This year’s Sony Open will take place Thursday, January 11 through Sunday, January 14 at Waialae Country Club in Honolulu, Hawaii. Si Woo Kim narrowly defeated Hayden Buckley by one stroke last year and figures to return again in 2024 to defend his title. Below, we will provide a betting guide for the 2024 contest, which will include Sony Open odds as soon as they are posted by top sportsbooks.
SONY OPEN ODDS
Sony Open odds have been posted by top sportsbooks. Ludvig Aberg (+1200) and Matt Fitzpatrick (+1600) opened as the Sony Open betting favorites.
The 2024 Sony Open field is expected to officially be announced on Friday, January 5. Until then, here are the odds for John Haslbauer’s projected favorites a month out from the event.
- Justin Thomas +800
- Hideki Matsuyama +1000
- Collin Morikawa +1400
- Webb Simpson +2000
- Russell Henley +2000
Waialae Country Club AND COURSE TRENDS
Waialae Country Club is your quintessential short, positional course setup, which removes any advantage from longer hitters in the field and instead places a premium on Driving Accuracy and precise iron play. Waialae features Bermuda grass throughout and is prone to high-gusting winds near the Hawaiian coastline.
In terms of Course History, Webb Simpson, Justin Thomas, Russell Henley, Matt Kuchar, and Corey Conners highlight the list of players who have repeatedly played well here, suggesting a strong comp to other events on short, positional courses like the Sedgefield CC and Harbour Town.
How It Breaks Down
At 7,044 yards, this course sets up below TOUR average in distance for a Par-70 with just two Par-5s, four Par-3s, and 12 Par-4s. Par-5 Scoring at the Sony Open is ranked as the easiest on TOUR, and both holes should be reachable in two for virtually all players in the field, regardless of their distance off the tee. That puts a particular emphasis on Par-4 Scoring this week, with 10 holes concentrated to the 400-500 yard range.
Traits and Notable Facts
A look down the list of past winners and consistent past contenders at this event shows a strong pattern of success from accurate plodders and short-game specialists. In each of the last two years, this event ranked bottom-three in both Par-3 and Par-5 Scoring Difficulty, so contenders will need to take advantage of these scoring holes.
Waialae CC also routinely ranks bottom-three in Approach and Around The Green Difficulty, which is the usual formula for a putting contest on the PGA TOUR. These elements will put an emphasis on Par-4 Scoring and Driving Accuracy, and should continue to favor the most skilled long-term putters, particularly on Bermuda greens.
WAIALAE COUNTRY CLUB COURSE SPECS
- Yards: 7,044
- Par: 70 (4x 3s / 12x 4s / 2x 5s)
- Greens: Bermuda (Average speed)
- Rough: 3″ Bermuda (Thick)
- Average Green Size: 7,100 sq. ft (Above-Average)
- Average Fairway Width: 37 Yards (Above-Average)
- Architect: Seth Raynor (with renovations/input from Robert Trent Jones, Desmond Muirhead, Rick Smith, and Tom Doak)
- Historical Cut Line: -1 to -2
- Comp Courses: Port Royal, Pebble Beach, Harbour Town, El Camaleon, Sea Island GC, Sedgefield CC, Colonial CC, Innisbrook Resort
SONY OPEN ODDS: BETTING TRENDS
The list of winners of the last 11 years at the Sony Open has a little something for everyone. Over that span, this event produced three winners at 20-1 odds or shorter, four winners between 40-1 and 55-1 odds, and four winners between 80-1 and 100-1 odds. While difficult to discern any actionable trends from the odds alone, the scoring has told a more conclusive story. Seven of the last 11 winners surpassed a score of -20 and the field median score reached a high of -12 twice in the last three years.
Cam Smith’s win at -11 in 2020 is a clear outlier under extremely windy conditions, so it is worth dismissing some players’ 2020 results. It seems the efforts to grow out the rough in 2023 have been made to push back against the recent easier scoring conditions, so I anticipate a winning score of -20 or less this time around.
| Year | Winner | Pre-Tournament Odds | Winning Score | Field Median Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Si Woo Kim | +4500 | -18 | -9 |
| 2022 | Hideki Matsuyama | +2000 | -23 | -12 |
| 2021 | Kevin Na | +8000 | -21 | -12 |
| 2020 | Cam Smith | +5500 | -11 | -3 |
| 2019 | Matt Kuchar | +4000 | -22 | -8 |
| 2018 | Patton Kizzire | +8000 | -17 | -9 |
| 2017 | Justin Thomas | +1400 | -27 | -10 |
| 2016 | Fabian Gomez | +10000 | -20 | -9 |
| 2015 | Jimmy Walker | +1800 | -23 | -7 |
| 2014 | Jimmy Walker | +4000 | -17 | -6 |
| 2013 | Russell Henley | +10000 | -24 | -8 |
How to bet the sony open
As the 2024 Sony Open draws closer, sportsbooks will post the event betting menu that will include Sony Open golf odds for the outright winner, top-20 finish, and other player props. Keep in mind the sportsbook is not going to offer as many wagering options compared to majors like The Masters and PGA Championship.
Making a pre-tournament bet on the outright Sony Open winner is a popular option. Plus, sportsbook might offer the best player odds prior to the first round versus the weekend. Looking at the chart above, the last five winners all opened with odds of +2000 or longer, making for a nice payout once the final round was completed.
Using 2023 winner Si Woo Kim (+4500) as an example, anybody who wagered $100 on Kim pre-tournament to win last year’s event cashed a winning ticket of $4,600 – $4,500 profit plus the initial stake back. A $10 bet paid out $460. Player odds will shift throughout the tournament based on how the golfer is performing compared to the rest of the field. If you’re between two or three golfers as your outright winner, you can place seperate bets on each player or look at the odds for a top-5 finish. However, odds for the latter are going to be much shorter as the player can finish in the top five for the ticket to cash.