Steady winds and an unusually mild golf course gave players something different to think about during the first round of the 2025 Sentry. While some struggled with the atypical conditions, that’s not the case of Tom Hoge. Registering 10 birdies against just one bogey, the former PGA Tour winner shot a 9-under 64 in the first round of the PGA Tour season to take a one-shot lead over Will Zalatoris and Hideki Matsuyama, Collin Morikawa didn’t being just one. further back.
Hoge and Zalatoris are aiming for the second victories of their respective careers as Matsuyama cruises to another PGA Tour title. Meanwhile, it’s Morikawa who yearns for something more and seeks to right a wrong committed two seasons ago. In firm control of the 2023 tournament before a back-nine collapse, the two-time major champion enters the new year as motivated as ever to win on a golf course where he has notched five top 10s in five previous attempts.
“I don’t know (what it is about this golf course),” Morikawa said. “No, there are certain courses where you feel like you can birdie every hole. It’s not like a forced thing that you can do, but I feel like here you make it good approach shots, you can make a few putts, and luckily I’ve made a lot of putts over the years. Today was just to focus on today and I’ll worry about tomorrow, when tomorrow comes.”
Paired with Presidents Cup teammates Patrick Cantlay and Sam Burns, Morikawa showed his prowess early and often. Three birdies on the front nine set the table for a run on the back nine that propelled his name up the leaderboard. Birdie putts from inside 8 feet fell on Nos. 12 and 13 before a 20-foot conversion happened right away. A nice shot under the surface on the par-5 15th allowed Morikawa to make the seventh and final birdie of his bogey-free round.
Morikawa joined Cameron Young at 7 under with his late charge and was then overtaken by Matsuyama, who had one of his own highlighted by an eagle at No. 15. After a two-win season in 2024, the Japanese is looking for more of the same in 2025 as he seeks his third trophy in his last 18 starts to go with his bronze medal at the Paris Olympics last summer .
The leader
1. Tom Hoge (-9)
The first man on the golf course Thursday morning was the first name atop the leaderboard at the end of the day. For his third tournament appearance, Hoge relied heavily on his putter as he gained around +3.50 strokes on the greens, which even included a three-putt bogey on the par-4 6th. This club will tell the story Hoge’s story over the next 54 holes. While that was a strength on Thursday, it has generally been a weakness throughout his career.
“I feel like it’s a golf course that suits me well,” Hoge said. “There’s a little bit of space off the tee, so you can drive it into a lot of fairways. And then you hit good irons, you feel like you can make a lot of birdies here. I have l “I feel like I should play well, and I hope I can continue like this.”
Other contenders
T2. Will Zalatoris, Hideki Matsuyama (-8)
T4. Collin Morikawa, Cameron Young, Corey Conners (-7)
T7. Tony Finau, Adam Hadwin, Thomas Detry (-6)
T10. Jhonattan Vegas, Harry Hall, Aaron Rai, Austin Eckroat, Maverick McNealy (-5)
It’s not often that a golfer makes a concerted effort to get stronger, but that’s exactly what Zalatoris did this offseason. Putting on over 15 pounds of muscle, the right-hander hit the gym in order to maintain his speed more sustainably. Returning in 2024 following back surgery, Zalatoris is off to a strong start with quality results at the Genesis Invitational and the Masters. He fell flat the rest of the year and failed to crack the top 10 again in the final four months.
With the added weight, Zalatoris feels as healthy as ever, and that showed in his first round of the year when he hit 16 greens in regulation and looked comfortable with broom putter in hand. Now all he has to do is maintain it.
“I usually end up losing between 5 and 10 pounds each year,” Zalatoris said. “I left Colorado (BMW Championship) at 163, and I weighed before I left at 182. I put in, it was a lot of work, a lot of work in the gym with Damon Goddard, a lot of work with I want just making sure that — I want, you know, longevity, I mean, obviously I could stand on any tee and throw a 180 ball speed, but I want to do that for as long as I can. I hope this is something that will help in the long term.”
Beware of the injured golfer
Last week in golf, world number one Scottie Scheffler injured his hand while preparing Christmas dinner and Viktor Hovland broke his little toe on the foot of his bed. Despite the pain and visible limp in his right foot toward the end of his round, Hovland gutted it out and posted a 70 to climb just outside the top 20.
Hovland spoke with the PGA Tour before the start of the tournament to detail the events of his injury. Flying from Norway to Hawaii, the former FedEx Cup champion checked into his hotel room, immediately passed out and woke up to stub his toe on his bed.
Updated Odds and Picks for 2025 Sentry
- Collin Morikawa: 4-1
- Hideki Matsuyama: 9/2
- Cameron Young: 9-1
- Corey Conners: 9-1
- Will Zalatoris: 9-1
- Tom Hoge: 10-1
- Tony debate: 16-1
- Ludvig Aberg: 22-1
There’s something weird cooking at the Plantation Course. In a tournament often referred to as a putting contest, some of the worst putters in the field found their rhythm on the greens. Conventional wisdom suggests that they will fall back to earth, which presents a nice buying opportunity after the first round. Morikawa and Matsuyama are the legitimate favorites, but there are attractive prices a little further out, with Åberg attracting the most interest at 4 under after a lackluster day with the driver.
