PGA TOUR
SONY OPEN
Site: Honolulu.
Course: Waialae CC. Yardage: 7,044. Par: 70.
Purse: $6.6 million. Winner's share: $1,188,000.
Television: Thursday-Saturday, 7-10:30 p.m. (Golf Channel); Sunday, 6-10 p.m. (Golf Channel).
Defending champion: Matt Kuchar.
FedEx Cup leader: Justin Thomas.
Last week: Justin Thomas won the Sentry Tournament of Champions.
Notes: All but 11 players from the winners-only field at Kapalua are playing the Sony Open. Among those skipping are five players from the top 20 in the world, including Xander Schauffele, Patrick Cantlay, Dustin Johnson and Gary Woodland. ... Justin Thomas and Ernie Els are the only players to sweep the Hawaii swing at Kapalua and Waialae. ... Thomas set the PGA Tour scoring record in 2017 at the Sony Open at 253. He opened with a 59. ... Jordan Spieth was entered and then withdrew with a minor illness. He is expected to return at Torrey Pines. ... The field also includes Hideki Matsuyama, Kevin Kisner and Patrick Reed. ... This is the 20-year anniversary of Paul Azinger winning the Sony Open for his final PGA Tour victory. Azinger says the victory kept him from an offer to join CBS Sports as an analyst.
Next week: The American Express.
Online: www.pgatour.com
