PGA expert says back Tom Kim, fade Jordan Spieth at Waialae

detlef32 — Mon, 09 Jan 2023 19:47:01 +0000

Almost half the PGA Tour field from last week will make the short hop over to Honolulu for the 2023 Sony Open at Waialae Country Club. Nineteen of the 39 players from the Sentry Tournament of Champions are scheduled to tee off Thursday. The top names are three-time major champion Jordan Spieth, defending Sony Open champion Hideki Matsuyama, and 20-year-old rising star Tom Kim. Matsuyama rallied from five shots down with nine holes to play last year before beating Russell Henley in a playoff. It was the second time in three years the Sony Open went to extra holes. Matsuyama shot back-to-back 63’s to post a winning score of 23 under par, and scores are expected to go low again in 2023. The average winning score the past 10 years is 20 under.

The latest 2023 Sony Open odds from Caesars Sportsbook list Kim as the 12-1 favorite, with Sungjae Im (14-1) and Spieth (16-1) right behind. Others top contenders in the Sony Open 2023 field are Matsuyama (18-1), Henley (22-1), and Tom Hoge (22-1). Before you lock in any 2023 Sony Open picks, be sure you check out the PGA Tour predictions and best bets from SportsLine golf insider Patrick McDonald.

Now, McDonald has studied the 2023 Sony Open field and is locking in his best bets, top sleepers and favorites to avoid. You can head to SportsLine now to see all his PGA picks and predictions.

Top 2023 Sony Open expert picks

Shockingly, McDonald is fading Spieth, the biggest name in the field and one of the betting favorites. The 29-year-old won on a similar course at Harbour Town last April, but the expert knows that was an aberration. Spieth is not accurate off the tee – he ranked 150th on tour in hitting 56% of fairways last season – and hasn’t been great on approach or on the greens. He didn’t rank in the top 50 on approach anywhere beyond 100 yards. Spieth has missed the cut twice in four appearances at Waialae, including his last time in 2019, and was in the top 20 in the other two.

The expert also knows Kim is the favorite here for a reason. McDonald says Waialae “should be an ideal statistical fit” for the South Korean, who has two PGA Tour victories. He has 11 worldwide wins since 2018, many in smaller Asian tours, and is the highest-ranked player in this field. He is No. 14, one spot ahead of Spieth, and is one of the most accurate players on tour. Kim ranked sixth last season in both driving accuracy (72.8%) and greens in regulation (76.4%). He also was sixth in scoring average (69.3) and comes in off a tie for fifth last week at Kapalua. You can see who else to back at Waialae Country Club here.

How to make 2023 Sony Open picks

2023 Sony Open odds, field, top contenders

See full Sony Open 2023 picks, best bets, and predictions here.

Tom Kim +1200
Sungjae Im +1400
Jordan Spieth +1600
Hideki Matsuyama +1800
Russell Henley +1800
Tom Hoge +2200
Corey Conners +2200
Brian Harman +2600
Adam Scott +3100
Taylor Montgomery +3100
Billy Horschel +3200
Cameron Davis +3300
Kyoung-Hoon Lee +3400
Keegan Bradley +3400
Keith Mitchell +3700
Si Woo Kim +3700
Maverick Mcnealy +3700
J.J. Spaun +4000
Alex Smalley +4500
Christiaan Bezuidenhout +4500
MacKenzie Hughes +5000
Emiliano Grillo +5000
Harris English +5000
J.T. Poston +5000
Denny McCarthy +5000
Matt Kuchar +5000
Webb Simpson +5000
Gary Woodland +5000
Kurt Kitayama +5500
Adam Svensson +5500
Will Gordon +5500
Andrew Putnam +5500
Chris Kirk +6000
Brendan Steele +6500
Hayden Buckley +6500
Brendon Todd +7500
Nick Hardy +8000
Aaron Rai +8500
Davis Thompson +9000
Chun-an Yu +9000
Russell Knox +9500
Greyson Sigg +9500
Patton Kizzire +9500
Ryan Palmer +10000
Robby Shelton +10000
Stephan Jaeger +10000
Justin Suh +11000
Ryan Armour +11000
Troy Merritt +11000
Brandon Wu +11000
Ben Griffin +11000
David Lipsky +12000
Chez Reavie +12000
David Lingmerth +13000
Kevin Streelman +13000
Sam Ryder +13000
Kazuki Higa +14000
Michael Thompson +14000
Lucas Glover +14000
James Hahn +14000
Mark Hubbard +14000
Stewart Cink +14000
Taiga Semikawa +14000
Seonghyeon Kim +14000
Joseph Bramlett +15000
Carl Yuan +15000
Nick Taylor +16000
Brian Stuard +16000
Harry Higgs +16000
Adam Long +16000
Keita Nakajima +16000
Tyson Alexander +16000
MJ Daffue +16000
John Huh +16000
Adam Schenk +17000
Scott Piercy +17000
Cole Hammer +17000
Zac Blair +19000
Ben Taylor +19000
Austin Eckroat +21000
Danny Lee +21000
Peter Malnati +21000
Byeong Hun An +21000
Yuto Katsuragawa +21000

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2023 Sony Open odds, picks, field: Surprising PGA predictions from proven model that’s nailed 8 majors

detlef32 — Mon, 09 Jan 2023 18:44:37 +0000

Hideki Matsuyama will look to defend his title when the 2023 Sony Open tees off on Thursday, Jan. 12, from Waialae Country Club in Hawaii. Matsuyama secured his eighth PGA Tour title with a 23-under par performance in 2022, shooting 65 or below in his final three rounds. He’ll have some stiff competition in the Sony Open 2023 field, with the likes of Jordan Spieth, Tom Kim and Keegan Bradley set to tee it up this week.

Matsuyama, who’s coming off a top-25 finish last week at the Sentry Tournament of Champions, is listed at 15-1 to repeat according to the latest 2023 Sony Open odds. Kim, who’s coming off a top-five finish at the Sentry Tournament of Champions, is the 11-1 favorite, with Sungjae Im (14-1) and Spieth (15-1) next in line on the PGA odds board. Before locking in your 2023 Sony Open picks, be sure to see the golf predictions and projected leaderboard from the proven computer model at SportsLine.

This same model has also nailed a whopping eight majors entering the weekend. Anyone who has followed it has seen massive returns.

Now that the 2023 Sony Open field is locked, SportsLine simulated the tournament 10,000 times, and the results were surprising. Head to SportsLine now to see the projected leaderboard.

Top 2023 Sony Open predictions

Another surprise: Billy Horschel, a 32-1 longshot, makes a strong run at the title. He has a much better chance to win it all than his odds imply, so he’s a target for anyone looking for a huge payday.

Horschel enters this week’s event full of confidence. That’s because the 36-year-old secured a top-15 finish at the Hero World Challenge and QBE Shootout in December, two unofficial PGA Tour events. He’s also had success at the Sony Open in his career, recording a T-7 finish in 2021. Horschel enters the 2023 Sony Open ranked third in strokes gained: approach the green (1.256) and 26th in one-putt percentage (43.52%), both of which will come in handy this week at Waialae. See who else to pick here.

How to make 2023 Sony Open picks

2023 Sony Open odds, field

See full Sony Open 2023 picks, best bets, and predictions here.

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2023 Tournament of Champions: Xander Schauffele withdraws from Kapalua field with back injury

detlef32 — Fri, 06 Jan 2023 22:44:13 +0000

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Xander Schauffele withdrew from the 2023 Tournament of Champions Friday midway through his second round at The Plantation Course at Kapalua. Citing some back discomfort earlier in the week, the pain eventually took over and forced him out of the tournament.

The 2019 champion was visibly uncomfortable throughout the duration of his first round before ultimately signing for a 3-under 70 but was hopeful some overnight work would allow him to see the finish line. Attempting to play through the pain and swinging at only 80%, Schauffele was unable to take anymore. Calling it quits on the ninth hole of his second round, Schauffele will look to heal up his back before a big West Coast swing in the continental United States.

Schauffele is currently committed to play in The American Express the week of January 16th in what would be his first start in Palm Springs since 2017. Not labeled as an elevated event on the PGA Tour’s new playing schedule, The American Express would count as one of the three tournaments Schauffele is required to play in in addition to the 13 elevated events.

The 29-year-old is expected to get an MRI this upcoming week to pinpoint the problem area in his back. Once adequately diagnosed, the world No. 6 should be back on his feet quickly after coming into 2023 having won three times in his last 12 starts on the PGA Tour in 2022.

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2023 Masters expands field to 80 golfers with special invitations accepted by NCAA champion, Japanese star

detlef32 — Thu, 05 Jan 2023 18:19:15 +0000

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Augusta National Golf Club announced Thursday that it extended a pair of special invitations to the 2023 Masters that have been accepted by Gordon Sargent, the 2022 NCAA champion, and Japanese golfer Kazuki Higa. This bumps the Masters field to 80 golfers with three months until the tournament.

“The Masters Tournament prioritizes opportunities to elevate both amateur and professional golf around the world,” Augusta National chairman Fred Ridley said in a statement. “Thus, we have extended invitations to two deserving players not otherwise qualified. Whether on the international stage or at the elite amateur level, each player has showcased their talent in the past year. We look forward to hosting them at Augusta National in April.”

Sargent, a 19-year-old sophomore at Vanderbilt who was named SEC Freshman of the Year in 2022, is currently ranked No. 3 in the World Amateur Golf Rankings and projects well at the PGA Tour level because of his swing speed and length off the tee. He is the first amateur to receive and accept a special invitation to the Masters since 2000 and the sixth amateur joining the field in 2023.

Though the Masters does not normally invite the NCAA champion to play in its event — although the U.S. Amateur winner and runner-up are both invited — it has made special exemptions in the past for a number of different players. If such exemptions are made, they are generally doled out closer to the tournament in April.

Higa is less well-known, but he has compiled six wins on the Japan Golf Tour and is ranked No. 68 in the world. He also won the Japan Golf Tour’s order of merit in 2022. Higa has played in one major championship before, missing the cut at The Open Championship last July at St. Andrews by five strokes.

It’s difficult to not contrast this news of the Masters spreading invites to global players and amateurs with its recent statement regarding the eligibility of golfers playing for LIV Golf. Such golfers are still invited to the Masters while eligible, but it’s clear that Augusta National prefers one path over the other.

Professional golfers will still be able to qualify for the Masters the next three months by either winning a PGA Tour event or playing their way inside the top 50 in the Official World Golf Rankings by the week before the tournament.

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2023 Tournament of Champions predictions, expert picks, odds, golf best bets, field rankings at Kapalua

detlef32 — Thu, 05 Jan 2023 14:05:21 +0000

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The PGA Tour schedule is all set to resume as the calendar has now flipped from December to January and from 2022 to 2023. The conclusion of the RSM Classic triggered a month-long break for the golfers, and now it is the 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions which will once again begin the new year. Welcoming 39 of the best players in the world, winners from the 2021-22 season and those who qualified for the Tour Championship will make the trip to Maui, Hawaii, to take on the Plantation Course at Kapalua.

World No. 1 Rory McIlroy will be among those forgoing the trip. With the ability to skip one of the newly elevated events in the PGA Tour season, the reigning FedEx Cup champion has decided to start his year a bit later than most while preserving his traditional schedule. Defending champion Cameron Smith will also not be in the field due to his association with LIV Golf, and Shane Lowry was unable to qualify despite a strong campaign in 2022.

In their place, 17 of the top 20 players in the world will compete. 2022 PGA Tour Player of the Year Scottie Scheffler has an opportunity to regain the world No. 1 title from McIlroy with a solo third-place finish or better. Scheffler arrived at this tournament a season ago winless on the PGA Tour but is now securely among the best players in the world 12 months later.

Last season’s runner-up Jon Rahm aims to perform in a similar manner to 2022 when he shot 33 under. Tony Finau hopes his hot summer and fall can drift into the winter, while Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas and Xander Schauffele look to enter the winner’s circle yet again in Kapalua as the only former champions in the field.

Event Information

Event: 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions | Dates: Jan. 5-8
Location: Plantation Course at Kapalua — Maui, Hawaii
Par: 73 | Yardage: 7,596 | Purse: $15,000,000

2023 Tournament of Champions field, odds

Odds courtesy of Caesars Sportsbook

Jon Rahm (13/2): This time last year, Rahm was the No. 1 player in the world after a dominant 2021 campaign. He would have won this tournament if not for a record-setting performance from Smith but should take solace in knowing that he can blitz this golf course with the best of them. A winner in three of his last 14 tournaments to end 2022, the Spaniard found his touch on the greens once the PGA Tour got into the swing of the postseason. Continuing this quality of putting in Europe and winning at the DP World Tour Championship, should he continue on such a trajectory with the flat stick, another PGA Tour win is in his near future.
Scottie Scheffler (17/2)
Xander Schauffele (19/2): Thomas may have won in 2020, but it was Schauffele’s tournament to lose. Needing just two putts on the 72nd hole, Schauffele instead took three and ultimately fell in extra holes. Getting a taste of his own medicine, Schauffele lapped the field on Sunday the year prior with an 11-under 62 to beat Gary Woodland by one. The 29-year-old arrives this time around with seven top-five finishes in his last 13 starts, three of which were in the form of wins.
Patrick Cantlay (10-1)
Justin Thomas (11-1): The 15-time winner on the PGA Tour is a player I have a difficult time judging. Is 15 an impressive number of wins? Yes, but for someone of Thomas’ skill, I know he has even more in the tank. Winning the 2021 Players Championship and the 2022 PGA Championship, he has been without a multiple-win season since 2020. It just so happens he beat Schauffele and Patrick Reed in a playoff that year at this very tournament. His seven Tournament of Champions appearances read: T5, third, WIN, third, T22, WIN, T21.
Tony Finau (14-1)
Sungjae Im (16-1)
Viktor Hovland (18-1): He’s the most recent winner in the field — albeit not in an official PGA Tour event — as Hovland outlasted Scheffler at the Hero World Challenge in the beginning of December. Known as the king of the tropics and resort-style golf courses, the 25-year-old from Norway looks to improve on his Tournament of Champions record. With finishes of T30 and T31 in his two prior strolls, tangible improvements in the short-game department could lead to a much more respectable showing for the ball-striking machine.
Collin Morikawa (18-1)
Cameron Young (20-1)
Tom Kim (20-1)
Jordan Spieth (22-1): There is one player who consistently discusses his desire to play at Kapalua each and every year, and that is Spieth. With finishes of second, WIN, T3 and ninth from 2014-18, Spieth returned last season and experienced some growing pains in the form of a T21 result. While his ball-striking numbers have improved, he continues to be an enigma primarily because of his putter. If it’s hot, he could win. If it’s cold, he could finish outside the top 20. Neither would be all too surprising.
Matt Fitzpatrick (22-1)
Sam Burns (25-1)

2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions expert picks

Who will win the Sentry Tournament of Champions, and which longshots will stun the golfing world? Visit SportsLine now to see the projected leaderboard and best bets, all from the model that’s nailed eight golf majors and is up over $9,500 since June 2020.

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2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions picks, field, odds: Surprising predictions from model that nailed 8 majors

detlef32 — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 15:30:52 +0000

After a seven-week break, the PGA Tour schedule resumes this week with the 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions. This is a limited-field event that features just PGA winners from 2022 as well as the top 30 from last season’s final FedEx Cup points list. As one of a number of tournaments with elevated purses starting this year, the Sentry Tournament of Champions 2023 prize pool is $15 million, which is nearly double the $8.2 million purse of last year’s event.

Kapalua Resort in Hawaii will host the tournament, and play will tee off on Thursday, Jan. 5. Jon Rahm, who won once on tour last season, is the 8-1 favorite, while Scottie Scheffler (10-1) is the highest-ranked player in the field at No. 2 in the world. Other contenders in the latest 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions odds from Caesars Sportsbook include Xander Schauffele (10-1), Justin Thomas (10-1) and Patrick Cantlay (12-1). Before locking in your 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions picks, be sure to see the golf predictions and projected leaderboard from the proven computer model at SportsLine.

McClure’s model included J.T. Poston in its best bets to win the 2022 John Deere Classic. That bet hit at +5500, and for the entire tournament, McClure’s best bets returned almost $1,100. At the 2022 Masters, McClure’s model was all over Scottie Scheffler’s first career major championship victory heading into the weekend.

This same model has also nailed a whopping eight majors entering the weekend. Anyone who has followed it has seen massive returns.

Now that the 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions field is locked, SportsLine simulated the tournament 10,000 times, and the results were surprising. Head to SportsLine now to see the projected leaderboard.

Top 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions predictions

One major surprise the model is calling for at the 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions: Patrick Cantlay, an eight-time PGA Tour champion and one of the top favorites, stumbles and doesn’t even crack the top-five. The 30-year-old is coming off a sensational season, which culminated in a top-10 finish at the Tour Championship. Cantlay secured one victory and 11 top-10 finishes, which included a T-4 finish at the Sentry Tournament of Champions.

However, Cantlay struggled with his driving accuracy percentage last season, ranking 93rd on the PGA Tour. In addition, Cantlay ranked outside the top-40 in total putting (153.1) and overall putting average (1.592) last season, which doesn’t bode well for his chances to finish on top of the leaderboard this week. He’s not a strong pick to win it all and there are far better values in the Sentry Tournament of Champions 2023 field.

Another surprise: Matthew Fitzpatrick, an 18-1 longshot, makes a strong run at the title. The 2022 U.S. Open champion has been on a great run since winning his first major last summer. Over his last eight tournaments, including two this season, Fitzpatrick has six top-15 finishes.

Fitzpatrick is arguably the best golfer in the world off the tee as few combine his power and precision. He ranks third in driving accuracy percentage (80.36%) and 10th in driving distance (320), making him one of three players to rank in the top 10 of both. He also has a steady hand on the greens as he’s one of just seven golfers who have yet to three-putt all season. Given his strengths on the course, combined with his long odds, Fitzpatrick carries immense value in 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions bets. See who else to pick here.

How to make 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions picks

The model is also targeting four other golfers with odds of 18-1 or longer who will make surprising runs. Anyone who backs these longshots could hit it big. You can only see the model’s PGA picks here.

So who will win the Sentry Tournament of Champions 2023? And which longshots stun the golfing world? Check out the 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions odds below and then visit SportsLine to see the projected 2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions leaderboard, all from the model that’s nailed eight golf majors, including last year’s Masters.

2023 Sentry Tournament of Champions odds, field

See full Sentry Tournament of Champions 2023 picks, best bets, and predictions here.

Jon Rahm +800
Scottie Scheffler +1000
Xander Schauffele +1000
Justin Thomas +1000
Patrick Cantlay +1200
Viktor Hovland +1800
Tony Finau +1800
Joo-hyung (Tom) Kim +1800
Matthew Fitzpatrick +1800
Sungjae Im +1800
Collin Morikawa +1800
Jordan Spieth +2000
Cam Young +2000
Max Homa +2800
Sam Burns +2800
Will Zalatoris +2800
Hideki Matsuyama +2800
Sahith Theegala +3300
Billy Horschel +4000
Seamus Power +4500
Aaron Wise +4500
Corey Conners +4500
K.H. Lee +5000
Keegan Bradley +5000
Russell Henley +5000
Sepp Straka +5500
Tom Hoge +6000
Adam Scott +6000
Brian Harman +6000
Mackenzie Hughes +7000
Luke List +7500
Trey Mullinax +8000
J.T. Poston +8500
Adam Svensson +8500
J J Spaun +9000
Scott Stallings +10000
Chez Reavie +12500
Chad Ramey +12500
Ryan Brehm +20000

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