Best Bets at the 2021 Sentry Tournament of Champions

The first PGA Tour event of the new year will take place in beautiful Hawaii. While most of the United States is dealing with winter weather, the best golfers in the world will converge in the middle of the Pacific Ocean to play in the Sentry Tournament of Champions. This event is usually only open to golfers that won an event the previous year, but the decision was made to expand the field to 45 entrants due to COVID wreaking havoc on the 2020 schedule. All but three of the 45 eligible golfers will be in Hawaii as Rory McIlroy, Tyrrell Hatton, and Jim Herman won’t be taking part in this event.

Event Details

Event: Sentry Tournament of Champions

Category: PGA Tour

Date: January 7-10, 2021

Location: Kapalua Resort, Kapalua, Hawaii

Past Winners

2020: Justin Thomas -14

2019: Xander Schauffele -23

2018: Dustin Johnson -24

2017: Justin Thomas -22

2016: Jordan Spieth -30

The two betting favorites to win the Sentry Tournament of Champions are Dustin Johnson and Justin Thomas. Johnson and Thomas are two of the three players (Jon Rahm being the other) with odds of less than 11-1 at this event, and both players have previously won this tournament on two separate occasions.

On the other end of the spectrum, the longest odds to win this event belong to Brian Gay at 350-1. Gay will be eligible for the Champions Tour next year, and he earned his place here after beating a diminished field at the Bermuda Championship in November.

The Course

The Sentry Tournament of Champions was previously held in Las Vegas and southern California, but the event moved to Hawaii a little more than two decades ago. It is played on Kapalua’s Plantation Course, which is the only par 73 course on the PGA Tour.

This is a unique course in that there are six holes longer than 500 yards. However, there are also four extremely reachable par fours of less than 400 yards, allowing golfers to put up big numbers. Thomas’ 14-under last year was the worst winning score since 2007, and the winner has finished 21-under or better in nine of the last 12 years.

Value Play to Win the Tournament: Hideki Matsuyama +1800

Matsuyama played well in his last two events back in November. The 28-year-old closed out strong over the weekend at the Vivint Houston Open with a 66 on Saturday and a 63 on Sunday to finish T2. He followed that up with a T13 at the Masters, but he could only manage to hit par on the final two days after entering the weekend with back-to-back 68’s.

It’s been three years since Matsuyama took part in the Sentry Tournament of Champions, but he was excellent here in his previous three appearances. He finished 3^rd in 2015, 2^nd in 2017, and 4^th in 2018. That may make you want to bet on Matsuyama to finish in the top five at +375 too.

Top 5 Prop: Bryson DeChambeau +235

DeChambeau is too tempting to turn down at this price. His newfound strength should benefit him on these long par fives, and this course doesn’t punish inaccuracy as much as more demanding courses. Last year’s US Open winner didn’t play well at the Masters in his most recent tournament, but that course was not conducive to his game. DeChambeau finished 7^th here in 2019.

Follow our Twitter account for the latest sports news and wagering odds, and come to our Instagram for more useful betting info too.