J.J. Spaun
J.J. Spaun has just as good of a chance to win the Sony Open as any player in this field, but he shouldn’t be an overly popular pick in One and Done pools. Why? Because there are many big names competing – Russell Henley, Ben Griffin and Hideki Matsuyama are likely to be the most popular choices – and because Spaun has missed the cut in five of his eight starts at Waialae Country Club.
While on paper this is concerning, most of these mishaps came earlier in Spaun’s career, when he wasn’t half the player he is now and in his last three starts at Waialae CC, Spaun has made some serious noise, finishing T-12, MC and a career-best T-3 last season. The 35-year-old was the leader of last year’s Sony Open following the third round and he should contend again this week, coming off his best season on the PGA TOUR to date.
Spaun made 21-of-25 cuts last season and he finished inside the top-10 seven times. He impressively won the U.S. Open at the grueling Oakmont CC and he nearly secured many other victories, finishing runner-up at the Cognizant Classic, THE PLAYERS Championship and the FedEx St. Jude Championship. Over the course of the season, Spaun moved himself from No. 115 in the world rankings to a career-best No. 6.
While an unofficial event, Spaun most recently just finished T-4 at the Hero World Challenge last month, which is just one of his many high finishes at courses with Bermuda greens, which is the type of putting surface he will face this week at Waialae CC. Spaun ranked seventh in strokes gained per round at venues with Bermuda greens last season and he also ranked fifth in SG APP, which bodes extremely well for Waialae CC. Of the last five winners at this track, three finished the event top-five in SG APP.
Lastly, Spaun ranks 15th on the PGA TOUR in par performance, which is another great sign for Waialae CC. This tropical venue is a traditional par 70 that features 12 par fours and four of the last five victors at Waialae CC have finished the tournament top-10 in par four efficiency.
Spaun’s +1800 odds to win the Sony Open are the fourth-best on DraftKings Sportsbook and he should start his 2026 campaign with a high finish this week.
