PGA TOUR
Sentry Tournament of Champions
Rahm Wins Thriller at Kapalua
Jon Rahm welcomed in 2023 with a dramatic victory at the Sentry Tournament of Champions in Hawaii. The 28-year-old Spaniard was involved in a late round tussle with America’s Collin Morikawa. Rahm, who was nine shots behind Morikawa after the first hole on Sunday, scored the unlikely win after producing a sensational 10-under 63 final round. Morikawa led the entire field by seven shots after seven holes before collapsing down the stretch.
Rahm overcame a star-studded field to win the Sentry Tournament of Champions by two shots. The 2023 PGA Tour season-opening event featured an elite 39-man field, which included tournament winners from 2022 and the top 30 from last season’s final FedExCup points list. The Sentry Tournament of Champions celebrated its 25th staging at the picturesque Kapalua Resort’s Plantation Course, Maui boasting 17 of the top 20 players in the world.
Rahm’s final round 63 matched the low round for the week. The win was his eighth PGA Tour victory and his seventh consecutive PGA Tour season with a title. The world No. 5 fired rounds of 64, 71, 67 and 63 to reach 27-under. It was Rahm’s fifth come-from-behind win on the PGA Tour.
Morikawa was searching for his first PGA Tour title since winning the 2021 Open Championship at Royal St George’s. The 25-year-old took a six-shot lead after 54 holes and was en route to becoming the first player in the 25-year history at Kapalua to cover the 72 holes bogey-free. The world No. 11 was flawless over the first 67 holes before disaster struck with three bogeys in a row at the 14th, 15th and 16th holes. Morikawa signed for a final round 1-under 72 to take outright second place at 25-under. It was the ninth time in the history of the PGA Tour the 54-hole leader who held six-shot lead was unable to get the job done.
Tom Hoge finished in a tie for third place in his first attempt at the Sentry Tournament of Champions. The 33-year-old American fired a sizzling 9-under 64 on Sunday to get to 23-under. Max Homa joined Hoge in a share of third place after a 7-under 66 final round. Homa moved up the leaderboard on Saturday with a superb 10-under 63.
World No. 2 Scottie Scheffler was hoping return to world No. 1 by finishing in a two-way tie for third or higher this week. Rory McIlroy, the current No. 1 and reigning FedExCup champion did not play this week. Scheffler, who started the final round joint runner up, produced a 3-under 70 on Sunday to get to 21-under and finish in a tie for seventh place.
Will Zalatoris made his long-awaited return to the tour after a four-month rehabilitation process after suffering two herniated discs in his back. The 26-year-old, who captured his maiden PGA Tour win at the FedEx St Jude Championship in August 2022, closed with a brilliant 8-under 65 to reach 20-under and claim a share of 11th place.
Defending champion Cameron Smith was ineligible to compete due to his affiliation with LIV Golf Tour.
Adam Scott was the only Australian in the field with. The 42-year-old Queenslander carded a 4-under 69 on Sunday to finish in 29th place. It was the former Masters champion’s 370th PGA Tour start. Scott will bank more than US$200,000 in prizemoney and become the sixth player in PGA Tour history to break the US$60 million barrier. The 14-time PGA Tour winner joins Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Dustin Johnson, Vijay Singh and Rory McIlroy.
The PGA Tour remains in Hawaii for next week’s Sony Open to be staged at Waialae Country Club. Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama is the defending champion.
Final Scores
Sentry Tournament of Champions
1. Jon Rahm -27
2. Collin Morikawa -25
T3. Tom Hoge -23
T3. Max Homa -23
T5. Tom Kim -22
T5. JJ Spaun -22
T7. Matt Fitzpatrick -21
T7. Tony Finau -21
T7. KH Lee -21
T7. Scottie Scheffler -21
T11. Will Zalatoris -20
T11. Luke List -20
Australian
29. Adam Scott -13
Photo credit: Andy Lyons/Getty Images
