KAPALUA, Maui » A large number of golfers playing at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions will tee it up at next week’s Sony Open in Hawaii, including world No. 8 Jason Day.
Twenty-four of the 34 here at this week’s winners-only tournament are extending their stay by taking part in the first full-field event of 2015. Shifting from the Plantation Course to Waialae Country Club is a little like going from the Rocky Mountains of Colorado to the flat plains of Iowa. The 18-hole layouts couldn’t be more different.
The biggest names playing here who didn’t commit to Sony are world No. 4 Bubba Watson, FedEx Cup champion Billy Horschel, Ryan Moore and Patrick Reed.
Some of the bigger names not here this week who will play at the Sony are past U.S. Open winners Webb Simpson and Lucas Glover, three-time major winner Vijay Singh, former British Open champ Justin Leonard and past PGA Championship winner Davis Love III.
Love and Singh aren’t the only golfers on the senior circuit stopping by to pay Waialae a visit. Kenny Perry, Fred Funk and Paul Goydos, who won the Pacific Links Championship in September, will also be on the grounds.
Goydos is one of 10 past Sony Open champions teeing it up next week. The other nine are Singh, K.J. Choi, Russell Henley, Zach Johnson, Jerry Kelly, Ryan Palmer, Johnson Wagner, Mark Wilson and defending champion Jimmy Walker.
Two young players to keep an eye on are Carlos Ortiz and Justin Thomas. The Sony runs from Thursday through Sunday.
Day is a Buckeyes fan
Day married into the Ohio State family and is of course, pulling for the Buckeyes in Monday’s national championship game with the Oregon Ducks.
His wife, Ellie, who went to Ohio State, has transformed the Aussie. So much so, they currently live in Westerville, Ohio, a suburb of Columbus.
He and fellow golfer Ben Crane, a 1999 graduate of Oregon, are looking forward to Monday’s matchup.
"That’s going to be an exciting game," said Day, who is still learning American football. "I’m looking forward to catching a bit of it. You know, it feels like we have about 85 quarterbacks on the team, which is nice. And you know, good running team that can beat you on deep passes.
"So, I think we’re going to give Oregon a good run for their money, but Oregon is a tough team. Marcus (Mariota), the Heisman winner this year, is an unbelievable quarterback, and you know, very fast-paced, quick Oregon team."
When questioned about knowing American football, Day said, "Does it sound like I can talk? Because I was just talking bull crap. I just made that up in my head. See, I’m very quiet in a group and whatever people say, I’m going to say that and then the next phrase, I say that and then I just put it all together and it sounds all right."
Inside the numbers
The scoring average for Friday’s opening round was 69.471 in ideal conditions. There were five eagles and 164 birdies carded by the 34 golfers, with just 44 bogeys and five doubles.
The easiest hole on the course was the par-5 fifth with a scoring average of 4.265 There were two eagles, 21 birdies and 11 pars at that hole. The most difficult was the par-3 eighth with a scoring average of 3.059 with four birdies, 24 pars and six bogeys.
