Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images
How can fans tune into the Sony Open in Hawaii? Here is everything you need to know about the PGA Tour’s first full-field event of 2024.
The PGA Tour remains in the Hawaiian Islands this week for the Sony Open in Hawaii, the second event of the 2024 season.
One hundred forty-four players will tee it up at Waialae Country Club in Honolulu, meaning this week’s tournament is the first full-field event of the season.
This week will also be a special one for a couple of players, as Will Zalatoris and Gary Woodland will tee it up after extended absences.
Here is everything to know about the Sony Open in Hawaii:
Sony Open in Hawaii Information:
Where: Waialae Country Club, Honolulu, Hawaii (Par 70, 7,044 yards)
When: Jan. 11-14th
Purse: $8,300,000 / First Place: $1,494,000
FedEx Cup points: 500
Defending Champ: Si Woo Kim
How to Watch the Sony Open in Hawaii:
Fans can tune into the action this week on Golf Channel and NBC.
With it being the second straight tournament in Hawaii, fans in the continental United States will get to enjoy primetime golf. Hawaii is five hours behind Eastern Standard Time, so remember that when looking for coverage.
The first three rounds will air on Golf Channel, while the final round will see its coverage split between NBC and Golf Channel.
Here is the full schedule for network coverage:
Thursday, Jan. 11: 7-10:30 p.m. ET (Golf Channel)
Friday, Jan. 12: 7-10:30 p.m. ET (Golf Channel)
Saturday, Jan. 13: 7-10:30 p.m. ET (Golf Channel)
Sunday, Jan. 14: 4-6 p.m. ET (NBC); 6-8 p.m. ET (Golf Channel)
Photo by Ken Murray/Getty Images
The famous 16th hole at Waialae Country Club, the host of the Sony Open in Hawaii.
How to Stream the Sony Open in Hawaii:
Peacock and ESPN+ will stream the Sony Open in Hawaii.
ESPN+ will have featured group coverage, while Peacock will simulcast the broadcast all four days of the tournament. Coverage can be streamed on Peacock here.
ESPN+’s featured group coverage will start at Noon ET on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday and conclude at 7 p.m. ET.
Then, ESPN+ will air featured hole coverage alongside the Golf Channel broadcast from 7 p.m. ET to 10:30 p.m. ET on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. ESPN selected Waialae’s famous par-4 16th for its featured hole coverage this week.
For Sunday’s final round, ESPN+ will stream featured group coverage from 10:45 a.m. ET to 4 p.m. ET. Featured hole coverage will air from 4 p.m. ET to 8 p.m. ET.
The Sony Open in Hawaii Preview
Another week in paradise is here as PGA Tour players are preparing for the Sony Open in Hawaii at Waialae Country Club in Honolulu.
Defending champion Si Woo Kim hopes to defend his title as he is once again in the field. He won last year at 18-under, so look for another birdie fest as players look to get early FedEx Cup points. Plus, wet conditions have softened the area, thus creating even better scoring conditions on an already benign golf course.
As for significant storylines this week, perhaps no bigger story is more remarkable than Woodland and Zalatoris making their return. Both had surgery that kept them off the course for months.
Woodland, a former U.S. Open champion, had surgery to remove a brain lesion in September. His last PGA Tour start came at the Wyndham Championship in early August. But Woodland missed the FedEx Cup playoffs because he finished 94th in the rankings.
Zalatoris, meanwhile, last teed it up at the Hero World Challenge in December. But the former Wake Forest Demon Deacon has not played a sanctioned event since last March at the World Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play in Austin, Texas.
Other notables in the field this week include Chris Kirk, who won The Sentry last week in Maui. Kirk loves this track. He finished third at last year’s Sony Open in Hawaii.
Sahith Theegala, Jordan Spieth, and reigning Open champ Brian Harman all finished inside the Top 5 at the Sentry and will again tee it up this week. These three stars hope to keep their hot streak alive.
Theegala challenged Kirk on Sunday, but two costly mistakes saw him finish in solo second place.
A lot of youngsters will portray their next-generation talent this week, too. Akshay Bhatia and Ludvig Åberg lead the way on that front, but they will be joined by Pierceson Coody and Dumont de Chassart. Blaze Akana—a golfer from the University of Hawaii—is one of the sponsor exemptions this week. Akana is the youngest player in the field at 19 years old.
The Sony Open Tee Times Round 1 (ET)
TBD
Savannah Leigh Richardson is a golf staff writer for S.B. Nation’s Playing Through. For more golf coverage, be sure to follow us @_PlayingThrough on all major social platforms. You can also follow her on Twitter @SportsGirlSL and Instagram @savannah_leigh_sports.
