2022 Sony Open: Top 10 power rankings at Waialae

The PGA Tour continues its two-week stay in Hawaii with the Sony Open. We island hop from Maui to Honolulu. Specifically, the venue is Waialae Country Club, which has hosted this event since its inception in 1965.

Waialae was founded in 1927 and was designed by one of golf’s classic architects, Seth Raynor. It’s a 7,044-yard par-70 layout that contrasts greatly with last week’s Sentry Tournament of Champions venue, Kapalua. Kapalua is a longer par-73 with wide fairways, big slopes and fairly large greens.

Waialae is much flatter, tighter off the tee and with smaller greens. Length is not a huge asset this week. Hitting fairways is key, as well as sharp iron play and a good short game. While you can’t bomb it off the tee,  players still need to be aggressive on the approach to score low.

Early power rankings of 2022 Sony Open show tough competition awaits

Aside from Cameron Smith’s victory at 11-under in 2020, the winning score has been 17-under or better every year since 2013. The Sony Open is the first full-field event of 2022, featuring 144 players vying for the 36-hole cut of top 65 and ties.

This is an event a lot of big names tend to eschew. Many do not want to hang around in Hawaii for two full weeks, choosing rest with a loaded West Coast swing on the mainland forthcoming.

There is one top-10 player from the Official World Golf Rankings in the field as well as six of the top 25 after Bryson DeChambeau withdrew Monday.

The early weather forecast looks pleasant. Temperatures are expected to be in the 60s to low 80s with dry, sunny and slightly windy conditions. No mudders are needed this week.

I could rightfully go with about 20-25 guys for this week’s top power rankings. I’ve done my best to whittle it down to 10 who are primed to hang loose in Hawaii.