Sony Open in Hawaii 2025 Preview, Picks & Analysis

There was not a dry eye in the house when Grayson Murray claimed the Sony Open 12 months ago.

The 30-year-old had been to hell and back since winning the Barbasol Championship in July 2017. He had struggled to overcome mental health issues and had also opened up about his battles with drugs and drink. 

It looked like there could be no way back for him but, against all the odds, he beat a world-class field, seeing off Keegan Bradley and Ben An in a playoff after finishing the tournament on 263, 17 under par.

But barely four months later, Murray was dead. He withdrew from the Charles Schwab Challenge in Fort Worth, citing an illness and the following day took his own life. It was an unfathomable tragedy and raised questions about the PGA Tour’s care of their players.

Before a shot is hit in anger at this week’s Sony Open, players caddies and spectators will surely take some time to remember Murray.

There will be much attention on the form of Bradley. Having lost in a playoff here he went on to enjoy a fine season. Named US Ryder Cup captain, he finds himself with something of a conundrum on his hands. Not since Arnold Palmer has the USA had a playing captain and the demands of the job have changed massively since then. If Bradley qualifies for his own team - and there is every chance that he will do so - he is going to have to ask somebody else to stand in for him.

Last season was a year that saw a number of players who had been struggling rediscovering their best form. One of these was Billy Horschel, who is riding high in the Ryder Cup standings.

A favourite on the DP World Tour, he produced a stunning performance to defeat Rory McIlroy in a playoff to win the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, holing an eagle putt to beat the Northern Irishman.

Horschel represented the United States at the Palmer Cup in 2007 and 2008, gaining 4.5 points. He also enjoyed a 3–1 record for the winning US Walker Cup team in 2007.

He won the individual medalist honors at the 2006 US Amateur, shooting a two-day score of 138 (60-78, -5) at Hazeltine. His opening round of 60 was an 18-hole tournament and USGA record. He failed to make it past the third round of matchplay.

He turned professional in 2009. In December 2009, he gained a 2010 PGA Tour card through qualifying school. A wrist injury limited Horschel to four PGA Tour events that year, and he did not make the cut in any of them.

In December 2010, he regained his Tour card and made the cut at the Mayakoba Classic, his first in 11 PGA Tour starts, finishing tied 13th. Horschel finished the season 140th on the money list, granting him conditional status for 2012.

Horschel finished third at the 2012 True South Classic, but only finished 147th on the 2012 money list. 

After his third successful attempt in four trips to Q School, he earned his PGA Tour Card for 2013. He began his season by making the cut in every tournament he entered. He had three consecutive top-10 finishes before his breakthrough win at the 2013 Zurich Classic of New Orleans in his 61st PGA Tour start. Horschel made six consecutive birdies in the fourth round and won by one stroke. The win took Horschel to third in the FedEx Cup standings, third on the PGA Tour money list, and 49th in the world rankings. It also earned him entry to the 2013 US PGA, the 2013 WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, the Players and the 2014 Masters. 

His world ranking also earned him entry into the US Open. By the end of April 2013, Horschel led the PGA Tour in consecutive cuts made with 23, a streak that ended when he missed the cut at the Players.

His second win came at the 2014 BMW Championship and the following week he also secured the Tour Championship and the FedEx Cup, winning the FedEx Cup.

Two days after winning the Tour Championship and FedEx Cup, Horschel became a father for the first time.

In May 2017, he won the AT&T Byron Nelson. And in April 2018 he won the Zurich Classic with Scott Piercy.

In March 2021, Horschel won the WGC-Dell Technologies Matchplay, beating Scottie Scheffler 2&1 in the final. In September that year he landed the BMW PGA after shooting a final round of 65.

His seventh PGA Tour victory came at the Memorial In June 2022 and later that year he was a member of the US team that won the Presidents Cup.

He struggled for much of 2023 but returned to the winners’ circle at the Corales Puntacana Championship in 2024. 

Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama is another who returned to something approaching his best in 2024 and picked up where he left off at last week’s Tournament of Champions. He will be hoping to add another win this week.

Tournament Winners:

It was won in 2017 by Justin Thomas, in 2018 by Patton Kizzire, in 2019 by Matt Kuchar, in 2020 by Cameron Smith, in 2021 by Kevin Na, in 2022 by Hideki Matsuyama, in 2023 by Si Woo Kim and last year by the late Grayson Murray.

The Course:

Waialae is a par 70 measuring just 7,044 yards. Its only real defence is the wind, and you can expect to see some very low scoring. When Justin Thomas won here in 2017 he opened with a 59 and won with a 72-hole score of 253, 27 under par.

Form Guide:

Hideki Matsuyama ripped this course to shreds when he won in 2022 and is back to something approaching his best, as he showed at the Tournament of Champions.

Prize Money:

There is a prize fund of $8.7m, with 500 FedEx Cup points and $1.5m up for grabs for the winner.

How to Watch:

Thursday, January 9, Friday, January 10, Sky Sports Golf, 5pm, Saturday, January 11, Sky Sports Golf, 8.30pm, Sunday, January 12, Sky Sports Golf, 6pm.

To Win:

Hideki Matsuyama. Loves this place

Each Way:

Billy Horschel. Back to his best

Each Way:

Robert MacIntyre. Now in his element

Five to Follow:

Hideki Matsuyama. Will be hoping to stay fit

Billy Horschel. Wonderful short game

Robert MacIntyre. Loving life on the PGA Tour

Tom Kim. Hugely entertaining

Joel Dahmen. Looking for an easier ride in 2025

Five Outsiders to Watch:

Keegan Bradley. American Ryder Cup captain

Webb Simpson. Looking to rediscover the old magic

Ryo Hisatsune. Excellent Japanese player

Ryan Palmer. Getting ready for Champions Tour

Max McGreevy. Korn Ferry Tour graduate