Editor’s Note: This is a guest post from PoolGenius, whose subscribers have reported more than $10 million in pool winnings across all sports using their tools.
The 2026 PGA Tour season starts this week at Waialae, and we have 2026 Sony Open One and Done Picks on the board.
With the Sentry Tournament of Champions canceled due to drought and water issues on Maui, a lot of pools begin here, which makes this week feel slightly bigger than usual.
The Sony Open purse is $9,100,000, with $1,566,000 going to the winner. That ranks in the bottom half of non-Signature Events in 2026, so the goal is simple: give yourself real win equity without burning a golfer you will want for a bigger purse later.
Get Optimal Sony Open One and Done Picks Now
If you want the shortcut to smarter Sony Open One and Done picks, this is it.
PoolGenius has a Golf One and Done Picks Tool that puts the key info in one place so you can make a decision quickly, without guessing or juggling a dozen tabs.
Here’s a quick idea of what it looks like (this example is pulled from last year).
More on that below, plus a quick look at how to think about this week’s board. But if you want to skip ahead and start planning today, PoolGenius makes it easy.
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2026 Sony Open Picks
This is a strong field, but it's not completely loaded.
There are 120 golfers in the field, and about half of last year’s FedEx Cup Top 50 are playing. That’s enough depth that you can pick a proven name, or you can get a little weird without feeling totally reckless.
Sony Open Returning Champions
There are multiple recent Sony Open winners who are in the field this time around:
- Nick Taylor (2025)
- Si Woo Kim (2023)
- Hideki Matsuyama (2022)
- Russell Henley (2013)
A quick reminder about how this event has played out lately. Russell Henley tied for the lead in 2022 before losing in a playoff. Nico Echavarria had the same heartbreak in 2025, losing to Taylor in extra holes.
Top Sony Open Contenders via Betting Odds
Here are the top golfers in terms of outright betting odds for the Sony Open as of Tuesday morning:
- Russell Henley, +1100
- Hideki Matsuyama, +1600
- Ben Griffin, +1800
- J.J. Spaun, +1800
- Keegan Bradley, +1800
- Si Woo Kim, +2000
- Collin Morikawa, +2000
A lot of familiar names are back near the top again. Last year, Taylor was priced more like a long shot and still won. This year, Taylor is shorter but still outside the top 10 in terms of outright odds.
Morikawa is the one name in the top tier of odds who did not play here last year.
He has started well in Hawaii recently, mostly at The Sentry, but he has not played the Sony Open since 2021. That’s not necessarily bad. It just makes him a little tougher to analyze than those with a recent history here.
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Projected Most Popular Sony Open Picks
Pick popularity is not the only thing that matters, but it does play a role — especially in larger pools or in formats that pay down the leaderboard.
We don't project any single golfer to be the runaway chalk this week. There are too many reasonable picks, and the field should be somewhat spread out.
Here are the top projected popularity plays to know about:
- Keegan Bradley (about 12%)
- J.J. Spaun (about 10%)
- Russell Henley (just over 8%)
- Nick Taylor (around 7%)
- Si Woo Kim (around 5.5%)
- Hideki Matsuyama (around 5.5%)
Bradley is the closest thing to chalk, mostly because the case is clear. He has strong odds and top-end recent finishes here. But even then, his popularity is not prohibitive. It is more “safe and sensible” than “if you don't take him, you're drawing dead.”
Best Sony Open One and Done Picks for 2026
There isn’t one clear best pick this week. That’s usually the case for most tournaments, but it’s especially true here since the purse is smaller and the odds are clustered with a bunch of players in the same range.
Top Golfers to Consider
If you want a quick shortlist, start here. These are strong Sony Open One and Done picks to consider with different risk profiles depending on how aggressive you want to be.
- Keegan Bradley: The closest thing to chalk but not so popular that it’s prohibitive. He’s near the top of the odds board and has finished sixth and second here the last two years.
- Si Woo Kim: Past champion with real win equity and typically less “save him for later” pressure than the biggest names. If you want upside without burning a true premium golfer, Kim fits the bill.
- Hideki Matsuyama: Also a past champion, but he leans more toward the "save" category because he can win big events when he gets hot. If you use him here and he wins, great. But if he doesn’t contend, you might feel it when the bigger purses show up.
- Collin Morikawa: More of a sneaky risk-reward type pick. He has lower projected popularity because he hasn’t played here recently. If you think he’s due for a rebound, this is a reasonable early-season swing, but the downside is you may wish you saved him for a bigger purse week later.
There are more golfers in play further down the odds board, too. If you want the full breakdown with pick grades and an optimizer tailored to your exact pool setup, grab the PoolGenius Golf One and Done Picks free trial.
What About Russell Henley, Ben Griffin and J.J. Spaun?
All of these golfers sit near the top of the odds board (Henley is the outright favorite), so why aren’t they listed in the section above? The real question is future value.
In a standard one-and-done season, you're making 31 picks, and more than half of those tournaments will have bigger purses than the Sony Open.
So, even if a golfer has strong win equity here, you still have to ask whether you want him later when the payouts jump.
Henley is the best example. His odds will draw plenty of picks, but when you zoom out to a season planner, he often looks like someone you would rather deploy in a higher purse spot.
That exact risk-reward tradeoff is what the Golf One and Done Picks Tool is built to help you decide.
Get Custom Picks for Your One and Done Pool All Season
If you're already stressing about Week 1, that's normal. This is the week where people talk themselves into a decision and then immediately question it.
The easiest fix is having the right view of the season. That's what the PoolGenius Golf One and Done Picks Tool is built for.
You get pick grades customized to your pool rules, plus a planner that helps you see the downstream impact of using a golfer now versus saving him for later.
If you want the smart shortcut for golf one and done picks for the entire season, this is the way to do it.
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