19th Hole

Vincenzi: Sony Open First Round Leader picks

Published

2 years ago

Jan 10, 2024

The first full-field event of the 2023 golf season is upon us as the PGA Tour stays in Hawaii to play the Sony Open at Waialae Country Club. The short par 70 (7,054) sets up well for accurate players off the tee who can dial it in with their irons and catch a hot putter for the week.

Since 2010, the winners at Waialae have gained 48.6% of their strokes against the field putting, which is the highest of any course on TOUR. In the past five editions of the tournament, there have been nine first-round leaders or co-leaders. Of the nine, four have come from the morning wave, and five have come from the afternoon wave. It appears there is no real advantage to either starting time historically but that may be impacted this year as a result of the weather.

As of Tuesday, the wind looks as if it may be a factor during round one. The early starters should see winds 12 MPH with gusts up to 17 MPH. The afternoon starters will have the more difficult draw. Winds will be around 20 MPH with gusts up to 28 MPH. For this reason, I’d favor AM starters but wouldn’t rule out the PM wave completely.

Sony Open First-Round-Leader Selections

Billy Horschel +8000 (BetRivers)

First-Round Tee Time: 8:20 a.m. Local Time

Last week, we saw veteran Chris Kirk benefit from having some time off. I feel the same may apply to Billy Horschel.

Horschel ended 2023 summer strong, finishing 13th at the 3M Open and 4th at the Wyndham Championship. He then went over to the DP World Tour and finished in the top 20 in three of his four starts, including a T14 at the Alfred Dunhill Links. The busy schedule caught up with the 37-year-old, and he missed the cut at the RSM Classic.

If Billy is recharged, Waialae should be a good course for him to perform well at. He finished 7th here in 2021, posting four rounds of 66 or better (65, 66, 66, 65). Horschel should enter 2024 with a chip on his shoulder.

Justin Suh +8000 (FanDuel, Caesars, BetRivers)

First-Round Tee Time: 1 p.m Local Time

Last season, Justin Suh seemed to have a habit of starting quickly out of the gates and fizzle over the weekend. Therefore, to start 2024, I’ll be looking to target him in the first-round-leader market rather than the outright market.

The numbers would indicate that Suh being a fast starter is indeed the case. In his past 24 rounds, the USC product ranks 1st in the field in Strokes Gained: Total in round one. A short, scoreable course should suit Suh well this week.

Taiga Semikawa +10000 (Caesars)

First-Round Tee Time: 9 a.m Local Time

Taiga Semikawa has been scorching hot of late, finishing in the top ten of four of his past five starts on the Japan Tour, inlcuding a dominant victory in his most recent start. The 23-year-old is busting at the seams with talent, and I believe will eventually become a factor on the PGA Tour. Waialae should provide a pretty comfortable layout for the young Japanese star.

Did I mention he was named after Tiger Woods?

Jhonnatan Vegas +12500 (BetRivers)

First-Round Tee Time: 8:30 a.m Local Time

I am absolutely ecstatic to have Jhonnatan Vegas back on the PGA Tour after an injury hiatus, as he will be featured in my first-round-leader column regularly in 2024.

After eight months off, the Venezuelan played twice this fall on the DP World Tour and looked to have quickly returned to form. After a missed cut to shake off the rust in his first start, he finished 17th at the ISPS Handa Australian Open.

Vegas has historically been a fast starter. In his past 50 rounds, the 39-year-old ranks 6th in the field in Strokes Gained: Total in round one.

Harry Hall +14000 (Bet365)

First-Round Tee Time: 1:10 p.m Local Time

Harry Hall finished 28th in his debut at the Sony Open last season, posting four rounds in the 60’s including an opening round 66. The Englishman has been excellent on resort courses and also finished 3rd (and really should have won) the Charles Schwab at Colonial which shares strong leaderboard correlation with Waialae.

I tend to favor good putters for first-round leader bets and Hall ranks first in the field in Strokes Gained: Putting in the first round in his past 24 rounds.

Nico Echavarria +14000 (Bet365)

First-Round Tee Time: 8:10 a.m Local Time

Nico Echavarria has his specialty courses on Tour, and there’s plenty of reason to believe that Waialae could be one of them. He finished 12th at the course last year and his season started strong with a 25th place finish at The Sentry last week in a loaded field.

Last season, the Colombian won the Puerto Rico Open while missing four straight cuts prior to the win and missing two cuts immediately after demonstrating his love for the coast. As Ernest Hemingway once said, “A man is never lost at sea”.

Joel Dahmen +15000 (BetRivers)

First-Round Tee Time: 8:40 a.m Local Time

Joel Dahmen had a strong fall, finishing 13th at the Sanderson Farms Championship and 7th at the Shriners Children’s Open, gaining 4.6 strokes on approach at TPC Summerlin, which is the most he’d gained since November of 2022.

Dahmen has had some solid starts at Waialae, finishing 22nd at the course in 2019 and 12th in 2020, closing with a 4th round 66.

The fan-favorite will be looking to hit the ground running it 2024.

19th Hole

How much each player won at the 2026 Masters

Published

1 month ago

Apr 13, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

Rory McIlroy made it two wins in as many years at Augusta National, seeing off the challengers on a dramatic Sunday to slip on the green jacket once again. The victory earned Rory a whopping payday of $4.5 million, with Scottie Scheffler his closest challenger earning $2.43 million for his sole runner-up finish.

With a total prize purse of $22.5 million up for grabs, here’s a look at how much each player won at the 2026 Masters tournament.

For players that did not make the cut, they still earned $25k for their efforts at the year’s opening major.

1: Rory McIlroy, $4.5 million
2: Scottie Scheffler, $2.43 million
T3: Tyrrell Hatton, $1.08 million
T3: Russell Henley, $1.08 million
T3: Justin Rose, $1.08 million
T3: Cameron Young, $1.08 million
T7: Collin Morikawa, $725,625
T7: Sam Burns, $725,625
T9: Xander Schauffele, $630,00
T9: Max Homa, $630,00
11: Jake Knapp, $562,500
T12: Jordan Spieth, $427,500
T12: Brooks Koepka, $427,500
T12: Hideki Matsuyama, $427,500
T12: Patrick Reed, $427,500
T12: Patrick Cantlay, $427,500
T12: Jason Day, $427,500
T18: Viktor Hovland, $315,000
T18: Maverick McNealy, $315,000
T18: Matt Fitzpatrick, $315,000
T21: Keegan Bradley, $252,000
T21: Ludvig Aberg, $252,000
T21: Wyndham Clark, $252,000
T24: Matt McCarty, $182,083
T24: Adam Scott, $182,083
T24: Sam Stevens, $182,083
T24: Chris Gotterup, $182,083
T24: Michael Brennan, $182,083
T24: Brian Campbell, $182,083
T30: Alex Noren, $146,250
T30: Harris English, $146,250
T30: Shane Lowry, $146,250
T33: Gary Woodland, $121,500
T33: Dustin Johnson, $121,500
T33: Brian Harman, $121,500
T33: Tommy Fleetwood, $121,500
T33: Ben Griffin, $121,500
T38: Jon Rahm, $105,750
T38: Ryan Gerard, $101,250
T38: Haotong Li, $96,750
T41: Justin Thomas, $92,250
T41: Sepp Straka, $87,750
T41: Jacob Bridgeman, $83,250
T41: Kristoffer Reitan, $78,750
T41: Nick Taylor, $74,250
46: Sungjae Im, $69,750
47: Si Woo Kim, $65,250
48: Aaron Rai, $61,650
T49: Corey Conners, $57,600
T49: Marco Penge, $57,600
51: Kurt Kitayama, $55,250
52: Sergio Garcia, $54,000
53: Rasmus Hojgaard, $52,650
54: Charl Schwartzel, $51,300

19th Hole

CBS’s Sunday Masters coverage slammed by golf fans

Published

1 month ago

Apr 13, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

While Sunday was a dramatic day at the Masters, many golf fans were left feeling frustrated by the CBS final round coverage.

There were plenty of moments that golf fans took to social media to air their frustrations on Sunday over, including a lack of shots being shown throughout the day, being behind the live action, confusion over the approach shots of the final group on 18, and providing an angle for the winning putt where the cup couldn’t be seen.

Here’s a look at some of the criticisms that were directed at the CBS coverage throughout the day on X:

This has been a brutal broadcast for CBS. When the folks from Augusta sit down with them this year, you can bet they’ll talk about this 15 seconds where we have no idea where Rory’s ball went, and Dottie moans. #TheMasters pic.twitter.com/ak3mkpIN7V

— Ryan (@PossiblyRy) April 12, 2026

It’s rare criticism coming in for CBS, who are usually heavily praised for their Masters coverage each year.

19th Hole

The surprise club Tommy Fleetwood says is key to his Masters chances

Published

1 month ago

Apr 7, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

Tommy Fleetwood goes in search for the first major victory of his career again this week, with the Englishman proving to be a popular pick at Augusta National.

Fleetwood’s best showing at Augusta came back in 2024 where he finished T3, and while speaking at his pre-tournament press conference, the 35-year-old emphasized the importance of his 9-wood in his pursuit of the green jacket.

Speaking on Tuesday to media, Fleetwood said:

“It’s a great 9-wood golf course. I think it’s always been — I can’t remember when I first put like a 9-wood in or a high lofted club, but it’s a perfect like 9-wood golf course. I’ve had that in the bag for a few years.”

The Englishman continued, revealing that his strategy for the week won’t just be to hit driver off the tee as much as possible:

“Yeah, it’s funny really because I know Augusta is probably associated with being fairly forgiving off the tee in a way, so you think you can whale around driver a little bit. But I don’t necessarily think that’s always the play for me. I think there’s holes that set up really well where I can draw it with the mini driver if I’m feeling less comfortable with the driver and things like that.”

That strategy he believes will make his TaylorMade Qi10 9-wood extra critical this week in Georgia:

“The biggest thing is the 9-wood for me. If I can put myself in position on the par-5s or the 4th long par-3, like it — for me, I can’t really hit that high 4-iron, so 9-wood helps me a lot.”