Here are the results from my picks of last week #SonyOpen picks.
Ludvig Aberg -9 (T30)
Russel Henley -16 (T4)
Sahith Theegala -1 (CUT)
J.T. Poston -15 (6th)
Harris English -13 (T10)
Were getting close to hitting an outright winner but need to be better.
Tournament details:
Date:Jan 18–21, 2024 Location: PGA WEST – La Quinta Country Club, La Quinta, CA
Where to Watch:GOLF Channel Purse: $8,400,000
2023 Winner: Jon Rahm
A little behind on this weeks preview, the Browns loss this weekend has had me come down with my annual January "Covid" score. Anyway, we got the big names of golf heading out to Cali this weekend.
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler also will be flying out to the West Coast for the tournament, which is spread over three courses: PGA West's Pete Dye Stadium Course, PGA West's Nicklaus Tournament Course and La Quinta Country Club. Scheffler has three top-25 results at The Amex, including a third-place finish in 2020. We’re also set to see Shane Lowry, Patrick Cantlay, Xander Schauffele, Tom Kim, Chris Kirk, Grayson Murray, Tony Finau, Rickie Fowler and Daniel Berger.
Justin Thomas is playing the AmEx for the first time since 2015, where he finished T7, a full 10 months before he even won his first PGA Tour event. Thomas enters the week with +2200 odds.
Picks & Odds:
Xander Schauffele (12-1): Closed like a freight train a year ago to cash a top 10, but this time I’m expecting more from the guy who pops in all the relevant stats. Just needs to find his winning mentality and close this one out.
Sungjae Im (21-1): Mr. Steady. In five appearances, Im’s results at the American Express are 18-11-12-10-12. I also like the fact that he finished fifth at The Sentry two weeks ago and then took the next week off. He should be tan, ready and rested. Ranked 26th in the Official World Golf Ranking, Im does everything well. He has a win at TPC Summerlin, two Top 10 finishes at TPC Scottsdale, a Top 10 last year at TPC Louisiana, and was third at Caves Valley in 2021.
Jason Day (28-1): He finished 2023 with a win at the unofficial Grant Thornton Invitational while playing alongside Lydia Ko in the pairs event. He started 2024 strong as well, with a top 10 at the Sentry, where he finished with an eight-birdie closing round. Day has a good history on these courses and seems to have good momentum coming into the week. Last year was just his second career appearance at La Quinta, but he has made the cut in both events and finished in the top 20 last year.
Adam Hadwin (50-1): Hadwin has a stellar history at the American Express having finished sixth, third, 18th, and runner-up twice. He’s also been excellent at TPC Summerlin and has fared well at TPC Scottsdale and TPC Louisiana. He’s very steady in the stats and is one of the best putters in the field, ranking sixth over the last 24-rounds.
Cam Davis (70-1): Davis closed out 2023 with five Top 10 finishes in his last seven starts. He finished with a round of 65 at The Sentry two weeks ago and rolled that into a 62 in the opening round at the Sony, before cooling off. The numbers are not through the roof for Davis but he is a solid putter who makes a lot of birdies and ranks Top 10 in this field on Par 4s measuring 400-450 yards.
Top 10:
J.T. Poston (+300): I have been riding with Poston for the last two weeks. No reason to think the hot streak stops now. If his putting and par-4 scoring keep up like it has been, then I have no reason to think he can’t cash T10 this week.
Tony Finau (+320): Frankly, Finau should have already been a desert winner here in the past. I expect he will once again push for the title.
Taylor Montgomery (+375): A fifth-place showing here last year sparked his rookie season, and he returns off a T12 at Sony Open where he finished second in SG: Approach. Expect more success in the desert as he seeks win No. 1.
Nick Taylor (+600): This is a full gut play. Something about Nick Taylor's play last week has me thinking it wasn't a fluke (T7 Sony Open).
And now the section everyone waits for....
Co Worker Jims Picks:
Tom Kim 28-1
Sam Burns 30-1
JT Poston 35-1
Jason Day 40-1
Tom Hoge 130-1
Players To Fade:
Scottie Scheffler, Rickie Fowler, Justin Thomas